Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Foodbuzz 24×24: Grillin’ & Chillin’

Posted by Tina / 8 comments » / Entertaining / Festivities

The hubs and I absolutely LOVE to entertain! Naturally, Foodbuzz 24×24 is a dream for us! 🙂
What exactly is Foodbuzz 24×24 you may ask?
Foodbuzz 24x24x24 = 24 Featured Publishers each create a meal (24 Meals) all on the same day (in 24 Hours).  Each month, the Foodbuzz Featured Publishers are allowed to submit a “Proposal” for a meal that they would like to create, and 24 are chosen.  I was ECSTATIC when I found out my proposal was chosen this month!!! It was my 1st ever proposal submission and it was picked?! AHHH!! 🙂 I danced around my kitchen / house all night when I found out. Seriously. Ask the hubs.
This particular month, Foodbuzz teamed up with Electrolux to help raise money (& awareness) for Ovarian Cancer Research.  For each Published Foodbuzz 24×24 meal, Foodbuzz & Electrolux donated $250 to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund! How awesome! The OCRF’s mission is: “To fund research to find a method of early detection and ultimately a cure for ovarian cancer.” Go check out their website to find out more about them and their fight to find a way to detect this prevalent cancer earlier! Women: educate yourselves about Ovarian Cancer as it is “the 5th leading cause of cancer death in US Women (Ovarian Cancer Research Fund).” Find out about the symptoms so you can detect & have it diagnosed earlier. Okay? Okay.
Alrighty, let’s get to the recap of my meal!
.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .
My Proposal: “It’s full fledged Summer and here in Florida, it’s hotter than hot! What better to do than to get the cooking outside on the grill (keep that oven from heating up the house!). This is an ode to Bobby Flay, Mr. Grillin’ & Chillin’ himself! hah”
Sidenote: I actually got to meet Bobby (as if we’re on a first name basis haha) back before he was uber famous.  He had just started that show Grillin’ & Chillin’.  I was probably 12 and he was doing a cooking demo at the Biltmore Estate. Nobody really knew who he was but I did! I was watching the Food Network back then too 🙂 hehe Anyways, I thought it was the coolest thing ever to meet Bobby Flay (even cooler now!)!

Bobby Flay back in the day (check out that hair!)
Okay, end of tangent. haha So, the hubs and I LOVE to grill in the Summer time, which is basically year round here in Florida! For my Foodbuzz 24×24, I created a meal of almost entirely grilled foods!
.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .
The Decor:
I kept it simple with the all white plates, a simple flower/candle centerpiece, and summery green napkins.
.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .
The Company:
My Mom & My In-Laws
Brendan & Court
Me & My super helpful sous chef 🙂
I couldn’t leave these cuties out! 🙂
.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .
The Menu:
Beverages
Minted Sweet Tea
Mojito Bar
(Classic, Strawberry, & Blood Orange)
Seasonal Beer Selection
We let everyone choose their own mix-ins for their drinks. The Strawberry Mojitos seemed to be the crowd Fav for the cocktail/appetizer hour! However, everyone thoroughly enjoyed the minted sweet tea along with their main course. Anything with mint is super refreshing and a much needed reprieve from the scorching Florida sun!

Appetizers
Roasted Whole Artichokes with Lemon Garlic Aioli
Grilled Mexican Pizza
The Grilled Mexican Pizza was the show stopper in the appetizer round. Whole Wheat Crust, Tomatillo Salsa Base, Black Beans, Chicken, Corn, and Colby Jack Cheese = YUM!  I topped it with fresh cilantro and served it with Sour Cream.  Everyone kept saying they could just eat the pizza for dinner.  It was delicious (if I do say so myself!) 🙂 Thanks to Brendan for the excellent Tomatillo Salsa Recommendation (Frontera brand). PERFECTION.
The Lemon Aioli was a winner as well - such a delicious dip. You could dip anything in it! One comment was “You could dip a booger in this and it would taste amazing” haha Ew. But a nice compliment I guess? 🙂

Salad

Grilled Caesar Salad

I had Grilled Caesar Salad at two different country clubs this past year and it was delicious both times! I decided to give it a go for my grilled meal and it turned out pretty darn good! Everyone enjoyed it! It was a nice start to the Main Course.
Main Course
Grilled Caesar Chicken
Grilled Marinated Strip Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

The Skirt Steak was the favorite of the night.  And the Chimichurri… oh man, the chimichurri.  I could drink it. I think everyone could.  The steak was marinaded overnight in tons of garlic, lime, mojo, cayenne, chili powder, salt & pepper, and olive oil. It was SO tender, and the hubs grilled it to PERFECTION. It was killer.  We doused it in the Chimichurri and about died of bliss. SO tasty.
The Caesar Chicken was Super moist.  It too was marinaded overnight, except in Caesar dressing. The fresh lemon and garlic worked it’s magic on the meat! Tasty & Simple!
Sides
Rice with Vermicelli
Black Beans

Didn’t hold a candle to any of the main dishes, but as far as sides go, it was a tasty compliment to the steak and chicken (just not a show stopper, ya know?).
Dessert
Grilled Pineapple with Brown Sugar Rum Sauce
Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice-Cream

Oh man, where to begin?! Everyone LOVED dessert.  I think every single person got seconds! haha Grilled Pineapple, Brown Sugar & Spiced Rum Sauce and Vanilla Bean Ice Cream… one tasty tasty combo! Perfect end to a perfect evening! 🙂
Other Pictures from the evening:

Overall, the meal was a smashing success.  Everyone enjoyed the food, drinks, and the company. And now I know that if we lose power from any hurricanes here, I have some fabulous recipes that will come in handy! 🙂

Thanks for reading!

Check back here in the next few days, I’ll be posting Recipes from my menu! You’ll definitely want to try some of them out! 🙂

Thanks again Foodbuzz!

Share
8 comments
  Pin It

8 Responses to “Foodbuzz 24×24: Grillin’ & Chillin’”

  1. 1

    michelle @ The Domestic Mama and The Village Cook — September 8, 2010 @ 5:51 am

    Yum Yum Yum! Looks like fun! I love doing the 24 events, too!

  2. 2

    life, in recipes — September 8, 2010 @ 6:13 am

    Everything looks so good! What a great way to celebrate the (almost) end of summer. Congratulations on your first submission being picked!

  3. 3

    notyet100 — September 8, 2010 @ 7:28 am

    fabulous post,..:-)

  4. 4

    Kristina (Tina) — September 9, 2010 @ 4:30 pm

    Thanks everyone! 🙂

  5. 5

    Mom — September 10, 2010 @ 9:31 am

    The food was delicious and the evening was a lot of fun! The grilled mexican pizza was incredible. Everyone should try it! Delish!!!

  6. 6

    Emma — September 14, 2010 @ 9:09 am

    wow, everything looks so delicious!! i can't wait to try some of your recipes!

  7. 7

    mummy's kitchen — September 18, 2010 @ 12:05 pm

    Looks amazing, I love the look of the pizza and the photos are beautiful - loving the cocktails.

  8. 8

    mummy's kitchen — September 18, 2010 @ 12:06 pm

    Looks amazing, I love the look of the pizza and the photos are beautiful - loving the cocktails.

Leave a Comment