Rare - Steaks, Medium Well

Greetings! My world is small: home, work, shopping at the plaza. Once in a while we go to the mall. Often we go to Girl Scout events - my two daughters and me. The man of the house goes from home to work and back. He loves that. We have lots of pets - he loves them and we play with them for hours, one of the many hobbies that go on in our space.

I love food. Any kind - even bad food. My mother learned to cook the Old Irish way - I didn't know green beans could be eaten crunchy until I got access to the Internet a few years ago. I have been voted as "most likely to have edible food in the glove compartment" by the Girl Scouts though, as I do allow, nay, encourage, eating in my car.

Meat has always been on my "any time, anywhere" list - never a day as a vegetarian in my life (on purpose, anyway). And today I figured out how to grill!

Mr. Lamond has given up the seat - after 23 years as grillmaster, he no longer grills. Not really sure why not, just that the Big Kid had to be taught, got good at lighting the briquettes to smelting temp. She gets antsy and bored with the actual cooking though, so she also quit. Baby Luce has no interest - hence, my learning. So. The trick is to have patience. The briquettes will light. The charcoal chimney will get the charcoal hot all the way to the top. No, you do not have to have the cover on to appropriately cook steaks. Wait til the timer rings before turning the meat. Apples do not make good grilling items. I am also a huge fan of Alton Brown, and his instructions for grilling steak perfectly in "I'm Just Here for the Food" are incredibly easy to follow. Just look it up and you are an instant EXPERT!

There. Years of outdoor cooking and camping practice in one paragraph. Having the broiler handy (in my house, at home) got me comfy with the whole array of outdoor cooking methods (fire and charcoal in addition to the camp stove). Voila, anyone can do it! Do not expect step-by-step procedures from me. All I can say is get your own books and practice.

I did have Girl Scout leader camping training many years ago, which taught the fundamentals and launched my outdoor cooking avocation in 1998. The problem with that training is that the trainers do not go to camp with you and the handful of girls (maybe even two handfuls). The practicing goes unsupervised, except for the close scrutiny by young girls who are waiting for their turns as grillers (well, match-lighters, really). Hence, there is a lot of pressure at camp to cook without the grill so that you can eat the same day you start cooking. Or else, give it over to the girls, who somehow manage to catch on. Contrary to what we might think, these children actually listen to what you say, make critical judgements about what you do, analyze how to get the theory to work, and then get the grill going! Metaphorically as well as grill-itarily.

So, Big Kid was quite able to get charcoals and fires burning brightly at camp and then at home too. Plus, Mr. L allowed her to set things on fire (in the yard, during the appropriate seasons, with the hose nearby). He also has her driving his car (with her learner's permit), thereby reaffirming his reputation as the sky-diving, motorcycle-riding, devil-may-care kind of guy I married long ago. Of course, if he has to yank the wheel to the correct lane, he is stronger than she (so far) and would not experience the "I can do it myself" yanking in the opposite direction by Big Kid that I survived as we drove over the double-yellow lines into oncoming traffic (Aarrgghh!!! I am never driving with this person again!!!). Ok. Not so bad the second time, but I think it is really like being a lobster in the pot slowly heating to the boiling point - I will be fine until it is too late!

Back to grilling: I set the timer when I put the meat onto the grill. I did not peek under, or mash the steaks with the spatula, nor did I marinade them. Set, time, turn. Time. Remove. Oh, so yummy! Stop & Shop has some Certified Angus Beef that came out crusted on the outside, juicy on the inside. Next time I will take pictures - I have the cutest little tabletop grill (also from Stop & Shop).

One time at Girl Scout camp I made Turkey in a Trash Can. This worked out great! Except girls at camp do not eat turkey. Despite that, my recipe and procedure gets published soon, in Tim and Christine Conner's new book, "The Scout Outdoor Cookbook" that is coming out soon (supposed to have been June so any day now!). My method is less messy than the Boy Scout sites you'll find - Keep your fingers crossed that I make the cut! If not, I'll put the procedures here but I want Christine's book to do well.

The steaks grilled today came out great but I feel the adventures are just starting. High cholesterol and beef are a bad combo - hence Mr. L's mandate "no beef please" which I don't heed on the 4th of July! Next up: eggplant!

Happy Fourth of July!