father's day!

I'm obviously a bit delayed on posting this blog... but we had a great Father's Day celebration with my dad a few weeks ago. After he had a long ride, mom and dad came over to our house and we grilled out. This meal sounds like your typical grilling out and hanging out on the deck kind of meal, but everything had an Italian twist on it.

We started with a grilled romaine salad with a creamy herb dressing. Grilled salads are a hot food trend this summer, with lots of high-end restaurants around the country adding them to their menus. So I, of course, could not wait to try it myself.

Grilling the hearts of romaine changes this from an ordinary salad to something totally new. The heat brings out a sweetness in the romaine and you get a slight smokey taste, too.

And as for making your own salad dressings, every time I do this (probably once a week) I always wonder to myself, "Why don't I always make my own dressings?" because they really are so much better. I love the having the fresh flavors of herbs that were only picked 5 minutes prior! I usually just make vinaigrettes, but this creamy herb dressing was a perfect match with our grilled romaine.

After our salads we had burgers and pasta salad. Oh wait, it was not just burgers and pasta salad!

Our "Italian twist" burger patties were topped with thick shaves of parmigiano reggiano, crispy salami, and a spicy red pepper pesto. If you thought bacon was a delicious addition to your cheese burger, just wait until you try it with salami! Next time I think I'll try pepperoni, or maybe even get fancy with something like soppressata.

Then there's the "pasta salad." I've long-loved this pasta both hot and cold, and as a side or even a main dish. Lemon Orecchiette was the perfect fresh accompaniment to our Italian-twisted cookout.

After we had some time to digest our meal, we had a browned butter, chocolate chip & pecan "pizookie." What is a pizookie, you say?

A 'pizza-cookie', baked and served in a personal-sized circular tin, generally with ice cream on top. -Urban Dictionary

BJ's Restaurant and Brewery in Huntington Beach, California, is credited with creating the pizookie, a fresh baked cookie with vanilla ice cream, served in a pizza-style pan. -Wikipedia

To me, a pizookie is like a cookie that stays only partially-cooked in the middle, like one of my other favorite desserts, the chocolate molten cake. 

Well we were all so jazzed about eating our pizookie deliciousness that I didn't even snap a picture! Whoops!

And now for the recipes...

grilled romaine with creamy herb dressing
adapted from Cooking Light magazine
Serves 4-6

2 hearts of romaine, sliced in half lengthwise
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt & Pepper
1/4 c. olive oil mayo
2 tbsp fresh herbs (I used basil, oregano, tarragon, and thyme)
1 lemon, zested and juiced
2 cloves garlic, minced

• Brush cut sides of romaine with olive oil, then top with salt and pepper. Place cut side down on grill at medium heat and grill for 3 to 5 minutes. 
• Put salt, pepper, mayo, herbs, lemon zest, lemon juice, and garlic in a jar. Shake to combine. 
• Slice each chunk of romaine into 2 to 3-inch sections pour dressing over. 

lemon orecchiette

Serves 6

1 pound bronze-cut orecchiette pasta 

bronze-cut pastas have a much rougher texture, allowing it to absorb more of the lemon-y goodness!

2/3 c. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 c. shredded parmesan
3 lemons, zested and juiced
1/2 c. fresh basil, cut in chiffonades

• Cook pasta as directed in salted water. Drain and rinse. 
• Put olive oil, parmesan, and lemon juice in a jar. Shake to combine.  
• Pour over cooked pasta and fold in fresh basil and lemon zest.

browned butter pizookie
serves 6

1 1/2 c. flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1 stick unsalted butter
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 c. chocolate chips (I swear by using Ghiradelli chips. They're totally worth the extra $0.50 over Nestle)
1/3 c. pecans, lightly toasted and chopped

• Heat a skillet on medium heat. Add butter and melt, stirring often. Butter will foam up, then when foam subsides, small brown flecks will gather at the bottom of the pan. Stir continuously until the butter has turned to a rich brown color. Remove from the heat. 
• Combine flour, baking soda, and salt. 
• Combine browned butter and sugar in your stand mixer bowl. Add in egg and vanilla, and mix thourougly. Slowly stir in flour mixture. Fold in chocolate chips. 
• Scoop dough into ramekins, and sprinkle with pecans. 
• Bake for 11-13 minutes. The edges should be cooked and cracking, but the center should still be gooey. Top with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.