Kitchen Kapers with Nancy

From the website Heygrillhey.com, we have instructions that will enable you to prepare Texas Style Smoked Beef Brisket – with that authentic Texas taste – right in your own backyard! Susie Buloch and her husband Todd own a family business that sells BBQ paraphernalia, and Susie founded Hey Grill Hey in 2015, with the sole desire to help people make better BBQ! When she’s not grilling, she’s hanging out with Todd and their three kids, preferably outdoors! She says, “Texas Style Smoked Beef Brisket is more than a simple recipe, it’s a process for melt in your mouth smoked brisket! All you need is salt, pepper, smoke, and time, and you’re on your way to eating the best beef brisket of your life.” 

Ree Drummond of ThePioneerWoman.com website says, “There’s a reason why potatoes are found in cuisines around the world. They may just be one of the most versatile foods out there… you can mash ‘em, smash ‘em, fry ‘em or roast ‘em. You can use whatever herbs (fresh or dried) or spices you have on hand to make a different side dish every time you turn on your oven. The possibilities are endless. One of the key things to keep in mind when roasting potatoes is that you don’t want to crowd the pan. Use a large baking sheet and leave a little room around each chunk to let the heat circulate and allow the potatoes to really crisp up. And don’t forget to toss them in oil for an optimal golden hue and sprinkle with salt along with your other seasonings. Potatoes are basically a sponge for flavor.” 

Copycat Red Lobster biscuits are loaded with Cheddar cheese and brushed with seasoned butter in this easy copycat recipe. No kneading is required — just drop the gently mixed dough directly onto a prepared baking sheet and your warm, freshly baked, bite-sized biscuits will be ready to enjoy with dinner in 15 minutes. The Allrecipes Test Kitchen staff are a team of culinary pros who make and vet recipes using only equipment you’d find in a home kitchen. Staff credentials vary but include training at the Culinary Institute of America; kitchen stints in fine dining restaurants; and countless hours in the test kitchen itself. Making copycat Red Lobster biscuits from scratch is actually quite easy. You’ll find the full recipe below. 

From Robyn Stone of AddAPinch, we have a list of vegetables and their preparation along with grilling times. This is ideal for the grill-master who needs a little instruction on how to prepare and cook vegetables on the grill. You’ll need to drizzle your vegetables with EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) and season them with salt, pepper, and garlic powder… unless you hate garlic. You can easily marinate them in a bowl. Of course, you probably won’t want garlic on the corn; corn is a food that is so good by itself, that it needs NO added seasoning except a little salt and EVOO to keep it moist! You can also put oiled and seasoned Brussels sprouts on a skewer; it will take around 10 minutes, flipping it halfway through. In a foil pack, Brussels sprouts will take about 20 minutes; fingerling or chunk potatoes in a foil pack will take around 20 to 25 minutes to cook. 

TEXAS STYLE SMOKED BEEF BRISKET 
From HeyGrillHey.com / Susie Bulloch 

EQUIPMENT: 

1 smoker 
Chef’s knife 
Butcher paper 
Large cutting board 

INGREDIENTS:  

1 each 12-14 pound whole packer brisket 
2 tablespoons coarse Kosher salt 
2 tablespoons coarse black pepper 
2 tablespoons garlic powder (optional) 

INSTRUCTIONS: 

1) Prepare and trim the brisket: Store your brisket in the refrigerator until you are ready to start trimming. Cold briskets are much easier to work with. Flip your brisket over so the point end is underneath. Remove any silver skin or excess fat from the flat muscle. Trim down the large crescent moon shaped fat section until it is a smooth transition between the point and the flat. Trim any excess or loose meat and fat from the point. Square the edges and ends of the flat. Flip the brisket over and trim the top fat cap to about 1/4 of an inch thickness across the surface of the brisket. 2) Season the brisket: In a mixing bowl or empty spice container, mix the salt, pepper, and garlic. Check over the brisket and evenly distribute the spices on all sides. 3) Smoke the brisket: Preheat your smoker to 225 degrees F using indirect heat and hardwood smoke. Place the brisket on the smoker with the point end facing your main heat source. This is a thicker part of the brisket and it can handle the additional heat. Close the lid and smoke until an internal meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F (usually takes around 8 hours). 4) Wrap the brisket: On a large work surface, roll out a big piece of butcher paper (or foil) and center your brisket in the middle. Wrap the brisket by folding edge over edge, creating a leak proof seal all the way around. Return the wrapped brisket to the smoker, seam side down so the weight from the brisket crimps the edges of the paper wrap down tight. 5) Smoke the brisket again: Close the lid on the smoker and, maintaining 225 degrees F, continue cooking until the internal temperature of the brisket reaches 202 degrees F in the thickest part of the meat (takes anywhere from 5-8 hours). 6) Rest the brisket, then slice and serve: Remove the brisket to a large cutting board and allow to rest for 1 hour before slicing. Slice both the point and the flat against the grain with a sharp knife and serve immediately. 

ROASTED POTATOES FROM REE DRUMMOND 
Ree Drummond, ThePioneerWoman.com 

INGREDIENTS: 

6 medium Yukon Gold potatoes (about 1-1/2 pounds), peeled (optional) and cut into chunks 
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper 
Desired seasonings (such as garlic cloves, herbs (fresh or dried), spices, grated cheese, or lemon juice). 

DIRECTIONS: 

1) Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. 2) Toss the potatoes with the olive oil and any desired seasonings on a baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Arrange the potatoes cut side down and roast until fork tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve warm. 

COPYCAT RED LOBSTER CHEDDAR BISCUITS 
Submitted by cookingmaniac 

INGREDIENTS: 

2 cups all-purpose flour 
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese 
1 tablespoon baking powder 
1 teaspoon salt 
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 
2/3 cup milk 
1/3 cup butter, softened and cut into pieces 
1 large egg 

Butter topping: 

2 tablespoons butter, melted 
2 teaspoons dried parsley (Optional) 
1 teaspoon garlic powder (Optional) 

MAKING THE DOUGH: 

In one bowl, combine the dry ingredients. In another bowl, combine the wet ingredients. Then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and lightly mix. The mixture is meant to be chunky, so be careful not to overmix. Drop the dough onto a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. 

MAKING THE BUTTER TOPPING: 

Melt the butter and stir in garlic powder and parsley (if you’re using it). Then brush the butter topping onto each biscuit. Bake for another 5 minutes, until the biscuits are golden brown. Original recipe yields 12 servings. 

NOTES: 

All-purpose flour will work best for these biscuits. A cup of shredded Cheddar is the key to making the biscuits extra flavorful and cheesy. Milk will moisten the dough. The egg will bind your ingredients together. Butter goes into the dough, and it is also the main ingredient in the topping. Baking powder will help the dough rise without yeast. This recipe calls for salt and garlic powder in the dough plus optional garlic powder and parsley in the butter topping. 

LIST OF GRILLED VEGETABLES 

From Robyn Stone of AddAPinch 

Approximate grill times at medium to high heat: 

• Asparagus, whole spears, 4 to 8 minutes 

• Bell Peppers, halved or quartered, 8 to 10 minutes 

• Corn, in or out of husk, 15 to 20 minutes 

• Eggplant, 1/2-inch slices, 5 to 7 minutes 

• Mushrooms (Portobello), whole, 8 to 10 minutes, flip halfway through 

• Onion, thick rounds or wedges, 8 to 10 minutes, flip halfway through 

• Zucchini and yellow squash, 1/2-inch slices or strips, 5 to 8 minutes, flip halfway through.