7 Tips for Roasting on the Grill

1. Fuel Up :
Make sure you have plenty of gas or charcoal on hand before you get started.

2. Get It Hot :
Preheat a gas grill (with all burners lit) or start your charcoal about 20 minutes before you put your meat on.

3. Check the Heat :
If your grill doesn't have a built-in thermometer, you'll need to hang a metal thermometer (one that reads up to 550 degrees F) through the vent. To gauge the temperature without a thermometer, hold your open palm about 5 inches above the grill rack; the fire is high (450 to 500 degrees F) if you have to move your hand in 2 seconds, medium (350 to 400 degrees F) if you have to move your hand in 5 seconds and low (250 to 300 degrees F) if you have to move your hand in 10 seconds.

4. Tame the Flames :
To roast on the grill, meat needs to be placed over indirect heat or a "flame-free" area. To create an indirect-cooking area, turn off one burner on a gas grill or push coals to one side of a charcoal grill. Roast the meat on the flame-free section of the grill.

5. Keep a Lid on It :
Avoid opening the grill repeatedly. Every time you do, heat escapes, the temperature drops, and the grill can take up to 10 minutes to re-establish the proper temperature.

6. Spin It :
When grill roasting, one side of the meat is closer to the heat. To cook meat evenly, rotate it once or twice.

7. Smoke Up :
To add smoky flavor, sprinkle wood chips directly on the heated coals of a charcoal grill. For gas grills place the chips in a foil "basket" made by crimping up the edges or in an inexpensive, stainless-steel pan. Place the pan or basket on the grate directly over the heat.

Grilling Safety Tips

1. Keep young children and animals at least 10 feet away from the grill.

2. Grill with the lid on to keep the fire contained – it also helps the meat cook faster and retain that smoky flavor grilling gives.

3. Use long tongs. They let you handle the meat without having to put your hands near the heat, risking burns.

4. When you're done grilling, close the vents on the lid and base of the grill to put the fire out.

5. Make sure your coals are completely cool before disposing of them.

6. Keep a fire extinguisher nearby in case of emergency. You likely won't need it, but if you do, you'll be happy to have it!

7. The easiest way to put out a flare up is to close the lid.

8. Always use different tongs to handle raw food and cooked food to prevent cross-contamination.

9. Keep your grill clean. Greasy buildup can be a fire hazard.

10. Wear sunscreen and drink lots of water to avoid sunburn and dehydration while cooking out doors.

15 Tips for the Perfect Burger

1. Don't Push Down on the Meat :

Consider this the cardinal rule of cooking burgers. "It squeezes out the juices, and the juices are the flavor," says Jeff Weinstein, founder and owner of the Counter burger restaurants. "Would you rather have a juicy product that took an extra minute or a non-juicy product that came a little faster?"

2. Buy Good Meat :

Weinstein likes to have his butcher custom grind his meat -- he asks for a sirloin steak or rib-eye with a meat-to-fat ratio between 75-25 and 80-20. Even if you just go to your supermarket's meat section, don't fall for the trap so many people do, assuming the leanest meat is the best. "It'll be cardboard by the time you're done."

3. Chill the Meat First :

Before you even form the patties, put the meat in the fridge for a half hour or so. You don't want your body heat to melt away the fat as you shape it; getting it colder helps it withstand the treatment. Weinstein even washes his hands in cold water before working with it to reduce their temperature.

4. Use a Scale :

Unless you want people griping about unequal treatment, or you have a practiced eye for meat, use a scale to balance even amounts in each burger. Even Weinstein does.

5. Don't Overwork the Meat :

People tend to ball up the meat as they form their patties. Don't do that; less handling is better. The more you push down and compress, the tougher the meat will be.

6. Use Both Hands to Form the Perfect Patty :

Pull the meat apart into equal pieces, then pat down into a patty on a hard surface with one hand while forming the rough edge with the other. Resist the urge to slam down! Some people use the caps of big mayonnaise jars instead, which is fine. Weinstein prefers a thickness of 3/4 of an inch to an inch.

7. Dimple the Patty :

When beef patties cook, they contract, and can leave you with a rounded, uneven burger. Push a little well into the center of the meat, about an inch or two around and a quarter-inch deep. The burger will be perfectly flat when they're finished cooking.

8. Back in the Fridge :

After you've formed your patties, put them back in the fridge to cool down again for 30 to 45 minutes.

9. Use the Right Buns :

Too many people put all their efforts into the meat without remembering that the bun forms more than half the burger. Try for a meat-to-bun ratio of 1:1. Buns about 4 inches to 4-1/2 inches round are generally good. You don't want a super-thick burger overhanging the buns-but rather to get a taste of every element-meat, bun, toppings-in every bite.

10. Get the Grill Really Hot :

"The hotter the better," Weinstein says. "You're trying to sear or char the meat really quickly so you have nice color on the outside and flavor from the barbecue on it." Weinstein likes to put wood chips in his grill for added smoke flavor.

11. Be Generous With the Salt and Pepper :

Add the spices just before it goes on the grill, and don't be sparing. Weinstein says he doesn't like to add salt before this stage because he doesn't want the salt drying the burger out.

12. Put It on and Leave It Alone :

Place the burger on the grill well-side up, then leave it alone. "The biggest mistake people make is pushing the burger around because they want to look like a grill master," Weinstein says. "Stick it down and leave it. You want to touch the burger three to four times at most. You'll know if you have a sear if it comes right off. If it sticks to the grill, you haven't let it sear long enough."

13. Get a Nice Criss-Cross Pattern :

Here's the secret to that nice pattern people love so much: After you get the first sear, do a quarter turn, leave it alone for a little longer -- a total of 5 to 6 minutes for that first side. Then flip it, cooked-side down, leave it another three to four minutes, then do another quarter turn, let it get its marking, then take it off the grill.

14. Put on the Cheese Before It Leaves the Grill:

Add cheese after your last flip or turn, while the burger's still on the grill. It'll start to melt slightly and be nicely oozing by the time it gets to the table.

15. Have Plenty of Toppings on Hand:

Everyone's got a different idea about what tops the perfect burger. Besides the standards -- lettuce, tomatoes, pickles -- try at least five or six other, less common options. Consider pepperoncini, jalapenos, or dried cranberries and break out of the American-cheddar-Swiss triumvirate of cheeses. Think havarti, Manchego or brie.

Pizza Dough

2 1/2 cups water, divided use
1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast or 2 1/2 teaspoons
3/4 cup old dough*
6 cups all-purpose flour, divided use
1 teaspoon malt extract
4 teaspoons sea salt, divided use
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

1. Sprinkle yeast over 1 cup of warm water (105°F to 115°F); let sit until foamy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix old dough* with 1 cup of cool water and 4 or 5 handfuls of flour, stirring until you have a pasty mixture. Dissolve malt extract in yeast mixture and add this to old dough mixture; stir until well combined.

2. Place half of the rest of the flour (about 2 1/2 cups) and half the salt in a food processor and pulse to mix. Add half of the old dough/yeast mixture. Pulse the processor to combine ingredients, then slowly add half of the remaining water (1/4 cup) through the feed tube while the processor is running. Process the mixture for between 30 seconds and 1 minute. The dough should be wet and sticky. In the last 10 seconds of processing, pour half of the olive oil through the feed tube. Empty the dough into a large bowl and combine remainder of the ingredients in the food processor to make a dough in the same way. Combine both batches in the bowl by mixing them together with a wooden spoon or plastic dough scraper. Let the dough rise, covered, in a warm place for 1 hour.

3. The dough will still be very wet, so sprinkle plenty of flour over it and remove it from bowl, turning it out onto a well-floured surface. Divide into 10 pieces about the size of tangerines (each will weigh about 4 to 5 ounces) for individual pizzas or cal zone. Round the dough up into tight little balls. Cover the balls with plastic wrap and let them rise a second time for between 3 to 5 hours.

4. About 1 hour before assembling, preheat oven to 475°F; if using a pizza stone, place in oven to preheat.

5. When ready the dough balls will be very puffy but, because they are so moist, will be somewhat flat. Flatten each piece of dough with the palm of your hand. With your fingertips, poke dough in the middle, leaving a 1/2-inch strip around the edge untouched, and making sure you do not poke through the dough. Lift the piece up, place it on the curled-up knuckles of both hands and gently stretch, while rotating the piece. The result will be a flat disk that measures 1/8-inch thick and 6 or 7-inches in diameter.

6. Cover with your favorite sauce and toppings and bake in oven or on baking stone for 12 to 15 minutes, or until crust is golden and crisp and toppings are hot and bubbly.

Makes 10 individual pizzas.

*Old dough is basically leftover, unbaked bread dough (usually held in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours, or 6 to 8 hours at room temperature) that's used to enhance the flavor of other bread. Decrease the amount of salt you add in this recipe if the old dough contains salt.

Apple Bread – Quick and Easy!

1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg
2 cups sifted unbleached flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 Tablespoons milk
1/2 cup raisins
2 large apples finely chopped (Use good baking apples)
1/2 cup walnuts chopped - nut allergen alert –

Glaze – optional:
1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 Tablespoon water
2 Tablespoons melted butter

1. Combine oil, sugar, and vanilla. Cream until light and fluffy.

2. Add eggs and beat well. Sift together flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking powder.

3. Add milk, raisins, apples, nuts, and dry ingredients to mixture and stir only until flour is well dampened.

4. Bake in well-greased 9 x 5 x 4 inch loaf pan at 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes. Cool; remove from pan.

5. Combine glaze ingredients; mix well and pour over loaf. Let glaze set before wrapping loaf tightly. Best if made day prior to serving.

6. If turning into sticks – preheat oven to 200-250F and cut the bread into stick-like slices. Place the slices on a baking sheet and allow the sticks to bake for approx. 2 hours or until hard and crunchy.

We have substituted the following for the apples:

Blueberries (1 cup)

Peaches (1 1/2 cup fresh sliced thin)

Carrots (1 1/2 cup shredded)

Slim-Down Secret: Eat Delicious, Satisfying Food

Fiber:
Both types of fiber, insoluble and soluble, can help your weight-loss efforts.

Insoluble Fiber:
Provides volume to food without adding a lot of calories. Foods rich in insoluble fiber include high-fiber cereal, 100% whole wheat bread, wheat bran, fruits, and vegetables.

Soluble Fiber:
Helps stabilize your blood sugar levels, which in turn help you better control your hunger and cravings. This type of fiber also slows down the transit time of food in your gut, so you are fuller for a longer period of time. Foods rich in soluble fiber include strawberries, apples, pears, oatmeal, chickpeas, and beans.

Juicy Foods:
Fruits and veggies with a high water content “built into the food” helps to fill you up, so you’ll eat less collectively throughout the day. Go for watermelon, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, mushrooms, grapefruit, and cantaloupe.

Lean Protein:
Protein can slightly rev up your metabolism after ingestion (more so than carbohydrates and fat). Be sure to include some lean protein with every meal. Good sources include chicken breast, canned light tuna, wild salmon, egg whites, crab, shrimp, turkey breast, tofu, lean red meat, low-fat dairy products, beans, and lentils.

Diary Foods:
The jury is still out, but some evidence shows that dairy foods may help promote weight loss. Stick with low-fat or nonfat varieties. Calcium also helps you maintain strong bones, protect your colon, and manage your blood pressure. Top choices include nonfat yogurt, nonfat and low-fat cheese, and skim milk.

Foods that make you work:
People eat less, when the foods require a bit of work. For example, buy whole peanuts instead of unshelled ones, and prepare soybeans in their pods instead of just the beans.

Sugarless Gum:
Contrary to what many people think, sugarless gum does not stimulate your appetite. In fact, it’s a great way to satiate a flavor fix and prevent you from popping something caloric in your mouth. Keep a pack of sugarless gum on hand (or a pack of mints).

Hot Beverages:
Sipping a hot, low-cal beverage is a great way to stave off extra calories when you’re looking to eat out of pure boredom. And because they’re hot, you’ll have to slowly sip them over an extended period of time. Choose beverages under 100-calories, such as green and herbal teas, diet hot cocoa, skim latte and cappuccino, and reduced sodium bouillon.

Spicy Food and Capsaicin:
Research shows that you’re often satisfied eating less food when the meal is spicy hot. Plus, you automatically eat slower and drink more water! If your taste buds can handle the heat, add chili peppers, hot sauce, and salsa to your meals.

Pre-portioned Snacks:
There’s no chance of overeating when you only have one portion in front of you. Try the following single-serving snacks when you want something fun to eat: Skinny Cow frozen desserts, Jolly Time’s Healthy Pop microwave popcorn, Nature Valley granola bars, Pria bars, Tootsie Pop lollipops, and Swiss Miss fat-free pudding.