Things to Grill for the Fourth of July

Happy Fourth of July! Grill, grill, grill! There are few things that make me feel more American than standing over a barbeque, basting corn with spiced butter and charring a few chorizos. Perhaps a bulldog festooned in patriotic boat parade beads adorned with an American flag. Another good one I’ve included below is flat-iron steak with a spicy/sour chimichurri sauce.

 

Cast-Iron-Grilled Romano Beans with Garlic Aioli and Chile-Buttered Corn

AIOLI

1 small head of garlic, halved lengthwise

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt

Pepper

1 large egg yolk

1/2 teaspoon whole-grain mustard

1 tablespoon Champagne vinegar

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup canola oil

Pinch of cayenne

BEANS

4 chorizo sausages, intact in casing

4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 pounds romano beans

2 shallots, thinly sliced

Kosher salt

Pepper

Lemon wedges

 

MAKE THE AIOLI Light a grill. On a sheet of foil, drizzle the garlic with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and wrap tightly. Grill over moderately high heat, turning, until tender, 50 minutes. Unwrap and let cool.

Squeeze the garlic cloves into a mini food processor. Add the egg yolk, mustard, vinegar and lemon juice; pulse to blend. With the machine on, slowly drizzle in the remaining olive oil and the canola oil until incorporated. Season the aioli with cayenne, salt and pepper.

GRILL THE BEANS In a large cast-iron skillet set on the grill, cook half of the chorizo in 2 teaspoons of the olive oil over moderate heat until softened.

Add half of the beans and cook until lightly charred and tender, 12 minutes. Stir in half of the shallots and cook until golden, 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a platter and repeat with the remaining ingredients. Serve the beans with the aioli and lemon wedges.

Oven-Roasted Chile Butter Corn

Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

8 ears fresh sweet corn with husks

Chile Butter (see below)

Cornflakes

Green onions, and/or lime

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place the corn, untrimmed and in the husks, directly on center oven rack. Bake for 45 minutes or until corn is tender.

Peel back husks and remove silks. Spread 1 tablespoon Chile Butter over corn. Sprinkle with crushed corn flakes. Top with green onions and/or limes. Pass remaining Chile Butter.

A few minutes before serving, remove outer dark husks, peel back remaining husks and remove silks. Brush with 1 tablespoon of the Chile Butter.

To keep grilled corn warm, cover with foil and let stand up to 10 minutes. Store prepared Chile Butter, covered, in refrigerator up to 1 week. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving. I figured out that this chile butter also tastes amazing with eggs on toast.

Chile Butter

2 limes

½ cup butter, softened

2 teaspoons ground ancho chile pepper

1 teaspoon ground chipotle chile pepper

4 cloves garlic, minced

Finely shred the peel from the limes and juice the limes. In a small bowl whisk together butter, and the lime peel and juice. Stir in ancho, chipotle and garlic. Transfer butter mixture to a serving bowl.

 

Grilled Flat Iron Steaks with Chimichurri

 

adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

3 boneless beef chuck top blade (flat iron) steaks, cut 3/4 inch thick

1 teaspoon kosher salt or salt

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon chili powder

½ teaspoon cracked black pepper

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 cup firmly packed fresh cilantro leaves

1 cup firmly packed fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley leaves

¼ cup white wine vinegar

8 cloves garlic, cut up

½ teaspoon kosher salt or salt

½ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon crushed red pepper

¼ cup olive oil

Directions

Trim fat from steaks. Place steaks on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or plastic wrap.

For rub, in a small bowl combine the 1 teaspoon salt, the garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, the chili powder, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Sprinkle mixture evenly over both sides of each steak; rub in with your fingers. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

For chimichurri, in a food processor or blender combine cilantro, parsley, vinegar, garlic, the 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, and the crushed red pepper. With processor or blender running, slowly add oil through opening in lid in a thin, steady stream until mixture is smooth. Set aside.

For a charcoal grill, grill steaks on the rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals for 7 to 9 minutes for medium-rare (145 degrees F) or 10 to 12 minutes for medium (160 degrees F), turning once halfway through grilling. (For a gas grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Place steaks on grill rack over heat. Cover and grill as above.) Serve steaks with chimichurri.