Foodie

I like to consider myself a foodie. At least in my own mind. I am having a few guests on board next week for a nice relaxing moonlight trip. We will drop a hook out in the harbor and I'll cook a nice meal. I am planning on setting up my 2 Magma BBQ grills and cooking on them. Good wine, good friends, you get the picture.
I need some ideas. What is the best meal you cooked on your boat? I don't want the typical burgers, hot dogs and chicken. So far, I have cooked eggplant parmesan (sauce made at home) and pizza. I was thinking of some sort of peasant food? Jambalaya, Shrimp boil.
My friends are not snobby and they like to experiment with different foods. Looking for simple and good.

Crab Cakes on foil
Beef tips
Teriyaki flank steak
Sweet Italian sausage
Chops
Sweetcorn
Don't do burgers - they just leave a hell of a mess.

With two grills, I would focus on things which would keep you with your guests. Salad pre tossed with antipasto (capicolla, onion, olives, artichoke hearts, etc.). Shrimp skewered with bacon and mushrooms, marinated in orange juice and spices, sliced summer squash marinated in balsamic vinegar salad dressing, and foil wrapped servings of a pre pepared paella to heat on one of the grills.
Dessert could be chunked strawberries prepared with sugar and a touch of black pepper over shortcake, maybe with cheaters creme fraiche (sour cream mixed with vanilla and sugar to taste)
Good luck with the evening.

I'm getting hungry already.
Skewered shrimp sounds good.
I love flank steak.

Bacon wrapped pork tenderloin filet, corn on the cob in foil and baked potato .From the house : homemade tomato pie and banana pudding topped with chessman cookies .

Molly said:

I'm getting hungry already.
Skewered shrimp sounds good.
I love flank steak.

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I’m getting hungry too...and I just ate lunch. How about beef and reef? Thin beef tenderloin steaks and shrimp on skewers for the grill, corn and avocado salad made at home (peel, chunk, and add avocado just before serving), jug of premade margaritas, or a nice, cold bottle of Chablis. For dessert, grill peach halves, serve on vanilla ice cream with premade balsamic vinegar reduction (reduce 1/2c balsamic vinegar with 4 star anise and 2black peppercorns to syrup, warm a few seconds in microwave to serve).

Definitely, grilled peaches. I've been making them for years. I saw Bobby Flay make them once, been making them ever since.

It's always fun to run with a theme when entertaining. Also, IMHO keep the cooking on the boat to a minimum, prep up before hand.

So, with this in mind I humbly offer the following:

The Mediterranean BBQ

Succulent Greek marinated Spring Lamb Kebabs (lamb, capsicum, Spanish onion)
Cous Cous (Pearl style) with slow roasted vegetables(lots of garlic & Rosemary)
A tangy Tzatziki , mix in some garlic & lemon
Stuffed Baby Bell Peppers roasted, lots of stuffings to choose from
Flat bread to warm on the BBQ
Turkish bread roasted on the BBQ to mop everything up with.

That combination will look terrific on a plate. Best of all you can make it all prior to boarding, leaving the Kebabs as the cooking centerpiece, as you regale them with this 300 year old recipe for the lamb you came across, with tongs in one hand and a glass of good Rioja in the other. They will think you are amazing.

Don't cheat though, make the dishes from scratch, not that difficult & that will certainly earn you Brownie points.

I like the idea of the Peaches, sounds yummy.

Andy G said:

It's always fun to run with a theme when entertaining. Also, IMHO keep the cooking on the boat to a minimum, prep up before hand.

So, with this in mind I humbly offer the following:

The Mediterranean BBQ

Succulent Greek marinated Spring Lamb Kebabs (lamb, capsicum, Spanish onion)
Cous Cous (Pearl style) with slow roasted vegetables(lots of garlic & Rosemary)
A tangy Tzatziki , mix in some garlic & lemon
Stuffed Baby Bell Peppers roasted, lots of stuffings to choose from
Flat bread to warm on the BBQ
Turkish bread roasted on the BBQ to mop everything up with.

That combination will look terrific on a plate. Best of all you can make it all prior to boarding, leaving the Kebabs as the cooking centerpiece, as you regale them with this 300 year old recipe for the lamb you came across, with tongs in one hand and a glass of good Rioja in the other. They will think you are amazing.

Don't cheat though, make the dishes from scratch, not that difficult & that will certainly earn you Brownie points.

I like the idea of the Peaches, sounds yummy.

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Andy, the issue you come up against here is that Americans do not generally like or eat lamb. Clearly there are exceptions, but sorry to say that is the case. We talk to many neighbors who state they simply don't like it - mainly because it wasn't in their diet growing up.

It all stems from the cattle-sheep range wars. Where ranchers felt that sheep ate the grass too short for their cattle to graze on, so fought to keep them out.

Being from the UK and used to NZ lamb we still enjoy it - but pay a HEFTY premium for it here is the US.

A dish I like we call Cajun shrimp and noodles. Melt a stick of butter in a cast iron skillet. When the butter is starting to get brown add in peeled and deveined shrimp. Season with Cajun spices. Be careful not to over cook the shrimp. When ready pour over the noodles. I personally like angel hair pasta, but whatever works for you is fine. You can adjust quantities and seasonings.

I like both goat and lamb. I'll be hitting the local butcher on Friday. Friday night will be "prep night" I'll take some pix and post next week. Saturday night weather forecast is "typical" SW Fl. Hot and sticky with a chance of late afternoon showers. That means short heavy downpours with lightening. But, the evenings are usually pretty nice. The water is flat. So dinner is on.

For all who may be interested, our little "moon light" dinner trip went fine. The weather was a little iffy at first. I decided to have the first and second course on the land. Then the weather improved in time to go for a ride, drop a hook and watch the sun set while having dessert. Of course we also had adult beverages.


The first course was a cold anti pasta. Typical fare, artichoke hearts, pepperoncino, dried meats, olives and roasted red peppers. Good conversation helps.


The main course was marinated lamb with Tazeakie sauce (can't spell), and a Tandoori flat bread warmed up on the grill. I was going to do skewers, but it seemed like too much work. I just grilled the lamb on the BBQ in a cast iron pan. It was good I did. The marinade caused the lamb to have a BUNCH of liquid while cooking. I cooked the lamb for a few minutes in the pan, then removed it so I could brown the pieces on the grill. With all that liquid, it wasn't going to brown. If I had put it on the grill, what a mess! Turned out very well.


Then we took the boat out into the harbor and dropped a hook. After a great looking sun set, I set up the grill and grilled some peaches with brown sugar until caramelized. I had some strawberries setting up in a bowl with sugar on top. They were sweet with their own juices. A scoop of Breyers vanilla on top of a grilled peach topped off with some very sweet strawberries. YUM


More wine and conversation and my first "night" trip, with this boat back to the slip.


Didn't loose anyone overboard, didn't hit anything coming back in the dark and tied up safely at the dock. All that's left is washing the boat and adjusting the lines.


Isn't boating fun? A simple dinner becomes an adventure.


Thanks for all the suggestions.