Description:
The third in Rick Rodgers's popular 101 series (see also Thanksgiving 101 and Christmas 101), Barbecues 101 is all the ammunition you need to fire up the grill and keep it going all summer long. Rodgers knows that a barbecue is "the ultimate relaxed get-together," and presents detailed, step-by-step instructions for everything from choosing your grill, firing it up, and using it to basic, foolproof recipes for grilling favorites like burgers and chicken. Named Outstanding Cooking Teacher of 1999 by Bon Appétit magazine, Rodgers's recipes are easy to follow and generous with tips and hints. Once you've perfected that burger and the lip-smacking BBQ Sauce (a good old-fashioned sticky one), it's on to fancier fare like Lamb Shish Kebabs with Cracked Spice Rub and Grilled Vidalia Onions, new favorites like Tequila Fajitas and Grilled Corn with Chile Butter, and international jewels like Florentine T-Bone Steaks with Baby Spinach. After demystifying the grill, Rodgers heads for the kitchen. Raspberry Lemonade refreshes the grill chef; Merlot and Summer Fruit Sangria, the "quintessential hot-weather thirst-quencher," is sure to keep your dinner guests patient. Every barbecue somehow feels like a party, and you can guarantee its success with finger foods like Smoky Black Bean Dip, sit-down starters like Cold Corn Bisque with Pesto Swirl, and side dishes like Beer-Baked Beans. Happily, barbecue season is also summer fruit season. A juicy Double-Crust Cherry Pie or a Biscuit-Style Plum Cobbler is the perfect ending to a perfect barbecue. Can't decide where to begin? Rodgers offers menus and timetables to get you organized and prepared, and then you can enjoy your barbecues as much as your guests will! --Leora Y. Bloom
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