One of my favorite things about summer is having dinner on the deck, especially when it’s a meal we cook on the grill.One problem, though, is all the trips in and out of the house bringing utensils and such. I swear the bugs just congregate, hovering by the screen, for the second it’s open and their chance to dart inside.
So I was thrilled to see that Walmart had their wire jar caddies back in stock last week…and they were on clearance, which is a little worrisome, since I want them to be there when I want them!
Anyway, I bought a couple and used one to make this cute, functional caddy to take out the flatware, napkins, and placemats in one trip. I also added a jar of candies, just to balance out the weight, but that could be replaced with condiments if I needed them.
Last weekend, we had an almost perfect summer meal (it was missing homegrown tomatoes). I managed to snag the last package of Copper River salmon at Costco, and we had corn on the cob and baked beans alongside.
When we lived in Washington state, it was headline news when the Copper River salmon catch first arrived at the airport. It’s supposedly the best salmon around (apologies to Alaskans), or at least the best available in the lower 48, and can only be found for a few short weeks in June.
Here’s how I grilled it:
I sprayed a double layer of foil with cooking spray, then placed the salmon in the middle of it and squeezed a lemon over it. I mixed this rub:
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 4 teaspoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- …and rubbed it on the top of the salmon. I sealed up the foil and grilled the packet for about 10 minutes on the top rack of our grill. The corn, wrapped in foil, was grilling on the bottom rack for about 20 minutes, turning it every 5 minutes. The baked beans, alas, were Bush’s Vegetarian and I just heated them on the stove…but I could have used the grill for that, too!
Have a great weekend, and I hope you are having weather perfect for al fresco dining! (If that’s what you choose to do, of course!)
We actually only just picked up some Copper River Salmon on Sunday, it’s been scare here in WA, too! But just as yummy!
Of course now my kids think it’s delicious and we should have salmon often. Um, it’s Wisconsin…how ’bout some sausage wrapped in cheese instead?