Five Easy Tailgating/Grilling Recipes from the Grill Grrrl: Fish Dip, Jalapeno Poppers, and More

Robyn Lindars

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Robyn Medlin Lindars is our resident grilling and BBQ fanatic. Check out her blog at www.grillgrrrl.com.

Tailgating season is upon us: a season that glorifies drinking copious amounts of beer while wearing your favorite Gator/Dolphin/Hurricanes t-shirt, and eating large amounts of dip.

And jalapeno poppers.

Let's not forget the fire-roasted guacamole.

Here are my top recipes that will (hopefully) get your team lucky, you lucky, or you both lucky.

5) Prosciutto and Jalapeno Poppers:

Ingredients
--10 jalapenos
-- One (6-8 0z) package of prosciutto
-- 8 ounces of havarti cheese (or your favorite type of cheese).

Directions:
-- Cut the tops off of the jalapeno peppers and scrape the insides out, removing the seeds.
-- Cut cheese into lengthwise pieces the length of the jalapenos.
-- Wrap a slice of cheese with a slice of prosciutto, then stuff it inside a jalapeno as far as it will go. Repeat this process with all the poppers.
--Prepare a grill for medium direct heat (about 350 degrees). Grill the poppers for about 8 minutes total, 4 minutes each side, or until nice char marks form and the cheese begins to melt.

Robyn Lindars

​4) South Florida Smoked Fish Dip Recipe:
This is the number-one hit on my blog and for good reason: if you follow the recipe, this will be the best fish dip you have had down here. This is modified from a version given to me by my neighbor, whose family used to trade smoked fish with with the Seminoles in the '40s. A smoked marlin or kingfish finished with Old Bay seasoning, cream cheese, jalapeno and lime zest, this dip will get you through good and bad times.

Ingredients:
-- 6-8 ounces smoked fish, skin remonved, meat chopped in coarsely (so as not to burn out the motor on your food processor!)
-- 1/2 block neufchatel cream cheese (neufchatel is lower in fat and you can't tell the difference in this recipe)
-- 2 jalapenos
-- juice of one lime
-- 1 tablespoon old bay seasoning
-- 1/4 cup light mayo (or less, depending on how wet your mixture is and how well it is blending)
-- salt, pepper to taste

Directions:
Puree ingredients in a food processor until well blended. I like to make mine almost whipped so as to easily spread on crackers.

Robyn Lindars

​3) Fire Roasted Key Lime Guacamole Recipe:
What happens when you put Florida avocados, key limes, garlic, tomatoes, and jalapenos on the grill -- then throw them together with some smoked sea salt, pepper and cilantro? Absolute Guacamole Heaven is what happens.

Ingredients:
2 Florida avocados (the really big avocados) or 4 Haas avocados
8 key limes, sliced in halves
3 tblsp cilantro
8-10 cherry tomatoes OR 2 small Roma tomatoes
4 cloves of garlic
2 jalapenos
sea salt- to taste
ground pepper- to taste
skewers, presoak for 20 minutes - for the garlic cloves and cherry tomatoes

Directions:
Heat the grill to medium heat, about 350 degrees. Halve the avocados and remove the seeds. Skewer the garlic cloves and cherry tomatoes (no need to skewer if using Roma tomatoes). Grill the avocado, limes, jalapenos, garlic and tomatoes until char marks form.

Robyn Lindars

​2) Garlic Basil Butter Texas Toast Recipe:

Caution: highly, I repeat, HIGHLY addictive. This bread on the grill is so extremely easy to make, yet so yummy, it may help you get lucky without any drinking involved at your tailgate.

Mix sea salt, garlic and your favorite herb into butter. Rub generously onto the bread and grill until char marks form. This carb-loading is so good you won't even feel guilty in the morning.

Robyn Lindars

​1) Chipotle Sriracha Chicken Wings with Gorgonzola Dip Recipe:
Burns so good you will come back for seconds, and take a big swig of beer.

First make Frank's Hot Sauce (which is not that hot and is supposedly the first original buffalo wing sauce)
--1/4 cup sriracha
--4 chipotle peppers in adobe sauce
-- 2 HEAPING tablespoons of minced garlic seasalt
-- and freshly ground pepper to taste

Throw all ingredients (sans the chicken) into a gallon ziplock bag and mix in bag (you can seal the bag and shake around).

Add the chicken wings. (I usually buy a 3-pound bag of frozen wings and defrost them when ready to grill).  Let the chicken marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Cook chicken on a medium hot grill, about 10 minutes on each side (this will vary on your grill, size of wings, etc) or until done. Baste with sauce while chicken cooks.

Take a cooling dip with a gorgonzola shmear, and your tailgate will never be the same.
-- 12 oz. container sour cream
-- 4 oz. container gorgonzola (the better the cheese, the better the dip)
-- 2 tblsp minced garlic
-- 1 tbls spoon dry mustard
-- lots of freshly ground black pepper and sea salt

Mix and serve!

If these recipes don't help you get lucky, then you are out of luck, my friend. Cheers to a great football season, drinking good beer, and enjoying great food with good friends.

And for any of you looking to improve your grill skills, Robyn's next "Women's Grilling Clinic" will be held in Pompano Beach on December 4th at Culinary Concepts.Cheers!