By Crystal Hohenthaner
Journal staff

On Saturday nights my father and I usually attempt to make dinner for my mother. I secretly think it is our guilty attempt to make up for the decades of food service she has provided for us. Whatever the reason the result is usually a culinary experiment.

This past Saturday we experimented with the grill. Dad put a new twist on his chicken kabobs with baby bell peppers and I tried my hand at grilling stone fruit. In  my opinion, the experiments were not a success.

First of all the baby bell peppers were an interesting twist. They were a bit more flavorful than regular bell peppers. But the thing about grilling something is that often it can make the flavor more intense. So the baby bells were already more intense and then we intesified the intense on the grill. This made the red ones incredibly sweet — which was interesting, but didn’t go with the chicken — and the yellow ones were actually bitter.

In the future maybe we will marinate the peppers or sautee them slightly before grilling them. But, honestly, I won’t mind if we skip the baby bells altogether from now on.

Okay, grilling the stone fruit was really a whim. What is stone fruit you ask? Well, according to what I’ve heard and seen on the Food Network stone fruit is fruit with a pit — like peaches and plums. My stone-fruit-grilling-whim occured because my mom had just bought plums and dad had the grill on. I had also seen Bobby Flay do it so I thought I’d give it a try.

So I cut the fruit in half, removed the pit, brushed it with olive oil and sat it on the grill for a few minutes. Easy, right? And the result — me no likey. Yeah, my brain really couldn’t handle the idea of a hot, smokey plum. Also, grilling the fruit made it mushier than it was to begin with and my plum had started off quite ripe.

I do think I’ll try grilling stone fruit again, but next time I’ll get some nectarines and maybe apricots in on the action. I also think I will start with some fruit that is a bit underripe. My mom suggested we leave it on the grill longer too — so that the sugars in the fruit maight have a chance to caramelize a bit.

So how about you all? Has anyone had any bad cooking or grilling experiments lately? Or maybe you have an experiment that went right. I’d love to hear all about it.

By Jomay Steen

While I still lived in Brookings, my college pal Zonya invited me and my journalistic mentor, Doris Giago, over to her home for grilled burgers, roasted ears of corn and potato salad. She and I had spent the morning picking corn from a farmer’s acreage and returned with our treasures.
Later that afternoon, Doris arrived and we quickly settled into making up the food. Zonya wanted me to light the gas grill, but warned me that it hadn’t been working too well the last time she used it. Doris joined me in the backyard for company and I began my mission of getting the grill ready for the burgers and corn.
I am a stickler for directions. On Zonya’s grill were scrolls of directions that assured me that lighting the grill was easy, efficient and safe. The first direction: “Don’t Close the Lid.” Following these guidelines, I went through a list of activities with no result. The next option was for me was to go to the back of the grill, light a kitchen match, poke it through a two-inch hole and directly light the burner. All this on a breezy late afternoon, it required my steadiest hand and deepest concentration.
In the meantime, Zonya came outdoors with the food and promptly closed the lid of the grill, turned the propane on full blast while pushing the ignite button in Morris Code fashion. The resulting fireball lifted the lid, cracked the oven lid’s window and shot a torch-like stream of fire out of that 2-inch hole, over my quaking match, up my arm and stopped just below my hairline.
When I leaped up from behind the grill, I noticed that Doris was running to the far side of the patio. Zonya, whose eyes were as wide as saucers, assured me that I still had eyebrows. But all the hair on my right arm was gone. Zonya had singed a few curls on either side of her face, but her eyebrows remained intact.

Roasted ears of corn
1-2 ears of corn per guest, depending upon size
1 gallon very cold water
1 large bucket or tub
1 pound butter for every dozen ears
Salt and pepper to taste
Over a trash can, peel back corn husk exposing ear and corn silk. Tear the silk out and examine for insects, cutting off tips or tops that might be infested. Fold green husk back over corn and toss into tub of cold water. After husking all silk from ears, let corn soak in cold water for 15 to 20 minutes. Place corn on medium-high heated grill, letting flames char green husk to a light brown or black, turn corn to equally heat all around. Place on serving plate or individual plate, peel off husk, butter and season to taste. The husk insulates the corn, but provides a sealed container for the steam.

By Deanna Darr

On a hot afternoon, my mother has been known to brew up a steaming pot of coffee. Me, I’d rather have an ice-cold popsicle. Here’s a way to combine both - and as a bonus, you’ll get a caffeine fix without having to sweat your way through a cup of coffee.

Caramel Latte Pops
Start to finish: 6 hours, 15 minutes (15 minutes active)
Makes about 8 pops, depending on mold size
6 to 8 shots freshly brewed espresso
4-1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup caramel sauce
1/4 cup finely diced soft caramel candies
In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients and stir well. Pour the mixture into pop molds.
Alternatively, divide the mixture between espresso cups. Cover each cup with plastic wrap and insert a wooden pop stick through it at the center of each cup. Freeze for 6 hours, or until firm.
Remove the pops from the freezer. Let stand at room temperature for 5 minutes before removing from the molds.
(Recipe adapted from Krystina Castella’s “Pops!”, Quirk Books, 2008)

By Tanya Manus

There I was, basking in the glow of a golden sunset, listening to the drumming of a merry band of musicians who lingered near the palm trees, gazing at the odd camel here and there.
And I was doing it all in downtown Rapid City.
The opening of Ifrits, the state’s only hookah lounge, seems to be a fairly well-kept secret, at least among several people I’ve talked to. The lounge is Middle Eastern oasis on the prairie, and it’s well worth the trip.
Ifrits burst onto our local entertainment scene last weekend with live music, belly dancers, henna artists and an uber-hip, alcohol-free atmosphere. And, despite the hookah pipes lighting up around me, surprisingly, the air was not smoky.
Being a lover of lovely details, I appreciate that everything from the mural-adorned walls to the glass in which I was served raspberry tea looked like a bit of the Middle East. Walking into Ifrits will make you feel like you’ve wandered into some sun-drenched vacation getaway without really having gone far at all.
The only thing missing from Ifrits’ opening weekend was their menu of finger foods, which debuted this week - pita bread, hummus and baklava. I’ve dabbled in making hummus and baklava myself, and I can’t wait to try Ifrits’ versions of these classic Middle Eastern foods.
Ifrits is at 725 St. Joseph St. in Rapid City. For information, go to ifritshookahlounge.com.

Meanwhile, here’s a classic Moroccan drink to put you in the mood for a night of Middle East-inspired fun like you’ll find at Ifrits. Mint tea isn’t just a drink in Morocco. It is a sign of hospitality and friendship and tradition. Because this drink is so popular, it is served all day long, after every meal and with every conversation. Moroccans take great pride in their tea and will often ask a visitor who among their group of friends makes the best cup of mint tea. This recipe comes from Recipezaar.com.

Moroccan Mint Tea
10 sprigs fresh mint, plus extra for garnish
3 teaspoons green tea
3 tablespoons sugar (or more to taste)
4 cups water
Boil the water and pour a small amount in the teapot, swishing it around to warm the pot.
Combine the mint and green tea and sugar in the teapot, then fill it with the rest of the hot water.
Let the tea brew for three minutes.
Set out glasses for the tea.
A shot-glass is close to the slender glasses used in Morocco.
Fill just one glass with the tea, then pour it back in the pot.
Repeat.
This helps to dissolve and distribute the sugar.
Pour the tea.
You want a nice foam on the tea so always pour with the teapot a high distance above the glasses.
If you do not have at least a little foam on the top of the first glass, then pour it back into the teapot and try again until the tea starts to foam up nicely.
Garnish with the remaining sprigs of mint. Serves 6.