This phrase so aptly describes what I like about Shawn Sawyer and her approach to cooking.

“I generally see recipes as guidelines or suggestions. My measuring cups are used only when making rice. Experimenting with cooking and meshing flavors is the key to as many successes as failures, only I see failures more as trial runs than disasters.”

Shawn goes by the online handle of “smknhotmama” when she posts on one of the barbeque enthusiast web forums I frequent. Her recipes, posts and easy way of writing about the food she makes for her family and friends captivated me – along with her great photos.  You can read more about Shawn, in her own words, by clicking on the link at the top of the page Writers & Chefs

I hope you enjoy this first post she wrote about a recent Sunday supper she prepared for her family.

Happy Grilling!

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Shawn aka "Smknhotmama"

Hiya CB – Thanks for inviting me to share my 2-cents worth of advice and ideas about grilling and outdoor cooking. Cooking soul nourishing food for my family and friends comes naturally and grilling outdoors is one of our favorite past times.  I love Sunday dinner this time of year – watching football all day, kids playing outside in comfy weather and just all-in-all enjoying friends and food. Sunday a week ago, I grilled up a London broil* and made my version of Cowboy Beans.

My version of Cowboy Beans.

Smknhotmamma Cowboy Beans
Ingredients
1 small can Bush’s onion beans
1 small can Bush’s original
1 reg. can Ranch Style beans
1 TBSP mustard
3 TBSP BBQ sauce
1/8 C brown sugar
2 strips bacon cut in half.
Directions
Place bacon in cast iron pan on hot grill to start. In a bowl combine remaining ingredients. Add to pan. cook until thick and bubbly.

We also had slaw, avocado slices….and Jack (my son) insisted we have some corn. My husband and I enjoyed a glass of my new favorite adult beverage…Cupcake Merlot…couldn’t pass up the name and it turned out to be quite good. And the Steelers actually ended up winning!

Yes. Sunday was a good day. - Shawn.

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For a printable version of this recipe, click here:

Smknhotmamma ‘Cowboy Beans’

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* London Broil – what is it?

According to Wikipedia: London broil is a North American beef-based food dish usually made by broiling or grilling marinated flank or round steak and then cutting it against the grain into thin strips. The origin of the name is obscure; the food is unknown in London, England, and the term broil never used in the UK.

Although many American butchers will label a cut of meat “London broil”, the term does not refer to a specific cut. The cut of meat traditionally used is flank steak, but top round roast/steak is also commonly used. Because the muscle fibers run the entire length of these cuts, the meat can be tough if not tenderized via pounding or massaging. Scoring, stabbing, cutting, penetrating, or otherwise mutilating the cut before sending it into the broiler results in a tougher finished product as it allows all the desirable juices to run out of the meat into the pan.

The preparation of London broil typically involves marinating the meat for several hours followed by heating in an oven broiler or outdoor grill. In both heating methods the meat is placed approximately three inches from a direct heat source and turned several times to promote even cooking and avoid burning. It is commonly served in thin slices, cut across the grain.

In Canada a ground meat patty wrapped in flank or round steak is known as a London broil. Some butchers will wrap the flank steak around a concoction of seasoned and ground or tenderized flank steak (Zehrs Grocers in the GTA). Others sell a pork sausage patty wrapped in flank or top round steak labeled as London broil (Goeman’s Lakeshore Meats in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada). The website for Goeman’s differentiates between Canadian London broil (the sausage patties wrapped in Top Round Steak) and American London broil (Top Round Steak). Another variant, popularized in Ontario, is a London broil “loaf”, wherein the tenderized flank steak exterior is wrapped around minced and spiced veal as the filler. In some regions, bacon will be added between the flank steak and the veal grind.

According to CB: London broil is, more or less, a style of serving  larger and generally tougher cuts of beef by tenderizing them with some form of acidic marinade and preparing on the grill over direct heat or in the oven broiler until the surface of the meat is seared and somewhat crusty from the cook and the interior is Rare  (135F) to Medium Rare (145F). London broil is typically served by slicing very thinly across the grain.

Here are several recipes for “London broil” you might enjoy preparing:

London Broil

London Broil with Herb Butter

Reader Recipes: Daddy Gray’s Barbecue London Broil