Fourth of July

The Happy Camper Package from Lobster Gram: Great for a weekend of grilling!

Good morning foodies! Today is a great day because it's the last day of the work week! Dan "The Lobster Man" was cool enough to close the office Friday for the Fourth so everyone can enjoy a nice long weekend. Thanks Dan!
So for this long weekend I obviously plan on doing some cooking and unfortunately I have NO IDEA what I'm going to prepare lol. All I know, is that I will be preparing it on the grill. Grilling is a Fourth of July must in my family, and I think this year we might just get the Lobster Gram Happy Camper Package for grilling this weekend. This is a fantastic package for a grilling weekend like this one, and I'm particularly fond of it because I'm the one who created it :)
Along with all of the other hats I wear around here (email blast designer/HTML coder/Food blogger/Videographer/food stylist/food photographer/merchandiser/copywriter/web site designer/office chef) I also create the bulk of new and seasonal packages we offer.
It's really an awesome job to do because it's super easy to just look at our web site and see what would be good to enjoy together. I came up with the Happy Camper a few weeks ago while planning my camping trip to Wisconsin. I wanted enough meat to last the entire weekend of camp grilling, and enough dry ice in the cooler to keep the meat cold until it was used. This package was the result, and it rocked big time on my camping trip.
Well, I hope everyone out there is planning a fun and safe Fourth of July!
Happy Grilling Foodies!

Tangy Balsamic BBQ Sauce

Good Tuesday evening foodies! Hope everyone had an awesome weekend out there. I had a good weekend that ended badly with an overdose of sunshine and subsequent sun poisoning.
But, I am back today and dieing to share the recipe I made pre-sun illness.
This is another fantastic recipe made by our talented Creative Director, Nancy.
Funny thing is when I told her I made this over the weekend, she told me she had made it last weekend and had a little to add to it...great timing there!
So here is the recipe, and I'll note Nancy's addition to the ingredients. I have not tried the updated version but I fully trust Nancy's taste buds so here it is!
I'll totally be using this one again for the Fourth of July! Happy eating foodies!

Ingredients
1/2 cup Balsamic Vinegar
1/2 cup dry red wine
1 cup ketchup
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 cloves fresh garlic, crushed
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. country-style Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
1/2 tsp hot sauce

Directions
Add all ingredients in a small saucepan, and stir until combined. Simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until reduced by 1/2, about 20 - 25 minutes, and the texture is thick and smooth. Sauce can be made a day ahead and refrigerated overnight, this allows the flavors to really blend and become even richer.