Dressed to Grill: Savvy Recipes for Girls Who Play with Fire [Spiral-bound]

Karen Brooks (Author), Reed Darmon (Author), Diane Morgan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2002

Women take back the light! Finally, a grilling cookbook that puts gals in charge of the coals. Dressed to Grill is certain to appeal to the way women cook today: fast and furious, with, of course, a healthy nod to low-fat ingredients. Heres every aspect of modern grilling girl-dom-from Animal Magnetism Steak for that hot date to How Could I Be Sarong if the romance goes sour. Toss in some wild drinks and a chapter with tips on how to light a grill, what charcoal to buy, as well as what types of wood work best for smoking, and girls everywhere will be declaring their grilling independence.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Some say the barbeque is the sacred altar of a man's world, but Dressed to Grill, by Karen Brooks, Diane Morgan, and Reed Darmon, offers recipes and tips to help women lead a backyard coup. The slightly sophisticated and sometimes unique recipes, not all meant for the barbecue, are written with a fun and light tone for today's contemporary woman--very Sex in the City meets Martha Stewart. But beyond the fun, jokes, and sometimes-canned silliness, the authors have provided good information, starting with which grill to buy and the necessary tools. In more than 50 recipes, the authors have provided some interesting ways to prepare vegetables, meat, seafood, and even some desserts on the grill. Recipes of note include the Waistland Salad, an interesting blend of flavors using jicama, chiles, and oranges, as well as the authors' updated version of a classic Caesar Salad, dubbed here as Forget Caesar: A Bang-Up Cleopatra Salad. The book does throw a number of low-fat dishes into the mix along with some refreshing alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. --Teresa Simanton

About the Author

Karen Brooks, arts and culture editor of the Oregonian newspaper in Portland, has co-authored numerous books, including the best-selling Atomic Cocktails (0-8118-1926-4) and Patio Daddy-O (0-8118-0871-8).

Reed Darmon, an award-winning graphic designer for the Oregonian, is creator of the Made in China line from Chronicle Gift.

Diane Morgan is an experienced cooking teacher and the author of many cookbooks, including the best-selling Atomic Cocktails (0-8118-1926-4), Midnight Munchies (0-8118-3534-0), Dressed to Grill (0-8118-3139-6), and The Thanksgiving Table (0-8118-2991-X), a

Product Details

• Spiral-bound: 108 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (March 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811831396
• ISBN-13: 978-0811831390
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 6.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,364,623 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a girl and her grill, June 14, 2002

By 

C. Eltman (Jerusalem, Israel) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dressed to Grill: Savvy Recipes for Girls Who Play with Fire (Spiral-bound)

I don't cook a lot of fancy, labor-intensive food. I like being imaginative and speedy in the kitchen, and I usually figure I don't need a book that is going to have me go through 40 steps just to cook a pice of chicken. But despite my wariness of cookbooks, I now own all of Karen Brooks' (and her different partners') food and cocktail books. I never thought I'd be such a fan of...cookbooks? Yup. "Dressed to Grill" is as fun to read as it is to use. When it comes to barbecue, women have traditionally taken the roles of preparing side dishes and smiling as they chew charred pieces of red meat. Well, this book makes tending the flames extremely accessible to women, from the basic how-to's and the tips on buying grills to the de-emphasis on meat (and a great low-fat chapter). The snappy writing and graphics that are the trademark of Ms. Brooks' books are present again here. Just broke up with a guy? Look in the "Bonfire of the Miseries" breakup chapter for recipes like Jerk Chicken with Grilled Bananas, Who's Sari Now?, and Chauvinist Pig (all delicious recipes). And for the absolute best version of a classic: Forget Caesar: A Bang-up Cleopatra Salad. The recipe for Campy S'Mores Sundae with toasted marshmallows is super-easy, tasty, and what the authors call "An urban girl's idea of a Girl Scout campfire dessert experience."

Whether you're cooking for one, entertaining friends, or trying to give a guy some tactful advice on how to take barbecue to a whole new level (tell him to try the Hot Girls Spice Rub - the recipe, not a spot in the red-light district) you should own this book. Yeah, being so effusive about a cookbook may seem weird, but only until you read this one.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You Grill, Girl, May 3, 2005

By 

Heather Arnold (McHenry, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dressed to Grill: Savvy Recipes for Girls Who Play with Fire (Spiral-bound)

I found this boook at some random store and picked it up because it looked fun. I decided to use it as a theme night for my cooking club. I belong to an all girls coooking club and all of our husbands always operate the grill. This gave us some awesome confidence as we stoked the charcoal and made a three course meal. It was such a blast and we loved the campy smore sundaes as dessert. We are planning a You Grill, Girl II club this summer because we had such fun with this book. Just reading it and laughing at all the fun food titles and wording was worth the purchase. Enjoy!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love to grill and I love this book!, June 2, 2008

By 

Lulu (Seattle) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dressed to Grill: Savvy Recipes for Girls Who Play with Fire (Spiral-bound)

This is my favorite grilling booking. I have about a dozen recipes marked in this book that I want to try, but I can't get past the "Forbidden Nights Moroccon Pesto Chicken" because it is so good I don't want to try the other chicken dishes. I'm a pretty serious foodie who loves to cook but has given up beef and pork and is moving towards a nearly vegetarian eating and cooking philosophy, and I swear this recipe is the one thing that's keeping me from giving up chicken altogether! I literally get cravings for this chicken recipe, like I get cravings for good quality dark chocolate. :0)

The "Hot Lips Chili Butter" for grilled corn is great, as well. I like the fact that the recipes are unique...not your average, run-of-the-mill grilling standbys. I've made a few of the dishes for dinner guests and they're always impressed. Besides having wonderful recipes that anyone can tackle, the book is cute and clever and has my favorite cookbook feature...it's spiral bound, so it lays flat! If you love to grill, this is a great little gem for your cookbook collection.