Father’s day is an excellent excuse to splurge in the butcher aisle. Pick up a few classic T-bones and use these favorites head over to Steven Raichlen’s monthly newsletter for two different T-bone recipes; T-bones with Walnut-Roquefort Butter from How to Grill or Salt-crusted T-bones from Steven’s personal recipe arsenal.

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We’re pumped for Steven Raichlen’s newest and most ambitious book yet, Planet Barbecue! and we want everyone else to be excited too! That’s why we’ve put together this awesome video with a mouthwatering sneak peek at the globe-spanning recipes from the book. Enjoy!

Read the exciting introduction and sample four amazing recipes from Steven Raichlen’s newest book, Planet Barbecue! Spanning 60 Countries with 309 Recipes, Planet Barbecue! is Steven’s most ambitious book yet!

Click here to read more blog posts about Steven Raichlen’s Planet Barbecue!

I generally think of myself as a fairly responsible eater – avoiding fast food, shopping the perimeters of the supermarket, buying “wild caught” fish, and perusing the local farmer’s market.  But do I really know the provenance of my food?  Well, sort of.  So I’d like to step it up a notch and start reading food labels with greater care—except all the terminology can be confusing, what am I actually looking for? When I saw that Steven Raichlen’s Planet Barbecue! very concisely listed some of the principles he and his family try to apply to their shopping and cooking, it seemed like a great go-to checklist to keep on hand…

Shop local: Food grown in your region supports local farmers and requires less fossil fuel to transport.

Shop seasonal: Food tastes best and costs less when you buy in your area’s peak season.

Shop farmers’ markets: Farmers’ markets are a great place to buy fresh, local, seasonal food, and you are also supporting your local growers and farmers.

Buy free-range: Animals that feed, graze, and move around in open air are healthier than chickens crammed into factory coops or steers crowded into feedlots.

Buy organic: Eating meat from animals fed hormones to accelerate their growth and antibiotics to keep them alive in crowded conditions may not sit well with shoppers. The USDA Organic label means your food is drug- and synthetic chemical-free.

Check the temperature: Cook all chicken and turkey to at least 170°F. Cook all burgers and sausages to at least 160°F. Use an instant-read meat thermometer to check for doneness.

Buy Fair Trade: The World Fair Trade Organization makes sure that growers and food producers in developing countries are paid a fair living wage for their labors. Look for words “Fair Trade” when you buy coffee, sugar, chocolate, bananas and other staples.

Buy wild: While it’s not always available, and it costs more, wild fish has a superior texture and flavor to farmed.

Buy underutilized species: Overfishing has depleted many of the world’s fish species, among them cod and sea bass. Other species are plentiful, cheap and perfect for grilling, including kingfish, bluefish, mackerel, and sardines. The list of endangered species changes from region to region and can be checked on www.montereybayaquarium.org.

Grill Green: If you’re a charcoal griller, use natural lump charcoal, made from pure wood, and light it in a chimney starter. This cuts down on petroleum residue and fumes.

Because I edit so many cookbooks, you most likely think I’d blog a new favorite recipe, say, from Steven Raichlen’s forthcoming Planet Barbecue, or maybe something dessertish from Anne Byrn’s The Cake Mix Doctor Returns. Nope—because when I get over-reciped, I turn to knitting. I can’t pass a yarn store without going in (knitters—you know what I mean). I can’t go in without buying something (knitters—you really know what I mean). I have a great big yarn stash that makes me happy (knitters with great big yarn stashes are very happy). But I don’t only like to look at my stash. I actually love to knit.  And what better place to find the perfect pattern than—where else?—Stitch ’N Bitch, by Debbie Stoller.  In fact, there’s a pattern I like so much (the Big Sack Sweater on page 203), I knit it twice.  Actually, I’m considering taking orders (okay, not really). Below are both sweaters, as worn by America’s Next Top Models (aka myself and my assistant, Erin).

–Cookbook Director Suzanne Rafer just won’t put the needles down.

It’s football season! What does that mean? Time to fire up the grill for tailgating! We’ve crafted a few regional tailgate menus pulled from grill master Steven Raichlen’s bestselling books BBQ USA and How to Grill.

Alabama
Main Course: Alabama Barbecued Chickens with White Barbecue Sauce
Side: Ember-Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Beverage: Alabama Slammer made with Southern Comfort

Wisconsin
Main Course: Double Brats
Side: Grilled Corn with Maytag Blue Cheese
Beverage: Leinenkugel Beer

Pennsylvania
Main Course: Philly Cheese Steaks on the Grill
Side: Garlic Grilled Tomatoes
Beverage: Yuengling Beer

Texas
Main Course: Tex Mex Rib Eyes
Side: Firecracker Coleslaw
Beverage: Tequila chased down with Shiner Bock Beer

New York
Main Course: Buffa-que Wings
Side: Zucchini and Yellow Squash with Greek Spices
Beverage: Genesee Cream Ale

Florida
Main Course: Florida Snapper Burgers
Side: Coconut-Grilled Pineapple
Beverage: Pina Coladas or Red Stripe Beer

New England
Main Course: Maple Mustard Salmon
Side: Barbecued Onions with Baked Beans
Beverage: Sam Adams Octoberfest

With a Weber grill, a football, big foam finger, and Raichlen’s BBQ library you’ve got the perfect tailgate display for the fall season.

Did we miss your state? Share your tailgate favorites in the BarbecueBible.com forums.

It’s August – time to head to your beach, lake, or mountain home.  You already know the essential beach reads to put in your tote bag.  But all those lists forgot to mention the books you need to help fill the rest of your time!

Be sure to give the kids – or antsy adults – a copy of Origami On the Go before you get in the car.

Make a fill you up and cool you down smoothie bar with the recipes in the breakfast chapter of You Don’t Have to be Diabetic to Love This Cookbook.

Hula Hoop on the beach Gidget style – and if you test out the moves in Hooping you will end up with a smile on your face and a rock hard core!

Even on rainy days, you can play a round of the quintessential summer game with The Miniature Book of Miniature Golf

For an unforgettable, easy dinner, grill great American burgers from The Barbecue! Bible. (read an excerpt below)

And while you watch the sunset, catch fire flies and identify other bugs with The Bug Bottle and Bug Book.

My own grilling skills are embarrassingly limited, but as soon as the weather gets warm, I begin craving all things cooked over charcoal. But between excessive rain here in the Northeast and a lack of grill access  in my Brooklyn apartment, I didn’t get a chance to grill at all this spring. So, when I went to the beach last week, I decided to beef up my skill set by grilling every single night. Among the hot dogs, hamburgers, vegetable skewers, and my latest obsession, grilled corn, one dish stood apart from the rest–Steven Raichlen’s Caveman T-Bone recipe.

Due to a mediocre grocery store and budget limitations, we had to go with a flank steak rather than T-bones. We marinated it in lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and parsley for a couple hours, sprinkled on salt and pepper, heated up the coals, and then laid it right on the coals. While the thinner cut made it more difficult to get the amazing char Steven gets on the T-bone (while still keeping the middle nice and juicy), it did get a more smoky flavor than it would have gotten on the grate. The steak was delicious on its own (with grilled corn on the side, of course), and the leftovers made for incredible steak sandwiches the next day, but to be honest, the best part was that it was just plain fun to make!

Flank steak on the coals

The poke test

After foiling and resting, it's time to slice

Click here for Steven’s Caveman T-Bones With Hellfire Hot Sauce recipe and video

Looking for a way to spice up your Fourth of July grilling? Check out Steven Raichlen’s Caveman T-Bone with Hellfire Hot Sauce, a primal way of cooking your steak right on the coals. Click here for the complete recipe.

Growing up I always thought my mom wasn’t cool because she used a homemade chimney starter to light the charcoal in her grill.  That was two major strikes against her: charcoal instead of gas, and a chimney starter instead of lighter fluid.

Now that I’ve spent the last few months learning from the master griller Steven Raichlen, I realize my mom was not lame at all.  She knew that grilling with charcoal can produce complex, rich, smoky flavors that gas can’t duplicate.

It’s that same pure charcoal grilling that’s going to drive my Memorial Day cookout. I’m taking inspiration from Steven’s Ultimate Grilling Menu to impress my friends this year. We’re not only going to grill with coals, but right on them! We are tossing the grate aside and throwing steak on the coals, corn on the coals, and pretty much everything else that looks fresh and hearty at the farmer’s market–right on the coals.

Hopefully my guests will leave with ideas of their own, and then enter them in Steven’s Ultimate Grilling Recipe Contest. I know my hungry friends have some clever ideas brewing. How about you?

Delicious recipes for Memorial Day grilling
Caveman T-Bones With Hellfire Hot Sauce (on the coals)
Mussels Grilled on a Bed of Flaming Pine Needles
How to Grill Corn