Female grillers are some of the most passionate and talented when it comes to weilding a tongs over an open flame.
OnMilwaukee and On The Rocks ready-to-pour cocktails teamed up and tracked down a half dozen of local gal grillmasters. Grab your own OTR from a local store and get grilling!
According to popular market research company NPD Group, only 19 percent of American women in heterosexual relationships assume grilling duties during a barbeque. These statistics have remained the same for at least 30 years.
Dubbed "the one and only male-dominated appliance in America," the grill is seen by many cisgender men as a socially-acceptable place to wear an apron. But despite the uneven ratio, female grillers are some of the most passionate and talented when it comes to wielding tongs over an open flame.
OnMilwaukee and On The Rocks ready-to-pour cocktails teamed up and tracked down local gal grillmasters. Each participating woman picked what they wanted to grill, where they wanted to buy their grillables, how they wanted to grill and the perfect OTR cocktail to accompany the process.
This is the fourth episode of "Girls Who Grill," and AJ Dixon, chef and former owner of Lazy Susan restaurant, shows us how to make panuozzo sandwiches with her made-from-scratch bread and meatballs along with other toppings.
OnMilwaukee: What is a panuozzo?
AJ Dixon: It's an Italian – Napoletano – sandwich of pizza bread stuffed with cheese and meats. It was trending on TikTok as a "pizza sandwich." Watch the magic happen here:
Did you build this amazing wood-fired grill?
My husband did.
How often do you use it?
As often as I can. Absorbing sunshine and cooking is very therepuetic for me. It's a lot to dig out in the winter, though.
Does it have a name?
Her name is Hot T*ts. I have a metal sign that was my grandma's that says "Hot T*ts" and I want to nail it to the front of the oven because when you stand in front of it, you really do get hot t*ts.
How do you make your meatballs?
I'm using half ground beef and half pork that I harvested myself. It has more fat content tos it keeps the meatballs nice and juicy. For every pound of meat I add 1/4 cup of breadcrumbs mixed with milk, 1/4 cup of "parm" and one egg.
What are your go-to spices for meatballs?
I make my own fennel sausage seaosning mix. It's really great for pizza sausage too. It's a mix of salt, black pepper, fennel powder, fennel seeds and paprika.
What kinds of pans do you use with a wood-fired oven?
Cast iron. The best.
How long does it take to wood-fire meatballs?
This will take about 15 minutes. The bread will go much quicker.
How long was this fire burning before you started cooking?
About two hours, but it can be ready in less time. Wood cooking is not the most efficient way to cook – it takes a lot of wood to keep the oven hot enough – but I enjoy it.
So then you're opening up the breads to stuff with meats and cheeses? Yes. The non-meatball was topped with cappicola, artichoke hearts, fennel salad, arugula, fresh mozz, Fontina and pesto. The meatball one was just meatballs, tomatoes, mozz and Fontina.
OTR cocktail paired with meal: The Aviation.
Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.
Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.
