Category: MISC

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL????????????

We’re HUGE football fans!  Well, it’s that time of year again! Football season is already several weeks old (where does the time go?) and that means it’s time for tailgating again at the games, serious football food and game day buffets.  Bring over your best appetizers and your biggest appetite and oh don’t forget the Brewskis to go with it all.  I like mine really cold please with a side of lime!
Tailgating Time will be posted every Sunday at noon and open all week for you to add your football favorites. We’ll play each and every week until Superbowl Sunday. I can’t wait to see what you’ll be bringing!
It’s Tailgating Time!
HOSTED BY:
Martha at Seaside Simplicity 
Tamy at 3 sides of Crazy 
Lyndsey at Tiny Skillet

Would you like to be a host of Tailgating Time too? 
Leave me a comment here with your email or with Martha over at Seaside Simplicity so we can send you the code and add you to the host list – more exposure, more links, more football food!

It’s Tailgating Time!

GRAVESIDE CUPCAKES

Hi there! This is Emily from EZ’s Recipes posting! Since “my” Simply Delicious Sunday fell on the week before Halloween, I decided to post something fun and, well, simply delicious in honor of the occasion. I went with these Graveyard Cupcakes. I actually found this recipe months ago and bookmarked it way back then with the intent of making them in time for Halloween.
I realize that unless you are a regular follower of my blog, you do not know me very well, seeing as this is only the second time that I have posted over here at Our Krazy Kitchen. But if you are a regular visitor over there, it is no secret to you how much I love Halloween. I have been talking about it all month! And now we’re so close! Halloween for me, as a 30-something married adult with no kids yet, means getting all decked out in costume and going to a Halloween-themed party with friends. Hopefully in the near future I will become a mom, and it will take on a whole new meaning for me. My focus will shift from making Halloween awesome for myself and my adult friends to making it awesome for my kids and my friends’ kids.
But it’s not just about the costumes and the costume parties. It is about the change in the season. Here in the Midwest, that shift in the weather in mid-October makes for that perfect chilly-but-not-unbearable temperature that just tells you that Halloween is around the corner. The leaves are turning color and falling. And then there’s the best part… the food. Which leads me to the point of my blog post today… my Graveyard Cupcakes. Which I have been dying to share with you, my readers.
Just sharing this makes me all that much more excited for Halloween! They were a lot of fun to make, and they are so incredibly versatile that you can be really creative and there’s no going wrong with it.
Ingredients:

  • 1 box chocolate cake mix (if you want to go the “easy” route… feel free to make the batter from scratch as well. If you use boxed cake mix, bake according to the directions for cupcakes)
  • Chocolate or Vanilla frosting – made from scratch, or store-bought, also up to personal preference
  • Sandwich cookie crumbs OR chocolate sprinkles for graveyard “dirt”
  • Cookies such as Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies or something similarly rounded to make a “tombstone”
  • Icing to write on the tombstones with – preferably black in color but other colors could work. Or, if you want to make “grass” you could always use some green!

And from there it is pretty straightforward… make the cupcakes and decorate to your heart’s content! Have fun with it! I went with “grass” and “dirt” with mine, and experimented with both chocolate and white frostings. This is something that could be fun to make for a child’s Halloween party at school, or for an adult party… kids and adults will love them all the same!


Every have a very safe, fun, and Happy Halloween! I will see you next month, just in time for Thanksgiving! Please visit me at EZ’s Recipes!


SUPER INEXPENSIVE RECIPE FOR CLEANING SILVER

Now for something fun and easy – cleaning the silver. Yep, you heard me right, cleaning the silver. FIL wanted the silver polished. I have news for you, I don’t polish silver! I even sold my own and replaced it with gorgeous stainless, but I found this quick, easy AND super inexpensive recipe for cleaning silver! Here is the before picture:

Hubby helped as I have been a bit busy. He is trying to show you the instantaneous results he achieved with this formula below.

After

SILVER CLEANER
per large piece or place setting you will need:
1/2 cup baking soda
1 tablespoon salt
1 large piece aluminum foil
1 non-metal sink or wash tub
hot water

  • Lay large piece of foil along the bottom of the sink.
  • Fill the sink with VERY HOT water.
  • Swirl in the baking soda and salt until well dissolved.
  • Add silver or silverplate piece.
  • Watch the magic. Allow it to sit a few minutes. The chemical reaction of the salt and baking soda transfers the tarnish to the piece of foil leaving you with a pretty silver piece.
  • Rinse and dry!
For heavily tarnished pieces you might have to repeat the process. Hubby also found the reaction was quicker if you wrapped the foil around the pieces.

CHALLENGE: Is your guest area ready for guests?

SOMETHING WE SHOULD ALL REMEMBER

You all know that I’m dealing with an aunt who is in a guardianship situation and that the situation is not good because the guardian (in mine and my family’s opinions) is not doing due diligence to care for my aunt or at least have her in a care taking situation that does.  She is in a home where she is being verbally, emotionally, spiritually abused.  These I have witnessed.  She also says they physically abuse her when no one is around to see.  Unfortunately, all of this is being written off as here say and the proper authorities are not getting involved because the guardian is “well respected” by the court.  I have to ask how my aunt was placed in this home (along with many other “guardian” clients of the same lawyer) when the home did not even have the proper licensing, at the time of the placement, but that’s another story.  While this is a sad situation that we are pulling our hair out to solve (and also explains why my uncle is bald) part of the blame lies with my aunt.  Yes, she has a debilitating disease, yes she is a pain in the neck, but she is a human being that deserves at the very least compassionate care takers and if she had a better attitude it would help all around. I can’t help but pray and wish that she had had the attitude of this man and I pray that I WILL have this attitude and the grace to live with life as it happens as I grow older.

This was an email I received recently.  I couldn’t think of a more appropriate place to share it than here at THE Motivation Station.   

A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o’clock, with his hair fashionably combed and shaved perfectly, even though he is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today.  His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready. 

 

As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on his window.  I love it,’ he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy. 

 
Mr. Jones, you haven’t seen the room; just wait.’  

‘That doesn’t have anything to do with it,’ he replied.  Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time.  Whether I like my room or not doesn’t depend on how the furniture is  arranged … it’s how I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it.  ‘It’s a decision I make every morning when I wake up. I have a choice;  I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the  parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed and be thankful  for the ones that do. 

Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open, I’ll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I’ve stored away.. Just for this time in my life.  Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you’ve put in. 

So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories! 

Thank you for your part in filling my Memory Bank. 
I am still depositing.
 

‘Remember the five simple rules to be happy: 
1. Free your heart from hatred. 
2. Free your mind from worries. 
3. Live simply. 
4. Give more. 
5. Expect less. 

Veggie Tales: Veggie Pasta Bake

Happy Saturday! This is Kris from Behold the Metatron. Fall is here and the air is crisp and the leaves are turning gorgeous amber hues!

On chilly days I love to bake. But not just sweets… how about a pasta bake?

This is a Giada DeLaurentiis recipe that I tweaked it. Very delish, but NOT for those that don’t like vegetables! (Shame on you!)

Ingredients

  • 2 red peppers, cored and cut into 1-inch wide strips
  • 2 zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1-inch cubes (I USED ONLY 1)
  • 2 summer squash, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 4 cremini mushrooms, halved (I USED 1 PINT OF BABY PORTOBELLOS)
  • 1 yellow onion, peeled and sliced into 1-inch strips (I USED 1 RED ONION)
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon salt, divided
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
  • 1 tablespoon dried Italian herb mix or herbs de Provence (I USED HERBES DE PROVENCE)
  • 1 pound pennepasta
  • 3 cups marinara sauce (store bought or homemade)
  • 1 cup grated fontina cheese
  • 1/2 cup grated smoked mozzarella (I USED REG MOZZARELLA…I didn’t want the smokey flavor)
  • 1 1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus 1/3 cup for topping
  • 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
 
Directions
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
On a baking sheet, toss the peppers, zucchini, squash, mushrooms, and onions with olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and dried herbs. Roast until tender, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook for about 6 minutes. Since you will be cooking the pasta a second time in the oven, you want to make sure the inside is still hard. Drain in a colander.
In a large bowl, toss the drained pasta with the roasted vegetables, marinara sauce, cheeses, peas, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Using a wooden spoon, gently mix, until all the pasta is coated with the sauce and the ingredients are combined.
Pour the pasta into a greased 9 by 13-inch pan. Top with the remaining 1/3 cup Parmesan and butter pieces. Bake until top is golden and cheese melts, about 25 minutes.

OREO CHEESECAKE BALLS

OREO CHEESECAKE BALLS – YUM YUM GOOD!
1 regular package Oreos
12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
Almond Bark
Candy Decorations

  • Crush Oreos in food processors
  • With hand mixer, mix together the Oreo crumbs and cream cheese
  • Roll into small balls.
  • Put balls into freezer for 5 minutes.
  • Melt Almond bark in small batches.
  • Coat each ball in almond bark.
  • Immediately decorate.
  • Let harden.

The plates I made for the neighbors wouldn’t have been complete without them.

Chicken Alfredo Pizza

It is Fire Day Friday and one of our favorite things to cook on our grills is pizza. Yes, grilled pizza. That might sound weird but it shouldn’t, coal and wood fired brick oven cooked pizzas are all the rage these days.

But first I have to thank Jenn of Jenn’s Food Journey for the excellent job she did guest posting for me last week. She has an open invite to post Fire Day Friday anytime she wants.

Back to the pizza. This is one Alexis made this week on her Big Green Egg. You could do the same thing in your oven but it is just a bit better cooked by live fire.

Alexis’ Chicken Alfredo Pizza

1 chicken breast, boneless, skinless
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp kosher salt
2 slices bacon, cooked to crisp and crumbled
1 green onion, diced for garnish
1 recipe Pizza dough (use refrigerated, buy from your local pizza joint or make your own. Alexis used the recipe from Kitchenaid for their Crusty Pizza Dough).

Alfredo Sauce
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
1 cup half & half
1 cup pecorino romano cheese, grated

If you are making your own dough, like Alexis, make it first because it’s going to have to rise and do all that yeast voodoo that you amazing bakers do.

Then fire up your grill to 400f. Season the chicken with the salt and pepper. Grill 5-6 minutes per side or until 160f internal temp. After resting the chicken for 10 minutes, thinly slice.


While chicken is resting, melt butter in a medium sauce pan. Whisk in the flour, stirring until mixing together in a light blond roux. Whisk in the half & half and simmer until reduced in volume by half. Then blend in the cheese.

Raise your grill or oven temperature to 500f. Spread the dough over a pizza stone and cook for 2-3 minutes.

Remove and ladle 1/2 cup of the alfredo sauce onto the dough. Top with the chicken, bacon, and mozzarella. Drizzle about 1/4 cup of the alfredo sauce over the top.

Return to the oven/grill in an indirect heat set up for 9 minutes and top with the green onion. Cook another 2-6 minutes, until the crust reaches your desired crispiness and the toppings are melted.
Have I mentioned that I am one lucky guy because I married the perfect woman for me.

So what’s your favorite pizza?

FRENCH ONION CHICKEN

These were serious Dolly Parton chicken breasts that I found on sale.  I just didn’t realize HOW big they were until I opened the package today.  I made these tonight with bone in breasts, but next time will use boneless to make the meal easier for everyone.

FRENCH ONION CHICKEN
4 chicken breasts
4 tablespoons butter
4 slices bacon, diced and browned
1 package Laura Scudder’s French onion dip mix
2 tablespoons dehydrated red pepper
1/3 cup flour
1 large bunch green onions, sliced
2 cups homemade chicken broth
PURE
1 cup sour cream

  • Rehydrate the dehydrated red pepper in chicken broth for an hour before beginning to cook.
  • In a large skillet melt butter.
  • Sift together the flour and Laura Scudder’s green onion dip mix into a large plastic bag.
  • One at a time dredge chicken in flour mixture coating well.
  • Brown chicken on both sides until crisp.
  • Using an electric skillet, spray with PURE.
  • Add browned chicken breasts.
  • Gently pour the broth mixture around the edges of the chicken. 
  • Top chicken pieces with green onions.
  • Set on 200 degrees and simmer for an hour.
  • Brown bacon and drain oil.
  • Remove chicken and keep warm.
  • Sprinkle the bacon over the chicken pieces.
  • Bring drippings to a boil and reduce to 1 cup.
  • Remove from heat and quickly whisk in sour cream for gravy.
  • Serve with mashed potatoes.

Blue and Yellow Corn Muffins from Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill Restaurant

Presentation and taste…
Mostly taste!  These little gems are Bobby Flay’s Blue and Yellow Corn Muffins. According to Bobby, these are the most consumed item at hisMESA GRILL restaurants.  They are the hit of his bread basket.

And look close, Fresh sweet corn, red bell peppers and jalapeños add color, texture and taste. Out of the ordinary muffins to be sure.

Finding the blue corn meal can be a bit of a challenge.  There are plenty of places on the internet to order.  I found this at my neighborhood store.  Oddly enough, it was not on the shelf sitting next to “regular” corn meal, it was sitting in the gourmet food section.  So, you may need to hunt, but it does exist, and it is available.  Just start asking.

But, the blue is just for looks.  Tastes the same as yellow corn meal.  So, feel free to use this recipe with the easy to find stuff.

One other note, I use something called “Polenta Corn meal”.  The ingredient list is exactly the same, but the color is much deeper yellow. Tastes the same, just better presentation.

Makes 12 large muffins or 3 dozen little mini muffins…

Nonstick cooking spray
6 TBS Butter
1 cup fresh Sweet Corn kernels (can use frozen)
1/2 cup finely diced Red Onions
1/2 cup finely diced Red Bell pepper
1/2 cup smashed and chopped roasted Garlic (about 6 cloves)
2 jalapeño Chili Peppers, finely diced 
2 TBS finely chopped Cilantro
1 1/2 cup all-purpose Flour
1TBS Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
4 tsp Kosher Salt
1 1/3 cups whole Milk
4 large Eggs
2 TBS Honey
1 cup Yellow Corn Meal
1 cup Blue Corn Meal


OK, before I get to the instructions, a bit of fair warning, if you compare the ingredient list to what is printed in the Mesa Grill Cookbook, there are a couple of little changes.  I doubled the amount of corn.  I like corn.  I like the looks of corn just busting out of these muffins when you break into one.  And the Kansas Sweet Corn right now is the best in the world.  I also roasted the garlic cloves (350 degree oven, rubbed with olive oil, wrapped in aluminum foil for 30 minutes).  The book says to mince the cloves.  I roast em, smash em with the blade of a knife and chop those. The roasting adds deeper garlic flavor.  The smashing makes more of a paste, makes for a creamier taste.

  1. Roast the garlic while you Mise en Place the veggies.  Start chopping.
  2. Rack in the middle of the oven, preheated to 400 degrees.  Grease a 12 muffin pan, or mini muffin pans.  I was going to serve these with soup, so made mini muffins that worked great as croûtons.
  3. In a small saucepan, melt the butter, add the onion and cook until soft, about 4 minutes.  Add the smashed and diced garlic.  Divide the mixture evenly between two bowls.
  4. In another large bowl, whisk together the milk, honey, eggs, red peppers, jalapeños, corn and cilantro.  Add half of the mixture in with each of the bowls containing the onion mixture.
  5. Put the blue and yellow corn meal in separate bowls.  Add half the flour, baking powder and baking soda in with the corn meal.  Sprinkle a bit of salt in each.  Mix each corn meal mixture with the separate onion mix. 
  6. Put a spoon full of each mixture side by side in a muffin mold.  Do not mix, as you want the Yin/Yang look.  Bake for 16 minutes (or for 14 minutes if you are making the mini muffins).
And, I used these as the base for a Cajun Spiced “Taco” salad Casserole, Click HERE to see that post over on my own site.
Here’s a few more photos to give you a better idea of how to make these…




This is the third recipe I made from the book.  Great to cook from, great to inspire (and even better to eat from!)


Bobby is a winner!


Dave here from MY YEAR ON THE GRILL. It really is just this easy!  

 … I CAN COOK THAT! 

And so can you!
…

Healthy Meals ~ Side Dish

Do you need a great lowfat side dish to pair with a juicy piece of grilled chicken or fish? This Vegetable Bake is both tasty and low in fat.

Ingredients
• vegetable cooking spray
• 2 potatoes, cubed
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 2 onions, sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1/3 cup fat free Italian-style dressing
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon onion salt

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with cooking spray.
2. In prepared pan, combine potatoes, carrots, onions and bell pepper.
3. In a small bowl combine Italian dressing, garlic salt, cayenne pepper and onion salt. Pour over vegetables.
4. Bake, covered, for 15 minutes. Uncover, stir and bake for 10 minutes more.

Tip: Leave the skins on your potatoes to save time and get extra nutrients.

Serves 6, 98 calories per serving, only .2 grams of fat, and no cholesterol. Enjoy!

Photo Credit

QUICK & EASY CHICKEN CHILI and CHEDDAR CHEESE BISCUITS

QUICK & EASY CHICKEN CHILI
3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, frozen
2 cups homemade chicken broth, frozen
1 can cream of potato soup
1 jar dried beef, chopped
1 Williams chili mix package
1 can chopped green chilies
  • Place frozen chicken breasts on the bottom.
  • Pour green chilies over chicken pieces.
  • Top with cream of potato soup.
  • Top with frozen broth.
  • Sprinkle chili seasoning mix on top of chicken broth.
  • Top with beef pieces.
  • Slow cook on high for 2 hours. Reduce to low for 6 hours. Or cook on low 10 hours.
As the slow cooker heats up, the broth will melt absorbing the chili seasoning mix which will then be absorbed by the potato soup and by the end of the day you have a huge bowl of wonderful yummy goodness perfect for a crisp fall evening. Serve with cheddar cheese biscuits.

Hubby likes the biscuits a bit more done and the rest of us like them a little lighter! Either way they are really yummy.

CHEDDAR CHEESE BISCUITS
2 1/2 cups Bisquick
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 teaspoons celery seeds
1 egg, room temperature
1 cup milk 
  • Combine Bisquick and seeds and mix well.
  • Add cheese and mix again. 
  • Whisk egg and milk together. 
  • Gradually add egg mixture to Bisquick mixture and mix until well blended. 
  • Drop by spoonfuls onto a well greased cookie sheet or use a mini-muffin pan.
  • Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.