BEET PICKLED DEVILED EGGS

A few years ago I saw an article on Chinese Tea eggs. They were so beautiful and intrigued me enough that I wanted to make some. Well I never quite got around to it, but then hubby asked for some deviled eggs and my brain went into overdrive. I decided to create the same affect with pickled beets.


PICKLED DEVILED EGGS
1 dozen eggs, hard boiled
1 jar pickled beets
1/8 + cup mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
Sweet Hungarian paprika

  • Boil eggs as normal. Rinse under cool water.
  • Drain beets, retaining juice.
  • Gently crack eggs all over.
  • In a medium skillet heat water and beet juice together.
  • Add eggs and simmer 20 minutes, gently rolling eggs periodically.
  • Remove from heat.
  • Remove eggs from pan and drain on paper towels.
  • Remove shells.
  • Slice open eggs and scoop out yolks.
  • Mash yolks with salt and pepper.
  • Add mayonnaise, vinegar and horseradish and blend well.
  • Fill eggs.
  • Sprinkle with paprika and serve.

I save the pickled beets to use with 1000 Island dressing on my Crab salad.

MOZZARELLA CHEESE STICKS

MOZZARELLA STICKS
12 egg roll wrappers
12 string cheese
avocado or cocnut oil
Marinara sauce

  • Start in the corner of the egg roll wrapper and roll cheese half way.
  • Fold in at the corners
  • Brush remaining open edges with water and continue rolling until well sealed.
  • Heat 1/2 inch of oil to 375˚.
  • Fry sticks a few at a time until golden brown all the way around.
  • Drain on paper towels.
  • Serve with marinara.

Submitted to FULL PLATE THURSDAY @Miz Helen’s Country Cottage.

CRAB PUFFS

PUFFS recipe from Martha at Seaside Simplicity

1/2 cup water
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
  • Heat oven to 425°.
  • In a medium saucepan heat water and butter until boiling.
  • Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup and level off.
  • Stir in flour and salt.
  • Cook over medium heat until mixture leaves sides of pan in a smooth compact ball, about 2 minutes, stirring vigorously.
  • Remove from heat.
  • Add eggs one at the time, beating vigorously until smooth and glossy. Do not under-beat! Drop by teaspoons full onto parchment paper lined cookie sheets.
  • Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.
  • Once puffs are cooled completely split and stuff with crab salad when ready to serve.
This recipe makes about 20 puffs.
CRAB SALAD
8 ounces Louis Kemp Crab, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1/3 cup minced red onion
salt and pepper
mayo (about 1/4 cup)
  • Mix crab, celery, onion, salt and pepper together until well blended using enough mayonnaise for desired consistency.
  • Place a large scoop of crab salad in each puff.

Submitted to FULL PLATE THURSDAY @Miz Helen’s Country Cottage.

TEX MEX BLT’S minus the lettuce

These little delights are perfect finger foods for ANY football party or get together with lots of people. They have just enough kick to spark everyone’s appetite for more.  The shells get crispy and the cheesy filling gets gooey and they are soooooo easy to assemble while looking like you spent hours in the kitchen.

You can also vary the flavors for some extra alternative flavor.  Use your imagination and make up your own combinations.

TEX MEX BLT’s minus the Lettuce 
3-4 packages phyllo pastry cups – thawed
1 pound bacon, cooked well and crumbled into very small pieces (very fine ground beef/shredded beef)
1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese  (today I used a Jack and Skellig Sweet Cheddar combo)
1/2 cup medium Cheddar cheese
1 cup mayonnaise (not Low-fat)
1 can Rotel original, drained REALLY well (when I use shredded beef I trade this for a 4 ounce can of diced jalapenos that I chop very fine)

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Blend the mayonnaise and cheeses together.
  • Fold in the tomatoes and bacon.
  • Scoop evenly into the cups (this will fill about 36).
  • Place on baking sheet and bake for 15-18 minutes or until starting to brown and get bubbly.

NOTE:  These shells are pretty small so cut any larger chunks of tomato into smaller pieces to make them easier to fill. I did a couple second run through in my mini food processor.

COWGIRL KISSES with RASPBERRY CHIPOTLE SAUCE

COWGIRL KISSES
8 ounces cream cheese
2 tablespoons Foothill Salad Seasoning
1 slice bacon per pepper
Jalapeno Peppers
Raspberry Chipotle Sauce (see below)

  • Mix cream cheese and Foothill Salad Seasoning until well blended.
  • Clean and remove seeds from peppers.
  • Fill peppers.
  • Wrap each pepper with a slice of bacon.
  • Bake or grill over low heat until bacon is crisp.
  • Serve with raspberry chipotle sauce.

RASPBERRY CHIPOTLE SAUCE
1 cup Raspberry Jam
2 tablespoons diced chipotle peppers
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons apple cider or rice wine vinegar

  • Whisk all ingredients until well blended.
  • Chill until ready to serve.
  • Warm before serving.

TORTILLA ROLL-UPS

These are sooooooooo versatile!  you can mix and match flavors anyway you like. I’ve also made them with pepperoni and Italian seasoning with a hint of tomato paste in the cream cheese mixture for that Italian feel. Or with crumbled bacon and cheddar cheese – YUMMY! In my haste I did not get a picture of the finished plate and they went fast!

TORTILLA ROLL-UPS
8 ounces sour cream
8 ounces cream cheese softened
7 ounce can roasted chiles, drained well
1 small can chopped olives
1 bunch green onions, minced
1/3 pound ham, chopped fine
flour tortillas

  • In a small food processor blend together the cream cheese, sour cream, green chiles and olives until smooth.
  • Fold the minced ham and minced green onions into cream cheese mixture. If mixture appears thin, chill for 1 hour before filling tortillas.
  • Cut rounded ends of each side of the tortillas.
  • Spread 4 tablespoons of ham mixture on each tortilla leaving 1/2 inch along one edge.
  • Roll up each tortilla ending on the dry edge.
  • Lay side by side on a plate.
  • Cover loosely with saran.
  • Chill overnight.
  • Slice into 1/2 inch rounds just before serving.

BUFFALO CHICKEN PULL APART BREAD

I found this recipe for Buffalo Chicken Pull-Apart Bread on Facebook, you know one of those that they show you in video form in 30 seconds or less AND looks really scrumptious?  I was thinking of making it as an appetizer when our son and family are here at Christmas time, but needed to test it first. Well, it was HUGE success and I now make it more regularly.

Well, this recipe did not disappoint.  I made some of my homemade Farmhouse Buttermilk Dressing to go with it and the combination was addicting! Instead of an appetizer we added a salad and made it a meal.

BUFFALO CHICKEN PULL-APART BREAD
2 packages Pillsbury pizza dough (I used 1 recipe of my homemade pizza dough)
2 cups chicken, cooked and shredded (I used original recipe Costco Rotisserie chicken)
1 cup Buffalo sauce (I used Frank’s Original Hot Sauce)
1/4 cup scallions, chopped (I used more, about double – we like onions)
2 1/2 cups grated pepper jack cheese (I used regular jack cheese)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 jalapeno, sliced (OPTIONAL – I didn’t use)
Ranch dressing for dipping (I used a batch of Farmhouse Buttermilk Dressing)

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • In a bowl toss together the chicken, buffalo sauce, green onions and half the cheese.
  • Roll out dough and cut into 3×3 inch squares (about 30 squares total). **SEE NOTE
  • Brush each square with the melted butter.
  • Top each square with a spoonful of chicken mixtures and then a sprinkling of the remaining cheese.
  • Brush loaf pan with butter.
  • Stack each square on top of each other in your loaf pan with the chicken side up.
  • Brush top of bread with remaining butter.
  • Top with remaining cheese.
  • Bake 40-50 minutes until golden and set.

NOTE:  The original recipe had you doing each square one at a time, but I found it much easier to do them all at once and then stack them in the loaf pan while it was standing on end for a more even and less messy build.

SHARING with FOODIE FRIDAY and TASTY THURSDAY.

CHILI DOG CASSEROLE

CHILI DOG CASSEROLE
1 Jiffy Corn muffin mix
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 package Ball Park ALL beef hot dogs
1 can chili with beans
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • Spray 8×8 baking dish with non-stick spray.
  • Prepare muffin mix batter per package instructions adding the garlic powder, chipotle chili powder and brown sugar to the batter.
  • Pour half the batter into the baking dish.
  • In a skillet over medium high heat, brown hot dogs on all sides.
  • Lay hot dogs on top of batter in a single layer. I like to chop them into small pieces, but that is optional.
  • Spread chili evenly over the hot dogs.
  • Sprinkle 3/4 of the onions over the chili.
  • Spread 3/4 cup of the cheese over the onions.
  • Spread remaining batter over cheese.
  • Bake 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
  • Sprinkle remaining cheese and onions on top and serve.

MAGIC DUST SLAM DUNK HOT WINGS

MAGIC DUST SLAM DUNK HOT WINGS from Chris at NibbleMeThis He originally ran this recipe over at OUR Krazy Kitchen when I hosted that food blog.

36 chicken wing pieces (wingettes and drummettes)
CHRIS’ DRY RUB (I use my MAGIC DUST instead of Chris’ rub though – recipe below)
1 1/2 teaspoon Lawry’s Season Salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon oregano

TOSS SAUCE
1/2 cup hot sauce (I use Frank’s Original)
1/3 cup butter
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

DUNK SAUCE
3/4 cup ranch dressing
2 tablespoon diced roasted red pepper
2 tablespoon cilantro, finely minced

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • Mix the “dunk sauce” together and refrigerate.
  • Wash and dry the wing pieces REALLY well* and season with the dry rub.
  • Cook the wings for 25 minutes and then flip the wings.  Cook another 25 minutes or until crisp and cooked through.
  • Meanwhile, whisk together the “toss sauce” over medium heat.
  • Toss the wings in the toss sauce and put back in the oven for another 5-10 minutes.
  • Serve with the Dunk Sauce and enjoy

NOTE* This helps get a crisp skin.

TAMY’S MAGIC DUST (my go to dry rub that I keep on hand)

1/2 cup sweet paprika
1/4 cup finely ground sea salt
1/3 cup superfine sugar
1/4 cup chipotle chili powder
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder

  • Mix all ingredients together until well blended.
  • Store in an airtight container.
  • Shake before each use.

MAGIC DUST NOTE: I can’t use it because of allergies, but a great addition to this recipe is 2 tablespoons of Colemna’s dry mustard.

Linking up to FULL Plate Thursday.

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CHILI BOURBON/WHISKEY BALLS and a WHISKEY-BOURBON tutorial

CHILI BOURBON WHISKEY BALLS
2 pounds fully cooked boneless ham (I use ham steaks)
1/2 pound boneless pork chop
1/2 pound bacon
1 cup Panko crumbs
1 cup whole milk
2 LARGE eggs, beaten

  • Cut ham, pork chop and bacon into bite size pieces less than 1 inch.
  • Transfer to a jelly roll pan and freeze for 30-60 minutes.**
  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • Coarsely grind meat from freezer into a medium mixing bowl.
  • Whisk together the milk and eggs.
  • Add bread crumbs to milk mixture until well blended and absorbed.
  • Lightly combine pork and bread crumb mixture until consistent.
  • Shape into golf ball sized balls.

**NOTE Freezing before grinding does two things 1) the meat retains its moisture and 2) the machine won’t clog up during the grinding process.

SAUCE
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup Bourbon (I have also been known to use SEAGRAMS which what we usually have on hand)
2 tablespoons chili sauce

  • Whisk together all ingredients and bring to a SLOW boil.
  • Pour off 1 cup of sauce for reserve and keep warm or reheat just before serving.
  • Add ham balls to remaining sauce and gently stir to coat for a couple minutes.
  • Remove ham balls from sauce pan to baking rack inside jelly roll pan.
  • Bake 30 minutes, brushing occasionally with sauce from sauce pan.
  • Serve with reserved sauce.

NOTE: This recipe is ALSO good with beef meatballs.

BOURBON VS. WHISKEY – What is the difference?  This is something I always wondered about and my dad used to use them fairly interchangeable, but I never knew for sure so decided it was time to look it up.  It’s pretty interesting so I thought I’d share what I found with you.

Bourbon’s origin is not well documented with many conflicting claims and legends, not all credible. While bourbon is credited back to the French originally, American Bourbon has many rules that distinguish it from all others. Despite the 95 years of no bourbon production in Bourbon county originally due to first prohibition until a small refinery opened in 2014, it is still the best known area for bourbon production.

Bourbon is a corn base whiskey. By U.S. standards it must contain a minimum of 51% of corn, be produced entirely in the U.S., be aged in NEW charred oak barrels, and be distilled at specific volumes, aged at specific volumes and bottled at specific volumes.

In 1964 the United States Congress adopted a concurrent resolution that declared bourbon be a “distinctive product of the United States”. They asked that the United States agencies to take action to prohibit the importation into the U.S. of any whiskey designated as bourbon whiskey.

Legal Definitions of Bourbon vary from country to country, but many trade agreements require the name bourbon to be reserved for only those products made in the U.S.. The U.S. labeling and advertising regulations only apply for the products made for the U.S. and do not apply to those made for export.

There is no specific duration for the aging of Bourbon with the exception of STRAIGHT bourbon. Straight bourbon has a minimum aging of two years and if aged for less than four years must include a statement of age on the label when called STRAIGHT bourbon. STRAIGHT bourbon can also have NO added coloring, flavoring or other spirits. Using added colorings, flavorings or other spirits is BLENDED. Blended bourbon must contain at least 51% STRAIGHT bourbon.

Since the barrels can only be used once in order to call it bourbon, they are sold off to foreign distilleries to be used to produce other products. Often they are sold to Canada, the Caribbean, Scotland, Ireland and Mexico for manufacturing other barrel-aged products such as barbecue sauce,, wine, beer, hot sauces and other spirits. These barrels are saturated with 2-3 (sometimes up to 10) gallons of bourbon still which can influence the flavorings.

Whiskey, also spelled whisky has a debatable history. Despite all the debate it seems to boil down to regional language issues. The spelling whiskey is common in Ireland and the United states while the spelling whisky is used in most other countries.

Whiskey is generally aged in charred white oak wooden casks and is made of fermented grain mash (generally a combination of barley, corn, rye and wheat) which can also be malted after first being distilled in a copper vat. The copper removes the sulfur based compounds that give it an unpleasant flavor. While there are a variety of different still types today, they still have copper innards to remove the unpleasant sulfur based toxins.

After distillation whiskies are aged in wooden casks of primarily American and French oaks. Whiskies undergo a six point process that contributes to its final flavor. The six processes are extraction, evaporation, oxidation, concentration, filtration and colouration.

In order to use the term scotch whiskey, it must be distilled in Scotland.

Whiskey, like bourbon is strictly regulated throughout the world with typical unifying characteristics regarding the classes and types of fermentation of the grains, distillation and aging in wooden barrels.

Chemical distilling itself dates bake for certain to the Greeks. Much of early distillation was not for alcohol, but for medicines. In the 15th century distillation processes spread to Ireland and Scotland where the practice of medicinal distillation spread into alcohol distillation by monasteries. When King Henry the VIII dissolved the monasteries (1536-1541) Whisky production moved from a monastic setting to residential and farm settings as the monks, newly independent people now needed a way to earn money.

Early whisky was not allowed to age and was a brutal tasting spirit as it was very potent and not diluted. Over time whisky has become a much smoother spirit as it is now aged and diluted.

As with all things, whisky became considerably more taxed when England and Scotland were merged in 1707 by the Acts of Union. By 1725 most of Scotland’s distillation was shut down or forced underground because of the high taxation. They were known to hide scotch whisky in coffins, under altars and any available hidden space to avoid the revenuers. It was at this point that whisky became known as moonshine as distillers took to preparing and operating their stills at night when the smoke could be hidden in the darkness.

During the American Revolutionary war whisky was used as currency. George Washington himself operated a large distillery at Mt. Vernon.

There is still much taxation worldwide on both the distillation and purchase of whiskies.

During the American Prohibition 1920-1933 all alcohol was banned with the exception of whisky that was prescribed by a doctor and sold through a licensed pharmacy. I’m sure Walgreens is VERY thankful for this as their chain grew from 20 stores to over 400 stores.

So as you can see, it is all as clear as mud! So ALL bourbons are whiskeys, but not all whiskeys are bourbon.

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TATCHOS

TATCHOS

1/3 pound ground pork
1/3 pound ground chuck
1/3 pound bacon, diced
3-4 cups tater tots
4 ounce can green chiles
1/4 + 1/4 cup salsa
1 tablespoon taco seasoning
4 green onions, 2 sliced, 2 minced
1 serrano chile, seeded, de-veined and finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup sour cream

  • In a large skillet fry bacon until browned and crumbly. Remove bacon with slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
  • Bake tater tots until completely crisp while you are making the meat.
  • Add pork and beef to bacon grease and brown until cooked through and crumbly.
  • Pour off excess grease from meats.
  • Add green chiles, 1/4 cup salsa, half of the green onions and taco seasoning, stirring to combine well and cooking for several minutes to blend flavors.
  • Drain meat well of excess grease.
  • Sprinkle meat over prepared tater tots.
  • Top evenly with grated cheese.
  • Bake 5 minutes until cheese is melted.
  • Top with tomatoes, remaining green onions, serrano chiles, salsa and sour cream.

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MINI CHEESE PUFFS with HOMEMADE Bleu Cheese

You will never go wrong serving these at a tailgate party. Especially ,if you put them next to the cold beers!

MINI CHEESE PUFFS with HOMEMADE Bleu Cheese    11-11-2014   adapted from ROXY
Yields: 50 1/2 inch cheese balls

2 ½ cups finely shredded cheddar cheese blend of your choice**
¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 Large eggs
4 tablespoons Wondra
1 teaspoon baking powder
Avocado oil for frying

**I use a combination of Sharp Cheddar & Monterey Jack

  • In a bowl combine all the ingredients.
  • Mix well until mixture holds together and shape into small balls.
  • Make sure your cheese balls are not too big since they will almost double in size when you fry them.
  • Fry cheese balls in hot oil until golden brown.
  • You should have enough oil so your balls are almost completely covered.
  • Drain on paper towels.