CHERRY CHILI BBQ CHICKEN ~ BLOG 366.306

I LOVE BBQ anything, but when I’m making chicken I especially love doing legs and thighs. The dark meat and relative same sizes makes for some seriously juicy pieces. But, for this it’s the SAUCE that makes it so special!

CHERRY PEPSI BBQ CHICKEN LEGS

BBQ SAUCE
1 can cherry PEPSI
1/2 cup Heinz chili sauce
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar

  • In a large saucepan combine PEPSI, chili sauce, vinegar and sugar.
  • Heat over medium high heat and bring to a SLOW boil.
  • Reduce heat and cook 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened and reduced to 3/4 cup.
  • Transfer to a bowl and allow to cool.

2-3 pounds plump chicken drumsticks or plump thighs
1 teaspoon garlic powder
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper

  • Prepare grill for direct AND indirect medium heat.
  • Oil grill REALLY well.
  • Season chicken pieces with garlic powder, FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper.
  • Add drumsticks to direct heat for 4-5 minutes.
  • Turn and move to indirect heat.
  • Cover and grill 20 minutes until cooked through. Brush with sauce regularly during this time.

BLUEBERRY LEMON CRINKLE CAKE ~ BLOG 366.305

BLUEBERRY LEMON CRINKLE CAKE inspired and adapted from TIK TOK and MASTER CHEF

Flakey, gooey yet sweet and custardy make this “cake” more similar to a yummy pastry that you’d have for a Sunday brunch dish.

PREP TIME 15 minutes BAKE TIME 1 hour. TOTAL TIME 1 hour 15 minutes

CAKE
1 package phyllo dough 2 rolls
1 cup butter melted

  • Thaw phyllo dough COMPLETELY in refrigerator overnight.
  • Preheat your oven to 350°.
  • Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper.
  • Working with two sheets of phyllo dough stacked on top of each other gently gather into a loose accordion ruffle about an inch thick.
  • Place in prepared pan, folds facing up, and repeat until all phyllo dough has been used.
  • Lightly fluff and adjust phyllo accordions as needed to make sure they fill the pan LOOSELY! You do NOT want any dense folds.
  • Bake for 10 minutes.
  • Remove from oven and drizzle the melted butter evenly over the phyllo dough.
  • Return to oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

CUSTARD
1 cup WHOLE milk
2 LARGE eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon PURE vanilla extract
1 teaspoon PURE almond extract 
1 cup SMALL wild blueberries

  • Whisk together the milk, eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract in a LARGE spouted measuring cup or bowl. 
  • Remove phyllo from the oven and pour the custard EVENLY over top.
  • Bake another 30-40 minutes until the top is golden and crispy and custard is set.
  • During the last 5-10 minutes sprinkle blueberries gently and evenly, but randomly amongst the cake folds.

SYRUP
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 tablespoon FRESH lemon juice

  • In a small saucepan over medium heat whisk together the sugar, water and lemon juice.
  • Whisk to combine and heat to a simmer.
  • Simmer 10 minutes or until some of the liquid has evaporated and the syrup has thickened to the consistency of maple syrup otherwise it will make a soggy cake!
  • Drizzle evenly over completely baked cake.
  • Allow cake to cool to room temperature, cut, and serve.

NOTE:  Change up the flavors to your liking by using different flavored extracts, lemon zest, fresh berries or even mini chocolate chips.

HAPPY HOMEMAKER MONDAY, MENUS & RECIPES week 43 of 2024 ~ BLOG 366.302

Be sure to join Happy Homemaker Monday with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

WEEKEND RECAP

4-6 PM Saturday was TRUNK or TREAT in our little town. The weather really showed up with a pleasant 71° and sunny which was great because Halloween itself is supposed to be pouring down rain and only 50° so Saturday may be the only Halloween some of these kids see.

TRUNK or TREAT has taken on a life of its own the past couple years. Surrounding towns bring their kids to our little area. It has also become quite an expensive endeavor. The kids have a great time and so do the businesses, but where and how do you draw the line on events like this? Our population is only 8,200 so how is we now have upwards of 2,500 kids participating? We did the math and between the candy, extra employees needed to man the booths and decorations it’s costing the average business between $500-$1,000 or more for a 2 hour event, especially if you’re located near the haunted house where the lines are long.

Sunday rained and the temperature dropped 20° so it was the perfect day to watch NASCAR, read a little and just do what you want kind of day. 😀 We did have a bit of a momentary break in the rain and we went and fed stale bread pieces to the peacocks and the deer that had wandered down into the park.

Let’s get on with Monday!

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE

We’re supposed to get quite a bit of rain this week which we REALLY need, so I’m okay with that. The highs are supposed to be in the 50’s and 60’s with lows in the 30’s and 40’s.

ON MY MIND

I know Halloween is this week and we haven’t even celebrated Thanksgiving yet, but because Thanksgiving is late this year I am trying to get a jump on ALL things December! BLOGMAS is one of those things that keeps me happy and motivated through the holidays and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

That said, I did condense a bit and I have come up with my BLOGMAS timeline for 2024. Doing as many of the posts in advance that I can also helps me keep my sanity through the busy holiday season. I REALLY hope you can and will join in whenever possible.

TO DO LIST, APPOINTMENTS & PROJECTS

THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS & APPOINTMENTS
  • LAUNDRY & CLEANING I thought I had finished the laundry and then I realized we were wearing clothes and it wouldn’t stay done 😀 for very long.
  • GROCERIES & ERRANDS I’m making a list for a very few things I need for this next week. I’ll pick those things up on Thursday when I head in to town for my pedicure appointment.
  • PAPERWORK & PHONE CALLS I have a couple calls to make this morning for information for my meeting tonight.
  • PROJECTS & TRAVELS I’m working on a painted pot and repotting of a Christmas cactus for a friend’s surprise birthday party on Wednesday. And I’m working on a “new” antique set of sewing machine drawers (pictures in the favorite photos section). I made reservations for a weekend getaway with a girl friend for a large Holiday Market we like to go to each year.
  • RECIPE RESEARCH & MENU PLANNING My menus are planned through November, but I’m beginning to research some hearty soups, stews and casseroles for December and January.

DVR/TV TIME

WHAT’S ON THE DVR/TV
  • STREAMING We finished watching FRINGE and NIGHT COURT. We’re currently trying to figure out our next binge watches.
  • CABLE I have been taping the new Hallmark Christmas movies, am about to finish the Halloween season of the baking shows and will start the new holiday shows next week.

READING TIME

I started reading RECIPE FOR A PERFECT WIFE by Karma Brown

FUNNIES

MENU PLANS

BREAKFAST is always a work in progress for me – it will generally be hot water and a fruit yogurt 😀
10/28 MONDAY
10/29 TUESDAY
10/30 WEDNESDAY
10/31 THURSDAY
11/1 FRIDAY
11/2 SATURDAY
11/3 SUNDAY
DINNER
 STREET CORN CHICKEN ENCHILADAS
 PEASANT BEEF STEW
RB BAKED BEANS and HOT DOGS
CORN/YOYO CLEAN OUT REFRIGERATOR NIGHT or YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN
 SLOW COOKER LEMON CHICKEN
 GARLIC ONION SLOW COOKER CHICKEN & RICE
 LASAGNA SOUP & GARLIC BREAD
DESSERT
 
 SALTED CARAMEL BROWNIES
 

FAVORITE PHOTOS FROM THE CAMERA

I found a cute “set” of sewing machine drawers at a friends store recently. They even had the rare “secret” top drawer fairly intact. The drawers had been “finished” by her brother, but they were in sad shape with too dry wood, missing drawer guides and “gummy” areas that were dried and yucky. They were also done as two separate units. I’m in the process of rejuvenating them with oil and putting the two towers into a single piece. Hubby is making me a top and a bottom for them, but this is a start for now.

And just a few pictures from the TRUNK or TREAT event. Many of the parents dressed up also. I have to say the Jack Sparrow was one of the more popular ones. He would accept candy from the businesses and then seek out one of the shyer kids to give it to. I also love the BIO HAZARD scarecrow and McDonalds pulled out the stops with their drive through window.

The deer joined the peacocks today for some joint snacking time.

Living in the country gives us some fun local displays for holidays also.

INSPIRATIONS

LIFE TIP

HOMEMAKING / COOKING TIP

With Thanksgiving coming up and so many stories in the news of bacterial diseases on the rise I thought it would be helpful to remind us all that food safety is so very important.

RECIPE LINKS FROM LAST WEEK

WEEKLY FEATURED PARTY LINKS

PULL APART CHEESY PIGS in a BLANKET with ARBY’S SAUCE ~ BLOG 366.299

PULL APART CHEESY PIGS in a BLANKET adapted from Mary Berg

1 1/4 cups bread flour, plus more for dusting and kneading
1 teaspoon instant yeast
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper, to taste
1/4 cup WHOLE milk
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus more for the bowl
1 tablespoon QUALITY honey
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, plus more for serving OR 2 tablespoons creamy horseradish
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 1/2 cups FRESH grated medium Cheddar
6 jumbo ALL beef hot dogs
Dijonnaise, optional
Goop or Ketchup, optional

  • Whisk together the flour, yeast and salt in a large bowl until well combined.
  • Combine the milk, water, butter and honey in a small saucepan or microwave-safe bowl and heat just until the butter is melted and the mixture is lukewarm. If it accidentally gets a little too hot, just set the mixture aside for a few minutes.
  • Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and stir until a shaggy dough forms. Turn the dough onto a floured work surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes.
  • Place the dough into a lightly greased bowl, cover with a plate or plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hours 30 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, stir together the Dijon or creamy horseradish, garlic powder and paprika in a small bowl.
  • When the dough has risen, heat your oven to 375 and grease a 9 or 10 inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray.
  • Lightly grease the outside of a small oven-safe ramekin and place in the center of the pan. Set aside.
  • Punch the dough down and turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface.
  • Roll into approximately a 36-inch log then cut into 6 equal pieces.
  • Press and lightly roll each piece of dough to 1/4 inch thick and the same length of your hot dogs.
  • Brush the Dijon or horseradish mixture across the length of each piece of dough.
  • Scatter the grated Cheddar over top.
  • Place a hot dog on top and bring the dough up and around, pinching to seal.
  • Cut each into 3 equal pieces and arrange the pigs in a blanket, cut-side up, in the prepared springform pan around the ramekin.
  • Bake 35-40 minutes until golden brown and the dough is springy.
  • Set aside to cool for 10 to 15 minutes. 


  • To serve, remove the outer part of the spring form pan and transfer to a plate.
  • Fill the ramekin with Dijon, Dijonnaise, ketchup, Arby’s sauce or goop and serve.

NOTE:

  • You can cheat if you’re in a BIG hurry and use pizza dough sheets or even puff pastry.
  • You can also use regular hot dogs. We just prefer the ALL beef for their flavor and texture after baking.

ARBY’S SAUCE
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
4-6 tablespoons filtered water
4-5 drops Tabasco sauce
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

  • Combine all together in a small sauce pan.
  • Simmer on low 20 minutes, whisking periodically, especially the last 10 minutes.
  • Keep refrigerated.