Dessert For The Big Game – Or Anytime!!

With The Big Game this weekend we are going to need lots of food to eat to help get us through the ups and downs, the disappointments and the cheers; and that is just the commercials.  We have a number of appetizer and dip recipes not to mention main dishes that you can use but today we are going to go Dessert Time.

When it comes to dessert I can’t think of anything better than chocolate and peanut butter.  This dessert gives you this great combination of flavor and is super easy.  You can make it harder by making home made whip cream. I prefer it over Cool Whip but we have a game to prepare for so let’s keep it simple.

What You Need:

• 1   large box Chocolate Instant Pudding
• 1 large box Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding
• 6 cups  cold milk, divided
• 1/2 cup  PLANTERS Creamy Peanut Butter
• 1 tub  (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed, divided
• Hot Fudge or Chocolate Syrup
• Cookies, Brownies or Peanut Butter Cups for Garnish. or to add directly to your dish.  I used chocolate chip cookies and chocolate and peanut butter morsels!  Yeah!!

What You Do:

• Mix up the pudding in separate bowls using the cold milk.
• Add peanut butter to the vanilla pudding and mix it up really well.
• Add 2 cups of cool whip or whipped cream to each pudding mixture
• In a large bowl or trifle dish layer the one of the puddings, then half of the remaining cool whip, then the other pudding then the rest of the cool whip and then top with cookies, brownies or candy.  You can also put some cookies at the bottom or between layers… just make it already!!! Geesh!  Ha ha….
• Drizzle with chocolate syrup.  You can also put a little more whipped cream on the top if you have some.
• If you have time let the dish sit in the refrigerator for a couple of hours before drizzling the syrup over the top.
• EAT IT!!

We hope you get a chance to make this dish, if you do let us know what you think and how you made it.

 

Foodie Friday: Corn Chowder

Not that I have to tell you but it is COLD outside.  Not just kind of cold but REALLY COLD.  When it gets cold the first thing I want to cook is soup.  Chili Soup, Vegetable Soup, Black Bean Soup, and Chicken Corn Chowder.

This chowder can be tweaked a number of ways so feel free to play around with it.  Some of the ways to tweak this would be the addition of spices, seafood and potatoes.  You can omit the chicken but when it is cold I like to kick up the hearty quotient a bit.

Bring On The Chowder!

What You Need:

• 1 stick butter
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 small carrot, finely diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 cups white corn kernels, fresh or frozen
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 2 cups cooked chicken – shredded or cubed.  (I like to use a rotisserie chicken from the grocery that is already cooked if time is an issue)
• Pinch Cayenne Pepper
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

What You Do:

• Melt 1 stick of butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.
• Add the onion, carrot, and garlic, and saute for 2 minutes.
• Add the flour and stir to make a roux. Cook until the roux is lightly browned; set aside to cool to room temperature.
• Combine the corn and chicken stock in another saucepan, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes.
• Combine roux and stock, whisking so it doesn’t clump up.
• Return to the heat and bring to a boil, the mixture will be thick.
• Gently add in the half and half and stir
• Add chicken, cayenne, and salt and pepper to taste

Foodie Friday – Let’s Make A Crab Dip

Today we bring to you an easy and very tasty dip!  Great for the big game or even a small gathering with friends.  It is easy to put together and it will make you look like a culinary expert.

Bring On The Dip!!

What you need:

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 cup cooked crab meat
• 2 Tbsp minced shallots
• 1/2 teaspoon dried dill or 1 1/2 teaspoon fresh dill
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon of 1 1/2 teaspoons of dry white wine
• 1/2 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce
• Salt and pepper

What You Do:

Combine mayonnaise, sour cream, shallots, dill, lemon zest, lemon juice, white wine vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl. Fold in the crab meat. Salt and pepper to taste. Chill for 2 hours or overnight. Serve with crackers or carrots and celery.

 

Healthy Garlic Chicken and Broccoli

It’s a new year and for many this means, time for new resolutions.  The most popular resolutions are to eat better, become more fit, cook more at home and save money.  So for today’s Foodie Friday we are going to show you how to stay true to eating better and cooking more at home with a Garlic Chicken and Broccoli meal that is fast and easy.

What You Need:

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 pound(s) uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 tsp dried thyme, or 2 tbsp fresh minced thyme, or to taste
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 3 medium garlic clove(s), minced, or more to taste
• 2 cup(s) broccoli, florets
• 1 1/2 cup(s) reduced-sodium chicken broth, divided
• 1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 cup(s) cooked brown rice, kept hot

What You Do:

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place chicken on a plate and season with thyme, salt and pepper. Add garlic to skillet and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add chicken to skillet and cook until browned on all sides, stirring frequently, about 3 minutes.
• Add broccoli to skillet, cover and cook 2 minutes. Add 1 cup of broth, cover and simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes.
• In a cup, dissolve cornstarch in remaining 1/2 cup of broth; add to skillet. Simmer until mixture thickens, stirring constantly, about 1 minute; serve over rice. Yields about 1 cup of chicken and broccoli and 1/2 cup of rice per serving.

Fried Cheese Sticks!

Who wants to party?  With New Years Eve and Football Bowl Parties making their way quickly, we need to figure out what kind of stuff we are going to cook for our guests.  Nobody wants to be a slave in the kitchen while everyone else is having a great time but we also want to make sure that our food is…. well… you know… Awesome.  I give to you – Fried Cheese Sticks – with a little gourmet twist.

Now these are so easy that most kids can make them and they can be prepped ahead of time so all you have to do is fry them up during the party.  One suggestion if you don’t want your house smelling of deep fried food during the party is to fry them in a pan placed on your grill outside.  Don’t say it is too cold to use the grill, it is never to cold.  I used an electric skillet to make these and they were great.

What You Need:

• 12 pieces of string cheese
• 12 egg roll wrappers
• Pepperoni
• Italian Seasoning
• Oil for deep frying
• Marinara or spaghetti sauce for dipping

What You Do:

• Place a piece of string cheese near the bottom corner of one egg roll wrapper (keep remaining wrappers covered with a damp paper towel until ready to use). Fold bottom corner over cheese. Roll up halfway; fold sides toward center over cheese. Moisten remaining corner with water; roll up tightly to seal. Repeat with remaining wrappers and cheese.
• If using pepperoni and/or Italian seasoning place this on wrapper behind cheese and wrap it up in the wrapper. (see pictures)
• In an electric skillet, heat 1/2 in. of oil to 350°.
• Fry sticks, a few at a time, for 30-60 seconds on each side or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Serve with marinara sauce.
• Yield: 1 dozen

 

 

 

Foodie Friday: Monte Cristo!

So last week we made epic grilled cheese sandwiches, today we go Monte Cristo and yes they were fantastic.

Christmas at my house includes a ham and sometimes a turkey so these make the best leftover sandwiches.  Think ham and turkey sandwich with mellty cheese between two pieces of french toast.  nom nom nom….

What You Need:

• Bread – I typically go with a nice country while but Texas toast is good as is challah or brioche.
• Eggs – 1 per sandwich depending on the size
• Heavy Cream or milk
• Optional Nutmeg and/or Cinnamon
• Butter
• Turkey – enough to make your sandwich – you know how much you like figure it out
• Ham – same as the turkey
• Swiss Cheese couple slices per sandwich
• American Cheese – same as swiss
• Fruit spread/jelly

What You Do:

• Put your sandwiches together – Bread – Cheese – Ham – Turkey – Cheese – Bread – Sounds simple doesn’t it!
• Some people like to cut off the crust.
• Press sandwich together a little with hands or wrap tightly in plastic wrap and let sit in fridge for an hour or longer
• Mix eggs, heavy cream/milk in a bowl include nutmeg or cinnamon if using
• Melt some butter in your skillet on medium to medium high heat.
• Using your and put the sandwich into the egg/milk batter and place onto hot skillet
• Grill until golden brown and flip to brown the other side – you may want to put a lid on skillet to help melt the cheese and heat the inside of the sandwich
• Serve with fruit spread/jelly another favorite it to dust with powdered sugar

Enjoy!

 

5 Cheese Double Decker Grilled Cheese with Bacon!

Butter + Bread + Cheese = Winner …add in Bacon and you get Grand Prize Winner!

Today we are making double decker grilled cheese sandwiches with bacon.  Yeah you know you want one!  Admit it, you do!!  OK that’s better.  For the cheese I chose the new 4 Cheese Italian Blend from Land o’Lakes that combines American with Asiago, Romano and Parmesan.  I also included a lacy Swiss and a little more American cheese.   For the bacon I used a thick cut bacon that was processed locally and WOWZERS was it good!

This Recipe is enough for 4 sandwiches adjust accordingly.

What You Need:

• 8 slices of 4 Cheese Italian Blend
• 8 slices of American Cheese
• 8 slices of Swiss Cheese
• 12 slices of good bread – I went with a country white but you could experiment.
• Butter (softened) or Butter Spread
• 20 pieces of bacon ( 16 for the sandwiches and 4 to eat while you cook)

What You Do:

• Fry Bacon and place on paper towel covered plate… hide the bacon from others but enjoy a piece or two for yourself, after all you are the one cooking!
• Butter one side of each of the pieces of bread
• Heat skillet or griddle to medium high heat
• Place one slice of bread, butter side down onto heated cooking surface.
• Place one slice of American cheese on bread
• Place two pieces of bacon
• Place  one slice of Swiss and Italian Cheese On top of Bacon
• Cover with piece of bread butter side up
• Once the bread is grilled to a golden brown flip it over and build out the rest of the sandwich – cheese – bacon – cheese – cheese
• Remove from the pan when the sandwich is golden brown and place on cutting board, cut into triangles – because that’s the way you eat grilled cheese!
• Enjoy
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Foodie Friday: Pulled Pork!

BBQ Pulled Pork!  Now that is tailgating food at its finest!

In my world the only way to do pulled pork is on a smoker with my secret BBQ rub.  Since not everyone has a smoker you can do this on a gas or charcoal grill using the indirect method.  The indirect method is simply cooking putting the heat source on one side of the grill and the pork on the other side.  It is best to put a drip pan under the meat to catch some of the drippings that will then help provide steam to the chamber.

What you need: 

• 1 Pork Shoulder – These are called pork butt, pork shoulder or picnic cuts.  They come with and without bone, I prefer one with a bone.
• Rub – There are plenty of commercial rubs available to try and some of them are great, there are also a number of recipes out there.  I suggest finding a recipe and using it and then if you enjoy the process next time maybe make some tweaks and make it your own.  I have tweaked my current recipe over 20 times and I finally have a rub that I really like for pulled pork and a separate one for ribs.
• Patience
• Old Bath/Beach Towel 
• Aluminum Foil
• Charcoal/hardwood chunks or chips  – If you are using chips use a smoker box or make a packet with aluminum foil and add your wet chips to the packet and throw it on the grill to give you some smoke.  If you are using a charcoal grill you can do the same as well as add chunks/chips to your charcoal.
• Meat Thermometer 

What you do:

• Cover your pork with your rub as early as 12 hours before you plan to cook it.  Some people like to slather on some mustard before applying the rub, I have done it both ways and do not have an opinion on the subject.
• At least 30 minutes before you plan to start cooking pull your meat out of the refrigerator to allow it to come up in temperature.
• Get your smoker or grill heated up to 225 – 250 degrees.  This is the temperature that you will be cooking at.  (I have been known to run my smoker up to 325-350 and have had great results, it cuts down on the cooking time and really saves on fuel.  This is something I suggest trying at least once.)
• Once your grill/smoker is at temperature place it on the rack and close the lid.  Don’t keep opening the lid, the pork is still there – I promise!  Every time you open the lid you are costing yourself about 15 minutes in extra cooking.
• Keep an eye on your temperature and enjoy your day.  You should check on it once an hour to make sure the temperature is staying steady.  Make any adjustments like adding additional wood, charcoal, or adjusting vents.
• It takes about 1.5 to 2 hours per pound to cook.  About half way through check the internal temperature of the meat so you know where you are.
• The temp will continue to climb during the cooking until you hit somewhere around 160-180 degrees.  This is what is called “The Stall” do not panic just let it happen and bask in the knowledge that you know that this is normal.  This is one of the most important parts of the process as this is when the connective tissue is breaking down and your pork is becoming awesome!
• DO NOT PULL THE PORK OFF THE SMOKER AT 160-180 degrees…. no matter what your cookbook says about pork being done … Your pork is not done yet!  Yes you could eat it and not get sick but it won’t be tender and won’t be good.
• Wait until the internal temp reaches 190-195 degrees, I have actually waited until 200 degrees before.  Now wrap it in foil tightly and then wrap it in an old towel.  If you have a cooler you can place your wrapped package into it or place it into an over or microwave that is not being used.  Let the pork rest for at least 20 minutes and as long as 2 hours.  This will allow the pork to continue to cook and open up a little.  No it will not be dry or over cooked.
• Unwrap your present and pull the meat apart with your hands or use a fork.  Even though the pork has been resting for a while it is still hot so I suggest using a couple of forks… I use my hands but not everyone can handle the heat.
• You can serve the pork a number of ways but I suggest not dumping a ton of BBQ sauce on before you serve it.  I am not against using a little bbq sauce on my pulled pork but if it needs sauce to be served then you screwed something up.
• Enjoy Your Hard Work!

 

Foodie Friday! Let’s Make Cheese Steak!

The biggest family and friend get together is almost here and we need food and not just any food we need awesome food… Yeah you know what I am talking about…. We all gather and and enjoy each others company and celebrate The Ohio State Buckeyes going to The Team Up North and bringing home a victory!

Wait… what?  You thought I was talking about Thanksgiving… um nope! Now don’t get me wrong I love Thanksgiving and I love the food, man do I love the food but if I shared with you the closely held family secret on how to make the best most moist turkey you have ever had, well then I would have to kill you and I don’t want to do either one.  Bring On The Cheese Steak!

Now before we get started, I am not from Philly and I do not make a traditional Philly Cheese Steak.  I think mine is awesome so we are going to call it Buckeye Cheese Steak or maybe Buckeye “awesome” Cheese Steak… or is the awesome just understood?  I have been known to make this with a provolone cheese but for this one I am going to go with a cheese sauce.

What You Need:
 6 full sized sandwiches:

• 1.5 lbs of Meat – I prefer going with a rib-eye that has been cut extra thin.  You can also go with a high quality roast beef also cut thin from the deli and if you are wanting to stay away from beef (why?) you can choose to go chicken but it isn’t the same.
• 6 Deli Rolls – You can go soft roll or crusty roll.  I prefer a crusty as they tend to hold up a little better.
• 1 Yellow Onion, peeled and sliced
• 3 Bell Peppers, seeded and sliced thick – Green, Red, Yellow just choose what you like or skip them if you don’t like them at all… see I am easy to get along with
• 6 TBSP Butter

For the Cheese Sauce:

• 8 ounces, Velveeta Cheese (You can go with the white or yellow it doesn’t matter)
• 1/2 tsp Black Pepper
• 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper
• 1/4 cup of milk

What to do:

Once you have all of your veggies prepped start with your cheese sauce.

1. Put the Velveeta, black pepper, Cayenne pepper and milk into a sauce pan and melt it down over medium heat.  Make sure not to burn it over too high of heat and feel free to add more spice once it is melted a bit if you like to spice it up.
2. Heat up a skillet and melt some butter on it and grill those buns.  This adds a little something special to the sandwich but can be left out if you are in a hurry.
3. Melt 2 tbsp butter in large pan over medium high heat.  Throw in meat and work it around the pan with a spatula or tongs.  If you are using deli roast beef we are just getting it hot and it should only take a couple of minutes.  If you are using steak it won’t take much time either but chicken will take a little more time since we need it to be cooked through.  Once the meat is done pull it from the skillet and place on a plate.
4. Throw in some more butter into the same skillet that you used for the meat (don’t wipe clean, that is flavor in there) and reduce the temp to about medium or medium low.
5. Throw in the veggies and let them cook until they start to get a nice dark golden color and are soft.  This can take 8- 10 minutes.  You can go with  more caramelized onion but it does take about an hour to do it.  I am not saying it isn’t worth it but it does take some time.  I love them but I am impatient.
6. Open up your bun and pile on some meat and then pour a little cheese sauce over it and then layer some onion and pepper mixture and top that with a little more cheese sauce and finish with the bun top.
7. Now eat them and cheer for your favorite team… unless it is that team up north!

 

 

Foodie Friday: Seared Scallops in a Jarlsberg Cream Sauce Served Over Pasta.

Foodie Friday!! Foodie Friday!! Foodie Friday!!

WOO HOO!  It’s Friday and that means time to cook!  Today we are going to skip the grill and make a fantastic pasta dish.  If you like the cream based sauces on your pasta you are going to love this.  It is super easy and full of flavor.

Let’s Get Cooking!

What You Need: 

• 2 lbs of sea scallops
• 4 oz of Jarlsberg cheese spread/dip
• 4 tbsp of butter
• 4 oz. heavy cream
• Pasta of your choice, I prefer angel hair pasta  but spaghetti, fettuccine or even a rotini pasta would work well.

What You Do:

• Get the water boiling for your pasta.  You can go ahead and start cooking the pasta now and it should be done once the scallops and sauce are done.
• Melt the butter in a saute pan, we are using an electric skillet because that is what we have
• Once the butter is melted add in scallops and saute them until they are no longer translucent, this should take about 5 to 7 minutes.
• Remove scallops
• In the same saute pan (do not wipe clean) add in the cream and Jarlsberg spread and whisk together until you have a well blended sauce.
• Put the scallops back into the pan with the sauce and then pour over pasta.  You can also add the pasta into the pan and toss it a couple of times if you prefer doing it this way.
• Serve with a nice crusty bread, small salad and your favorite beverage.

The backstory on this recipe.

Typically the recipes that are prepared for the Foodie Friday posts come from me.  I have either cooked it before, came up with it while driving to work or adapted something that a family member makes.  This recipe actually comes from Giant Eagle.  Last week I was in purchasing food for last weeks post, like I always do and I came across someone offering free samples near the seafood counter.  I normally skip these, I know shocking right, but this one intrigued me.  The person working the cart was not only friendly but also willing to talk to me about the recipe and how she made it.  When I walked in today she recognized me and confirmed the ingredients that I had in my head.  A big thank you goes out to the Giant Eagle in Lancaster OH.  Thanks!