Category: Appetizers

Ham & Leek Empanadas, Abundant Sunshine, and Dishes That Just Will Not Clean Themselves

1/18/2015

Empanadas have been around forever!

How come I've never had one before, then????
These babies are fantastic!!!

The filling can be
sweet
or
savory.

They're usually deep fried but can also baked.

This is a savory one with ham, leeks &
Gruyere cheese.
These were baked.
It's like a warm ham and cheese in a flaky croissant!!!!!

This Ham & Leek Emapanada recipe
is from Ina Garten's
new cookbook
Make It Ahead.

Best part is,
these lovelies cook in
the oven,

NOT the deep fat fryer!

Ham & Leek Empanadas
Makes 12 empanadas
Straight outta oprah.com from Ina Garten's new cookbook Make It Ahead - a Barefoot Contessa cookbook.
Ingredients

1 1/2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups small-diced leeks, white and light green parts only
1/3 cup crème fraîche
4 ounces smoked ham, such as Black Forest, cut into 1/4" dice
4 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated
2 ounces (2 cups) baby spinach, coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp. julienned basil leaves
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper, plus more for sprinkling
1 large egg
2 Tbsp. milk
All-purpose flour, for rolling
3 sheets frozen puff pastry, defrosted (2 packages)
Fleur de sel or sea salt for sprinkling

Directions
Active time: 40 minutes
Total time: 1 hour
Preheat oven to 400°. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.

In a medium (10") saute pan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add leeks and sauté until tender but not browned, about 4 minutes. Stir in crème fraîche and simmer 1 minute.

In a medium bowl, mix ham and Gruyère. Add leek mixture, spinach, basil, Parmesan, salt, and black pepper. Mix and set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together egg and milk.

Sprinkle a cutting board with flour, roll out 1 sheet of the puff pastry to an 11" x 11" square, and cut into 4 equal squares. Brush edges of each square with egg wash. Place 1/3 cup of the ham and cheese filling in the center of each square. Fold each square diagonally to form a triangle, lining up edges of pastry. Place empanadas on prepared sheet pans and press edges with tines of a fork to seal. Brush each with egg wash and sprinkle with fleur de sel and pepper. Repeat with remaining pastry and filling. (If making ahead, put sheet pan in freezer; when frozen, transfer empanadas to a resealable plastic bag.) Bake until puffed and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Allow to cool 5 minutes before serving.

Here's the direct link to oprah.com and Ina's fantastic recipe...click HERE.

Okay, let's get started with the fixins here...

By the way: 1 1/2 CUPS of leeks = 1 1/2 leeks. Figure a cup a leek. You're welcome :)

Also: The puff pastry is frozen. It really did thaw out on the counter in under 30 minutes. Weird.

Um, now a disclaimer...

Sour cream is a fine substitution for creme fraiche. Frankly, I'm leery of anything that sounds too fancy anyway :)

Okay, now prep everything...chop up the spinach, leeks, ham, basil. Grate up the parm and that yummy expensive Gruyere. Beat the eggs with milk and get the flour ready.

Melt the butter in the pan and throw the leeks in...

Throw creme la-de-da-DO-DA-DAY
I mean the sour cream in there and stir.

Now take that yummy, salty diced ham and throw it into a bowl with the Gruyere cheese.

Hellllooooooo Gorgeous.

My life is complete.

Now throw the sauteed leeks
and
sour cream mixture in there...

We're really rockin' and rollin' now....
add the spinach, basil, parm, and salt & pepper into that lovely ham and Gruyere mixture!

Okay, now let's look at this lovely medley all mixed up.....

Dear Readers of My blog,

I forgot to take a picture of this colorful ham and cheese and spinach and basil and parm yummy medley all mixed up. Crap. I swear I didn't eat it. All.

Love, Angie

So anyway, you need to roll the puff pastry dough
out into an 11'' x 11" square.

When the pastry defrosts out of the package, it is 9" x 9.5".
I measured.
With a tape ruler.
Cuz I am a dork.

Just take flour and a rolling pin and do your thang...
easy peasy.

Divide that puff pastry into 4ths.

Line the baking sheets with parchment paper and get the egg wash mixture ready...

Okay, now brush the edges of each square with the egg wash...

Place 1/3 cup of the filling in the middle of each square.

Fold each square into a triangle...

Place the triangles onto the baking sheet...

Take a fork and crimp the edges...
this part was actually fun....cuz I am such a free wheelin' party animal who knows no boundaries of fun-ness and stuff. Duh. Shut up.

I admit, I only had two sheets of puff pastry so I threw all that ham mixture into 8 empanadas instead of 12. I am a rebel.

Can you see the egg wash that goes on the outside there? Well, do it. Brush that egg wash all over.

Then season each empananada with
salt and pepper.

So they're ready to go in the oven...

And here they are after 25 minutes...
now these look messy as a whole...

But single each one out and they are loverly golden brown and perfectly baked!

Open one up and this is the deliciousness inside, the ooey gooey Gruyere with the diced ham, the small hint of mild onion with the sauteed leeks and the bite of the spinach, all in that flaky pastry crust.
So good!!

Again I will say, it's almost like an artisanal ham and cheese croissant.
Several flavors meld together and you will have people ask WHAT IS IN THESE THAT MAKE THEM SO GOOD?

Now these empanadas would be good for lunch because they're not super filling. They're definitely snack material and maybe even as a solo appetizer before a meal.

Okay, it's a bee-utiful day out here today,
full of sunshine!!!!! See that light in the right hand corner? That's called sunshine, something that is not common a lot
in the winter here!!!

I love seeing the railing shadows on the deck from that awesome sun working it's magic!!

The snow is melting.......
too bad, so sad....NOT!!

The cats started to wake up out of their winter slumber too.

I'm planning on enjoying the day after I clean up this craptastic mess in the kitchen. I abhor cleaning, especially the kitchen!!!
Now I know you're thinking that don't look so bad, pffft.

Well, let's just piece this out, shall we???

A nice combo of
dirty wine glasses from
last night
and
coffee from this morning.

Next to that is more
dirty glasses,
cat treats, butter
and a precariously placed plate.

FOR PETE'S SAKE,
CAN NO ONE CLEAN UP AFTER THEMSELVES????

Oh wait, that was me.
:(

Next,
onto the other counter is a cookie cooling rack that's been hanging out on the counters for a week.

I've been planning on making cookies but it just occurred to me while I'm typing this, that the cookies I'm going to be making

are no bake.

This just makes my blood boil.

I hate washing pans. I think I'm allergic to doing dishes.

Lastly, let's take inventory of the island:

1. Message pad
2. Store receipt
(I always want to make sure I'm not being screwed out of being charged too much, ya know?)
3. More cat treats. Really? This is borderline embarrassing.
4. Italian seasoning.
5. Measuring tape. Doesn't EVERYONE have one of those on their countertop, though??
6. Earrings. Guess I can't blame those on Tim.
7. Towel and steak knife.

So I better close up the laptop now and go clean the kitchen.

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

I'm gonna go peruse more pictures like this

Source?

And this gorgeousness

bhg.com

And a droll worthy kitchen all day long

Domain Home...Benji Madden's LA kitchen

And when I get tired of perusing pictures like this

THEN I will go dishes.

Promise!

Girl Scout honor (does that count even if you weren't a Girl Scout?)

Okay, have a good rest of the weekend and we'll talk at y'all soon!!! :)

I Made And Ate My Super Bowl Food Early - Aaron McCargo's Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos - Not For The Faint Of Heart

2/3/2013

This is Aaron McCargo from the Food Network show Big Daddy's House.

Foodnetwork.com

His show is awesome, his food is down home DEEELICIOUS and packed with flavor!
He has a cookbook out that I need to remember to get.

Aaronmccargo.com

And the guy is funny!
Now this video doesn't showcase his humor so much
but c'mon,
FUNKY FRIED CHICKEN!!

Okay, the recipe I made of his is
LOADED SWEET POTATO NACHOS.

Tim's mom called the other day and told me Rachael Ray was making
sweet potato nachos.
Well I googled them and they looked yummy.
But Aaron's looked even more deeelicious!

So I made them and ate them!
Loaded
Sweet Potato Nachos!

These are packed full of flavor!!!
Keep that in mind.
You will need to adjust a few of the ingredients for the kiddos in your house.

Okay,
so here's the fixins for these fine Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos.

Important Angie Cheat Alert:

I cheated and used bags of organic sweet potato chips instead of slicing and frying sweet potatoes by hand.

I was planning on making the homemade chips,
I really was!
But

like my childhood dreams of being crowned Miss America.....

yeah,

it.
just.
didn't.
happen.

So using good sweet potato tortilla chips is FINE!

Not being Miss America is FINE!

I would have looked AWESOME in that crown!

tlcdiscovery.com

boston.com

Oh shut up.
You knew you were gonna win.

Anyway,

so many recipes call for chipotle peppers.

Here's the brand I buy.

And quite frankly,
I've never used Gouda before for cooking.

The recipe calls for smoked Gouda but I picked up the plain by accident. Worked fine since there was already smoky flavor from the chipotles.

Also I used homemade barbeque sauce.
I always use The Neely's recipe here.

So easy to make and totally rocks the house!

Okay guys, I took a couple pictures of the prepping of the chipotles and the jalapenos.
I don't know which picture is scarier and also why I thought
it was even okay to take these pictures!!!!!

Exhibit #A:

I was trying to show that you only need to use three peppers but to save and freeze the rest.

Could there BE a MORE unappetizing picture?

Exhibit #B

I was TRYING to show that I use these disposable gloves when I slice jalapenos.

What in the heck was I thinking???
Could there BE a more scarier picture??
Geez.

The bigger question is...

WILL ANGIE EVER GET THIS STUPID POST FINISHED????

Anyhoo,

chop up all the vegetables and shred up that Gouda.

OH! Next time, I may use provolone, that would be good too.

Next,

start browning the beef....

Now throw the onions and garlic in and begin sauteing...

Now throw the chipotle peppers and tomato paste in.

Add that yummy, spicy barbeque sauce!

The hard work is done...

let this simmer now for a bit.

Okay, let's start putting these
Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos
together...

Throw your chips on an oven proof tray. I used this dish cause I don't have an ovenproof tray that is something other than a disgusting looking baking sheet.

Now layer the beef on top.

Layer on some cheese.

And
some hot jalapenos that were sliced with a scary looking black gloved hand.

And now do it all over again until you get to the cheese....

Throw the dish in the oven for a few minutes to let the cheese melt...and then whip on those jalapenos...

Now drizzle the remaining spicy barbeque sauce on.

Sprinkle the chopped scallions all over...

Looky Gooood!!

Mmmmm. See that spicy sweet barbeque sauce

drizzled over the gooey cheese

and the spicy smoky meat under that?

All on tasty salty sweet potato chips!

Well, don't be shy....plate some up!

Be sure
to have a fork handy,

you is-a-gonna need it!

Okay kids, that's all I have for today.
I better go find something to make for the Super Bowl since I made and ate these nachos up a day early.

Also

I gotta find a way to kick these rugrats off my couch in time for kickoff.

Cause Ima need plenty of room for my
all time favorite meal....

I think it's interesting how I always insist on the "lite" french onion dip. As if that's gonna matter pairing it with those two other nutritional food groups. What-ev-er.

Have a good rest of the weekend!
Talk at ya soon!

CRAP! I forgot!!
Here's the recipe!!!

Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos
Recipe is from Aaron McCargo of Big Daddy’s House on the Food Network
www.foodnetwork.com – Check his show out sometime-Fantastic recipes
Courtesy www.turnkeyqualitycars.com

Ingredients
Angie’s Note: I cheated and used organic sweet potato chips instead of making them by hand.
    Canola oil, for frying
    2 large sweet potatoes, thinly sliced on a mandoline
    Salt and freshly ground black pepper
    2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
    1 1/2 pounds ground beef
    1 onion, diced
    1 tablespoon minced garlic
    1 tablespoon tomato paste
    3 chipotles, minced
    1 1/2 cups, favorite BBQ sauce, plus some for drizzling
    2 cups grated smoked Gouda
    3 red jalapenos, sliced
    1 bunch scallions, sliced

Directions
Preheat the oven to broil. Preheat a deep-fryer or heavy-bottomed pot, with enough canola oil to come halfway up the sides of the pot, to 325 degrees F.

Working in batches, deep-fry the sweet potatoes until crisp, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from fryer to a paper towel lined platter and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside.

Add the grapeseed oil to a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add meat and brown it until almost cooked through, about for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and cook until softened, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste, chipotles, and salt and pepper, to taste. Stir several times to incorporate. Add the BBQ sauce, bring to a simmer and cook for an additional 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from the heat.

To assemble nachos:
Using 2 oven-proof platters, lay some sweet potato chips on each platter. Top the potatoes with some meat, cheese, and jalapenos. Repeat the layers with the remaining ingredients, except for a handful of jalapenos. Broil until the cheese melts, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the platters from the broiler and top them with the remaining jalapenos, a drizzle of BBQ sauce and the scallions. Serve.

Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs, A Parade, And My Sister's Man Hands

11/9/2012

Care
for a meatball?

Fresh out of the oven?

They're stuffed with fresh mozzarella...hope that's okay.

These Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs
are
BIG!

And so-so-so easy to make, I could not believe it!

Here's the fixins for these Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs...

pretty simple stuff!

This recipe is from the food blog picky-palate.com.

Picture is from www.picky-palate.com; this is where the original recipe comes from.

Oh I should mention that you're supposed to use these mozzarella balls that you get at your grocery store.

Unless you shop at a small grocery like I do, then you just get a mozzarella ball and chop it up...

...like this...

Okay guys, there aren't a thousand steps here...just a couple. So get your coffee or ice tea or soda and stay alert and pay attention, dis gonna go fast.

womansday.com

Really?
Is the crap I write really that boring?

ehow.com

Whatev.

Well, these guys aren't bored and actually quite enjoy reading about my
Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs.

See. Told ya. After they look at that graph, they're screaming right over to my blog site.
Yup, that's right. Screaming. Tearing. Running over. Right after they're done. Uh huh.

OH
HEY!

This will perk you up!!

Pretty!

A purple Thanksgiving table!

Anyway, moving on...

Mince up the onions and garlic.
Two things:
1. Mince, not chop the garlic and onions. The smaller the better when mixing with meatballs.

2. The recipe calls for 1/2 cup onion and 2Tbsp garlic. Next time, Ima use only 1/4 cup onion and 1 Tbsp. garlic.

So throw your hamburger, onions, garlic and and egg in a bowl...

Add in the panko, and Parmesan cheese, and milk and Worcestershire and yellow mustard and hot sauce and salt and pepper.

Okay this picture should be the mixed up meatball meat but apparently I didn't see fit to take that picture. I suppose I was too busy trying to get the meatball meat off my hands under the faucet.

Nonetheless,
oil up a 9 x 13 baking dish.

Oh here's a picture of the mixture.
It's very texture-y by the way.

(You'll find "texture-y" in the Pretend Word Dictionary. Your welcome.)

Anyway, find your 1/4 cup scoop thing. Oh, I think it's called a "measuring cup." Geez.

Scoop 'er up!

Okay, so now you have your meatballs all formed up, right?

Form little nests in the meatballs.

Then notice that your cheese hunks are the same size as the nests, meaning TOO BIG.
Chop the cheese chunks down a little smaller.

So put the smaller, appropriate size cheese hunks into the little nests.

Don't they look ca-ute!!!!!

Now form your meatball around those cheese hunks using big man hands.
Oh.

You don't have big
man hands?
Neither do I. That's my sister's hand, she was helping me.

Anyhoo, place the meatballs into the baking dish.

Bake for 30-35 minutes in a 400 degree oven.

And they come out looking like this.

Mmmmmm, some of that mozzarella is oozing out, yes?

Let's get a close-up here.

I was so excited to try these meatballs!!!

I didn't want to be disappointed.

And I wasn't!!!!!! YAY!!
I felt like doing cartwheels!!!
Except I have tiny delicate non-man hands that don't support my tiny delicate frame well upside down.

WHAT????!!!
How do YOU know I don't have tiny delicate hands?
YOU don't have tiny delicate hands.

You don't need delicate hands to eat these yummy meatballs.

I really liked these, they're so fun and tasty, not overpowering ALTHOUGH next time I will use half the onions and garlic.

And even though I'm an adult, it was so fun cutting into each of these and having the cheese be there and be all gooey and everything.

The meatballs up there are saying, "Pssssst.....make me. Eat me. I am cheap to make. Kids AND adults will love me. You will be asked to make me again. I'm big and filling, so a meal with pasta really would just be like two meatballs. Except if you're a teenage boy."

I remembered the recipe, yay! Here it is!

Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs
From www.picky-palate.com Check this food website out, great food recipes for the entire family
Courtesy www.turnkeyqualitycars.com

Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 pound lean ground beef
1 large egg
1/2 cup finely chopped white onion…Angie’s Note: May want to use HALF the onion and garlic amount
1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1 teaspoon hot sauce, like Tabasco
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
Ten 1-inch Mozzarella balls

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 35o degrees F. and grease 9×13-inch baking dish with oil.

2. Place beef, egg, onion, bread crumbs, Parmesan, milk, garlic, Worcestershire, mustard, hot sauce, salt, pepper and garlic salt into a large mixing bowl, stirring until just combined. Take 1/4 cup beef mixture and press into center with your thumb to make room for cheese ball. Place cheese in middle then with hands enclose the cheese with the beef, making sure the cheese is completely covered. Place meatballs into prepared baking dish and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until cooked through.

3. Serve over top your favorite pasta or inside a warm roll for delicious meatball sandwich.

Okay, before I close-up for the day, and because I have Thanksgiving on the brain,
let's take a gander at some
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
floats from over the years, shall we?

abcnews.com

This is what we think of when we think of the Macy's parade now.
Snoopy is the most popular character in the parade.

abcnews.com

Well,
this Santa float was the very first Santa float in the very first Macy's parade which started in 1924.

abcnews.com

The very first parade in 1924 featured live animals borrowed from the zoo.

abcnews.com

Now this particular float with the balloon girls was also in the very first parade. This float inspired the Macy's founder's wife to develop upside balloon marionettes, which is now what we know as the big floaty floats.

abcnews.com

Introduced in 1927,
Feliz the Cat was the very first Macy's giant balloon.

abcnews.com

This bandleader is from the early 1930's parade.

abcnews.com

And here is an early 1940's Uncle Sam.

The parade was suspended in 1942, 1943 and 1944 due to the need for rubber and helium in the war effort.

abcnews.com

And an early 1940's superman too.

abcnews.com

This is Harold the Fireman from the 1950's.

Harold is a mainstay of the parade and some years is a police officer too.

abcnews.com

Celebrities have always been popular at the parade.

Here we have of course Roy Rogers
and
Dale Evans.

abcnews.com

This spaceman floated in the
1959 parade.

abcnews.com

And then after that, we get to a more modern era.

SpongeBob SquarePants
was the first ever square balloon.

abcnews.com

Hello Kitty is the largest balloon by helium volume standards.

abcnews.com

And of course the Sesame Street float is always pretty and colorful.

www.nycvintageimages.com

Circa 1930.

Well, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade has come along way from 1924,

hasn't it?

Okay, that's all I have for today!
Hope you enjoyed the meatball recipe.
And parade pictures.
Oh, and my sister's man hands too!
Hehehehehehehehehehehehehehehe

Okay, Gotta run!
Literally gotta run.
From my sister.
Cuz when she finds me, she gonna break every finger on my man hands.

Bye!!!!!!!

:)

I Love You More Today Than Yesterday Pizza Stuffed Mushrooms

5/31/2012

Pizza Stuffed Mushrooms.
I made these two nights in a row.
Cuz they're so goooooood!!
And super dupery (it's a word, look it up) easy!!

And guess what...
I love them even more today than yesterday.
But not as much as tomorrow.

Just like how Spiral Starecase (not staircase) sang in 1969,
"I LOVE YOU MORE TODAY THAN YESTERDAY, BUT NOT AS MUCH AS TOMORROW!"

I dare you to listen to this song without singing along to it.

In fact, I DOUBLE DOG dare you!!!

Did ya sing to it??? Did ya? Did ya?
Yeah, so Spiral Starecase was a one-hit wonder band from California in the late 60's. Wish there was more interesting stuff to relay about this band but there isn't.
Yup,one-hit wonder about sums it up.

Anyhoo, this Pizza Stuffed Mushroom recipe uses Baby Bella or Crimini mushrooms.
Baby Bella and Crimini aren't the large portobello caps I used for the Vegetarian Cheese and Spinach Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms from several months ago.

In fact, they're about this size over to the left there.

Here's the fixins for these super tasty, meaty explosions of the mouth called Pizza Stuffed Mushrooms.

OH! This recipe calls for pepperoni.
You can make this vegetarian by using fake meat pepperoni.
They taste just the same!!!

So start by removing the stems off the mushrooms and patting them clean with a damp cloth.

Next, chop up the red onions, green pepper, black olives and pepperoni.

I'd dice them pretty small.

Now get that softened cream cheese in a bowl and start adding the Parmesan and spices...

Then add the red onions, celery, olives and diced pepperoni...

And this is how the delicious deliciousness
of this mushroom stuffing mixture turns out.

Go ahead, stick your finger in there, I won't narc.

So spray your cast iron skillet (or baking sheet, whichever one you use) with Pam.

Spoon the cream cheese mixture into the mushroom caps...make each one heaping.
There's plenty of the mixture so grab a huge spoon and scoop yourself up a large amount and start licking away.

Fortunately, I didn't have to worry about Little Boy Blue narcing on me about eating all the cream cheese mixture,

cuz he was too engrossed in trying to figure out how to eat that airplane propeller.

I wonder if Peaches, of the fantastico traditional English meal with Yorkshire Pudding post, ate a bunch of the cream cheese mixture when she made these?
Or did she just spoon it all into the mushroom caps?

Peaches is the one who forwarded this recipe to me by the way; and I thank her endlessly.

In fact, I love her more today than yesterday as well too :)

So bake the mushroom caps for 20 minutes.
This is what they look like out of the oven.
The mushrooms with toothpicks are the vegetarian ones.

You will then put them under the broiler and brown the tops of the mushrooms.
Now pay attention here.
Angie is stooopid in the kitchen and learned a lesson.

Angie's lesson #549876644 learned:

If you forget about these under the broiler and broil these for eight minutes, they turn, hmmmm, what's the word....

OH....

BURNT!!!

Although honestly they tasted great, you couldn't even tell.

So the next night when I made these again,

I only broiled them for like one minute.

And they came out less,

oh what's the word?...

BURNT.

These are awesome!!
Each one is like eating a little slice of pepperoni and mushroom pizza heaven. YUM!
They make excellent appetizers!!!

Peaches mentioned in her email not to be surprised if these mushrooms show up at family functions from here on out.
Yeah right Peaches, they'll be showing up all right, but in MY TUPPERWARE CONTAINER sucka!!!!

The second night I made them,

I plated them up as a side with whole wheat pasta and this marinara.

Really, what more can I say about these?

Scrumptious maybe.

Bueno.
Muy bueno!

Okay, I'm running out of descriptors, but you get the drift, yes?

Here's the recipe:

Pizza Stuffed Mushrooms
From the cool foodie website laurenslatest.com
Courtesy of www.turnkeyqualitycars.com
Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients:
10 whole Baby Bella Or Crimini Mushrooms
4 ounces, weight Cream Cheese, softened
¼ cups Grated Parmesan Or Mozzarella Cheese
¼ teaspoons Dried Basil
⅛ teaspoons Dried Oregano
Garlic Salt And Pepper, To Taste
¼ cups Finely Diced Pepperoni
2 Tablespoons Finely Chopped Green Pepper
2 Tablespoons Finely Chopped Red Onion
2 Tablespoons Finely Chopped Black Olives

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Spray two mini iron skillets with non stick cooking spray and set aside. (A sheet tray will work just fine, too!)

Wash mushrooms with a damp cloth and remove stems. (They should just pop out!) Set aside.

In a small bowl, stir cream cheese, parmesan, basil, oregano, garlic salt and pepper together until combined. Stir in remaining ingredients, excluding the mushrooms.

Spoon into prepared mushroom caps by the heaping teaspoonful. Place 5 in each skillet and bake 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, switch your oven from bake to broil and brown the tops of each mushroom. Remove and serve hot.

Okay, I think that's about it

for today!!!
Hope tomorrow's bright and sunny but we sure needed that rain today huh!

Okay, see ya next time!

Don't be a stranger :)

The Secret's In The Sauce - Clean Eating Chicken Tenders With Honey Mustard SAuce

4/5/2012

Chicken Tenders Anyone??

Go ahead.

Touch one....

Git yer hands out of there!!!!!

Gosh darn kids!!!!!

Ya gotta touch EVERYTHING!

Photo credit gospellyfe.com

Okay kids. I took this recipe from the Neely's website and made
it "Clean Eating".

Uh huh.

By the way, I LOVE
the Neelys. They have a cooking show on the Food Network on Saturday mornings called Down Home With the Neelys
and they are so caa-uute!!

Hi Pat! Hi Gina! I love you!
Wanna come over for Prime Rib Saturday night?!!?
NO?
Another time maybe?....All right! Hey, where ya going?

Okay, here's the instructiones for these tasty
BAKED Chicken Tenders and the totally finger-lickin' Honey Mustard Sauce.
Did you see that?
I said BAKED, not fried, Chicken Tenders!

Let's start with the fixins for these Chicken Tenders With Honey Mustard Sauce.

Cut up your chicken breasts into strips.

By the way, the sauce is finger
oh-my-gosh
licking great;
so make a double batch!

Since I was out of lemon pepper spice for this recipe, I had to make my own...so here's what I did; I grated up lemon and added salt and pepper. And it was fine.

So let's whip up a few eggs that we're going to dip the chicken in.

And we'll measure out the
WHOLE WHEAT
flour in a separate bowl...

Next, in a separate bowl, take the WHOLE WHEAT PANKO CRUMBS and add the garlic powder, lemon-pepper, cayenne and salt and pepper to it and stir it all up.
DO NOT SKIMP ON THE SEASONINGS...YOU NEED THESE SEASONINGS!
Notice I said WHOLE WHEAT PANKO CRUMBS. Try not to buy the white panko, go to the organic department and buy the WHOLE WHEAT panko.

HEY!
Spray up your rack on top of the cookie sheet so that the chicken doesn't stick to it.

About this time, I start geting bored with all the measuring and I look out the kitchen window and I see Stud Muffin weed eating the hundred gazillion feet of picket fence around the property.

Hi Stud Muffin! Hi!!!! Wanna have Prime Rib Saturday Night?
I invited the Neely's but I don't think they can make it. That's okay. We'll eat their share too!

Set up your work station with:
1. The whole wheat flour
2. The egg mixture
3. The panko mixture
4. The chicken strips of course
5. The sprayed baking sheet

Dip the chicken strips in flour...

Then dip them in the eggs...

Then take the strips

and dredge them in the panko crumbs...

Okay, please note... We are NOT, I repeat, NOT frying these chicken strips according to the instructions.
We are going to lay them on the rack
and cook them in the oven....
the Clean Eating way!

Spray the chicken on top with Olive Oil cookng spray.

And then try to pick up the rack and spray the bottom.

Be very clumsy and unsuccesful at this.

OH!!
Bake the seasoned, breaded Chicken Strips in the oven for like 15 or 20 or 25 minutes, just until done.
DO NOT OVERCOOK THESE!

In the meantime, let's start on this juicious Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce.

What?
Juicious isn't a word?

Oh yeah.

Look it up!
In the PRETEND WORD dictionary.
So there!

Add the

mayo...

Add the lemon juice, salt and pepper
and stir....

Make a double batch of the Honey Mustard sauce,
cuz it is guuuuuuuuuudddddd!

Plate up your tenders and honey mustard sauce and begin chowing down.

OH!
I made up Sweet Potato Fries in the oven and had a yummy Clean Eating meal of Baked Chicken Tenders with Honey Mustard Sauce AND
Sweet Potato Fries.
And ranch dressing of course.Yum!!!

The recipes are below. The right hand side recipe, all you have to do is click on it and then click "print" and it should print off the full recipe.

Tony's Chicken Tenders with Honey Mustard Sauce
From Pat and Gina Neely on www.foodnetwork.com Watch their show Down Home With The Neelys on Saturday mornings; they’re fun and their recipes are fantastic.
Courtesy of www.turnkeyqualitycars.com

Ingredient
Peanut oil, for frying Angie’s note: I did not use oil, as I BAKED these in the oven
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour Angie’s note: I used whole wheat flour for a clean eating effect
2 cups panko bread crumbs Angie’s Note: I used whole wheat panko
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon lemon-pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Honey Mustard, recipe follows

Directions
Preheat oil to 350 degrees F.

Cut the chicken breasts into long strips and set aside.

Beat the 3 eggs in a separate bowl and measure the flour into another separate dish.

Measure the panko into a pie plate or shallow bowl and season with garlic powder, lemon-pepper, cayenne, salt and pepper.

Dip the chicken strips into the flour, the beaten egg and then dredge them into the seasoned panko.

Fry in the hot peanut oil for 6 to 8 minutes, until golden brown, and remove to a paper towel lined sheet tray. Serve with honey mustard sauce. Angie’s note: I did not fry these. I baked these on a rack on top of a cookie sheet in the oven instead for 25 minutes at 375 degrees for a clean eating meal. Frying would be fabulous too, just a bit more calories so to speak.

Honey Mustard:
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1/2 cup honey
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoons lemon juice
Salt and pepper

Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. The sauce can be held in the refrigerator for 1 week.

Oh, hello there...Aaaaand lastly,
I made some really tasty fingerling potatoes the other night.

The weird thing is, they

LOOK LIKE FINGERS!
Creepy.

But tasty.

OH also, I am making up a new page that will list just the recipes featured on this here blog.
You will be able to access the recipes just by clicking on the recipe title...
no more scrolling through thousands of hideously boring words and photos to get to your recipe.

I hope to have that done by sometime next week.

Hey, have a great Thursday!!

Talk at ya soon!!!!

Go -To Chicken Salad With Some HEEEEEAT

3/11/2012

Anyone can make a Chicken Salad.
And there's sooooo many excellent recipes out there.
I especially like Chicken Salad with tarragon spice. YUM!

Today's chicken salad recipe however, does not have tarragon spice in it.

This Chicken Salad instead has some HEAT to it.

A little KICK shall we say.

A real BITE to it.

This Chicken Salad is excellent as a sandwich on a buttery croissant....

Or with crackers, it's exceptional for a party appetizer!!!

Look close. Do you see those little red dots? Cayenne pepper baby!

Even when it's a party of just one...yourself. *sigh*

Yeah right, like I stopped at five crackers and a 1/2 cup of chicken Salad. NOT! I literally had to subtract a ton of stuff off my plate to make it photo presentable.

So let's start with the recipe

and move on into the

easy directions.

Chicken Salad
Allrecipes.com
From Southern Living Magazine April 2005
Courtesy www.turnkeyqualitycars.com

Ingredients
3 pounds skinned and boned chicken breasts
1 (49 1/2-ounce) can chicken broth
1 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup finely chopped water chestnuts, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped yellow bell pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
3 cups mayonnaise
1 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper

Preparation
Place chicken breasts in a large skillet; add chicken broth. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium low, and simmer, covered, 30 minutes or until chicken is done. Remove chicken from skillet, and let stand 15 minutes or until cool to touch. Shred chicken.

Combine shredded chicken, celery, water chestnuts, and next 3 ingredients in a large bowl.

Stir together mayonnaise, ground red pepper, salt, and white pepper until well blended; spoon over shredded chicken mixture, stirring to coat. Cover and chill at least 4 hours.

Shrimp Salad: Substitute 3 pounds chopped cooked shrimp for chicken breasts and broth. Do not cook. Reduce mayonnaise to 2 cups and salt to 1/4 teaspoon. Proceed with recipe as directed.

Here's the

fixins to

this

Chicken

Salad

with a

BITE to it.

It's the small amount of ground red pepper (cayenne pepper) as well as WHITE pepper that gives this salad a kick.
Also DO NOT DISCOUNT THE WATER CHESTNUTS! They bring a layered flavor and excellent crunch to this yummy salad!

So let's start by cooking those chicken breasts in chicken broth...

Then,

shred all

those

yummy

chicken

breasts

up.

Chop up your vegetables....

Those veggies up there look so pretty, I just want to shellac them or make them plastic, and keep them just like that for all eternity on my counter.

Photo Credit: Fake Food Decor business from Etsy.com

Kind of like that fake food decor in new furniture stores from back in the day.

Remember that?

Where there was always a fake spill or a real-looking bakery item strategically placed on dining tables in the dining showroom area?

Do you remember that it didn't matter how old you were....12 years old......or 22.......or 45, you just couldn't help picking at that fake plastic spill when the furniture staff wasn't looking!!??

Did I say 45??!!
I meant 4 or 5!
Geeez Louise.

Moving on,
add the chopped veggies and water chestnuts to the shredded chicken.

And mix 'er all up.

Prepare the mayo with the red pepper, white pepper and salt.
Do not add too much salt!
The chicken was cooked in salty chicken broth so you really don't want to add much more salt. Trust me on this one.

Then add the tasty mayo to the chicken and veggie mixture.

The warm Chicken Salad is exceedingly tasty at this point.

Grab some crackers and start shoveling some on your plate.
OR
wait and let it chill several hours and the flavors will meld even more.

Intermission.............

HEY!

Question:
Why did the chewing gum cross the road?

Answer:
Because it was stuck to the chicken.

Cheesy Chicken Joke #1:

Diner: Do you serve chicken here?

Waiter: Sit down sir. We serve everyone here.

Cheesy Joke #2:

Diner: I can't eat this chicken. Call the manager.

Waiter: It's no use. He can't eat it either.

Ba-dum!!

Anyhoo,

Shovel some of that chilled Chicken Salad
on a buttery, buttery, but, but, buttery croissant.

Can you see it now?

Those peppers?

Water chestnuts?

Spiced-up mayo?

Now remember...this makes a great party appetizer spread!

Hey, still haven't made the Naughty Brownies but will work on that soon as well as a Broccoli Cauliflower Casserole I have my eye on.
Now watch,
this Naughty Brownie recipe I keep talking about will probably turn out like
liver and onions. Or shoe leather. Or dirt.

Okay, I'll shut up now.

See ya next time!!!!

Enjoy the weather kids!!!

On Top Of Spaghetti All Covered With Cheesy Chicken Meatballs

1/24/2012

Cheesy Chicken Meatballs

Go ahead, eat one.

You know you want to.

Did your mouth just start drooling?
(Oh my gosh, I originally typed did your mom just start drooling.)

Shall we tell our bosses we're leaving work to go home and gorge on Cheesy Chicken Meatballs but first we have to stop at the store and pick up some Pepsi to wash this goodness down with?

Or shall we just watch this

hilarious video from the 80's?

On top of spaghetti,
All covered with cheese,
I lost my poor meatball,
When somebody sneezed. It rolled off the table,
And on to the floor,
And then my poor meatball,
Rolled out of the door.

It rolled in the garden,
And under a bush,
And then my poor meatball,
Was nothing but mush.

The mush was as tasty
As tasty could be,
And then the next summer,
It grew into a tree.

The tree was all covered,
All covered with moss,
And on it grew meatballs,
And tomato sauce.

So if you eat spaghetti,
All covered with cheese,
Hold on to your meatball,
Whenever you sneeze.

Oh my! Do you remember singing this a thousand times in a row?

I don't know WHY I got such a kick out of this and sang it over and over when I was
twenty five.

Did I just say twenty five?? I meant eight!
Eight! I was eight! Years old.

Not twenty five.
Sheeeez

*slinking away*

Okay, here's all the fixins for these easy, easy, easy and super savory Cheesy Chicken Meatballs.
It calls for ground chicken breast. More than likely, you will need to ask the meat guy to go in the back freezer and get it for you.

OH!!! Before I forget, these would make a

great party appetizer too!

Now the recipe calls for roasted garlic cream cheese.
I did not have that flavor of cream cheese on hand so I roasted my own garlic and mixed it into the regular cream cheese and it worked great.
The garlic really does bring the flavor up a notch!

You can click on the right side embedded document down below to print out this recipe.
The left side is for those folks who are unable to see the embedded recipe.

Cheesy Chicken Meatballs
From allrecipes.com posted by Raquel
Courtesy of turnkeyqualitycars.com
Angie’s Note: I did not have garlic cream cheese, just regular, so I roasted up some minced garlic in olive oil and added it to my cream cheese.

Ingredients
1 pound ground chicken
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup roasted garlic light cream cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon dry bread crumbs
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions
1. Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, and spray with cooking spray.
2. Combine the chicken, eggs, cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, vegetable oil, salt, and pepper in a large bowl; mix well. Form mixture into 20 meatballs; place on prepared pan.
3. Bake in center of preheated oven until juices run clear, 17 to 18 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).

So let's get this meatball party started!

We're going to start with the ground chicken in a bowl.

Add the eggs, cream cheese and Parmesan cheese.

Then add the bread crumbs, red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, vegetable oil and salt and pepper

Ahem, don't lick the bowl, this is raw meat! It looks pretty enough to lick though, doesn't it?

I knew you weren't thinking of licking the bowl.

I was though.

So anyhoo, mix all

ingredients well.
Using a spoon is recommended; this isn't meatloaf we're making here :)

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.

Form mixture into twenty meatballs. these are easy to form by the way, a little sticky but not too bad.

And the mixture did form right at 20 meatballs I think.

Next time, I may make them a little bigger just for a visual effect, otherwise this size was nice to stack, snack, and cut with a fork.

In the meantime, I was whippin' up some whole wheat pasta and homemade marinara sauce to eat with the meatballs.

Bake until juices run clear.

I used a meat thermometer and took them out at 160 degrees.

I knew I definitely did NOT want to overcook these meaty morsels.

Don't they look tasty?

Mmmmmmm,
these were savory, flavorful meatballs.
You don't miss the traditional beef at all.

And so easy to whip up to!

Plating these babies up with some pasta and marinara, with a little Parmesan on...
pure bliss!

These meatballs were especially good the next day too.
I even made a meatball sandwich out of them, sliced them thin, layered them on whole wheat bread and slapped a slice of provolone on top and stuck it in the panini maker.

Mmmmm, so good!

I admit that I did make a batch of turkey bacon meatballs a couple nights later. They were okay, and I will be sharing that recipe, but this Cheesy Chicken Meatball recipe was quite a bit more flavorful and lip smackin' than the turkey bacon meatballs.

Don't overcook these though!!
Follow the baking time, it was pretty on target.

Hey, have a great Tuesday....see ya soon!!!

Sweet Chicken Bacon Wraps Appetizer And Sweet Sweet Love Songs

10/30/2011

Ahhhh...

Sweet Chicken Bacon Wraps

These are a very popular appetizer but by golly,
I had never heard of them until Saturday
when I was scouring internet for any kind of chicken and bacon recipe, my love affair with bacon just will.not.end.
I.am.a.sick.person.I.know.already.Enough.

Chicken breasts, brown sugar, my boyfriend Bacon and chili powder.

And only 4 ingredients!

That's four,

only 4 ingredients!

How easy is that???

CLICK ON THIS TO GET PAULA DEEN'S RECIPE OF SWEET CHICKEN BACON WRAPS!!

So let's start these sweet, sweet nothings by chopping up some chicken into 1" cubes and slicing the bacon into thirds.

Wrap each chicken cube with bacon and secure
with a wooden pick.

And don't forget to spray the rack
or the cookie sheet.

Spray, spray, spray, spray!!!

Trust me, I know this from experience or rather,
lack of experience!

Stir together brown sugar
and
chili powder.

Talking about sweet brown sugar reminds me of
sweet love songs....

Well, I don't know if these song titles are from actual "love" songs but they have the word "sweet" in the title.

Let's see how many of these you know:

Sweet Caroline
Sweet Home Alabama
Sweet Bye and Bye
Sweet Emotion
Sweet Child O' Mine
Sweet City Woman
Home Sweet Home
How Sweet it Is
Sweet Gypsy Rose
Bittersweet Symphony
Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen
Sweet Dreams
Sweetest Thing
Sweet Cherry Wine
Sweet Talkin' Guy
Sweet Pea
How Sweet Thy Sound
(okay so the last one isn't actually in the title, it's only a lyric, but who doesn't love Amazing Grace!!!)

So, set up your work station with
the brown sugar
and
chili powder mixture,

the bacon wrapped chicken chunks,

and the baking sheet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

Dredge wrapped chicken in brown sugar mixture.

Place all the

chicken wraps on

the broiler pan or

the baking sheet

with cooling rack

placed on top.

Don't ya want to eat them right now?
Well, except for they're raw meat.

Maybe I'll wait until they're cooked for 30-35 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
Yeah, I'll wait till they're cooked.

And 30-35 minutes later, here are the cooked
Sweet Chicken Bacon Wrapped Appetizers!

Here are a few on an appetizer plate like most normal people would eat them...don't ya just want to grab one right now?!?!

But here's what I like to do, because I loves me some bacon...
Plate it up already, make it into a meal!

Doesn't it just look pure yummy?

P.S. by the way, it was!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, if I'm going to serve these for an appetizer at a Holiday Meal, I would totally include some spicy honey-mustard dressing and some ranch dressing as condiments with these Bacon-Wrapped Chicken appetizers.

Four ingredients for an easy, popular appetizer...glad I found this one!!

Hope you enjoyed reading about this recipe as much as I enjoyed eating them :):)
See you next time!

All I Wanted Was A Cheese Ball And Instead I Got Petticoat Junction

8/15/2011

8:30PM Sunday Night.

Who DOESN'T want a cheese ball at that time?

Normal people you say?

Pffffttt.

Is all I have to say.

So I open up my crude recipe binders and look for my super simple, super tasty, super quick, super CHEAP Cheese Ball recipe that I know is in there. A fun client from my former life had given me the recipe. I know the recipe is in these binders. In a sheet protector. Because that's where it's always been, for seven years.

But my cheese ball recipe isn't there.

And then I remember I gave that recipe out in Christmas cards last year to family and friends. I had printed the recipe out and pasted it on pretty recipe cards, like the one below.

Except that the Christmas recipe card had a cheese ball recipe on it. And pictures of candy canes and Christmas ornaments. Although Ima be trying this Easy Apple Crisp recipe from Allison sometime this fall.

Then it dawned on me, dun, dun, dun! (I say that a lot in my head).
Now cue the music from Jaws.....na-NAH, na-NAH-, na-NAH

CRAP!!! That recipe is in my Christmas card bag....

In the living room closet!!!!!!

Deposited in there 10 months ago.......

I'm wondering if I can find it in there. I get heart palpitations every time I go in there..

Holy Batmobile!!!!!! It's worse than the last time I opened it !

WHY can't I have nice, pretty, organized closets?

WHY!!!???

I don't even have kids at home anymore and yet I still can't quite get one closet organized.

Okay, in this picture, the closet doesn't look too bad, right?

Well, how about this? Huh?

Does that weird fur thing that I have no idea what it belongs to; does that scare you?

No?

Well then, how about this craptastic mess?

See those cupboard doors?

Those go on my kitchen cupboards.

See that pretty painting of a lady? I love that. I really need to put that in a safer place, like, probably another closet that I rarely go into...maybe the closet with the vacuum cleaner.

Wait a minute!!! Hold on there!

I see something.*Dig, dig, scratch, curse, dig, dig, dig, dig, dig*

HEY! It's some old VCR things and DVD's.

What is that???

No!
That can't be!

It's my Petticoat Junction DVD!!!

Holla if you remember Betty Jo, Bobbie Jo and Billie Jo!

Holla if you wanted to be the pretty blonde one even though I can't remember which Jo she was!!!

Holla if you were more like the red-headed tomboy one.

Whatev.

Anyway, I can't find my Christmas bag in the closet (shocking I know), but the recipe is so simple even though I can't remember it completely.
I finally look on the computer to see if I had saved it from last Christmastime and guess what?

I saved the recipe from last Christmas! YAY!

And the recipe is right over
there
to
the
left
.

CHEESE BALL RECIPE
A simple, simple recipe and extremely affordable to make. And yet oh so tasty! Works great for parties, school functions, or when you're home at 8:30 on Sunday night and hungry. See above ingredients and Directions.

Just three ingredients and thirty seconds of chopping.....corned beef, green onion tops, and Philadelphia cream cheese. See client's special note at the top of the recipe card above.

Mix the three ingredients together, form into a ball and, and wallah!
A Cheese Ball is born!

Serve with Ritz crackers and be sure to sample some for yourself. Just to make sure it's not poison and all.

(It's exhausting always looking out for other people.)

Now, guess who I'm gonna trick into watching Petticoat Junction
with me this week???

This smart guy humors me all.the.time. Happy wife. Happy Life.

Hey Tim!

How about I make Flambe Filet Mignon tonight with Gruyere Potatoes?

What? That would be good with you? Cool. No, I know it's not cheat night and we should be eating vegetarian tonight. It's just that you've been working such long, hard hours, I thought some red meat would be good for you. With bacon wrapped around it. Yeah? Cool.

Oh, I forgot, I got a movie for us to watch tonight too. It's supposed to be really good. What? I don't remember the name, hey, the phone's ringing, gotta go answer it...........

It's Tough Luck When You're Too Tired To Eat At The Hard Luck/Oven Roasted Chicken Wings

7/24/2011

Chicken Wings at the Hard Luck Cafe on a Saturday night; one of the small pleasures in life.........
Aaahhh, exhale. Relaxing in a booth after a hard day at work. Plugging $5 into the jukebox, playing old Hank Williams and Johnny Cash. And AC/DC. And The Hits Of The 70's (Angie). Waiting for the onion rings to come out. Chatting with people you know or don't know. Now THAT'S the way to cap off a week!

Yeah, that didn't happen last night.

Tim was dog-tired after working all week in the 100 degree temps and humidity. So instead of trekking to the Hard Luck, I made chicken wings at home and instead of yummy, greasy, crispy deep fried cottage fries, we had the healthy version of that called sweet potato fries. Below is the sweet potato fry recipe. Also below is a recipe for the oven baked chicken wings, a super healthy alternative to the deep fried version enjoyed often by Tim. By the way, this chicken wing recipe is FANTASTIC!

I can not cut up raw chicken, but I'm a trooper and tried anyway. And all it got me was a bunch of energy spent jumping up and down, head shaking back and forth repeatedly, arms waving furiously, and body contorting itself. So I did what any reasonable person would do. I ran out to the shop and hollered to Tim that if he wanted chicken wings tonight he needed to get in here RIGHT NOW and cut them up.

Emeril Lagasse's Oven Roasted Chicken Wings
Emeril says you won't have to clean the fryer or hide from your doctor.
Ingredients
4 pounds chicken wings, wing tips removed, separated at the joints
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (does fresh squeeze mean out of a bottle? Because that's what I used)
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
4 tablespoons butter, melted
Your favorite sauce, for serving, such as barbecue sauce, ranch dressing, or blue cheese dressing, optional
Instructions
Preheat oven to 500 degrees
Line large rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. In large mixing bowl, combine wings and lemon juice and mix thoroughly. Add pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt. While crushing between your fingers, add thyme. (Angie says WHAT? and ignores the crushing finger thing and just casually adds the thyme in). Mix again and add cayenne and butter. Mix thoroughly. (By the way, at this point, the wings smell fantabulous! Not kidding!!) Then transfer wings to baking sheet and arrange in one layer. Roast in oven for 10 minutes, rotate pan and cook 10 minutes longer until wings are nicely browned and cooked through. (For Angie, it was more like 15 minutes each side). Serve alone or with your favorite dipping sauce.
Makes 4-6 servings

Super yummy recipe!! Spicy enough for the adults but not too spicy for the kiddos. Works great for an appetizer as well.

And now for those tasty sweet potato fries...

Spicy Sweet Potato Fries
From the Jan/Feb 2009 Clean Eating magazine
Ingredients
3 medium sweet potatoes, cut into strips
1 tbsp canola oil (I use olive oil, I've used both and believe it or not, there's no noticeable difference)
1 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional, depending if you like it hot, if you have kids, probably leave this out)
1/4 tsp sea salt

Instructions
One: Preheat oven to 425. ( I have learned to keep this at 400, also do not place baking sheet on lower rack, these strips will burn easily). In a mixing bowl, combine sweet potatoes, oil, spices, and salt and mix together until fries are evenly coated.
Two: Spread fries out in a single layer on a rimmed cookie sheet. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until crispy on 1 side.
Three: Turn fries using tongs or spatula and cook for another 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Angie's note: These are sweet potatoes and therefore will not be crispy like the fries at your favorite burger joint. Nonetheless they are super healthy and delicious just the same. Serve them with honey mustard or ranch or my favorite, a simple vinaigrette.They also refrigerate well for the following day's leftover meal. Again, these aren't crispy fries.

Boy, I know there's other great recipes out there for oven roasted wings...if you have a favorite, send me a link or email...I'm always looking for other tasty versions!

OOOHHH!!!! That's right, this is a car blog!

This sporty 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix SE is SUPER NICE!!
Only 121k miles with all power options, alloy wheels, rear spoiler, AM/FM CD player, and the fantastic 3100 V6 engine.
This super riding/driving car is listed at $4950. As always, all our vehicles are in excellent to super excellent to like new condition inside and out. Check out this car featured on the "Inventory" page. Angie's note: This really is an awesome Grand Prix! Check it out!

Ham & Leek Empanadas, Abundant Sunshine, and Dishes That Just Will Not Clean Themselves

Empanadas have been around forever!

How come I've never had one before, then????
These babies are fantastic!!!

The filling can be
sweet
or
savory.

They're usually deep fried but can also baked.

This is a savory one with ham, leeks &
Gruyere cheese.
These were baked.
It's like a warm ham and cheese in a flaky croissant!!!!!

I admit, I only had two sheets of puff pastry so I threw all that ham mixture into 8 empanadas instead of 12. I am a rebel.

I Made And Ate My Super Bowl Food Early - Aaron McCargo's Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos - Not For The Faint Of Heart

Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs, A Parade, And My Sister's Man Hands

I Love You More Today Than Yesterday Pizza Stuffed Mushrooms

The Secret's In The Sauce - Clean Eating Chicken Tenders With Honey Mustard SAuce

Go -To Chicken Salad With Some HEEEEEAT

On Top Of Spaghetti All Covered With Cheesy Chicken Meatballs

Sweet Chicken Bacon Wraps Appetizer And Sweet Sweet Love Songs

All I Wanted Was A Cheese Ball And Instead I Got Petticoat Junction

It's Tough Luck When You're Too Tired To Eat At The Hard Luck/Oven Roasted Chicken Wings

Author

Categories

Archives

Empanadas have been around forever!

How come I've never had one before, then????These babies are fantastic!!!

The filling can be sweet or savory. They're usually deep fried but can also baked.This is a savory one with ham, leeks & Gruyere cheese.These were baked. It's like a warm ham and cheese in a flaky croissant!!!!!

I admit, I only had two sheets of puff pastry so I threw all that ham mixture into 8 empanadas instead of 12. I am a rebel.

Author

Categories

Archives

How come I've never had one before, then????
These babies are fantastic!!!

The filling can be
sweet
or
savory.

They're usually deep fried but can also baked.

This is a savory one with ham, leeks &
Gruyere cheese.
These were baked.
It's like a warm ham and cheese in a flaky croissant!!!!!