Burgundy Mushrooms

This recipe is adapted from Pioneer Woman's "Burgundy Mushrooms". Look, I even stole her picture. Please don't be mad, PW.  Why adapt a PW recipe you may ask? Everything she makes is perfectly delicious! True, I say- but I didn't have the Burgundy wine, and neither did my grocery store. I desperately tried to talk myself into driving to the local wine store.. and then I didn't have any fresh Dill, but I had some other herbs.. so I went for it. And they turned out AWESOME!
I will post her original recipe and put in (Italics) what I did.

4 pounds White Button Mushrooms
2 sticks Butter
1-½ teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
1 liter Burgundy Wine (other Reds Will Work) (I used a liter of Cabernet Sauvignon, along with 2 TBS brown sugar to add the sweetness I was loosing by not using a Burgundy)
1 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
2 cups Boiling Water
4 whole Chicken Bouillon Cubes (I used 1 TBS of chicken "Better than Bouillon")
4 whole Beef Bouillon Cubes (I used 1 TBS of beef "Better than Bouillon")
teaspoon Dill Seed (I used 1 large sprig of Rosemary, 2 med sprigs of Thyme- Just throw the whole thing in. Be sure to pick out stems before serving)
5 cloves Garlic, minced (I also added a large shallot, minced)
teaspoons Salt

Preparation Instructions

Thoroughly wash the mushrooms and throw them into a large stockpot. Add all the remaining ingredients except the salt. Stir to combine.
Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for six hours. (At this point, I transferred all of this into a crockpot and cooked on low for 6 hrs)

Remove the lid, then continue cooking, uncovered, for three hours. (I did this as well, I noticed it helped reduce the juices and thicken up a bit)

Add salt to taste at the end if desired. The mushrooms will be very dark in color. Simmer until needed. Server straight from the pot or in a serving bowl. Dip crusty bread in the juice—yum!

(The juice also makes an AWESOME Gravy base for your Prime Rib roast this holiday. Just freeze the left over broth. When you are ready, thaw and use it in place of your stock, along with drippings from your Prime Rib- amazing!)

Grilled Pesto Bread

Grilled Pesto Bread

We had this bread at Reef restaurant, here in Houston. If you watched "The Next Iron Chef" last season, Chef Caswell was one of the contestants - and Reef is his restaurant. We went there last May with my mother-in-law and her husband while they were visiting.

The bread basket they had at Reef had this delicious ciabatta bread with some pesto smeared on top and then lightly grilled. At the time, I was planning a birthday bash for my friend and new instantly that I wanted to serve this bread at the dinner.

So, I bought a baguette (mistake #1) and covered it with pesto then hubby grilled it (which could be mistake #2 - just cause he was entertaining friends at the same time, and a little distracted.) The bread turned out a little hard and crunchy. Not the way it was at Reef.

And then I sort of forgot about trying to make it again (definitely mistake #3).

Last week I made some Mashed Potato Soup and thought, "OOOH, I should try to make that pesto bread again!"

This time I bought ciabatta bread. I grilled it myself and I will not wait 6 months to have it again!

Here's what you need:

Ciabatta Loaf, sliced thin

Pesto (I used Classico Pesto, yum.)

BBQ or grill pan

Heat your grill pan or BBQ to a pretty high heat. Smother a few slices of bread with the pesto and place on grill. I grilled both sides of the bread - and because your pan or BBQ are hot, it will cook fast.

I love the smokey flavor the BBQ gives - so I recommend using it!

It's so easy and so flavorful and so cheap!

Jack O' Lantern Cheese Ball

(Or just a Cheese Ball!) I hosted a Halloween Party fit for toddlers yesterday. This little guy turned out so cute! This is a recipe from my Step Mother In Law, and it's my go to Cheese Ball Recipe. For occasions other than Halloween, I roll it in Chopped Pecans.
2 (8 oz) blocks of Cream Cheese, softened
1 (4.5 oz) jar of Dried Beef (see note)
Bunch of Green Onions, finely chopped. I used 4 large ones, white and green
Dash of Worcestershire Sauce
* For this party, I rolled it in finely shredded mild cheddar cheese. The face is Black Olives and the stem is a small, whole Dill Pickle*

Mix all ingredients and form a ball. Roll in desired Cheese, or Chopped Pecans, or Walnuts. Serve with assortment of Crackers, Veggies etc.

*Note~ Dried Beef  I thought what the heck is dried beef? and it sounds so gross. Don't let it scare you! I found it in the isle with all the canned meats (think tuna). It was in a small, clear jar, and it's like dried, thinly sliced summer sausage. It's delicious in this cheese ball.

Wings

It's football season, whoop whoop! I love football season... fall is in the air. I dream of cooking soups and comfort foods, loads of nachos, green chili and all kinds of Sunday afternoon grub.
One of the things I cook on a regular basis is wings. There are 8000 ways to make wings; I guess it's a matter of preference. I prefer crispy wings. I prefer a sauce that is a little on the mild side. I find I can eat more that way.

People love my wings. However, I can't take much credit in the originality department because the recipe is on the back of my favorite hot sauce! Franks Red Hot. And the original one, not the "Wing Sauce" one. I prefer to melt my own butter, thank you. Oh and I add a few dashes of Tabasco Chipotle sauce, which adds a nice smokey flavor. Yum.

I have cooked wings every way possible. I have battered them, floured them, baked them, grilled them... My favorite is to fry them with no batter or flour whatsoever. It makes them so crispy and delicious. Plus anything I can do to decrease my weekly intake of carbs during the football season makes me sing and dance. And go back for seconds.
For the wings:
3 pounds drumettes, thawed and rinsed
Vegetable oil for frying- enough to cover your skillet about 1 inch deep
Heat vegetable oil over med-high heat until ready to fry. (I never use a thermometer) My oil is ready when I drop something in and it sizzles nicely and tamely
Working in batches drop your drumettes in one at a time. You have to keep em' movin' though. Otherwise they will stick to the bottom! Fry for about 1/2 hour or until nice and golden brown. Remove and drain on paper towels.
For the sauce:
In a saucepan, melt 1/2 cup (or 8 tbs) butter. O shut up, I know you want to.
Once melted, add 3/4 cup of Franks Red Hot Original sauce, and heat until combined. Then add 4 or 10 dashes of Tabasco Chipotle sauce, depending on your taste. That's whats fun, cuz you get to keep sticking your fingers in. Yum.
Dip your wings in the sauce to coat, place on a platter and serve with celery sticks, carrot sticks, red pepper sticks, ranch dressing and some blue cheese if you want to.
Makes about 4 servings. unless you are pigs, like we are -and ate all of it ourselves.
Enjoy!

chick pea dip

I spent Memorial Day weekend in San Diego with one of my favorite people, Aubrey. We love to cook, share recipes.. and go to the beach. We did plenty of both. This is a bikini friendly version of hummus, without the Tahini. As much as I love Tahini.. did you know it has, like 200 calories per tablespoon? Considering I can eat hummus with a spoon.. this is bad for the thighs. This recipe is just plain delicious... Thanks Aubrey!

1 can chick peas (garbanzo beans) drained, rinsed
1 lemon, zested and juiced
2 cloves garlic
5-7 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves stripped from stems
course salt and freshly ground pepper
a few drops hot sauce, to taste (I use Frank's Red Hot)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
dipper ideas: pretzels, gourmet chips, red bell pepper, cucumber,
celery, any veggie you like

Combine the chick peas, garlic, lemon zest and juice, thyme, salt and pepper and hot sauce in food processor. Turn processor on and stream in the extra-virgin olive oil. Transfer the dip t0 a dish and surround with veggies and chips.
this recipe was adapted from a Rachael Ray recipe.

Spinach Dip(s)

WARM SPINACH DIP

I found this recipe from a recipe blog I look at called Kelly's recipes. Jamie found it and I really like this girl! She has so many of the exact same recipes I have and love!! She must be wonderful, right ;)

I will post a link as soon as I get permission. Anyway I tried this spinach dip and its so good. I plan on making it again today to join my superbowl yummy's.

1 pkg frozen spinach
8 oz cream cheese
8 oz Monterrey jack cheese
6 oz Parmesan cheese
1 can Rotel
In a large saucepan, cook the spinach according to package. Drain. Add cheeses and melt on low heat. Add rotel, the whole can juice and all. (there isnt much juice in them). Serve with tortilla chips or bagel chips or melba toasts.

Next time I would probably add a cup or 2 of artichoke hearts, chopped, and some garlic.

COLD SPINACH DIP

This is the best cold dip I have found. Its KNORR VEGETABLE RECIPE MIX

(I used this one before I took the pic... missing the Knorr part). You can get this in any grocery store. Then add:

1 package (10 oz) chopped baby spinach or frozen cooked, drained and squeezed

1 (16 oz) container sour cream

1 cup mayo

1 package recipe mix

1 can (8 oz) water chestnuts, chopped

3 green onions, chopped

*I add one tomato chopped and seeded*

Mix all ingred's and chill at least 2 hours

I serve mine in a bread bowl with chunks of bread and assorted fresh veggies. Yum yum.

Manhattan Meatballs

Celebrating the Superbowl next weekend? Well.. I usually am, whether I like it or not.
Here is one of my favorite crowd pleaser recipes, of course you cant have man parties without man food.... !

2 lb. ground beef
2 cups bread crumbs
½ cup chopped onions
2 eggs, beaten
1 large garlic clove, minced
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
2 tsp. salt
1 jar (10 oz.) apricot preserves - if you cant find apricot, I have used orange marmalade and it's just as good
1 cup Barbecue Sauce
1 med can crushed pineapple

Preheat oven 350. Make meatballs by combining first 7 ingredients. Cook meatballs in oven for 30 minutes. In saucepan, combine preserves, pineapple and bbq sauce. Cook until combined, about 7 minutes on medium heat. Pour over meatballs. Cook an additional 30 minutes on low. Serve with toothpicks.
These work well in the crockpot too. I make the recipe as directed and pour it all into the crockpot, but make sure to put on lowest setting or warm, because it will burn if left too long.

JALAPENO CHICKEN DIP

I had this dip at a party last night and it was so good. Not at all healthy, but a good party dip.

1 (10 oz) can chunk white chicken in water ***
1 clove garlic, minced
2 packages cream cheese, softened
1 (10 oz) can cream of chicken soup
3 tbs chopped jalapeno
1 small can chopped green chili's

*** Canned chicken kinda scares me, so I would use 2 decent sized chicken breasts, cooked and shredded or chopped.

Directions:
Preheat oven 350. In a bowl combine all ingredients, mix thoroughly. Pour into your casserole dish and bake for 30-45 minutes until warm and bubbly.
Serve with Tortilla chips, Frito's, Crackers, Veggies.
You can also put this in a crock pot!

JEFF'S AFTER SCHOOL SNACK (BRUSCHETTA W/ GOAT CHEESE)

This recipe was sent to me from Aubrey.. our cousin in San Diego~ between her and her husband Jeff, they are great in the kitchen.. food and drinks.
This is a wonderful appetizer/snack that Jeff makes several times a week when he gets home from work. We’re on a goat cheese kick and if you love it as much as we do, you’ll love this too!

Ingredients
2 roma tomatoes, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 or 4 large fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 ounces soft goat cheese
Sourdough flute, sliced crosswise about 1/2 inch thick

Steps:
Preheat broiler
Mix tomatoes, garlic, basil, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a medium bowl
Place bread on baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and lightly toast under broiler, about 1-2 minutes
Spread about 1 tablespoon of goat cheese on each bread slice
Top with tomato mixture
Place on baking sheet and place under broiler another 3-4 minutes
Make sure it doesn't burn : )