Goat Cheese Mashed Sweet Potatoes

We eat a lot of sweet potatoes in my house.  I mean A LOT.  Most of the time they are just baked, chopped up and roasted or made into french fries.  This time, I made regular mashed sweet potatoes, but added in some goat cheese.  The goat cheese gave the sweet potatoes a little bit of tanginess.  I made them and took them to our cooking club meeting, and everyone loved them!  

Goat Cheese Mashed Sweet Potatoes

3 sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into cubes

1/2 cup (or more) of half-and-half

1/2 stick butter

2 oz goat cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Boil the sweet potatoes in a large pot until they are soft and able to be pierced with a fork.  Drain and return to the pot or a big bowl.  Heat together the half-and-half with the butter in the microwave until the butter is melted.  Add the butter/half-and-half mixture to the sweet potatoes, and combine with a mixer until smooth.  Mix in the goat cheese until well combined.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Grilled Pineapple Guacamole

We eat mexican food a lot these days.  It's super easy and quick to throw together, and it's easy to make it vegan.  Typically it consist of some sort of tacos/fajitas filled with whatever we have lying around.  Usually that means black beans, corn, bell peppers, jalapeños, kale, onions, pineapple, tomatoes, etc. 

Guacamole is a frequenter as well.  I grilled some pineapple rings, chopped them up into pieces and added them into my homemade guac.  Soooo good.  Creamy spicy goodness with an occasional bite of sweet caramelized fruit. 

Grilled Pineapple Guacamole

from Confectons of a Foodie Bride

2 large avocados, pitted and flesh scooped out.

juice of 1 lime

salt

1/3 cup diced red onion

1 small tomato, diced

1 large garlic clove, diced

small handful of cilantro

2 serrano peppers, finely diced

couple of pineapple rings

olive oil

prepare grill to high heat.  brush both sides of pineapple with oil.  grill for a few minutes each side, until browned.  Once cooled, chop the pineapple up into little chunks.  Mash together the avocado, lime juice, salt, red onion, tomato, garlic, cilantro and peppers.  Stir in the pineapple.

Baked BBQ Onion Rings

In my college chemistry class, we extracted the fat and oils from a few different fast food snacks.  One of them was a french fry from Mcdonald's, and one of them was an onion ring from Sonic.  I loved sonic onion rings, and I was beyond grossed out when I saw how much oily disgustingness was hiding within the crunchy, breaded rings.  I can't remember how much it was exactly, but I remember it being a ridiculous amount.  That made me steer clear from french fries and onion rings for a while (until I forgot exactly how much fat they contained, which I then continued to eat them).

Sorry for the awful pictures, these were taken at night, with my older camera.

These onion rings are a bit healthier than Sonic's version, and I like them about just as much.  They're crispy on the outside, soft on the inside with a hint of BBQ sauce mixed in.

Baked BBQ Onion Rings

from JoyTheBaker

1 medium onion, sliced into rings

1/4 cup flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 paprika

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1/8 tsp garlic powder

1 egg

1/8 cup buttermilk

dash hot sauce

1 cup panko breadcrumbs

1/4 cup sour cream

1/8 cup BBQ sauce

Preheat oven to  400.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, paprika, chili powder, red pepper flakes and garlic powder.  In a separate bowl, Whisk together egg, buttermilk and hot sauce.  In yet another bowl, dump the breadcrumbs.

separate sliced onion into individual rings.  Dip rings first in the flour mixture, then the egg mixture, and then the panko.  Line up on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.  

Bake for 10 minutes, flip onion rings and bake for another 10-12 minutes, until the rings are golden brown and crisp. 

Mix together the sour cream and bbq sauce.  Serve with onion rings.

Flank Steak and Sweet Potato Fries

Sweet potatoes are my favorite veggie.  I love baked whole sweet potatoes, but those take way too long to make, and I'm kinda impatient, especially for just a side dish.  Sweet potato fries are the way to go!  They are super quick to make and so delicious.  I made them to go along side some flank steak.  I've never been huge on cooking steak, it intimidates me.  So many people like their steak different ways, I'm just always scared I'll mess it up.  I usually just leave the steaks to Jeremy and his grill.  

I decided it was time for me to try and cook some steak.  I did it successfully.  Yay!  We like our steaks medium-rare, so I just cooked it in a skillet for a few minutes on each side, and it came out perfectly.  I also made a really good sauce to go with it.  It's a chimichurri sauce, made mostly from garlic and parsley.  Dinner was delicious.

Sweet Potato Fries

1 large sweet potato

1-2 tbsp olive oil

salt 

pepper 

cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 425.  Wash and scrub sweet potatoes.  Cut into thick strips and put on a baking sheet.  

Drizzle with olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper, and cayenne if you want a little heat.

Roast for about 15 minutes, until fries are crisp-tender.

Flank Steak

1 1/2 lbs flank steak
salt and pepper
1 Tbsp olive oil


Season both sides of steak with with salt and pepper.  Heat olive oil over med-hi heat in a skillet.

Cook steak 5-8 minutes on each side for medium rare, longer if you like your steak more done.

Let the steak rest, covered for 10 minutes.  Slice and serve.

Parsley-Garlic Chimichurri Sauce
From Martha Stewart


1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 bunch parsley, stemmed
3 Tbsp oregano leaves, fresh
3 Tbsp white-wine vinegar
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes (I added more like 1/4-1/2 tsp)


Pulse garlic in a food processor until finely chopped.

Add in parsley, oregano, vinegar, red pepper flakes, oil, 2 Tbsp water and 1/2 tsp salt.

Pulse until all mixed together and herbs are finely chopped.

Bloomin' Onion and Deep Dish Pizza

Today was a pretty blah day.  I had inservice classes at work all day, then I couldn't leave because there were tornado warnings and they made everyone stay in safe places.  After I was finally allowed to leave, I had to drive with all the crazies who can't drive in the rain the whole way home.  It was storming and hailing and thundering and lightning.  Stoplights were not working.  After I finally made it home, I decided that it would be a perfect day to try and make a bloomin' onion and some deep dish pizza.  It was indeed.  I've been wanting to try and make a bloomin' onion for quite some time, but either did not want to mess with the frying, or didn't want to try and figure out how to cut the thing.  Well today I felt like it.  

 It came out awesome-looking and uber delicious and crispy.  If you have never heard of a "bloomin' onion", I'm sorry.  It is an appetizer at many a restaurants, probably most famously known at Outback Steakhouse.  We have not been to said restaurant in a very long time, but I can always recall the deliciousness of this ginormous fried onion, and often crave it.

The other part of dinner was Chicago style deep dish pizza.  Chicago style = upside down.  Upside down as in cheese and toppings on the bottom and the sauce on the top, with a very thick crust.  I attempted to make this once before, a long time ago, and failed miserably with the crust.  It ended up crusty on the outside edges, but was no where near done baking and doughy in the middle.  This time I fixed it.  And it was awesome.

  

I know these pictures may not look all that appetizing.  The pizza was indeed very messy (as you can clearly tell from the above picture), but the crust was amazing and the fillings were so good.  I apologize for all of the pictures in this post...it was dark and stormy out, so I had no natural light, and my crappy little camera does not do well with artificial light.  

Ok so for this blooming onion.  Step by step.

Take a very large Vidalia onion.  Chop off about 1/2 inch from the stem like so...

Then peel the onion of all its skin.  Turn it root side up (what you see in the picture above will be set down).  Then cut straight down, all the way through, starting from about 1/2 inch out from the root.

  Make a cut like this in 4 equal spots around the onion.  (try to make them as even as possible, I didn't do the best job of that).

Continue to make cuts in between each of the cuts, until you have made 16 cuts total.  Then turn it over and it will look like this! 

Then I made a batter that consisted of flour and a bunch of spices.  Dipped it in that, than dipped it into an egg/milk/water wash, then back into the flour batter.  

It makes a huge mess.  ALL over the kitchen.  After you make the mess, leave it there, and throw this huge thing into some very hot oil.

And it will come out like this!

I might have eaten 3/4 of the whole thing.  By myself.  Well, me and Judah and Foxx that is.  Afterwards they were kicking like crazy, so I think they liked it too.  

So for the pizza.  Start with cheese...

Then add sausage and tomato sauce...

And then some more cheese, if you want to.

Bake it...

Yum.  Nice and messy.  

Bloomin Onion

1 very large vidalia onion

2 1/2 cups flour

2 Tbsp paprika

1 tsp cayenne

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp thyme

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp cumin

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1 cup water

1 gallon oil

Slice the onion as described above.  Mix together the flour and all the spices.  Put the sliced up onion in a bowl.  Pour the flour mixture all over the onion.  Put a plate over the top of the bowl and shake gently to distribute the mixture evenly.  Whish together the eggs, water and milk in a bowl. Remove the onion with a large slotted spoon/spatula and dip it into the egg mixture.  Then put it back into the flour bowl and shake it around some more.  

Heat oil in a large pot to 400 degrees.  Carefully, drop the onion into the hot oil using the slotted spoon/spatula.  Adjust the heat to keep the degrees about 350.  Fry for about 3 or 4 minutes, until golden brown and crispy.

Drain on a paper towel and eat immediately!!  We make a quick sauce with ranch, pepper and tabasco sauce for dipping. 

Chicago Deep Dish Pizza

From PenniesOnAPlatter

for the dough: 

1 1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp flour

1/4 cup yellow cornmeal

3/4 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 1/8 tsp yeast (I used rapid rise)

1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp water, at room temperature

1 1/2 Tbsp butter, melted

1 tsp olive oil

2 Tbsp butter, softened

for the sauce:

1 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp onion, minced

1 clove garlic, minced

pinch oregano

1/4 tsp salt

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes

pinch of sugar

2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped

1 1/2 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper, to taste

*Use whatever toppings and cheese you'd like.  I used sausage and mozzarella cheese.

To make the dough:  

Whish together the flour, cornmeal, salt, sugar and yeast.  Mix in the water and melted butter with a dough hook, or with your hands, for 1-2 mins.  Continue to knead (a little faster) for 3-4 minutes until the dough is shiny and smooth.  Coat a large bowl with oil, and place the kneaded dough in it.  Cover with plastic wrap and a towel, and set in a warm place.  Let rise for 45-60 mins.

After dough has risen, roll it out to a 8 x 6 rectangle.  Spread with the 2 Tbsp of softened butter, leaving 1/2 inch on all sides.  Starting with the short end, roll into a tight roll.  With the seem side down, flatten into a 9 x 2 rectangle.  Fold into thirds.  Roll into a ball, cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise again (in the fridge this time) for another 40-50 mins.  

While dough is rising, make the sauce.  Melt the butter in a sauce pan over medium heat.  Add the onion, oregano and salt.  Saute until onions are translucent and soft.  Add garlic and saute for about 30 secs more.  Stir in the tomatoes and sugar.  Turn up heat to med-high.  Bring just to a boil, and then turn to med-low and simmer until 1/2 of the liquid has evaporated (about 15 minutes).  Remove from heat and stir in oil and basil.  Season with salt and pepper.  

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Coat a 9-inch round cake/pie pan with oil or butter.  Roll out the risen dough into a large circle.  Fit into pan and press up against all the sides.  Pile on the cheese, toppings and sauce.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until crust edges are just lightly browned.  Let cool, slice and eat!

Whew.  That was quite a long post.  Congratulations if you stuck with me!           

  

Cran-Apple-Jam

When the word "Cranberry Sauce" is said aloud, what image pops into your head?

I bet I can guess.

I bet it looks something like this.

They tried to make it look pretty here.

Does not work.  You cannot make something that disgusting look desirable to eat when you know that all it takes to prepare it is this.

I have always been repulsed by this jellied, cranberry flavored side dish that has taken the shape of it's container.  It always sat on our Thanksgiving table, probably brought by one of the laziest of cooks in our family, whoever that may be.  I take one glance at the nasty can-shaped fruit and continue on toward the sweet potatoes.

This year, I decided to try and make something more delicious and appealing to the eye.

Cranberry Apple Jam.

It has apples and cranberries in it.  Had you guessed as much?

And 6 cups of sugar.  6 cups!! that's insane.  but I don't care.  It was good.

I drowned all those apples and cranberries in those 6 cups of sugar.

and then,  I canned them.

It was delicious.  Blew the canned stuff out of the water.  Even replaced it on the Thanksgiving table.  It also made pretty gifts for my family.  and pop tart filling.  and biscuit spreads.  and made for a great spoon-dipping treat all by itself. 

make it.  can it.  give it away.  or keep it.  and then stuff your face.  

Apple-Cranberry Jam (makes 4 1/2-5 pints)

from foodinjars

8 cups peeled, chopped apples (use a soft apple, such as Golden Delicious)

4 cups whole cranberries

6 cups sugar

1 cup water

2 lemons, zested and juiced

Combine apples, cranberries, sugar and water in a large pot.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Skim the foam that develops.  Cook 10-15 minutes, until the cranberries "pop"  (it's awesome, they just pop right open!) and apple soften.

Add lemon zest and juice and simmer until liquid thickens.  Ladle into jars and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.  

That's it!  Quite easy and delicious.  

Leek Rings & Pot Pie

What tastes really good after a cold rainy day outside? Or rather, what tastes really good on any kind of day?  Chicken Pot Pie. and Leek Rings.  You're probably thinking..."Leek rings...what in the world are leek rings?"  If you are not thinking that, then you must have heard.  I salute you fellow leek ring lover. (yes I'm assuming you are a leek ring lover if you have had them.  They are that good.)  For those of you who do not know of leek rings, let me explain...

These, are leeks.  They're like little jungle trees.  Kinda cute.  They smell earthy and onion-like.

These are leeks sliced up with some centers popped out.  Like cute little tree stumps.  With lots of layers.

So what did we do with these cute little things?  we fried them up!  we dipped them in a batter that included cayenne pepper, then put them in hot oil.  Like onion rings...except leek rings!  

Oh man.  Deliciousness everywhere.  These little guys look like a Barbie Doll's onion ring.  They're teeny.  and so tasty.  I was trying to think of a clever name to call these little fried bits.

me: "how about we call them "leekies"?

hubby:  "no dear, that sounds too much like a brand of adult diapers."

bahaha, haha, haha!  Ok I'm done now.  It probably was not quite that funny.  

So the other part of this meal...the pot pie.  I usually make a potpie that consist of chicken, veggies, and seasoning, topped with biscuits for the crust.  One night while eating with some friends at an irish pub, I saw a pot pie with a phyllo dough crust/topping.  Now I know phyllo dough is greek, but I'm not going for authenticity of irish food here.  I decided to try this.  Phyllo dough is very tricky.  I cannot count how many pieces of it I cracked/ripped/tore/demolished.  But it finally worked...

Isn't it precious?  I even put a little star in the middle.  I made individual pot pies in ramekins.  

mmm...it was gone very quickly.

Leek rings

from Alton Brown

3 quarts oil (peanut, veggie or canola) 

12 oz leeks, cleaned and trimmed of dark green parts

1 1/2 cups milk

1 egg

2 cups flour

2 tsp salt

2 tsp cayenne pepper

Preheat oil to 375 degrees over medium high heat.  Slice leeks into 1/2 inch rings and separate into layers.  Whisk together the milk and egg.  In another bowl, mix together the flour, salt and cayenne.  Divide the flour mixture into 2 bowls.  Dip the leek rings first in a bowl of flour, then the egg/milk mixture, then the other bowl of flour.  Fry the rings 1-1 1/2 mins, until golden brown.  Put fried rings on a cooling rack and season with salt.

Chicken Pot Pie

Adapted from Ina Garten

3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded or diced. 

3 Tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

5 cups chicken stock

2 chicken bullion cubes

12 Tbsp butter

2 cups yellow onion, chopped

3/4 cup flour

1/4 cup heavy cream

2 cups carrots, medium-diced

2 cups frozen peas

1/2 cup minced fresh parsley

1/2 pkg phyllo dough, thawed

preheat oven to 350.  In a saucepan, heat the chicken stock, and add the bullion cubes.  heat until the cubes are dissolved.  In a separate pot, melt the butter, and saute the onions over medium-low heat, 10-15 mins.  Add the flour and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 mins.  Add the stock/bullion mixture.  Simmer over low heat a minute or 2 more, stirring until thick.  Add 2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and cream.  Add chicken, peas, carrots, and parsley.  Mix it all up good. 

Roll the phyllo dough out.  Brush a few layers of the phyllo with melted butter.  Cut a square that will fit atop the ramekin (or large dish if you so wish to use that instead).  Make the square have at least4-5 layers of phyllo.  You can cut a shape in the middle if desired, if not, cut a few slits.  Lay the sheets on top of the dish with the filling.  Brush the dough with an egg wash (beat one egg with a few tsp of water).  Bake for about an hour.    

Bacon and Carmelized Onion Mac and cheese

When you think of comfort food...what comes to mind?  casseroles? biscuits? mashed potatoes and gravy? fried chicken?  How about macaroni and cheese?  That goes in that list right?  How about mac and cheese made with 4 different kinds of fancy cheeses with some caramelized onions and bacon bits mixed in?  Fancy Macaroni, that's what it's called.  I told hubby that I was going to make some mac and cheese.  This is how the conversation went...

me:  "Hey, how about mac and cheese for dinner?"

hubby:  "that sounds ok."

me:  "How about that mac and cheese with some bacon mi..."

hubby (interrupts):  "YES!"

enough said.  Did not even have to finish my sentence.

hubby loves anything with bacon.  remember bacon brownies?  His favorite.  I mentioned maple-bacon popcorn the other night.  He's been bugging me to make it ever since.  It's on my to-make list.  Along with a billion other things.  I really need to find a bunch of people to give away treats to, because my favorite things to make are bread, cheesecakes, pies and other sweets.  And heaven forbid we eat all these things (but sometimes we do).   Ok so the mac and cheese.

First slice you up some onions.  Every time I chop onions I hate my life because it hurts!  It makes me cry and hurts my eyes.  One day out of the blue (after hearing me yell out loud in the kitchen because my eyes were burning) hubby was like..."Hey dear you know if you light a candle next to you while cutting onions, that won't happen!"  what?!  I have been cooking for you-always with onions, for 2 and 1/2 years, and you are just now telling me this awesome tip?!  Well, hubby was right.  All you have to do is light a candle next to your cutting workspace, and the tears are gone!  It's magical.  

Caramelize those onions.

Next, fry you up some bacon.  Not too crisp, but just until it is a almost all crispy.  

Then, shred you up some cheese.  I used 4 different kinds, feel free to experiment.  I used goat cheese, sharp cheddar, gruyere, and parmesan.

Now just throw it all together with some bread crumbs on top and bake it.

Mmmm.  So good and creamy. and cheesy. and bacon-y.  and caramelized onion-y.

Fancy Macaroni

Adapted from ThePioneerWoman

• • 4 cups macaroni, cooked to almost al dente
• • 8 tablespoons butter 
• • 2 onions, thinly sliced
• • 10 slices regular bacon
• • 1 tablespoon bacon grease (reserved from bacon slices)
• • ¼ cups all-purpose flour
• • 2 cups milk
• • ½ cups half-and-half
• • 2 whole egg yolks, beaten
• • Salt And Pepper, to taste
• • ½ cups grated gruyere cheese
• • ½ cups grated fontina cheese (I used cheddar, cause it's what I had)
• • ½ cups grated parmesan cheese
• • 4 ounces goat cheese
• • Breadcrumbs - your choice.  I used panko.
• • 
    
• • 
    
• • Preheat Oven to 350.
• • 
    
• • Fry bacon until slightly, but not overly, crispy. Drain on a paper towel. Reserve grease.
• Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a skillet and then saute onions over medium-low heat for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown and soft. Set aside.
• In a pot, melt 4 tablespoons butter and add 1 tablespoon of the reserved bacon grease. Sprinkle in flour and whisk to combine. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat for 1 minute. Pour in milk and half & half, then cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until thick. Reduce heat to low. Add salt & pepper to taste. 
• • 
    
• • Beat egg yolks and drizzle 1/4 cup hot mixture into the yolks, stirring constantly. Stir to combine. Pour egg mixture into sauce and cook for another minute.
• Add cheeses and stir until melted. Add onions and bacon and stir. Taste for seasonings and add more salt if needed. Add cooked macaroni and stir to coat.  Top with bread crumbs.
• Pour into a baking dish and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until sizzling and hot.