Recipes

The Ultimate Chicken Sandwich

July 31, 2014

There are plenty of nights now when we just wing it when it comes to dinner. I always have high hopes for a great meal every night but real life gets in the way. I mean I can pin some great ideas until the cows come home while I am on the bus heading into work wishing that I was actually heading home. At least I’ve been on a one-pot meal pinning streak so I’m looking forward to trying one of those soon.

I wish I had the energy to cook but most days I’m drained. Hmm… maybe it’s the lack of sleep and constant moving I’m doing. We’re the on the go kind of family but lately I’ve been hauling butt walking all around town trying to enjoy the nice summer time weather and gets steps, which I’m tracking with my Fitbit. Love it.

So when it comes to dinner I’ll admit that we’re there are equally as many meals of cereal or take out as there are of cooked ones. And by cooked I often mean assembled. Does cutting up tomatoes and dressing with olive oil count as cooking? Yes… cool!!

Anyway, this sandwich is the kind of meal I can manage- grab a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, cut off one of the breasts which you then thinly sliced. Cook up some bacon, which I hardly qualify as cooking in this case as you just do it in the oven. Then assemble the mega sandwich, cut, enjoy.

This would also work just as well with some turkey. would be a nice post Thanksgiving sandwich to change things up from the stuffing loaded ones. Don’t get me wrong, I love Pilgrim Sandwiches, but I get over stuffing pretty quickly. Anyway, I even thick sliced deli chicken or turkey would work well.

I suggest serving this with some chips, as opening a bag is the kind of cooking I like. Ha!

The Ultimate Chicken Sandwich

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

6 slices of bacon, cut in half
loaf of Italian bread (I used a Vieira Saloio)
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup spicy brown mustard
a large bunch of arugula
1 large breast of roasted chicken, such as a rotisserie chicken
2-3 tomatoes, thinly sliced
6 slices of bacon, sliced in half
1 avocado, very thinly sliced
salt and pepper

Process

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place the 12 pieces of the bacon on the foil so they are just touching on their long edges. Bake for 12-14 minutes (depending on thickness of bacon) until crisp. Remove the bacon from the baking sheet and place on a plate covered with paper towels.
Halve a loaf of Italian bread to separate the top and bottom.
Spread the mayo on one half of the bread and spread the mustard on the other half. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Put a generous amount of arugula on the bottom half of the sandwich.
Completely cover the arugula with the sliced chicken.
Cover the chicken with the tomatoes, bacon, and then avocado. Cap off with the upper part of the bread.
Cut into 4 sandwiches and enjoy!

Post contains affilate link(s).

Vietnamese Grilled Chicken Vermicelli Bowl

July 28, 2014

With just one bite you will be hooked on this Vietnamese Grilled Chicken Vermicelli Bowl. Fun textures and flavors will have you wanting more and more. It’s a versatile dish that will work with chicken, shrimp, pork, beef, or tofu. Have your passport ready as this will transport you!

Bun is a delicious Vietnamese Vermicelli Bowl. This noodle salad has a wonderfully marinated chicken that is grilled. It’s packed full of great flavors and interesting textures. You’ll love every bite of it!

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PayDay Pie

July 25, 2014

Hey today is my payday!

Woohoo! Time to pay some bills! Ugh.

Well, it’s your payday as well. I created a PayDay Pie just for you.

Price really likes PayDay bars. I do not. There is no chocolate. So I insist they are a waste of a candy bar. He can eat all the PayDay bars he wants out of Autumn’s Halloween bag when she is still of the age that we get first pass at the goodies. I’ll take the Snickers Thank.You.Very.Much.

So here is a simple pie that you can whip up while trying to pack for a long weekend. Take cans out of the slow cooker – pack bathing suits & sunblock & a hat Autumn will refuse to wear – process the cookies to make the crust – did I pack socks already? – pulse the melted butter into the crumbs – ah, yes, I did pack socks -create the crust and put it into the fridge- wipe down the counters and load the dishwasher – whip together the caramel and cream cheese – pack up the dogs stuff – fill the pie.

While the caramel is super easy to make just be aware you can still burn it. Well, at least over cook it. Just be aware of how your slow cooker runs and you should be set. If your slow cooker is on the low side then cook the caramel for 8-10 hrs. Or if it runs hotter, like mine, then stick closer to the 6-8 hrs.

The cream cheese helps cut some of the sweetness from the caramel, and makes it extra dreamy & creamy. If you want add some vanilla extract. I just believe it can never hurt.

Just like it can never hurt to have a big glass of wine while sitting under a tree. I’ll totally be doing that this weekend while we visit Price’s mom in Maine. And of course trying to keep a hat on Autumn’s head since she hates them. HATES.

But you won’t hate this pie. Nope, not one bit.

PayDay Pie

Makes a 9″ pie

Ingredients

2 14.5 ounce cans of condensed milk
8 oz Nutterbutter cookies ( 1/2 a package)
4 Tablespoons of butter
8 oz cream cheese
salted peanuts

Process

Place 2 cans of condensed milk into a slow cooker. Fill the slow-cooker with water to completely cover the cans and have plenty of water above the cans. Turn on high, cover, and cook for 6-8 hours.
Remove the cans from the water and let cool until you can handle the cans.
While the cans are cooling, place the cookies in the bowl of a food processor. Process the cookies until they are crumbs. Add the melted butter and quickly pulse until the butter is evenly incorporated.
Pour the cookie crumbs into the bottom of a pie plate. Gently press into the bottom and up the sides to form the crust. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
Open the cans and pour the caramel into a bowl, add the cream cheese. Beat until completely blended.
Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust. Sprinkle the peanuts on top of the filling. Chill for at least 2 hours to set up.

Process for creating the pie filling was adapted from Beantown Baker

Nacho Cheeseburger- Burger Month

July 19, 2014

It’s the weekend!!!

It’s time to rock it. It’s time to get shhh done. It’s time to actually cook.

We’re going to be busy this weekend as we’re on vacation next weekend. So we really need to focus and try to tackle this weekend’s to do list, as well as much as possible of next weekend’s to do list. Here’s just a few things… laundry, mop the first floor, get the kitchen rug back down, clean Bunny’s cage, get to the post office, make SRC recipe, work on refinishing dinning chairs. Plus, I have a fun brunch to go to on Sunday while Price is visiting his sister and dad in NH. Oh yeah, and I have 4 hrs of work to do as well to make up time from always leaving early to get miss Autumn from daycare.

At least Price and I are ah-maze at tackling the to do list. I’m just hoping we ca pull it off this weekend. #Fingerscrossed.

While we’re talking to-do lists, I’m giving you this burger to add to your to-do list.

Yep, I give the marching orders here!

These Nacho Burgers are the perfect mash up of a great dinner and a great appetizer. But if we’re truthful here, I’ll just admit that we eat nachos for dinner a lot. Anyway, these are so great because of all the yummy toppings. AND the tortillas chips. The tortilla chips add the best crunch to the burgers. Don’t skimp on them.

You know how they say not to mess with things when grilling, well don’t mess with these burgers while you are grilling them. They are a little delicate since they are filled with a mixture of beef, beans, and cheese. So just put the burgers down and let them be until they are ready to be flipped once. Grab a beer and just relax.

I’ve made these burgers two times in like 9 days since I wanted to tweak things and since I enjoyed them so much I had to have them again ASAP. I first had taco seasoning in the burger mix. While it was good we were remarking that it was more like a ‘Taco Burger’ than a ‘Nacho Burger’. I guess they are similar so no foul there but I decided I wanted to mellow that flavor out so I took it out. Feel free to add it in if you would like. As well, one we ate these burgers with jarred salsa and another with pico de gallo. Both ways are really good and I’d say just go with your personal preference.

You can’t go wrong here. I swear since I picked these black olives off of mine the moment I was done taking pictures (we just aren’t friends) and still enjoyed it so just do what you want, just make sure you have a lot of tortilla chips on there. You need that crunch!!!!!!

Nacho Cheeseburger

Makes 4 burgers

Ingredients

24 ounces of ground beef (80/20)
10 oz of canned blacked beans
12 oz of shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
4 burger buns (I suggest Kaiser rolls)
salsa, such as pico de gallo
tortilla chips
1 avocado, pit removed, thinly sliced/guacamole
aproximately 1/2 cup of sour cream
sliced black olives
pickled jalapenos slices

Process

Combine the ground beef, black beans, 1/2 of the cheese, and salt and pepper. Form 4 equally sized patties as round as your buns.
Prepare the grill by cleaning the grill grates and preheating to ‘medium’ heat. Just prior to putting the burgers on the grill, spray the grates with non-stick cooking spray.
Grill the burgers over medium heat until they are half way done prior to flipping. Once you flip them put the remaining shredded cheese on the burgers and put a lid on the grill.
While the burgers are cooking, grill the buns as well to toast them.
When the burgers are cooked through and the cheese has melted, remove from grill and place on the toasted buns.
Top the burgers with the salsa, tortilla chips, avocado, sour cream, olives, and jalapeno slices.

Be sure to enter the giveaway!!!

A huge thanks to all of the fun bloggers who were just as inspired by a month of burgers as I was and the awesome companies that have donated prizes to #burgermonth , El Diablo Hot & Spicy Mustard, FireWire Grilling Skewers, Hamilton Beach, KitchenIQ, The Spice House, and Wisconsin Cheese

Reese’s Cup Marshmallow Peanut Butter Cookie Pie

July 18, 2014

I’ve been in a cooking funk.

I’m currently in a ‘nope don’t wanna cook anything’ phase. Basically, all I make anymore is pies. And that is just to have something to post on Fridays. I guess I could post about making Bacon Egg and Cheese sandwiches since I’m a rock star at at making them. But I should be since that is about all I’ve been making lately- breakfast sandwiches, bowls of cereal, and making calls for take out.

Shouldn’t I be super inspired to make some great meals now since some much is in season and we love summer time grilling? It be great for some BBQ chicken breasts with some grilled veggies. Or some of these pork kabobs? What about a juicy steak? Or skip the grill and at least make a great fresh salad, no?

But truthfully, we’re beat. Autumn hasn’t been sleeping that well. Thanks teething. And whatever else is going on. Blah.

And I recently got a Fitbit Flex so I’m all about walking while it’s still nice (I shudder thinking about winter already) and before Autumn’s bedtime so getting out of the house for a 2 1/2- 3 1/2 mile walk at night it my top priority. It’s sooo nice to be able to get out to stretch our legs. But it just means something has to give and that has been making a real dinner.

At least all that walking has helped balance things out when I shovel mouthfuls of warm ooey gooey pie into my mouth. RIGHT?!? That’s what I figure when I walk over 15,000-18,000 steps in a day.

When I was taking photos of this pie in front of our house (best lighting) my neighbor started to say hi and ask what I was doing. He doesn’t know English that well, so instead of trying to explain what blogging is to him I told him to go back inside and get a plate. He then came over with this plate and I slapped a piece of warm pie right on it. I think his eyes bugged out of his head a bit when he really saw this baby.

And then a guy driving by in a truck slowed down and stopped saying “You taking a picture of a pie?” I shouted back “Yep!” He still looked a bit confused but went with it “Okay…” and then drove on.

That’s right, this pie is attention getting!!

How could anyone ignore this Reese’s Cup Marshmallow Peanut Butter Cookie Pie?!?! I mean, come on, a peanut butter cookie crust, chocolate chips, Reese’s Cups, and mini marshmallows. Ridiculous.

The crust is easy to make but if you find a roll of refrigerated peanut butter cookies at your grocery store then feel free to give that a try. Then it’s all about raiding the candy aisle and dumping that into this pie. The candy make the filling ooey gooey so just accept some sloppy slices, but it’s worth the mess. I swear.

Reese’s Cup Marshmallow Peanut Butter Cookie Pie

Make a 9″ deep dish pie

Ingredients

For the Crust

1/2 cup of unsalted butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup smooth creamy butter
1 egg
1 1/2 cups self rising flour

For the Filling

1/2 cup chocolate chips
12 Reese’s peanut butter cups
1 1/2 to 2 cups of mini marshmallows

Process

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a deep dish pie plate by spraying with non stick cooking spray.
To make the crust, cream together the butter and brown sugar together. Add the peanut butter, egg, and flour and mix to thoroughly combined. Press 2/3 of the dough into the bottom and up sides of the pie plate. Place the remaining dough into the refrigerator. Bake for 5 to 8 minutes or until it’s just starting to set up.
Sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly over the semi-cooked bottom. Place the peanut butter cups over the chocolate chips. Lastly, sprinkle the marshmallows over the top.
Roll out chunks of dough to create 1″ round balls of remaining dough into the palm of your hand, press to create a 1/4″ thick disk. Create the top crust by placing the pieces on top of the marshmallows (pieces can overlap).
Bake for an additional 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. The center of the pie will still be very jiggly as the filling should be very gooey.
Cool for at least 30 minutes for the perfect piece to come out. Serve warm.

Crust adapted from I am a Honey Bee, filling from Oh Sweet Basil

No-Bake Snickers Pie

July 11, 2014

No-Bake Snickers Pie – A rich creamy peanut butter pie with Snickers candy bar dessert and caramel topping. Perfect for warm Summer nights!

We’re going camping tomorrow. Wish us luck!

Yeah, we might be a bit crazy to tackle that with a dog and a 7 month old but we are up for the challenge. Plus we are approaching it cautiously by only going 1 night and going to Pillsbury State Park, a campsite that we have already been to so we know exactly what to expect there.

One of the things that I am really looking forward to is being able to walk all around the camp grounds with Autumn and get to show her the lake, streams, and a waterfall too. We did a hike there last year when I was 6 months pregnant so it will be fun to do it now with Autumn. Hoping to be much faster this time!

While we’re roughing it this weekend, you should be cutting yourself a slice of this pie. You can easily whip it up while not turning your oven on in this summer heat! Isn’t that just the best thing ever? Pie and you don’t even need to get your kitchen hot!!

Plus, it’s LOADED up with pieces of Snickers. SNICKERS!!!

When I was at summer sleep away camp we could buy treats in the afternoon at the general store. ~~Occasionally~~ Every day I would get a Snickers bar to take out to the four square court. As I waited in line I’d eat my melting Snickers and right before it was my turn I’d shove that wrapper into my shorts pocket before I ~~dominated~~ played the game.

Since then I’ve loved Snickers. I can’t keep them in the house because they call to me from the refrigerator. Which is exactly why after Price and I each enjoyed a slice of this pie I emailed our dog walker telling her that there was a pie in our freezer for her to take. I had to hit send on that email quickly before I thought twice and considered eating it all myself. I hope her family enjoys it just as much as we did. And I hope you do too!

No Bake Snickers Pie

Make 1 9″ Pie Ingredients

For the crust

8 ounces chocolate cookies (I used a ‘dutch chocolate cookie‘)
3 Tablespoons butter, melted plus a little extra for greasing the pie plate

For the filling

8 ounces light cream cheese, softened at room temperature
1 1/2 Cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 Cup sugar
2/3 Cup smooth peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 Cup caramel sauce

For the ganache topping

6 ounces milk chocolate, broken into small pieces (a mixture of milk and semi-sweet is fine as well)
1/4- 1/3 cup heavy cream
12 Fun Size Snickers bars, chopped up
Caramel Sauce

Process

Butter the bottom and sides of the pie plate. Set aside.
In a food processor, finely process the cookies until you produce a fine crumb. Add the melted butter and mix to combine. Using your fingers, press this mixture into the pie plate and up the sides. Place in the fridge to harden.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, whip the cream until it forms firm peaks. Transfer to a large bowl, and set aside.
Using mixing bowl you had perviously whipped the cream in, beat the cream cheese, sugar, peanut butter, and vanilla extract until it becomes smooth and creamy.
Scoop out dollops of the peanut butter mixture onto the bowl with the whipped cream. Gently fold together until there are no more streaks, but be careful not to over mix deflating the filling.
Remove the pie plate from the fridge and pour a thin, even layer of the caramel over the crust. Scoop the filling onto the caramel and evenly smooth out the top. Return to the freezer .
In the bowl of a double boiler, add the broken pieces of chocolate and heat over low heat until almost melted through. Add 1/4 Cup of the cream and continue to heat until the mixture to fuly melted and smooth. (If the chocolate ‘breaks’ then add a bit more cream until it is smooth again.)
Remove the pie from the freezer and pour the ganache over the top. Smooth the surface with an offset spatula. Spinkle the chopped up pieces of Snickers bars on top, then gently press into the warm ganache. Drizzle the caramel sauce on top and return to the freezer for at least 30 minutes.
Prior to serving, place the pie into the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to make cutting and serving easier.

Insprired from Not Quiet Nigella

Twix Bar Cheesecake Pie

July 4, 2014

**HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!!**

I’ve had such a productive week. It feels so damn good to get things done and handled. My to do list is never ending so this week has taken a nice chunk off my shoulders. Check this out.

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Brown Sugar Chess Pie

June 27, 2014

Oh, I am so glad it’s Friday!!!

It has been such a busy week, but such a great week.

On Monday I went to dinner with my friend Allie, who also had a baby last year. On Christmas to be exact! It was such a good night with dinner, drinks, and lots of catching up. It’s always so good to be able to share news, ideas, and funny stories to the point where you have tears in your eyes.

Allie is the kind of person who you feel you’ve known for decades but have only know each other a short period of time. She is wrapping up her degree to be in social work. I think she’ll he really successful as she has this great charm about her, which will help her communicate with her clients.

We’re both heading back to our guys’ hometown for the 4th of July so I’m sure we’ll get to hang there. And probably have some wine. And laugh until we cry again.

Oh, how is it already the end of June?!?! The month has breezed by! This just means that this is the last of my chess pies for the month of June!

So every week Price asked me what Chess Pie was and I’d say “I dunno, but it sure is sugary!” Super helpful, no?

Well, a little wiki later and ta-da! I know what a Chess Pie is! It’s a sugary custard pie that has it’s roots in England but has now become a Southern thing. And when you read the recipe and think ‘cornmeal, really?’ you’ll now know that it’s no mistake, there is cornmeal in the filling. But I swear you wouldn’t even know it.

All of the Chess Pies that I made were sweet but this was swaaaa-eeeaaattt! Got it? I’d say that you should skip the 8 slice cutting, and just go to 12-16 slices. Because gang, sugar. But it’s so good that you can get over the cavity you’ll have after eating it.

The brown sugar gives it a nice caramel flavor that isn’t over the top. It’s subtle so you know it’s there but it’s not all up in your face. I think it’s nice that it sets it apart from the other pies for that reason.

Brown Sugar Chess Pie

Makes a 9″ pie

Ingredients

3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup of butter
1 tablespoon cornmeal
1 tablespoon vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 unbaked pie shell

Process

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sugar.
Melt the butter and add it to the sugars. Beat well until light and fluffy.
Stir in the eggs, cornmeal, vinegar, and vanilla extract until fully combined.
Pour the filling into the pie shell. Bake for 45 minutes or until set. If edges are browning too quickly, cover with foil. Remove from oven, place on wire rack to cool.

Sourced from Twirl and Taste

Fiesta Pasta Salad

June 26, 2014

Fiesta Pasta Salad

Olé, Olé, Olé, Olé
Olé, Olé, Olé, Olé

FIESTA!

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Fusilli with Fresh Corn and Chicken in a Garlic Cream Sauce- SRC

June 23, 2014

Holy cow.

You guys this recipe knocked my socks off.

And then the dog ate them. Just kidding! He only eats the baby’s socks. And thankfully it’s summer so we’re going barefoot now. woohoo!

This recipe is simple but it hits all the right notes.

Since getting this month’s Secret Recipe Club assignment I’ve made this twice. Making a recipe again when I don’t have to is big. Especially in such a short period of time! But when you find something you love you go with it. And I loved Mary Kay’s blog called Homemade Cravings. Seriously, I had some cravings after I checked out her blog.

Check these out… Mini Layer Nacho Bites, Panera Autumn Squash Soup, Cream Cheese and Caramel Frost Apple Cupcakes. See, she has great taste! Check out her Pinterest account too. She pins some great dishes as well. yum!

Since I made this twice I made some alterations the second time around. Nothing too drastic but just a few things to make it my own. I increased the amount of chicken to the recipe to add more protein and increase the amount of servings this pasta dish made. (hello leftovers!) As well, I increased the amount of sauce that is made since I loved it the first time I made it so I had to have more!

It’s quick to get all of this together but my tip to you is how to get the kernels off the corn cobs easily and neatly. Take a big pan and put an upside down bowl in the middle of it. That is going to be your pedestal where you hold up your corn, bottom side down. Then you run your knife down the side of the corn, allowing the kernels to fall off into the pan.

Be sure to use all the great fresh corn you have at your finger tips this summer when you are making this great pasta dish. Yum! I bet this would also be great with some fresh zucchini as well.

Fusilli with Fresh Corn and Chicken in a Garlic Cream Sauce

Ingredients

1 pound Fusilli (Rontini works well too)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 pounds chicken, chopped into bite size pieces
3 cloves of garlic, minced
4 ears of fresh corn on the cob, kernels cut off
3/4 Cup half and half
1/2 Cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 Tablespoon parsley, minced
Salt and Pepper

Process

Cook the fusilli according to instructions on package. Reserve 1 Cup of the pasta water.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat, add the chicken pieces. Brown the chicken and then move to the outer edges of the skillet.
Add the garlic to the center of the skillet and saute for a minute.
Add the corn kernels to the skillet. Mix everything together and cook for another 4-5 minutes until tender, stirring every 30 seconds or so.
Add the cup of pasta water, half and half, and the cheese. Allow to come to a low boil.
Remove from heat and toss with the drained fusilli until all pasta is evenly coated. Toss with the minced parsley.

Adapted from Homemade Cravings

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There are so many other great posts out today. Be sure to check them out on the link below:

As well, check out my 2 years of Secret Recipe Club posts!!!!

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Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive.

Lemon Chess Pie

June 20, 2014

Yesterday was such a great busy day.

I worked from home in the morning. Then Autumn had a Physical Therapy follow-up appointment at Children’s Hospital for her Torticollis that flares up when she is not feeling great (a cold, teething, etc.) Then we drove out to Newton to do a big drop off at Mother’s Milk Bank Northeast. (I’ve now donated just over 1,300 oz (10+gallon) to help out premies!) A quick trip to the grocery store and then we head off to watch The Big G’s softball game. While I don’t play, Price plays along with my office as his office doesn’t have a team.

Autumn loved hanging out on our picnic blanket with a fresh juicy peach for a snack while everyone fawned over her blue eyes. And overall cuteness. 🙂

The game was a success! The team forged a comeback and ended up winning 16-17! We all went a little nuts as everyone was proud of the come back win. Plus, our team has had a bit of a history with the other team. They beat us pretty much beat us every time, but the worst is that they beat us 2 years ago in the championship game so this was such a sweet win!

Ah, it all makes me just love summer so much.

Perfect for summer is this Lemon Chess Pie!

The color and flavor is jsut to bright and happy to me. I would love to serve this at a BBQ or picnic with some fresh berries and whipped cream.

The pie is very light and very lemony. While it’s tart it’s still pretty sweet so there is a nice balance there. The whole thing takes about 5-10 minutes to mix up and then just 40ish minutes to bake. I do suggest that you give it several hours to cool and set up. I know it’s hard to resist the wait but you’ll get a perfectly set, creamy pie then.

Enjoy!

Lemon Chess Pie

Make 1 9″ Pie, 12-16 servings

Ingredients

1 unbaked pie crust
3 eggs, separated
1-1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup Meyer lemon juice (preferably use Meyer Lemon)
zest of 1 lemon
1 Tablespoon white vinegar
1-1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Process

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Place the crust in a pie pan and the crimp edges. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, melted butter, lemon juice, lemon zest, vinegar, and vanilla extract until blended. Once combined, gently fold in the egg whites until there are no more white streaks.
Pour the filling into the pie crust.
Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean and is browned on top.

Slightly Adapted from The Spiffy Cookie

Citrus Apple Butter Glazed Grilled Shrimp

June 14, 2014

Yesterday was my office’s bonus day. It’s a fun time to celebrate all the hard work that everyone does while getting some extra dough in the back pocket. There is a presentation to highlight the great things that happened to the firm, and our office specifically. As well, some fun awards are given out to different people and project teams. I received 2 awards but of course missed actually getting them as I had to slip away to pump. Figures!

Between having just recently hit my 5 year anniversary since starting this blog and taking a moment to reflect on my past year professionally and personally, I started to think about this blog and where is has come from and where I want it to go.

I’m so proud of all the recipes, photos, and stories that I have shared over the past 5 years. It’s been so much fun for me to document everything along the way. I’ve enjoyed making drink recipes, recipes for NASCAR races, and getting to rate my favorite breakfast food- eggs benedict! yum!!

While it has been fun I’ve noticed that over time I’ve been sharing more and more about food recipes and that was not my original intent with this blog. I love food. Oh boy I do, but I am more than that and the other sides of me is being left out in the blog recently.

So I’m going to, hopefully, start to blog more about what I have the urge to. Maybe I’ll just share my favorite summer shoes, some fun pictures, a house project, and some random craft that I’m so desperately trying to squeeze back into my crazy schedule. That will be more reflective of me.

I hope that you still come to check out my food posts, this year’s weekly pie posts, but also stop by to read about my way to do a garden planter or how to build a window cornice or my endless love for Sperry’s.

Well, I’m here sharing a great summer time grill recipe. I used Musselman’s Apple Butter in a fun, creative way to great a marinade and glaze for some yummy grilled shrimp. I never would have thought about using apples butter on shrimp but I have to say that the glaze I made for it was so dang good. I was pleasantly surprised!

I mean, I love Musselman’s Apple Butter, but there are just sometimes when you read a recipe and go ‘hmmm, is this really a good idea?!?!’. Let me tell you… in this case it’s a great idea!

I cooked the shrimp on my new grill pan that I placed on my grill. I could have even used the grill pan on my stove and in my oven to cook the shrimp but I couldn’t resist being outside. I used the fish grill pan that is part of the Wilton Armetale Gourmet™ Grillware line. Not only is it cute it is highly functional. It’s great for grilling and then directly serving your food in the same piece, making entertaining a breeze. As well, it keeps your food hot longer on the table. It’s easy to clean and it won’t. Even then it has a lifetime guarantee against breakage.

I could have out the shrimp on skewers but I find that they are pretty difficult to remove from the skewers later on. Using this Fish Griller made cooking a breeze as I was cooking with even heat and I didn’t have to worry about dropping my shrimp through the grill grates. I plan on using this grill pan a lot for batches of grilled vegetables, whole fish, and even inside when it’s crummy out and I still want to grill. Plus, they have one in the shape of a football. OMG! Perfect for tailgating!

Oh man, I just can’t get over how well the shrimp got grill marks from the grill pan. You can even cook the shrimp on a foil lined baking sheet by cooking in a 400 degree oven for 3-5 minutes, each side. But the saddest part about that is that you wouldn’t have these lovely grill marks.

I served my Citrus Apple Butter Glazed Grilled Shrimp with some freekah and grilled vegetables. I added a bit of parsley and red wine vinegar to the cooked freekah to give it some extra flavor. I think lemon juice would be a good alternative to the vinegar.

For the grilled vegetables I cut up some zucchini, red and yellow bell peppers, broccoli, red onion, mushrooms, and a bit of jalapeno. I mixed up some olive oil, water, salt and pepper, and crush garlic, which then poured over the vegetables. A quick mix and then I tossed them on my Vegetable Grill Basket, which was set upon a burner on high on the grill.

Citrus Apple Butter Glazed Grilled Shrimp

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

1/2 cup apple butter
1/4 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 Tablespoon lime juice
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 pound uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined (21-25 per pound)

Process

Combine the apple butter, orange juice concentrate, lime juice, and oil.
Add the shrimp to the glaze and let marinade for 30 minutes.
Preheat your grill and grill pan over medium-high heat.
Lay the shrimp onto your hot grill pan. Cook for 3-5 minutes, or until slightly opaque.
Flip and cook until opaque throughout, another 3-5 minutes.

Adapted from Musselman’s

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And now the GIVEAWAY!!!!

You can win a large jar of Musselman’s Apple Butter, some recipe cards, and a Grillware Fish Griller!!

To Enter:

*Leave a comment telling me what your favorite things to grill is.

Get extra entries by doing the following:

Tweet: “Perfect for summer grilling! Citrus Apple Butter Glazed Grilled Shrimp {& a BIG GIVEAWAY!!} http://wp.me/pzEAP-4sr #AppleButterSpin“
Follow @Musselmanapple’s on twitter to stay in touch with them.
Like the Musselman’s Facebook page and to stay connected.

Come back and leave a comment each time to get 3 extra entries. If you do everything you should comment 4 times total!

Contest Ends Sunday, June 22nd at Midnight EST.

Good luck but if you don’t win be sure to go to your jam/jelly aisle at your local grocery store and pick up a jar of Musselman’s Apple Butter!

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*This blog contains sponsored content. While I did receive complimentary products from Musselman’s and Armetale, these opinions are entirely my own.

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