I can’t wait for Halloween!!!!!
I picked up a mermaid costume at Target this past weekend for our trick-or-treating. I even grabbed a red wing so when I put it on Autumn called me “Mommy Ariel” over and over again. My life is complete now.
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All about my adventures with cooking, crafts, and travel
I can’t wait for Halloween!!!!!
I picked up a mermaid costume at Target this past weekend for our trick-or-treating. I even grabbed a red wing so when I put it on Autumn called me “Mommy Ariel” over and over again. My life is complete now.
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It’s been a while since I posted a pie, but I swear the wait was worth it.
I didn’t really burn out from last year’s ‘A Year of Pies‘ weekly pie recipes, I’ve been making them still. I’ve just taken a break from posting them on the blog to have a bit more variety of things. Oh yeah, and waffles too!! ha!
But that pie hiatus is all over now with this All-American Cheeseburger Pie.
This recipe is from Dinner Pies: From Shepherds Pies and Pot Pies to Tarts, Turnovers, Quiches, Hand Pies, and More, with 100 Delectable and Foolproof Recipes by Ken Haedrich. It’s a new cookbook, just released this fall, that focuses on savory pies. Perfect for pie lovers who want to try something new. Or just for anyone who wants an awesome pie for dinner.
I flagged several recipes in the book to make but this cheeseburger pie jumped out at me because I was really curious how it would turn out. Like would it really, actually taste like a cheeseburger. Well, guess what?!?!
It’s EXACTLY like a burger, but in pie form. It’s amazing. And genius. And amazing, all over again.
But, if we are going to be honest, I was a bit worried while making it. Hear me out!
The crust is tough to handle. And I’ve made a few crusts before!!
The crust is very soft, which the author notes is because of the moisture from the sour cream in the dough. His notes throughout the recipe process, and in notes off to the side, about appearance of the recipe, or even the touch or smell. His attention to detail and well written recipes are very clear to follow.
So, the crust it’s sorta a pain since it’s hard to work it. But I am warning you now so you don’t heave that sucker into the trash as you struggle with it. It’s a soft, wet dough so you will need plenty of bench flour (and patience) to roll out the dough, lift it up, and get it in the pie plate. I suggest using some parchment. I didn’t have any so it was a pain, but I used my bench scraper, which did help quite a bit.
That being said, you have to suck it up and make this crust. It makes this recipe. It has the best flavor and texture for this recipe. I swear.
Even then, don’t freak out when you look at the process to make this pie. Yes, it’s a lot of steps. Chill out, seriously. I broke out everything so it seems like a lot to do, but in reality it is just about making the crust, which you can do in advance, and sauteing the meat, mixing together a sauce, mixing everything together, and then baking it all.
Really, it’s not so bad! In fact I made the crust in advance, and then I made the rest while Autumn napped. In fact, everyone in the house, including the rabbit, was napping. But I was baking, what else is new?!?!
I followed the crust recipe exactly but I made a few tweaks to the filling recipe.
Don’t get me wrong, the recipe sounds great from the start, but I wanted it a bit leaner so I skipped the oil in the pan to cook the bacon (something I don’t think I’ll do for any recipe, ever). As well, I drained all meat mixture in a colander to remove a lot of fat, instead of spooning it out. Lastly, I cut back on the cheese. The recipe calls for 2 1/2 Cups, but I just used 1 1/2 Cups. I’m sure it would have been terrific with the extra cheese, but I was quite satisfied with the reduced amount.
Also, random bacon tip, I find that using kitchen shears to ‘chop’ up the bacon actually is a lot easier than cutting it with a knife.
Like I mentioned before, I loved this recipe so much.
I really had to stop myself after eating 1 slice. It was so tough. I am already looking forward to the leftovers.
Give it a try, I bet you will love it!
Makes 8 servings
Ingredients
For the Cornmeal Biscuit Crust
For the Filling
Process
Adapted from Dinner Pies: From Shepherds Pies and Pot Pies to Tarts, Turnovers, Quiches, Hand Pies, and More, with 100 Delectable and Foolproof Recipes by Ken Haedrich
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Harvard Common Press sent me the Dinner Pies cookbook for review. As always, all opinions are my own.
This is a creamy dreamy mac and cheese.
We were heading over to a friends, Mark & Allie, house for lunch one day and the request for Mac & Cheese came through. Mark makes fantastic pulled pork. And smoked pulled pork and mac & cheese are best buddies. BFF’s.
To stand up to Mark’s ah-mazing pulled pork, I had to really bring it. And damn… it was brought!!
I consulted with some foodies at work for the best mac and cheese to make and was pointed to Ina Garten’s mac and cheese recipe. Well, you know, Ina knocks it out of the park so I had to go with it.
Rightfully so too! This made for a ridiculously delicious mac and cheese. Ridiculous.
The key to making this recipe the best it can very be is the cheese sauce.
Get your ducks in a row to have the cheese all grated so you can quickly dump it in once you get the rue and warm milk combined and smooth.
Trader Joe’s has a cheese that is a combination of cheddar and Gruyere so just grabbed enough of that (2 big blocks) and got to work at grating that right up.
This mac and cheese is perfect for the winter as it’s the perfect kind of comfort food, but it’s also great in the spring, summer, or fall. It’s great on it’s own, or with a side salad or with some smoked pulled pork. Or in a house with a mouse. Or in a box with a fox. Wait a minute…
Oh, and the breadcrumbs. Toasty, crunchy, & yummy.
I had to end the week on this ultra decadent, super cheesy recipe as next Monday Price and I are diving into Whole30, an ultra strict 30 day diet reset. And, buddy, this is not complaint to that diet at all. I just had to share this recipe now so I don’t have to look at this drool worthy pictures while we pass out on all dairy and grain for the month.
While we won’t be eating recipes like this from February 2nd- March 3rd, it doesn’t mean you can’t! Share some pics if you do. I’ll probably lick my computer screen. ha!
Makes 8-10 servings
Ingredients
Process
Adapted from Ina Garten
Post Contains Affiliate Links. Read my full disclosure HERE
After a few weeks off from posting my usual Friday Sprint Cup Snacks posts (thanks broken computer!!!!) I’m back with one kick ass recipe that will have you running to the store for the goodies to make this dish this weekend!!
This weekend the boys (and Danica) are racing at Texas Motor Speedway. I figured that I had to make something that would warm up the house (it’s def cold in Boston!!) and something that had a bit of a kick to it! I thinking about making a big huge batch of chili but I started to think about snack food, which made me think about a plate of piled high nachos. (pregnant much?!?) And then I was lamenting one day about how the cafe in my office building has stopped serving tots at breakfast (what the hell?!?). That made me think about combing tater tots and all the best toppings on nachos to make a big pile of these…
Ultimate Tatchos!!
I just love how the tater tots act as the perfect vehicle for all the toppings. Plus the tater tots change things up from the typical crunchy chip.
This is so great to make because you can easily adjust the size of the batch you make for the amount of people you are serving. I highly suggest that you always make more than what you expect to need since everyone will love to snack on the cheesy, spicy tots.
We (Price) are finishing up painting the baby’s room this weekend. Then we are going to assemble the crib so we can get to decorating like crazy since we only have 3 weeks to go. I can’t wait to get in there and reorganize the room and hang up pictures we have picked out. I’m sure we’ll be hungry after all that work, so I’m sure I’ll be whipping up again batch of these Ultimate Tatchos!
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
Process
When Price and I went to visit our friends Natalie and Jason in Austin last year we fell in love with all of the food we had there. Everything was incredible. I couldn’t get enough of the tacos, bbq, agua fresca, and, of course, queso. (Also couldn’t get enough time hanging with great friends, natch.)
Each and everything we ate was amazing for a different reason. The fantastic Mexican we had at Chuy’s, to the BBQ we got to go after a night of drinking, to the chicken on a biscuit from Whataburger immediately after some bar hoping.
But the one thing that was a constant was the queso we had. We had it every change we had and even while we lamented ‘no more queso’ we loved it. I think there really is a limit to the amount of queso/cheese a person can eat in a few days and I think we were fast approaching that limit. But really, worth indulge. Or at least that is what I kept telling myself after dipped another chip in.
Well since this weekend’s upcoming NASCAR race is at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, I figured that I had to share something for my Sprint Cup Snack that I loved so much about my visit to Texas. Now don’t give me any lip about how Austin and Fort Worth are not that close to each other- 3 hr drive or so- because I say what goes on this blog! ha!
Plus any excuse to eat queso is okay for me.
Natalie emailed me her recipe for queso at a moment’s notice. True friends understand the love of cheese (even if she has gone Paleo now). And let me tell you it was fantastic!!
The queso is incredibly easy to make and would be fantastic to whip up for watching any sporting event, a movie, or having friends over for a side splitting night of Cards Against Humanity. << come over, let’s hang and just be ridiculous.
If you can whip up some simple pico de gallo and can melt some cheese in milk, then you are all set. It’s basically that, plus making a simple rue to thicken it all up. So, so much better than the queso you get in the jar that you microwave. Was that even necessary to say?!?! duh!!
Obviously, queso is best piping hot so it’s super ooey gooey yummy. If you have a little crock pot dip warmer then I suggest you use that to keep it hot and everyone happy.
Dig in!!!!
Makes 8 snack servings
Ingredients
Pico De Gallo
Process
slightly adapted from my friend Natalie
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Texas Motor Speedway seat a whopping 190,000+ people to watch a race. Repeat… 190k+. That was about 3 times the number of people in my whole town when I was growing up. Insane. But everything is bigger in Texas!
Besides being big, it’s also fast. It’s one of the fasted non-restrictor plate races in the series with qualifying speeds in excess of 192 mph and corner entry speeds over 200 mph. And in 2006 for the Dickies 500 qualifying, Brian Vickers shattered the qualifying record at Texas with a speed of 196.235 mph. Crazy.
Gotta enjoy this weekend’s race under the lights!
Track: 1.5 miles
Shape: Oval
Banking: 24 degrees in the turns
Surface: Asphalt
Capacity: 191,122… yep a lot of people!!!!
Race: 334-laps for 501 miles
2012 winner: Greg Briffle
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It’s officially spring but mother nature has not yet received that memo. She is being a pain in my butt with the cold and the SNOW that we have been having. I have a love/hate relationship with living in New England as I hate the long drawn out cold weather that mess with us long into March and April. And yet, I just love the spring and fall seasons. Can’t win them all I guess. But at this point I wouldn’t pass up at trip to California to escape this cold weather right now.
Plus, if I was in Cali I’d sure as hell be attending the Sprint Cup race this weekend in Fontana. A little of shopping in L.A. and a whole lotta fun watching the Auto Club 400 race in Fontana. Of course I would hope for another win for Kasey Kahne because I’m still loving his win from last weekend in Bristol. yay!! But since I can’t cheer him in person I’ll take a mental trip there by making these Cali Turkey Burger Quesadillas for this week’s edition of Sprint Cup Snacks.
There is a restaurant near my office that had a summer special when they first opened that I just loved. They made a burger quesadilla that was sooo good! It was so flavorful like a taco but was a totally a burger in a tortilla. I guess it wasn’t a typical quesadilla as it was wrapped up but it just made it so easy to eat. It’s kinda like a quesadilla wrap or a flat burrito. Whatever, it is just good!
This is super easy to make which is always great when your whipping up a quick weeknight dinner or just distracted watching the race. ha! The burger is so flavorful with all the toppings on top. I picked toppings that reminded me of a California Club with the bacon, tomato, red onion, and avocado. And, of course, a quesadilla has loads of cheese!
Don’t wait another year for another Fontana Race to make this burger but your family. This is great anytime for lunch or dinner.
Makes 4 burgers
Ingredients
Process
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The Auto Club Speedway is a fairly new track in the Sprint Cup Series. Construction started in 1995 and the first Sprint Cup race was in 1997 with Jeff Gordon winning the inaugural race. Originally the race was 500 miles but since then has been shorted to 400 miles. It is the only Sprint Cup race in Southern California, which is just 50 miles from downtown LA.
Track: 2 miles
Shape: D-Shaped Oval
Banking: 11 degrees in the front-stretch, 3 degrees in the back-stretch, 14 degrees in turns
Surface: Asphalt
Capacity: 91200
Race: 200-lap for 400-miles
2012 winner: Tony Stewart
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Dinner will never be the same when you make this Extra Cheesy Brussels Sprout Gratin. You’ll love all this cheesy goodness!
Post from 11/20/12, Pictures Updated 11/15/18
Post Contains Affiliate Links. Read my full disclosure HERE
I was recently going through old cooking magazines to organize them into a usefully system. Since a pile of cut up recipes from magazines tossed in a box isn’t much of a system…. no?
Well, my system is still getting tweaked but at least I can more easily find some fun things to try. In that process, I dug up recipes from December ’11 from Martha Stewart Living and one of the things that jumped out of me was the Smokey Brussels Sprout Gratin. Cheese! Brussels Sprouts! More Cheese! Winner!!!!
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It’s been a year since I’ve started to participate in Secret Recipe Club and I have really enjoyed this past year.It’s been so much fun getting to interact with other bloggers and to make some really fun recipes. I can’t wait for the next year with this great group!
This month I had Anne’s blog called Anne Jisca’s Healthy Pursuits. Wouldn’t you know I think the pick the 1 indulgent thing on the blog. She has great soups, breads, so many other great fresh homemade recipes on her blog. Of course I pick one with bacon and cheese. It’s just that once I saw her Bacon Cheese Stuffed Bread I knew I needed to have it. It would just work out perfectly to enjoy on a leisurely Sunday with some NASCAR and Football on. Plus, some Frankenstorm updates watching didn’t hurt! Oh, Hurricane Sandy, please be nice!
I made some changes to the original recipe in that I don’t have bacon bits at home so I used regular bacon and then I added mushroom and onion to the mix. I just figured adding some mushroom and onion would add to the overall flavor. Plus knowing it would basically be lunch it should have a veggie in there. ha! This was really simple to prepare and was so good. I highly suggest making this or a few different kinds, maybe with sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes, or some sauteed chopped broccoli. It’s the perfect game day treat!
Serves 4
Ingredients
Process
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September: Spiced Black Bean, Grilled Avocado, and Goat Cheese Tacos
August: Birthday Cake Oreo Truffles
July: Tropical Pork Pineapple Kebabs
June: Cheesy Garlic Knots
May: Berry Brownie Torte
April: Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
March: Sauteed Green Beans with Lemon and Almonds
February: Fried Pickles
Jan: No SRC postings
December: Shrimp Sriracha Stir Fry
November: Vegetable Enchiladas
October: Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Check out the rest of the reveal day posts!
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Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive.
A recent St. Patrick’s Day/Guinness discussion on twitter lead me to making this recipe. I was mentioning to Pricer how I think brats cooked in Guinness in a slow cooker would be good, then maybe I could make a cheese sauce for it. He agreed saying that I would have to test it out for science. I am not one to pass up an opportunity for trying things out in the name of science so off I went to the store.
While this recipe is great to enjoy for St. Patrick’s Day, it is great for any dinner. I personally think it would be great to enjoy while watching a foodball game since it is hands off cooking, being that the most work is toasting the buns and making the quick cheese sauce right at the end. The Guinness makes the brats and the veggies very flavorful and juicy. Nestle the brats and soft veggies on a toasted roll and drizzle some Guiness Cheese sauce on top… pure perfection.
serves 5
Ingredients
Pigs in a Blanket are a classic hor dourves. They commonly grace plates at parties because they are easy to make, can be dressed up, and are loved by all. I felt that with New Years quickly approaching! that I had to whip of a few to celebrate a bit early since we will be traveling for New Years.
I, being a cheese lover, added cheese to my pigs in a blanket. I used Swiss cheese because it has a great flavor to stand up to the buttery crescent roll. Using sliced cheese is better than using shredded cheese because it is easier to work with and evenly portion.
Enjoy the Piggies with a dipping sauce. I prefer mustard because it goes so well with hot dogs. Since I used swiss cheese in the recipe, I suggest a Dijon mustard because it is fairly acidic and it holds up against the strong swiss.
Makes 24
Ingredients
Process
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Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive.
Calzones are pizza’s well packed cousin. Everything fits nicely into the crusty pocket. Once you break into time you watch the lovely, melted cheese coming flowing out. You can just have a cheese calzone but it’s like cheese pizza- very lonely. So along with the cheese you can add in pepperoni, mushrooms, ham, jalapeños, olives, sausage…. the possibility are endless.
Personally, I love them because you dip pieces into tomato sauce. And since I LOVE ketchup I think this act of dipping into another tomato medium is pretty damn awesome. Because you are dipping into the sauce you want to make sure it stands up again the rest of the calzone. You can use a home made sauce or a jarred sauce. The real key is to get something thin so it evenly coats the calzones, instead of a chunky sauce.
I go as far as to add a tiny bit of sauce in my calzone. I know, so crazy! I
The same goes for the dough… both store bought or home made works perfectly. If you are pressed for time just get store bought. I think that the key thingwhen you are using store bought it so let it sit out and get warm. Messing with chilly dough just results in holes since the dough has not loosened up yet. That goes for homemade as well, but I think it’s even worse with store bought.
My salad from my first meal in Greece
Ever since I visited Greece this past March I have frowned upon Greek Salads that are not the traditional Greek Salad. I just don’t understand why we have to Americanize something that is so simple and perfect.
We ordered Greek Salad for every meal and by the time the trip was over I was a little crazy of it but a week after I got back I wanted it again, desperately. I found Sophia’s Greek Pantry in Belmont so I go there and get Feta, Tzatziki, and these amazing imported filled croissants from 7days.
Horiatiki (Greek Salad)
Tomatoes, cut into wedges
Green Pepper, sliced very thin
Red Onion, sliced very thin
Cucumber, peeled, halved, and slice (remove seeds if it is wet/has a lot of seeds)
Olives
Feta Cheese
Dressing: Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Red wine vinegar, lemon, S&P
Cut all veggies and add dressing… enjoy
I did not give proportions because I think it all depends on your own taste. I don’t like olives to I leave them out and I really like a lot of onion so I add in more than typical.
Emily’s mom gave us two HUGE tomatoes and a cucumber. I added in some of our yellow pear tomatoes that have finally begun to ripen.
On a sad side note: There are fires in the suburbs of Athens are are causing a lot of destruction. I hope they get them under control quickly!
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