I am a Honey Bee

All about my adventures with cooking, crafts, and travel

NASCAR

Hot Cheesy Spicy Sausage Dip

Hot Cheesy Spicy Sausage Dip is the perfect party dip to enjoy when you want something that is cheesy, hearty, and packs a spicy punch!

Hand dipping tortilla scoop chip into cheesy sausage dip in a skillet.

When you are looking for a new dip to try while you watch your favorite game or enjoy a game night with friends, give this Hot Cheesy Spicy Sausage Dip a try. Everyone is going to be impressed when you bring out that hot skillet full of ooey gooey cheese and meat.

…

Read More

2.28-3.2: Weekend Recap

{Friday Afternoon &Night}

home after Orthopedic appointment- yay! 1/2 time brace! | Pizza Take Out

140303_weekend recap_01 140303_weekend recap_02 140303_weekend recap_03

140303_weekend recap_04

140303_weekend recap_05 140303_weekend recap_06

  {Saturday}

Lazy morning with a sick cuddly baby | Lots of errands | Price started P90x

140303_weekend recap_07 140303_weekend recap_08

140303_weekend recap_09 140303_weekend recap_10

140303_weekend recap_11 140303_weekend recap_12

{Sunday}

Museum of Science | brunch Local 149 Brunch | Blog baking & cooking | Phoenix NASCAR Race | lots of laundry | OSCARS

140303_weekend recap_13

140303_weekend recap_14 140303_weekend recap_15

140303_weekend recap_16

140303_weekend recap_17

Slow Cooker Brown Sugar Balsamic Pork Tenderloin

Slow Cooker Brown Sugar Balsamic Pork Tenderloin – a sugary tangy twist on a classic piece of pork that you can start after lunch and enjoy for dinner

Slow Cooker Brown Sugar Balsamic Pork Tenderloin

This has become one of my favorite slow cooker recipes.

And I use my slow cooker a lot. Umm, a lot a lot. Like I’m posting 2 back-to-back slow cooker recipes because my slow cooker is my new best friend.

Slow Cooker Brown Sugar Balsamic Pork Tenderloin_01

Well that is life now, lots of freezer meals and using my slow cooker all the time. Hey, it works and it keeps things sane at night as we are settling into the schedule of things starting when I pick Autumn up by 5, Price getting home around 6.15 and a whole mess of things like taking care of the dog and baby, eating, pumping, cleaning, showers, and next day prep before going to bed before 10-10.30.

So this recipe was great before but now it’s even better because of how it makes things easy for dinner on the weekend and how we get to enjoy the leftovers during the week.

Plus, once you make something that is so good it’s hard to shake. It’s just that the layers of flavor on the pork tenderloin is so dang good. The combination of the spicy, savory, sweet, and salty flavors just work so well. Well, I’ve tweaked it enough to find the perfect combination at this point.

This pork tenderloin recipe is the 2nd to last post missing from my Sprint Cup Snacks series. When I was trying to think of yet another recipe to signify Virginia for the last race held there I was starting to get stumped. Seriously NASCAR, 4 races in Virgina?!?! Trying to kill me?!?! ha! Well, the Ham and Cheese Sliders I shared for the first race held at Martinsville Speedway were a HUGE hit. One of the most popular posts from last year. So I was thinking along those lines and ended up with another pork recipe to share.

I hope that you’ll try this recipe and fall in love with it as much as I have.

Slow Cooker Brown Sugar Balsamic Pork Tenderloin_02

Slow Cooker Brown Sugar Balsamic Pork Tenderloin

Makes 12 servings

Ingredients

  • 6 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1/4 cup spicy brown mustard
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 3 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
  • 3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth or water
  • 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
  • 2 1/2- 3 lbs of pork tenderloins

Process

  1. Combine the garlic, mustard, brown sugar, Worcestershire Sauce, balsamic vinegar, water, and pepper together.
  2. Place the pork tenderloins into a 5-6 quart slow cooker. Then pour the mixture over the pork tenderloins.
  3. Cook on high for 4 hours. Flip the pork half way through the cooking process (but if you’re not around it’s not a big deal). Remove from slow cooker and enjoy!

11.8-10: Weekend Recap

{Friday Night} Price picks up car from shop | work late | soup for dinner | Grimm | bed

{Saturday} up early | dog school for Kemper at PetSmart | Michael’s | Old Navy | drop off Kemper at home | John Harvard’s for lunch | get rabbit hay and feed the horses at Sweet Meadow Farm | Price drops me off at work | Price picks me up at work after 8 | lounge around | bed

{Sunday} up early | TJ’s pumpkin waffles for breakfast | make cornbread muffins | grocery store | cooking all day: making cornbread and sausage stuffing, cranberries, carrots and pineapple, buttermilk and sour cream mashed potatoes, and turkey!! | Price installs black out shades & new ceiling light in The Bean’s room | watch NASCAR | watch football | dinner | lounge around | organize recipes from magazines | bed

almost 37 week bump update pic

salad with shrimp

feeding horse_01 feeding horse_02

feeding horse_03

TJ's pumpkin waffles

corn muffins turkey

kemper sleeping

 cornbread stuffing early thanksgiving

Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies

Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies

You should totally make these for your dog walker when you leave your dog with her and her adorable family for 4 1/2 days and the idea is totally crushing you. Sure, you really need the vacation before you are cut off from flying and before a cute wiggly baby comes crashing into your heart. But the fact that he has NEVER been without either of you for even a day is freaking you out… A LOT.

Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies_01

So that is what I did. I made these the morning of our flight so that our super amazing dog walker and her family would have something to enjoy while our pup ‘terrorized’ her life. Hello, middle of the night pee walks!!! In fact I got up so early (crazy lady) that the dog didn’t even want to get up when I checked on him. So I got to make these in peace while he slept another hour. Again, I’m nuts!

Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies_06 Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies_07

Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies_08 Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies_03

Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies_04 Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies_05

Oh, you aren’t pregnant and crazy about leaving your dog? Then just make these for this weekend’s NASCAR race in New Hampshire since you can’t not have maple goodies while in New England. So you’re not a NASCAR fan and don’t follow along with my Sprint Cup Snacks? Then make these just because you deserve them.

You totally do.

These are light, spongy maple cookies that are studded with walnuts that sandwich a fluffy cream cheese frosting. Once you take a bite you will be transported right to the middle of the woods in New England with maple taps all around you. Kinda like a Klondike Bar experience.  Kinda. 

Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies_02

Maple Walnut Whoopie Pies

Makes 13-15 small whoopie pies

Ingredients

Cookies

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 1/3 cup maple syrup
  • 1/2 teaspoon maple flavoring
  • 2 large eggs
  • 3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Filling

  • 8 ounces cream cheese
  • 4 cups sifted glazing sugar OR confectioners’ sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Process

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease two baking sheets, or line them with parchment paper.
  2. For the cookies: Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder; set aside.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, and maple flavoring.
  4. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Scrap the bowl down between the addition of each egg.
  5. Add in the dry ingredients until the mixture is evenly moistened.
  6. Scrape the bowl again, then mix in the walnuts.
  7. Scoop by the tablespoonful to make 26-30 (even # amount!) cookies onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving 2″ of space between each cookie.
  8. Bake the cookies for 9 to 11 minutes, until the top springs back when lightly touched, and the edges are a light golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool completely on a rack before filling.
  9. For the filling: Place the cream cheese and half of the confectioners’ sugar in a large mixing bowl, and beat at slow speed until the mixture is smooth.
  10. Add the remaining sugar and the flavoring, and mix until the filling is a spreadable consistency.
  11. Place a tablespoon of filling on the flat face a cookie then top off with another cookie, flat face towards the filling.

Slightly adapted from King Arthur

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza

Are you ready to dive???

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_A

So NASCAR has been interesting this week! From Saturday night’s race to Monday night’s penalties it was a really interesting week. Oh man. I still can’t believe that things got so far and intense at the end of the race and how that all played out on Monday. While I totally think that strategy is part of any sport it’s just unfortunate how it all played out during the last laps of the last race before The Chase with a suspected purposeful spin-out to bring out a caution and pitting when it was not needed just to help another teammate move up in the points to get into The Chase. And then the penalties on Monday were record setting with docked points that resulted in drivers moving in and out of The Chase, suspending the team GM indefinitely, a $300K penalty for Michael Waltrip Racing.

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_01 Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_02

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_03 Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_04

Basically, I’m going to be really interested in how all this plays out for the drivers in the effected team for the rest of the races. Will people try to get back at them? Will they under a high powered microscope? Or will everyone play nice? Doubtful! But then it wouldn’t be the intense racing I love.

Anyway…

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_05 Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_06

Last year I surprised Price with a trip to Chicago for his 30th birthday. Totally surprised him. He didn’t know where we were going until we got to the gate. It was so awesome to plan something that big and surprise him with it. Also, it was so great to walk, sight see, and eat our way through the Windy City (which has nothing to do with wind).

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_07 Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_08 Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_09 Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_10

Of course we had to have deep dish pizza. And of course it was INCREDIBLE! Since then we have been hooked on it for it’s thick buttery crust, it’s ooey gooey cheesy layer that is topped off with meat and/or veggies and a chunky sauce.

This weekend’s kick off to The Chase is at Chicagoland Speedway so I just had to whip up a deep dish pizza for this week’s edition of Sprint Cup Snacks.

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_11 Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_12 Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_13 Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_14

Once you have the 14-Inch Deep Dish Pizza Pan it’s really easy to whip up since you can do the crust an hour before you need it (or make it in the morning like I did) and then it’s not all too different than making a regular pizza, but some extra baking time but it’s worth it. I filled our pizza with a combo of sautéed fresh veggies and a layer of sliced pepperoni. Soo delish!

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_B

How can you resist?!?!?!

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza_C

Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza

Makes 1-14″ deep dish pizza/12 servings

Ingredients

Crust

  • 4 cups All-Purpose Flour
  • 3 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
  • 1 3/4 teaspoons salt
  • 2 3/4 teaspoons instant yeast
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 4 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or salad oil
  • 1 cup + 2 tablespoons lukewarm water

Filling

  • 3/4 lb. mozzarella cheese, sliced
  • 1 pound total of Italian sweet or hot sausage, cooked and sliced and/or chopped cooked meatballs, or pepperoni; or about 3 cups of the sautéed vegetables of your choice (mushrooms, onion, zucchini, broccoli, etc)
  • 28-ounce can plum tomatoes or chopped tomatoes
  • 2 to 4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced, optional
  • 1 tablespoon sugar, optional
  • 1 to 2 teaspoons of mixed dried Italian herbs (oregano, basil, rosemary), to taste
  • 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan or Asiago cheese

Process

To make the crust:

  1. Mix all of the dough ingredients together, and knead — by hand, mixer, or bread machine — to make a smooth crust. This will take about 7 minutes at medium-low speed in a stand mixer.
  2. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a kitchen towel, and let rise till very puffy, about 60 minutes. (It can hang out all day, if needed)
  3. While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 425 degrees and prepare the 14-Inch Deep Dish Pizza Pan by spraying it with non-stick vegetable oil spray and then pour in 3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil, tilting it to cover the bottom of the pan, and partway up the sides.
  4. On a lightly greased countertop or baking mat, stretch and roll out the dough to make a circle large enough to cover the bottom and up the side of the pan.
  5. Place the dough in the pan and gently push it up the sides of the pan to stay in place. (It’s okay if some olive oil oozes over the edge of the crust) Let the crust rest for 15 minutes or so.
  6. Bake the crust for 10 minutes, until it’s set and only just starting to brown. While it’s baking, prepare the sauce.
  7. Drain the tomatoes thoroughly, remove the tough part where the stem connects to the tomato, then chop up. Combine the tomatoes with the herbs and garlic. Add the sugar and some salt and pepper to taste.
  8. Cover the bottom of the crust with the sliced mozzarella, fanning it into the crust. Add the meat/sautéed vegetables filling evenly over the cheese. Then top with the tomatoes and then sprinkle with the grated Parmesan.
  9. Bake the pizza for another 25 minutes, or until the filling is bubbly and the crust edge is golden brown.
  10. Remove it from the oven and allow the pizza to cool for about 15 minutes (or longer, for less oozing) before cutting and serving.

Sourced from King Arthur Flour

BBQ Bacon Wrapped Corn

BBQ Bacon Wrapped Corn – try taking your average grilled corn on the cob to the next level. A must make at your next summer BBQ.

Post from 8/23/18, Pictures updated 5/27/18

I’m so out of it this week.

I’m really thankful it’s Friday… Friyay… because this week felt like it was dragging and dragging.

…

Read More

Grilled Brick Chicken

Grilled Brick Chicken_A

Seriously, so yum.

Grilled Brick Chicken_B

Those grill marks. Oh, how I love them.

It was so weird not to have a Sprint Cup race to watch last weekend but those drivers’ totally deserve a mid summer break. But it just means I am really looking forward to this weekend’s race at “The Brickyard”!

And of course to celebrate the race at The Brickyard I just had to prepare Grilled Brick Chicken for this week’s edition of Sprint Cup Snacks. Those famous bricks on track get kissed all the time by the winners so you might just want to do the same after having this chicken. Of course you would want them to cool off… ouch!

Grilled Brick Chicken_01 Grilled Brick Chicken_02

Grilled Brick Chicken_03 Grilled Brick Chicken_04

I was a little nervous to cook a whole chicken on the grill as I was unsure of how it would turn out… would it undercook? overcook? would it stick to the grates? would it be difficult to work with the bricks? But all of my worries were tossed aside once the process began as it was sooo easy and so good. Plus all the downtime allowed me to enjoy reading some magazines. Win Win!

Grilled Brick Chicken_05 Grilled Brick Chicken_06

Grilled Brick Chicken_07 Grilled Brick Chicken_08

The chicken is so flavorful and juicy. The lemon and rosemary give the chicken rice flavor, as well as keeping it moist. But the real kicker is the skin and how well that grills right up. I don’t typically like to eat the skin of the chicken but since it has been grilled beautifully I couldn’t resist some. This grill marks just get ya! But the thing that really gets me is how juicy this chicken is. I couldn’t get over it.

Grilled Brick Chicken_C

Enjoy this weekend’s race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and make this chicken. It’s a great way to celebrate ‘The Brickyard’ and the return of summertime racing!

Grilled Brick Chicken_D

Grilled Brick Chicken

Makes 1 chicken

Ingredients

  • 1 whole chicken, about 4.5 pounds
  • 1-2 lemons, thinly sliced
  • fresh rosemary, finely chopped
  • vegetable oil
  • Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 bricks, wrapped in foil

Process

  1. Either buy a spatchcocked chicken or prepare the chicken yourself. To spatchcock a chicken, use sharp kitchen shears and cut along both sides of the back bones from the tail to the neck. Once removed, flip the chicken over the press firmly down on the breast until you flatten out the chicken by breaking the breast bone. Wash the chicken down at this point, as well as remove any excess bits of fat on the chicken, pat dry with a paper towel.
  2. Preheat your grill on high while you prepare your chicken.
  3. Create a pocket between the skin of the chicken and the meat by running your hand between them over the whole chicken. In that pocket, place the lemon slices and chopped rosemary.
  4. Cover the whole chicken with vegetable oil and generously apply salt and pepper to the skin of the whole chicken.
  5. Very carefully, rub the grates of your hot grill with vegetable oil soaked paper towels. Place the chicken breast side down on the grill, reduce the heat to medium-low, place the bricks on the chicken, and cover the grill. Cook on this side for 25-30 minutes. , Remove the bricks with tongs and check on the chicken to make sure you have nice grill marks on it prior to flipping, and reapplying the bricks. Cook for another 25-30 minutes, or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees when inserted into the thickest part of the thigh.
  6. Remove from grill and let rest for 5 minutes prior to cutting into it.

** If using a charcoal grill, at step 2- prepare the coals under the whole grill to heat the entire grill up. Then just before you coat the grates in step 5, move the majority of the coals to one side. Place the chicken on the side with less coals to cook it over indirect heat.

Adapted from Honestly Yum 

Lobster Mac And Cheese

Lobster Mac and Cheese

I have been determined to make lobster for this week’s Sprint Cup Snacks recipe for this weekend’s NASCAR race at Loudon International Raceway. in New Hampshire. Must have lobster when in New England. It’s a given! But my challenge was to make something that both Price and I would enjoy since he is pretty indifferent to lobster when I L-O-V-E it.

Lobster Mac and Cheese_01 Lobster Mac and Cheese_02

Often it works out well that Price is ‘meh’ about lobster and I love it (although I do feel super guilty about eating them now that I read the most amazing book called The Secret Life of Lobsters where I learned that our tasty ocean bug friends are at least 7 yrs old before gracing our dining tables…) since he will put them in the pot for me. I just can’t!

Lobster Mac and Cheese_03 Lobster Mac and Cheese_04

We typically do grilled steak and lobster… so I get the surf and he gets the turf… but I wanted to change things up so I had to go a searchin’ for something so mouth-watering that Price could not resist regardless of our royal red friend. Ultimately I found the best recipe… drum roll please… Lobster Mac and Cheese.

Lobster Mac and Cheese_05 Lobster Mac and Cheese_06

This was a very rich, luscious mac and cheese. Plus it was studded with lobster! If you don’t like lobster then skip it since the mac and cheese base is great anyway, but really, it is so worth it to add the lobster.

Lobster Mac and Cheese_00

PS- I learned my local grocery store steams lobsters for you for Free!!! I highly suggest you check with your grocery store because it’s a total GAME CHANGER!

Lobster Mac And Cheese

Makes 4 generous  servings

Ingredients

  • 1/2 pound cavatappi or campanelle pasta
  • 1/2 pound lobster meat
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons flour
  • 1  1/4 cups half & half
  • 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
  • 1 cup  shredded Gruyere cheese
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
  • 1/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs

Process

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Cook the pasta to al dente according to the package directions.
  3. In a very large skillet, combine the butter and flour on medium low heat. Stirring constantly until the rue is golden brown. Add about half of the half & half to the mixture and stir to remove the lumps from the rue. Stir in half of the cheese. Once the cheese has melted into the sauce, add in the rest of the half & half, cheese, and the seasonings. Continue to work together until the sauce is evenly incorporated together.
  4. Add the cooked pasta and chopped lobster into the cheese sauce and toss to combine.
  5. Pour into a oven-safe casserole dish or 4 individual oven-safe baking dishes and then top with bread crumbs. Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Slightly adapted from Baked By Rachel