Sundried Tomato Turkey Burgers.

I was reminded over the weekend how much I love sun dried tomatoes and remembered I had some at home. There was some ground turkey in the freezer as well, so I decided to combine that with the tomatoes and make a somewhat healthier burger. I served the turkey burgers with my "I have mastered making frozen fries taste delicious" frozen french fries. Because sometimes I am lazy, not to mention using frozen fries is just plain easier. So I guess I'll share my secret.... let the fries thaw out a bit before you put them in the oven. How simple is that? After they have thawed out some, drizzle them with olive oil, salt, pepper and your desired seasoning. This time I used sprigs of rosemary and parsley from the garden.

I don't measure much when I make up a recipe, which I guess is bad when posting a recipe for others to try. But with burgers, you really don't need exact measurements. Just add what sounds good to you, add more if you really like it! It's really hard to mess up a burger, well unless you over cook it.

Aside from the turkey & tomatoes, I just randomly went through the cupboards and the herb garden and picked out what I thought would be good. The end result was a very flavorful & moist (I hate that word, but couldn't think of another to use) turkey burger. The addition of spinach on top of the burger, added some extra healthiness. Actually the spinach would have been really good in the burger as well. Next time I make these, I'd add more of everything listed below - for even more flavor! This mixture would also be good as meatloaf or meatballs.


Sun Dried Tomato Turkey Burgers

1 lb. turkey
2 cloves garlic, minced
5 Sun dried tomatoes, chopped
Balsamic vinegar
Dried onion
Plain bread crumbs
Fresh rosemary, parsley, thyme & oregano, chopped
Salt & pepper, to taste
Basil mayo

1. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients, except the basil mayo. If the mixture appears to wet for grilling, add more breadcrumbs. If you are using a skillet, the mixture can be more wet - since it can't fall through anything. Form turkey mixture into patties.

2. Grill burgers for about 10 minutes, or until done. Add sliced mozzarella cheese, or cheese of your choice, and allow to melt 1-2 minutes.

3. Serve on a toasted bun topped with basil mayo and spinach.

Yield: 4 burgers

Recipe obtained from: the depths of my brain.


Basil Mayo

Fresh basil, chopped
Mayonnaise

1. Combine basil and mayo in a small container; stir well to combine. Refrigerate until ready to use.

You could also add salt & pepper or any other herbs/spices for additional flavor.

Oh and a grilling trick for you, courtesy of the husband's Grandma. After you form the patties, make a hole with your thumb in the middle of the patty. Apparently it allows the burger to retain their size, allowing the burger to stay flatter and reducing the chances of the burger shrinking. Here are some additional links on this amazing fact: how to make a hamburger patty stay flat?, hamburger patty question and oddly enough even the Democratic Underground has posted about this as well.

Fresh Vegetable Quesadillas

Still trying to get randomly caught up on my posts, so tonight wasn't really tonight and I'm also sorry about the poor picture quality, but I was hungry.

Tonight for dinner I made Martha's fresh vegetable quesadillas with corn relish and it did not disappoint! This recipe was posted awhile back in the other cooking group - we have two, based on when you grocery shop, etc. Ever since it was posted I've wanted to try it and I am so happy I finally got the chance tonight, since it was delicious! I am a huge fan of quick & healthy dinners to make during the week and this recipe fit the bill perfectly.

I only made a few minor changes to the recipe. I added cilantro to both the corn relish & the quesadillas instead of scallions and I used pepper jack cheese instead of monterary jack. Oh and I did use a red pepper instead of an orange one, but that's not a big deal. The husband has a thing about eating cooked vegetables that are crunchy, so he put his squash & red pepper in foil packets and grilled them first. These were even good as leftovers the next day, though obviously not as crispy since they were cooked in the microwave.

Grilled Eggplant Panini

I'm still randomly trying to catch up on all of my belated posts and of course still trying to catch up on all of the recipes posted in my cooking groups first session. Mind you this is the fifth week of the second group, I'll get caught up eventually.

So this was the final recipe for the first session of the cooking group and it was posted by my friend Kristy, check out her cooking blog - she's funny & sarcastic and that's why I like her! Plus she makes good food & cool aprons. How's that for a plug?!?! She chose a grilled eggplant panini and I was pleasantly surprised with how much I liked it.

First I'd like to toot my own horn, check out those grilling marks on that bread. Yep, that's right the husband wasn't home so I manned the grill all by myself - the first time ever too! Don't even tell me that it's pretty hard to mess up grilled bread and eggplant either, allow me to bask in my joy for awhile. Small steps people........

I did change a few things about the recipe, but those were primarily because of person preferences. No onions, because if you don't know by now I'm not a fan - at all. I also didn't add the roasted red pepper because I didn't have any and sometimes I don't like them, this was one of those times. I forgot how I was supposed to cut them and ended up with half moon shapes, which worked pretty well. It didn't say to peel the eggplant, but I think I should have. Lastly, I used Texas toast which is superb on the grill.

As mentioned above I really wasn't sure I would like this, but wanted to give it a shot. I like eggplant, but it's one of those foods I can't think about or I get creeped out by it. I know I'm strange. But I did end up liking it a lot and will probably make it again next summer when the eggplant crop is in season. The brother & husband said it was good, but I don't really think they liked it much. Much of their eggplant ended up on the plate & the husband added ham to his sandwich.

I served the sandwiches with *gasp* frozen French fries, which I think I've finally figured out how to make them taste better. The key is to let them partially defrost then add some seasoning. I used a little bit of extra virgin olive oil and some Italian spices (garlic, basil, oregano, parsley, rosemary & Kosher salt). They were delicious and didn't taste like frozen fries at all.

Brown Sugar Salmon & Chicken.

Tonight we tried out last week's recipe from my cooking club, brown sugar salmon. Since I don't eat seafood, it's a texture thing, I had two chicken tenders and the husband had a salmon fillet. The recipe called for baking, but the poster of the recipe thought it would be good grilled so we went that route. Additionally, I used the juice from a whole lemon in lieu of the white wine and I used butter instead of margarine. Another reviewer from our club used olive oil instead of butter, which would add to the overall healthiness of the dish.

Our verdict.....we both thought the marinade was good, but probably not something we'd ever want to make again. Actually, the husband thought it was better than I did but he thought it might have just been the fish - I hardly ever make it at home & he really likes it. I just felt like it was a little plain and didn't have that much of a wow factor for me.

In all honesty, if I didn't happen to have some salmon on hand, I likely wouldn't have tried this recipe. Mainly because I don't like seafood and wouldn't have trecked out to buy some (call me lazy or selfish).

Oh and I did try a bit of the husband's salmon, I always try a bite of whatever he gets. But again it reconfirmed that I just don't like seafood, blah...tastes like styrofoam peanuts!

Chicken Scampi

Cilantro grilled chicken breast was the recipe to make last week in my cooking group. Since we were out of town, I'm just now getting around to making it. I decided to take the original recipe and expand upon it using some of the fresh produce we had.

I followed the recipe for the scampi butter fairly closely, as in I used all of the ingredients listed just didn't measure them out. I used dried onion and parsley in place of fresh, didn't have any white pepper on hand and didn't use the white wine - if you want measure it all out that's fine, if not just add ingredients to taste - I think it's fairly hard to mess this up.

In a large skillet I sauteed chopped mushrooms and halved cherry tomatoes in some of the scampi butter. Let the mushrooms and tomatoes cook down for several minutes, add more butter if needed. Add spinach leaves and let wilt a few minutes. Chop the grilled chicken and add to the skillet, combine all ingredients. Add whole wheat spaghetti and combine, add more butter if needed.

Both the husband and I thought the pasta was delicious, he even said he thought it was the best pasta concoction I'd come up with recently. Next time I think I'd forgo making the scampi butter and just saute the mushrooms and tomatoes in a little bit of butter and olive oil, adding the herbs and other stuff to the skillet as I go.

Someone in my cooking group played around with the original recipe and made a pizza, which I think sounds delicious. She melted the butter on a pizza crust and topped with diced chicken, mushrooms, Parmesan, Mozzarella and Provolone cheeses. Yum!

As has been my habit of lately, I'm submitting this dish last minute into Ruth of Once Upon A Feast's wonderful blogging event Presto Pasta Night, hosted this week by Got No Milk. Check out the round-up tomorrow for some delicious pasta dishes. *Disclaimer* I was late with my entry for this week's PPN round-up, but am first for next week's which will be hosted by Ruth. Make sure to check out this week and next for great ideas & recipes!

Lime Marinade.

Quick, easy, delicious & fresh.......not much else to say.

Lime Marinade

2 large chicken breasts
3 limes, juiced
Handful of cilantro leaves
Spices: garlic powder, chicken seasoning, ground cumin, chili powder, seasoning salt & pepper.

Put chicken in a large container and cover on both sides with spices. Add lime juice and cilantro and marinate until ready to grill. Grill as you normally would.


Source: me

My thoughts: I used chicken, but this would also be good with pork, seafood & vegetables. Chopped garlic could be used in place of the garlic powder, I was just too lazy to chop some. I also thought about adding hot sauce and or jalapenos to the marinade, but decided to leave it as is. I think both would add some nice heat to the marinade, as well as using spicier spices (is that redundant?). I just threw a bunch of cilantro leaves into the marinade, but you could use it whole, as in the leaves & stems since you're just using the herb for flavoring & not actually cooking it.

Big Ass BBQ

About 40 some people were in attendance for The 5th Annual Cornhole Tournament & Big Ass BBQ. It really doesn't seem like we've been hosting this event for five years, time really does fly! As always we had tons of food and some great BBQ! The husband went above and beyond in his quest for the perfect beef brisket this year, rising at 2am to start all 15 pounds of the brisket on the smoker - and somehow he still managed to be one of the last people up, 24 hours later!

The winning team this year took home $240, not bad for a few hours work! We hope everyone had a great time & can't wait for year six!

*On a technical does anyone know why Blogger is rotating my pictures when I download them? More importantly how do I rotate them back? Thanks!*

Now onto the food.......... I will post recipes later, the formatting issues on this post was starting to drive me insane!

The Meat

Beef brisket

Brats & burgers

Chili sauce, hot dogs & brats and sauerkraut

Side Dishes

Spinach artichoke dip with rosemary crackers

Kelly's famous taco dip

Vidalia onion peach salsa & beefy cheese dip

Fresh vegetables & dip

Fresh salsa & mango salsa

Jalapeno roll-up's

Ramen noodle salad

Roasted potatoes with squash & zucchini

Potato Salad

Macaroni & cheese and cheesy potatoes

Guacamole & my award winning salsa

Desserts

Zucchini bread

Tim Horton's Tim-bits

Brownies

Strawberry crunch cake

Giant chocolate chip cookie

Peanut M&M's

Gooey butter bars

Chocolate cupcakes with sprinkles

No pictures of - Asian style coleslaw, red skin potato salad, pesto with grilled garlic toast & brownies.

Random party pictures

A Birthday Feast.

Tomorrow is the husband's 30th birthday and we celebrated tonight, as we have all weekend, with the husband's favorite foods - meat & beer, this time in the form of steak & Guinness. It was a fabulous meal, better than the vast majority of steak houses we've been too - certainly much cheaper. We've got some extra steak which will make a great steak salad later in the week. There aren't any real recipes, just some minimal flavoring which enhanced the natural flavor of the meat & vegetables.

The husband grilled some thick NY strip steaks, which were perfectly seasoned with some seasoning from Old Hickory (a steak & rib place in Dayton). Accompanying the steak was grilled asparagus seasoned with extra virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, pepper and chopped garlic, baked potato, salad and some olive oil bread with a dip of olive oil, Kosher salt, basil & red pepper flakes. For dessert, which may be eaten tomorrow as we're pretty stuffed, I made the classic Southern banana pudding layered with 'Nilla wafers & banana's.

Our meal was washed down with several different kinds of beers, one of which has already been profiled on here & another that any true beer connoisseur should already be intimately familiar with. The new beer of the evening was a Red Hook Long Hammer India Pale Ale (6.5% / $7 six pk.). Brewed in Portsmouth, NH, this IPA has an incredibly smooth & mild flavor, which went well with dinner. The vast majority of IPA's have a distinctive bitter aftertaste, which this one did not. We both agreed it tastes a little watered down, but overall I think it's a great beer that will at some point be worked back into the rotation.

The history of the India Pale Ale is an interesting one, it's also fitting to mention here because not only did we sample some tonight but I've just finished up a unit with my 8th grade American History class on the early colonists, British mercantilism, triangular trade, etc.. I'm sure many of you are wondering what this has to do with the history of the IPA, so I'll boil it down for you. The British had somewhat of a problem when it came to transporting beer around the world. Their beer didn't do well on long voyages, especially in more tropical locations such as the East Indies. As you can see from the map to the left (obtained from On Tap), it wasn't a short trip from England to India and as a result the beer was often sour & flat, and likely didn't make for a happy crew. I know I'd like to enjoy a beer after a journey that long! Many experimental tries later, it all came down to some tweaks on a recipe and a way was finally found for beer to make these long voyages and for eventual retail sale in the East Indies. George Hodgson, of Bow Brewery in London, altered a recipe and began shipping Hodgson's India Ale in the 1790s. Considering the sun never sat on the English Empire, this likely made British sailors, explorers & merchants very happy. Falling out of favor in England, the IPA has made a tremendous comeback in the U.S., with many micro brews producing new and distinctive flavors all their own.

Vacation Wrap-up.

The husband & I, along with six of our friends headed down for a week on Lake Cumberland last week. We all had a great time lounging in the water, skiing, tubing, wake boarding and of course drinking! The Grandparent's came over a few nights for dinner & to hang out around the campfire. Everyone had a great time and we're already starting to look forward to next years trip!

I was a bad food blogger and only took a few food related pictures, but my excuse was I was on vacation! So using pictures & recipes where I have them, here's the food wrap-up for the week.

Monday

The Grandparent's came over to the cabin and we had brats & sauerkraut, baked beans, and Paula Deen's pasta salad. I think the pasta salad needed to sit a lot longer, which was our fault for not making it earlier, and I thought it needed more of the sauce.

Tuesday

We had the Grandparent's over for dinner again and had steak, macaroni & cheese, marinated cucumbers & tomatoes and grilled French bread.

Wednesday

I made Paula Deen's overnight French toast casserole, it was really good and easy to make.

It's somewhat of a confusing drive through Deliverance territory to make it back to the cabin, combine that with it being pitch black & no cell phone coverage and we thought it best to meet our other two friends at a restaurant in town. We were the only people there at the time and everything seriously took for-ev-er! We should have just went to McDonald's. Some liked their dinners & other's didn't; the Grandparent's have eaten there before and never had that problem. Oh well.....

Thursday

K & J made awesome breakfast biscuit muffins with sausage, cheese, egg and tomato. This recipe is pretty similar to what they did. The muffins seemed easy to prepare and were delicious to eat!

For dinner they grilled pork chops and we had baked potatoes & corn. A delicious meal!

Friday

E & M made one of my favorite breakfast's, bagel sandwiches with scrambled eggs, cheese and ham. If my metabolism would allow it, I could eat one of those everyday!

Their dinner was delicious and is going to find a new spot in my 'go-to' meals! They made grilled blackened chicken, which for some reason I've never made before, Spanish rice and chili beans. Personally, I thought this was the best dinner of the week!

Saturday

B made another one of my favorites, sausage breakfast casserole. This isn't the exact recipe, there was also a can of cream of mushroom soup, but it's pretty close.

For dinner the husband & I made grilled ham & Swiss burgers, herbed potato salad with green beans & tomatoes, sauteed squash & zucchini and marinated tomatoes (which we had at every meal, since we had about 30 pounds of tomatoes).

Aside from your bathing suit, which I forgot to pack - thank the lord for Kmart, stocking up at Liquor World, or the Sam's Club of beer & liquor as a friend calls it, is the most important thing to bring to Lake Cumberland. All of the counties surrounding the lake are dry, though some restaurants are starting to serve alcohol. Stopping here, to stock up for the week is always a production and this trip was no exception! Needless to say we had many bottles of liquor - including a new favorite Sailor Jerry Rum and lots of cases of beer. We even picked up a few cases for the Grandparent's! The important thing is we didn't run out. This story doesn't involve Liquor World, but it's amusing.

Many of the drinks we made were random concoctions of various liquors & mixers we had on hand. We did have Bloody Mary's one morning and a batch of pineapple mojito's one night - they were both delicious. For the mojito's just add pineapple juice to your regular mojito recipe

mmm...Grilled Meatloaf.

Meatloaf is one of those foods that done right is beyond fabulous & of course done wrong, is bad - real bad. I assume that for those of you who do not like meatloaf, you've been exposed to the bad variety - since essentially it's nothing more than a variation on hamburgers. Meatloaf certainly isn't pretty, and this grilled version wouldn't win any food porn awards - but for what it lacks in beauty it more than makes up for in taste. Nutmeg provided the glaze with a nice subtle smokey flavor, which really enhanced the meatloaf. Meatloaf being a comfort food and all, demanded being paired with the King of All Comfort Foods - the potato, who in this meal took the form of the best French fries ever. That's right, you read that correctly - I said best ever. Zucchini again makes an appearance on our plates, hey what do you expect -it's summer!



Grilled (glorious) Meatloaf
2 lbs. Ground beef
1 Egg, beaten
1 Onion, chopped
1/2 c. Cracker crumbs
1/4 c. Ketchup
2 Tbs. Light brown sugar
1 tsp. Prepared mustard
1/4 c. Ketchup
3 Tbs. Brown sugar
1 tsp. Dry mustard
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg

1. Combine ground beef, egg, onion, cracker crumbs, 1/4 c. ketchup, 2 Tbs. brown sugar & prepared mustard in large bowl; mix well. Shape into loaf; place in lightly greased 10-inch baking pan.

2. Combine 1/4 c. ketchup, 3 Tbs. brown sugar, dry mustard and nutmeg in small bowl; mix well.

3. Grill over hot coals for 15 minutes. Place double thickness of foil on grill. Remove meatloaf to foil.

4. Grill for 10 minutes longer or until cooked through, basting with ketchup mixture.


Yield: 4-6 servings
Recipe obtained from: Quick & Easy Grilling: Over 100 Fast & Furious Timesaving Recipes

What I did: I cut the recipe in half and there were two decent sized portions, and a little bit leftover (which made an excellent sandwich the next day). The only other thing I changed was substituting dried onion for fresh. Transferring the meatloaf to the foil is a critical step on the grill, if you don't the meatloaf gets all wet, oily & just generally gross. I think these would make fabulous meatballs too.

Now, in the case that you don't have any foil on hand - as we did, do not despair. Think to yourself, "what would MacGyver do?" Thinking like MacGyver, the husband used the trusty fish griller turner thing in place of the foil and tragedy was averted just in the nick of time. Further proof you can indeed grill anything.

Perfect Golden, Crispy Chips

1 lg. Potato

Vegetable oil, for frying
Cubes of bread, to test oil temperature

Salt

1. Scrub the potato in clean, cold water and cut into fingers as thick or think as you choose. Wash well to rinse off the excess starch and help prevent them sticking together during cooking. Dry thoroughly with paper towels.

2. Heat 2 inches vegetable oil in a small, deep frying pan. Test the oil temperature with a cube of bread - it should take 60 seconds to turn brown. When the oil has reached the right temperature - do not let it get too hot - cook the fries for 5 minutes of until pale golden.

3. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Raise the heat slightly and, w hen the oil is hot enough to brown a cube of bread in 30 seconds, return the fries to the pan for 1-2 minutes until crisp and golden. Drain on paper towels, sprinkle with salt, splash with malt vinegar and eat immediately.

Yield: 1 serving

Recipe obtained from: Gourmet Express by Ainsley Harriott

What I did: I doubled the recipe and there were more than enough fries for two. The bread test is the key, follow it and you will indeed have perfect golden, crispy fries - crunchy on the outside and fluffy in the center.

Golden Zucchini

1 1/2 lbs. Small Zucchini, halved lengthwise

1 tsp. Grated Lemon Zest

1 sm. Clove garlic, finely shopped

3 Tbs. Fresh herbs, chopped (such as parsley, cilantro, or basil)

2 Tbs. Bread crumbs

1. Heat 2 tsp. of olive oil in large skillet. Season the zucchini with 1/4 tsp. salt & pepper. Cook, cut-side down, covered, until browned and tender, about six minutes.

2. In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest, garlic, herbs, bread crumbs, and 1 tsp. oil.

3. Cut crosswise into 1/2" pieces and divide among individual plates. Sprinkle the crumb mixture over the zucchini.

Yield: 4 servings

Recipe obtained from: Real Simple/August 2007

What I did: essentially I just used this recipe as a guide. I forgot to add the fresh herbs and the 1 tsp. of oil. The husband didn't think the zucchini tasted like anything, but I thought it came out well.

As the husband pointed out, the ideal drink for this meal is a good beer - not really red wine. He's right, next time we'll have beer. Tonight's wine of choice: Gala Rouge Pinot Noir (2004 - France, under $12). I find lot of red wines to be somewhat over powering, but not so much with Pinot Noir. This wine had a lighter, slightly woodsy taste and doesn't assault your senses. We both enjoyed the wine, though the husband is more of a red person than I - so I think he enjoyed it a little more. Overall, Gala Rouge Pinot Noir is a good wine at a great price and one we'll probably have again.

An Old Favorite

Zucchini is one of my favorite vegetables, though I've rarely met a vegetable I didn't like! So I was happy when someone at the husband's office gave him some zucchini, tis the season for over production and sharing amongst friends & neighbors! I planted one zucchini in our garden, but considering my very late planting and the oppressive heat & drought we've been experiencing, I'll be lucky to harvest anything before Labor Day. Zucchini is a great addition to just about any dish, but one of my favorites is zucchini & squash with a ton of garlic! This dish goes very well with potatoes, which I roasted with herbs from the garden and grilled Italian chicken. Tonight's dinner is one of my favorites, it's a classic go to meal that can easily be altered to suit your taste buds.


Roasted Potatoes
6 red skinned potatoes, quartered
Several sprigs of fresh tarragon, rosemary, marjoram
Sea salt & pepper, to taste
Extra virgin olive oil, drizzled to coat

1. Mix all ingredients in oven safe dish, roast at 400, stirring occasionally for about an hour or until done.



Fried Zucchini & Squash
3 small squash, sliced
1 md. zucchini, sliced
5 cloves garlic, chopped
Sea salt & pepper, to taste
Several springs of fresh tarragon & rosemary

1. Saute garlic in extra virgin olive oil in large skillet over medium heat

2. Add squash, zucchini, herbs, sea salt and pepper. Make sure vegetables are coated with olive oil.

3. Cook over medium heat until vegetables have reached desired tenderness. I like mine fairly crispy, very garlicky and salty.



Italian Grilled Chicken
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 packet Good Seasonings Italian dressing
Italian dressing
Various dry herbs

1. Whisk together, in a small bowl, dry Italian dressing, as much Italian dressing as needed for marinating chicken and whatever dried herbs your heart desires (I used: dried onion, onion powder, pepper, lemon pepper seasoning, dill, basil, Italian seasoning & chicken seasoning).

2. Combine chicken and marinade in sealed plastic bag and refrigerate, turning every so often, for however long you have. Mine marinated for about an hour or so.

3. Grill chicken anywhere from 15-20 minutes, or until cooked through.

Quick & Easy Turkey Tenderloin

In a continued effort to try and use up all the food we have in our house, I pulled out some frozen turkey tenderloin's for dinner. Wanting to also use up the grilled corn, cilantro and tomatoes, the path of the meal seemed to be heading down the ol' Southwestern highway. The turkey tenderloin was extremely simple to prepare, which was a plus since we spent most of today looking for a puppy. Along with the tenderloin, I threw together some zesty rice & beans and a few tortilla chips and our meal was served. This meal was simple & quick, delicious and pretty healthy - ole!

Southwestern Stuffed Turkey Tenderloin

approx. 3/4 -1 lb. turkey tenderloin (two tenderloins in package, weighing close to 2 lbs. total - I only used one)
1 tomato, chopped
1 jalapeno, chopped
handful fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 lime, juiced
salt to taste

Butterfly tenderloin. Combine tomato, jalapeno, cilantro, lime juice and salt in bowl. Stuff tenderloin with mixture. Roll up and secure with string. Grill for 30 minutes, or until done.

*This recipe was originally for a 3 pound pork tenderloin, with a grilling time of 25 minutes.

Recipe obtained from: Quick & Easy Grilling: Over 100 Fast & Furious Timesaving Recipes.

Zesty Rice & Beans with Corn

1 can rice & beans
1 tomato, chopped
1 jalapeno, chopped
approx. 1/2 c. corn
handful fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 lime, juiced
kosher salt
cumin

Combine ingredients and refrigerate until ready to serve.

What I did: I used Eden Organics Caribbean black beans & rice. You could add or delete any of the ingredients, I just threw together what sounded good at the time. This would be good heated as well and think I might do that with the leftovers. Would also make a good base or filling for taco's or anything like that.

While the husband always comments on whatever I've made, his comments are generally pretty basic - as in "it's good" or "I don't like it," things like that. Which is what made me think this exchange was the husband kidding. Or a result of watching to much Top Chef, as he claims.

tH: Wow, that's some good flavor, it's like an explosion in my mouth!
me: Are you for real?
tH: Yeah.

One good thing about hosting parties is the leftover beer people leave behind! One of the leftovers was Leinenkugel Summer Shandy, which I'd never seen before. This is a Weiss beer with lemonade flavoring, and probably something I'd never buy on my own - the husband doesn't think it's beer if it has fruit in it. He tried one last night and said it was ok, but didn't think it tasted like beer. I agree, it doesn't really taste like beer, more like fermented lemonade, though with each sip it sort of changed in flavor and my impression of the beer changed as well. It's not a bad beer, especially since it was free, but not something I think I'd buy again.

Ho-hum BBQ

I don't like to spend hours in the kitchen only to have a meal turn out "ok." In fact, it generally makes me mad - especially at whoever came up with the recipe - Rachel Ray you now have strike one.

Let us focus on what tasted good.....

Root Beer BBQ Beans
5 slices bacon, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 (36 oz.) can baked beans, preferably Bush's
1 c. root beer (regular - not diet)
2 Tbs. dark molasses
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
1/4 tsp. lemon pepper
2-3 whole ribs celery

1. Cook the bacon with the onions in a medium saucepan until the bacon is brown and crisp, and the onions have become transparent and are just starting to brown.
2. Add all the remaining ingredients.
3. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; then reduce the heat and simmer, stirring often, until the mixture is slightly thickened, about 20 minutes. Remove the celery and serve the beans hot.

Yield: 4-6 servings

Comments: First I should state I love bacon, love it. I exercised my will power and only cooked the five slices called for and only had one bite in the process. That was some will power I exercised. I don't like onions, so that was out. I did however, add some dried onions and only two ribs of celery.

Recipe obtained from Chow - www.chow.com

Barbecued Chicken Thighs
1/2 c. ketchup
1/2 c. canola oil
1/2 c. maple syrup
1/4 c. vinegar
2 Tbs. yellow mustard

Whisk ingredients together.

Yield: not sure, maybe 2 c.

Comments: This recipe originally called for baking the chicken, but we grilled the thighs instead. I marinated the chicken for about an hour or so and brushed the chicken while grilling. The husband said he didn't like dark meat, but said this was good - whatever that means. While I normally don't like dark meat either, it looks funny to me, I think grilling might be the way to go - it was very moist and the sauce was simple to make and tasted great.

Recipe obtained from The Fresh Market - www.thefreshmarket.com/recipes/recipes_details_review.aspx?RecipeID=116

And for where it went all wrong...or at least didn't taste that great.

Double corn cornbread muffins - not sure what it was about these, I thought they tasted oily and the husband decided the additional corn was to much for him.

Rachel Ray received her first strike with me for her herb fritters recipe. In theory I believed
these fritters would be delicious and thus a great way to use up my out of control herb garden. Luck wasn't on my side for this one though. First they stunk when cooked and there was something about them that creeped me out, I only ate two bites. The husband eventually decided he didn't like them either. The dipping sauce however, was good (mayonnaise, hot sauce, lemon zest, lemon juice).