My First Recipe Contest

Hot Popper Topper - Delectalicious!

I'm so excited!  Yesterday I entered my first ever recipe contest.  Yahoooo!!!  The contest is sponsored by the Real Women of Philadelphia.  Philadelphia Cream Cheese that is.  Check out the website Real Women of Philadelphia .   They are having weekly contests from appetizers to desserts.  My first entry was for my Hot Popper Topper appetizer for the Anything Goes Appetizer week.  It is a creamy spicy addictive spread.  Perfect on toasted french bread or Hamburgers!  Check out the recipe HERE.  So many amazing recipes have been submitted!  Cruise the recipe section to see them all.   Looks like winners for this weeks submission will be announced October 11-15.  Keep your fingers crossed :-)!

This weeks theme is Entree - Time Crunch.  Time to put the thinkin' cap on!  Put your thinkin' cap on and enter too!

Cheers, 

Shannon

Mac's Debut

Drum rollllllllll please.  It is my pleasure to introduce you to our awesome labrador retriever Mac Lorenz.   He is spoiled as spoiled can be!  Mac joined our family in October 2000 at only 8 weeks old.  We had the first pick of the litter and after careful consideration of all the pups we knew without a doubt he was the one for us.  He was the cutest little pudge!  I can't believe he is considered a senior citizen oops I mean dog.    

He may be old in years but he is definitely young at heart.  At 10 years young we still go out and play fetch every day.  He goes crazy over a tennis ball.  It's his favorite thing in the world with tummy and hip rubs coming in a close second. 

Mac has many nicknames.  You may see him around the blog referred to as Mac, Mac-er-doo, Scooby, Scooby Doo, Doo, Fruitcake, or Lovey Baby.  And don't be surprised if we come up with some new ones along the way.  


Monday's with Mac will be featuring stories and/or pictures of Mac with homemade dog treat recipes.  I figure I cook for us to try to avoid as many bad chemicals and crappy stuff in processed food I might as well learn how to make Mac some better for him treats as well.   So if you have any great treat recipes your dogs love please send me your recipes to try!  Mac will love you!


Cheers,
Shannon

Chile Con Queso

Today I'm cooking up Chile Con Queso my friends!  We love some good queso in this family! I have been on the hunt for a queso recipe that would taste like the queso at our favorite Mexican restaurant, Pappasito's, for years now.   Oh just saying the word "Pappasito's" makes my mouth water.  I miss Pappasito's!!! They have great queso, homemade flour tortillas, and THE BEST beef fajitas hands down of any mexican restaurant we've ever been to.  I've have tried everything!  Different kinds of cheeses, spices, creams, etc trying to arrive at this queso.  Out of the blue I found a fabulous mexican cookbook at Tuesday Morning.  The title is "MEX TEX Traditional Tex-Mex taste" by Matt Martinez.  You won't believe this, but the first recipe I flipped to was Chile Con Queso.  I noticed an unusual ingredient in the list.  One I have never seen used before.  I kept looking through the cookbook and so many recipes looked really good!  Now I started asking myself "should I buy it?" or "should I put it back on the self and walk away?" Have I mentioned I'm addicted to cookbooks???    Literally I stood there and had this debate with 
myself for quite awhile.  One customer walked by me a few times and looked a little concerned, LOL!    I finally reasoned with  myself using the logic that it is 70% off the original price.... that's a deal!  Thank my lucky stars my addiction won out that day.  Because this is just what I have been searching for!  


Can you guess what the SECRET ingredient is?????  

Printable Recipe
Here's what you'll need:


2 - 4oz cans green chilies, if you like it spicy add some jalepeno
1/2 cup finely diced fresh tomotoes
1/2 cup finely diced onion 
1/2 cup finely diced celery
2 teaspoons Tex-Mex Spice (see recipe below)
1 cup chicken broth (THIS IS THE SECRET INGREDIENT)
1 pound yellow american cheese cubed (purchased in the deli section of the grocery store)


Tex-Mex Spice
3 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons ground cumin
3 tablespoons granulated garlic
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper


Mix together in a small airtight container. Use this as seasoning in all your mexican recipes.


Cooking the Queso
In a saucepan combine everything but the cheese.  Simmer for 5 minutes

Turn the heat to medium low and add the cheese.  Stir occasionally until melted.

Pour it into a bowl and dig in with your favorite tortilla chips!  


We used to be "Rotel" (velveeta and rotel tomatoes) people.  Not anymore.  This takes just a few more minutes to prepare than Rotel but is soooooooo worth it I promise!


Cheers,
Shannon

Warm Corn Dip

Football and corn dip go hand in hand around here.  When I was living in Georgia EVERYONE had a variation of this dip.  The corn dip always made a fine appearance at every get together, football or otherwise.  It is spicy, cheesy, gooey, deliciousness.  I warn you it is truly addictive.  It's even better the next day!  And many will tell you they just can't stop eating it.  

PRINTABLE RECIPE

Warm Corn Dip

adapted from Emeril Lagasse

Ingredients

2 Tbsp butter

1/4 c finely diced onion

4 oz can green chilies

1 1/2 Tbsp fresh minced garlic

3 cups corn (fresh, frozen, or canned)

1 small jar roasted red peppers, diced

1/4 c green onions (green part only)

4 oz grated monterey jack cheese

4 oz grated cheddar cheese

3/4 c sour cream

3/4 c mayonnaise

Emeril's Essence, cayenne pepper, and salt to taste

Preheat your oven to 375.  

Melt butter in a skillet over medium high heat.  Once butter is melted add the onions for about 3 to 4 minutes.  Now add the green chilies and garlic and continue to cook for about 2 more minutes.  Pour in the corn and cook for 5 to 6 more minutes.

Place the cooked mixture into a mixing bowl.  Add the remaining ingredients and blend well.  Season with Emeril's Essence, cayenne pepper and salt.  Now don't be shy here!  This is what really brings the dip together!  I will sprinkle both Emeril's Essence and the cayenne pepper in a thin layer over the top, stir, and then taste.  When there is a slight burn after swallowing I know I've gotten to the right place.  If you don't like it quite that spicy back off of the cayenne a little.  Trust me, I do this every time.  And while some will say "oh that's spicy" they continue to eat and eat and eat and eat.

Now place the dip in a casserole dish and bake in the oven for around 20 minutes or until the dip begins to bubble.  

Serve with Fritos or tortilla chips.  Fritos are always my 1st choice.

This is a contributing post at Mommy's Kitchen for Potluck Sunday.  Stop by and see what everyone's bringing.

Cheers, 

Shannon

Cupa Cupa Cupa

Cupa Cupa Cupa ..... what?  Is it a cobbler, a buckle, a cake?  You decide.  What I know for sure is this is the fastest, easiest, most delicious dessert!  The name Cupa Cupa Cupa comes from having 1 cup each of sugar, flour, and milk.  Get it?  Cupa (sugar) Cupa (flour) Cupa (milk)?  Personally I think I'll remember the recipe by saying Cupa, Cupa, Cupa, Stick (of butter), LOL.  Make it your own by using your favorite fruit.  Raspberries, blueberries, peaches whatever your heart desires?  Thank you Pioneer Woman for sharing this recipe.  It will stay in my family recipe collection forever!  I bet it will become one of your favorites too.


PRINTABLE RECIPE
Ingredients
1 c Sugar (plus 1/4 c for sprinkling over the top)
1 c Self Rising Flour
1 c Milk
1 stick of butter
2 c Blackberries (use any fresh or thawed frozen fruit you like)


Preheat oven to 350 and grease an 8x8 baking dish.  Rinse and dry the blackberries if fresh.  If frozen follow the thawing directions on the bag.  Combine sugar, flour, and milk in a bowl.  Mix well.  Melt the butter in the microwave, let cool for a minute, and then add to the batter.  Stir together and pour into the baking dish.  Place fruit on top of the batter and sprinkle about 1/4 c sugar over the top.   Pop it in the oven for 1 hour and let the magic happen.  The batter will puff up all around the gooey fruit.  At about 50 minutes I take it out of the oven and sprinkle 1 tsp sugar over the top and pop it back in the oven for the last 10 minutes.  


Whip up some fresh whipped cream for the top!!!!


Que the angels for glorious singing ;-).


To-da-loo,
Shannon


This post is a contributing link at:
Tuesday's at the Table
Tasty Tuesday
Stop by and see what other people brought!

Mini Orange Chocolate Chunk Cake

Orange and chocolate is a fantastic combination!  When I first heard of the two being combined it sounded so odd to me.  Why?  I don't know.  What I do know is EVERYTHING tastes better with chocolate.  So when my sister in law gave me a piece of her chocolate orange one Christmas, you know, the ball of chocolate you whack on the counter I obliged.  Oh My! My life has not been the same since.  When I see recipes with the combination of orange and chocolate my mouth waters.


So I was on the elliptical machine getting in a work out one day and there was nothing entertaining on TV.  So I flipped over to the Food Network channel.  (Funny, right?)  And there was Ina Garten making the most delicious cake.  There I was burning calories, salivating, and plotting when I could make this delicious concoction.  Well the occasion finally presented itself.  We had dinner guests last weekend and they were in for a treat.  


Ready, here we go!

PRINTABLE RECIPE
Mini Orange Chocolate Chunk Cake
inspired by Ina Garten


The List of Ingredients
1/4 lb unsalted butter at room temperature
1 c sugar
2 extra large eggs at room temperature
1/8 c grated orange zest (2 large oranges)
1 1/2 c all purpose flour plus 1 Tbsp
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 c freshly squeezed orange juice
3 oz buttermilk at room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 c. good semisweet chocolate chunks


For the Syrup
1/4 c sugar
1/4 c. freshly squeezed orange juice


For the Ganache 
4 oz good semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 c heavy cream
a small pinch up to 1/2 tsp (if you really like coffee flavor) of instant coffee granules.   If you hate coffee just leave it out.


Preheat the oven to 350.  Grease and flour (I used Bakers Joy spray) 6 individual serving molds.  The best option I had was to use a popover pan.  A jumbo muffin pan would work just as well.  Just use what you have.


Cream the butter and sugar for about 5 minutes.  Yes I actually set the timer for 5 minutes, LOL.  Then add the eggs 1 at a time, then the orange zest.

Sift together 1 1/2 cups flour, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.  In another container combine the orange juice, buttermilk, and vanilla.  And in another container mix your chocolate chunks with 1 Tbsp of flour.

Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately in thirds to the creamed butter, beginning and ending with the flour.  When thoroughly mixed gently stir in the chocolate chunks.

Pour into the pans and smooth out the bottoms.

Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean.  Cool for 10 minutes in the pan.

Meanwhile make the syrup.  In a small saucepan cook the sugar and orange juice over medium-low heat until the sugar is dissolved.  Remove the cakes from the pan.  Place them on a rack over a lined tray for easy cleaning.  Spoon the syrup over the cakes.  Allow them to cool completely.

For the ganache melt the chocolate, heavy cream, and coffee in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until smooth.  Drizzle over the cakes.

Place on a serving platter and your done!  Dig in!

Later Alligator,
Shannon

How to Slice a Tomato

If there is one particular thing that has perplexed me in the kitchen for years it is how to deseed and slice a tomato without mutilating it.    Funny isn't it?  You would think this is one of the easiest things to do, right?  Well, not for me.  If I was ever a guest in someone else's kitchen and they said "Would you mind slicing up a tomato" I wanted to run, to hide, to do ANYTHING but slice that tomato.  I would instantly feel like a klutz.  I would start praying dear Lord please help me do this, let no one pay attention to the seedy squished tomato, and please let a valium magically appear!!  Well friends, no more will a little ol tomato intimidate me!  I've got this one whipped and so will you.


Here we go.


First pick out some gorgeous ready to eat tomatoes and then cut out the core.  Take a small knife insert by the stem at a slight angle and cut about 1 inch into the tomato.  Now make a circle around the stem and the core will pop right out.

There is some debate about what kind of knife to use to slice a tomato.  Serrated or Non-serrated?  I picked up a non serrated knife because my tomato was a bit firm, but if the tomato was a little soft I would have used a serrated knife. If you are using a non serrated knife just pierce a little hole with the end of the knife first before slicing.  One thing is for sure either way it must be sharp.  Just use what you have!


Next for a round tomato like mine cut the tomato in half around the circumference.  If you are using a plum tomato cut in half from top to bottom.   Now see all those seeds (in your tomato not the photo).  Just poke your finger in each hole and the seeds will pop right out into the sink.  If you prefer you can use a knife or small spoon, but it is much faster using your fingers.

Now slice up that tomato.

Gorgeous deseeded sliced tomato!!!  Welcome to my sandwich!




Tomato Tips

• Store tomatoes stem side down on the counter or in the pantry.  Keep them at room temperature and away from direct sunlight.  Never refrigerate.  Refrigeration will make them pulpy and destroy the flavor, YUCK!
• To ripen place tomatoes and an apple in a paper bag pierced with a few holes and let sit for 2 to 3 days at room temperature.
• Need to peel that tomato?  Cut an X on the bottom of the tomato, drop in boiling water for 30 seconds to 1 minute, remove from water and place in ice cold water to stop the cooking.  When cooled use a paring knife to grab the skin at the X and peel.  

Go tackle a tomato!

Too-da-loo,

Shannon