Quick Po' Boy Sandwich

Have you ever eaten a Po' Boy sandwich?  I have had one in my entire life.  This past week we spent a few days at the beach and of course had to hit a local seafood joint to get me some shrimp!  I brought the leftovers back to the beach house.  Mostly I just ate the cold shrimp right out of the take-out carton, but one day I was thinking I should be a little more creative.  And here you have another tasty concoction from leftovers...

Ingredients:

Hamburger Bun (or a baguette or other kind of roll of choice)

Leftover shrimp

Lettuce, shredded

Mayo or mustard

Assemble your sandwich and enjoy.  Po' Boys can be made of different kinds of items, so be creative!

Pesto Chicken Pizza

Originally posted on 4/24/14.

Hey, this is my contribution to throw-back Thursday!  As I was reading through the recipe again I got really hungry.  Might have to get the grandsons over to help me make this again really soon.

Not an original recipe (see source below) but we all get to tweak away at someone else's in this recipe blog world, don't we?  This is a great quickie dinner that you can throw together in about 30 minutes or so if you have the ingredients on hand.  Or you can just send your daughter and her fiance out to the grocery store to get the stuff for you while you clean off the kitchen island so that there is room to actually EAT there.

Ingredients:

Pizza Dough (home- or ready-made)

Basil Pesto

Cooked Chicken (I used a rotisserie chicken from my local grocery store)

Shredded mozzarella cheese

1.  Preheat oven to temperature for your pizza dough.

2.  Spread dough onto pan or pizza stone; sprinkle corn meal on pan first so your pizza doesn't stick.

3.  An extra step if you are using the refrigerated dough, is to pre-bake it for 6-8 minutes before adding your toppings.

4.  Spread pesto, chicken and cheese over the crust.

5.  Bake for suggested time for dough, about 8-10 minutes.

Adding a salad would be a great idea.

Source:  Shawni Pothier, 71 Toes Blog.

Italian Elvis Sandwiches

A recipe so weird, I just had to try it.

There I sat, thumbing through who-knows-what outdated magazine at the salon, color setting in my hair.  And I almost didn't read it.  I almost passed right by it.  But when I read the ingredients I couldn't help myself.  I snapped a pic of it with my cell phone and made a mental note to try it soon.

The family was up for it.  (They are adventurous with anything that involves Nutella.)  And when we bravely tried it for the first time, they were not disappointed.  It as a big hit!  And though this dish is a rich, not-every-day kind of food, it gets requested more often than I can tell you (especially from one kid in particular).

So tonight, when we had the missionaries over for dinner and served these for dessert (at the request of that one kid in particular), I remembered...."Oh yeah, I never put this on the blog, did I?"

It only took me a year and a half to remember to share it.  Once you try it, you may not forgive me for waiting so long!  My apologies.....but honestly, you'll be so transported by the unique flavor, you'll forget all about being mad at me.  :)

p.s.....comment below if you get why it's called an Italian Elvis.

Ingredients:

8 slices sturdy white bread*
6 strips of crispy bacon, in bit sized pieces

Nutella

1 ripe banana

8 ounce tub of mascarpone cheese

softened butter

lots of napkins

1.  Heat a griddle or skillet to medium-low heat (like you are making a grilled cheese sandwich, cuz well, you are!).

2.  Place the banana on a dinner plate and mash it well with a fork.  Empty the tub of cheese on top of the mashed banana and use the fork to incorporate the two together.  Set aside.

3.  Butter one side of a slice of bread.  Place this butter-side down on another slice of bread.  Then carefully spread Nutella on top of the slice that's face down with butter.  About 1/8" thick is fine--it's up to you how much you want.  Now place the bacon pieces on top of the Nutella.  (Each sandwich has about 1 1/2 strips of bacon.)

4.  Carefully lift just the Nutella slice of bread and place it butter side down on your griddle or skillet.  Immediately drop some scoops of your banana/cheese mixture on top of the Nutella/bacon and carefully spread it out (it will be about twice as thick as the Nutella).  

5.  Place the other slice of bread on top (you know, the one you used earlier).  Using your flipper/turner/spatula device, gently press down on that top piece.  Then carefully spread some butter on it.

6.  When the bottom slice is golden brown, VERY carefully lift and turn it over to cook on the other side.  All that gooey goodness might make this step a little challenging, but stick with me....it's worth it.

7.  Once the other side is done, lift it out carefully and place it on a flat surface to cool for a minute or two before slicing and eating.

Makes 4 sandwiches

A few notes:

• Regarding the bread*--super soft white bread will not hold up well to the spreading of Nutella and tends to flatten too much during cooking.  I recommend something like Pepperidge Farm breads, which are delicious and stand up well to this recipe.
• How many sandwiches this recipe makes will depend a lot on how thick you spread the ingredients on the bread slices.  The amounts listed above reflect my family's preferences and you may need to adjust the recipe based on your own preferences.
• Where to find mascarpone cheese?  In my grocery store, it's found in the deli department, but if you can't find it, just ask someone at the store.
• Yes, you do need to have the bacon in pieces.  If you just lay 3 half-strips on bacon down, those suckers will slide right out of the sandwich when you take a bite.  Also, my family prefers it crispy; yours may like it chewier (in which case it's even more important that the bacon be in pieces).
• Why lots of napkins? You obviously haven't tried to eat one yet.  Go make one, eat it, and then we'll talk.

source:  pretty sure it was out of a Food Network magazine

Sloppy Joes

And who doesn't have a recipe for this one?  But I needed a blog post and I am taking a meal to a couple of teen-aged boys and I think this will fill them up quite nicely.  Their Mom is at Duke Medical Center with another brother and several of the women at church are providing some meals for the boys in her absence.  This goes together very quickly, but does need to simmer for an hour.  I chose to throw it in the slow cooker because I don't have time to cook when I get home from work. You can probably substitute ground turkey to make this recipe a little healthier.  I won't do that to the boys--their palates would probably freak out.

Ingredients:

1 lb. hamburger*

1 1/2 cups chopped celery

1 1/2 cups chopped onion

1 t. salt

dash of pepper

1 14-oz can diced tomatoes

1 cup Catsup (or ketchup, whichever you prefer)

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

1 t. chili powder

hamburger buns (potato rolls are da bomb!)

1.  Brown meat and drain off fat.

2.  Mix meat and other ingredients together in a skillet and bring to a boil.  Simmer one hour.

3.  Serve on buns and add some celery/carrot sticks and maybe some chips of some kind.

NOTE:  I stretched the meat a little with Taco TVP that I had on hand so that I could keep some of this for our supper.  Also, if  you are using a slow cooker, just do everything according to the recipe and then cook on low for about 5 hours.

Bistro Chicken Twist

This recipe comes from a good ol' Pampered Chef recipe book. I have been making it for years and used to make it for my family on Christmas Eve before we decorated Christmas cookies.

1 C. Chopped cooked chicken
1/2 C. diced red bell pepper
1/4 C. snipped fresh basil leaves
1/4 C. grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1/2 C. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 C. mayonnaise
1 garlic clove, pressed
2 packages (11 ounces each) refrigerated French bread dough-I use frozen bread dough, thawed.

1 egg white, lightly beaten
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
2 Tbsp Parmesan

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a bowl, combine chicken, bell pepper, basil, 1/4 c. Parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, mayonnaise and garlic. Mix well.

Place bread dough on a greased cookie sheet. With a knife, cut each loaf length wise, end to end, halfway through. Then, use your hands to spread the dough about a bit.

Spoon half the chicken mixture into each of the two loaves. Gather up the edges over the filling, pinching to seal. Turn the two loaves over so the seam sides are down.

With the two loaves next to one another, crisscross them together. Leave a 1 1/2 inch space between the two loaves in the centers of the figure eights that you created.

Combine the egg white and the Italian seasoning. Brush over the top of the twist. Cut a small slit in the tops of the twist to expose the filling. Sprinkle with 2 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until deep golden brown. Remove from oven, let cool for 10 minutes.
Slice and serve.

Grilled Santa Fe Burgers

Here is a really tasty burger recipe.  Yeah, I don't eat burgers much any more, either, but this is a "framily" favorite at cookouts at our house. I keep getting requests to make them so an opportunity just presented itself yesterday.  It so happens that I am in charge of supper down at the beach for 23 family members so I am making these as sliders, and siding it with a double batch of  Mom's Potato Salad.  Oh heck to the yes!

Ingredients:

1 lb. lean ground beef or turkey

1 1/2 cups (6 oz.) Mexican blend shredded cheese

1/2 cup salsa, divided

1/4 cup crushed tortilla chips

1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions

1 t. ground cumin or chili powder

1/2 t. garlic salt

4 hamburger buns, split or sourdough bread

Lettuce

Tomato slices

1.  Combine ground beef, 1 cup cheese, 1/4 cup salsa, tortilla chips, green onions, cumin and garlic salt in medium bowl.  Shape into 4 patties, 4 inches in diameter and 1/2-inch thick (if you are doing sliders, just make the patties the desired size.  I have a slider maker so I can press 5 at a time).

2.  Preheat grill or broiler.  Grill patties, 5 minutes per side for burgers and just watch closely for sliders.  We grilled some over charcoal, and did some on a George Foreman grill since we had so many to do.

3.  Grill or lightly toast hamburger buns.  Place burgers on buns; top with remaining salsa; sprinkle with remaining cheese.  Serve with lettuce and, if desired, tomato.

Source:  torn from a magazine, but it is from Sargento.

Savory Ham & Cheese Sliders

Another Super Bowl indoor tail-gating favorite at our house are these tasty morsels.  I had something like this at a friend's house for dinner once.  This recipe was the closest I could find via the all-knowing Pinterest.  The grandsons didn't even take this one apart, like they did the Reuben Pigs in a Blanket.

Ingredients:
2 12-roll packages of sweet Hawaiian dinner rolls
1 1/2 lbs. smoked ham (not honey)
12 slices Swiss cheese
1 stick of butter--NOT margarine.  Seriously.
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon poppy seeds

1.  Slice rolls in half, horizontally.  Place the bottoms of the rolls in two 9 x 13 pans or a large jelly roll pan works really well.

2.  Place about 2 shaved slices of ham on each bottom.  Cut the cheese slices into 4 parts and place 2 pieces on each sandwich.  Place the tops on each sandwich.

3.  In a small saucepan, mix butter, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, garlic powder and poppy seeds. Heat until butter is completely melted.  Stir to incorporate ingredients.

4.  Brush the melted mixture over the ham sandwiches.  Cover with foil and refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight.  These can also be baked right away.

5.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees and bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted. 


Source:  Heather Pettit, via Pinterest.

Pizza Crust

While I love a raised dough for crust, I often fail to plan enough time to allow for it.  So when that happens (which is often!) I turn to this recipe.  Not too thick, not too thin....it's just right for me!

Ingredients:
2 1/4 tsp. yeast
1/4 tsp. sugar
3/4 cup very warm water
1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
cornmeal

1.  Combine yeast, sugar, and water and whisk together.  Let sit for 8 minutes.
2.  Add flour and salt to yeast mixture.  Knead for 2 minutes.
3.  Roll out onto a greased pizza pan that is sprinkled with cornmeal.
4.  Top with desired sauce and toppings.  Bake at 500 degrees for 8-12 minutes or until edges reach desired brownness.

Makes 1 pizza crust for a round pan.  I usually double it and roll it onto a large baking sheet.

Grilled Pizza

Last summer I decided to try making my pizza on the grill. I think I saw some chef on the Food Network make some grilled pizza years ago. I didn't look up a recipe. I just used my favorite dough recipe and added the toppings I liked. I made it again this summer and realized that I really really love it. You might just find me firing up my grill come January and going out in my winter clothes to grill my pizza! 

Start with your dough. Here is the recipe I use (makes about two thin crust pizzas)

Easy Pizza Dough

1 Tbsp. Yeast

1 C. warm water

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 tsp. sugar

2 1/2 C. flour

Dissolve the yeast in water and oil. Stir in salt, sugar and flour. Mix until ball forms. Allow to rise for 5 or 10 minutes. 

Get all your favorite pizza toppings ready (our favorite pizza was the olive oil, tomato, sauteed onion, mozzarella and fresh basil pizza.) 

Meanwhile heat your grill to med.high heat.

At this point I spread my dough out on a greased cookie sheet (normally I would use corn meal, but this is going on the grill)

Take your dough out to your hot grill and throw it on there. I just made a rustic rectangle dough shape.

 After just a few short minutes you will want to turn your crust over.

 Then, working quickly, add your desired toppings. Also, sprinkle a bit of kosher salt over the top of your pizzas. It just boosts the flavor. Close the lid to your grill and give your pizzas 3-7 minutes or until the cheese melts. If you think your crust is going to burn, go ahead and lower the grill heat.

Remove from the grill, cut up and enjoy!

Itsa Pizza!

My friend, Saren, posted a recipe for Southwestern Pizza that got me motivated to throw one together myself.  She just used ingredients she had on hand and that is pretty much what I did except I did pick up some black beans and Queso Fresco at the store since I had to go anyway.  This is a great, easy, quick dinner and pretty healthy as well.  You can find Saren's recipe HERE, but I will show you what I used to make mine.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Tomato sauce
Cholula sauce
Minced garlic
Green chilies, chopped
Black beans, drained well
Canned corn, drained well
Green bell pepper, chopped
Jalapeno, seeded and sliced thin
Pulled pork (because I had some left over  from supper earlier in the week)
Queso Fresco
Onion Salt, to taste
Salt, to taste (balance with the onion salt
Crescent Roll Dough (you can use homemade or ready-made pizza dough, pita bread, whatever...)

1.  Open 2 cans of Crescent Rolls. Keep the dough together for the eight rolls in the first can.  Spread out on your pizza stone or rectangular cookie sheet.  Pinch the dough together at the perforations to form one crust.  Take half of the second can and add to the dough you have already formed, so that you have a pan-size pizza.

2.  Mix tomato sauce, Cholula Sauce, and minced garlic (I would have used salsa instead, but we were out).  Spread evenly over dough.

3.  Add all of your toppings in layers, as desired.  Top with the cheese.

4.  Sprinkle with salt and onion salt.

5.  Bake at 425 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until dough is done in middle.  Watch your exposed crust so it doesn't get too brown.


Source:  Original recipe idea from Saren Loosli, Five Kids in Five Years.

Halibut Burgers

 So, part of my life was spent in Alaska and my parents still live there. One of the perks to having them there is having an abundance of wild caught halibut, salmon, rock fish, etc. So delicious! Here is one of our favorite and simple recipes for halibut.

Halibut Burgers (or HALIBURGERS)

Ingredients

1-2 lbs. halibut

Salt and Pepper

Montreal Steak Seasoning

Olive oil 

Butter 

Sesame buns (or buns of your choice)

Mayonnaise

Tomato

Lettuce 

Avocado 

1. Cut your halibut into pieces (butterfly them if necessary) Season with salt, pepper and a bit of Montreal steak seasoning 

2. In a frying pan, add a little bit of olive oil and a little bit of butter (about 1 Tbsp each) Cook the fish on both sides, til cooked through.

3. Toast your hamburger buns. You can pop them under the broiler (or if you have an obnoxious broiler that has to heat up for 20 minutes like mine, you can cheat and toast them over your gas burner.)

 4. Then build your burger. Mayo, lettuce, tomato, avocado and halibut. Enjoy!

Pepperoni Bites

This recipe was so easy to make! My 9 year old daughter actually made these one afternoon for everyone to have as a snack!  Delicious! We like deli pepperoni better than the ones you can get pre-packaged, but you can use whatever you want.  Enjoy!

 

1 cup AP Flour

1 teaspoon Baking Powder

1 cup Milk

1 egg

1 cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded

1-1/2 cup pepperoni, diced

Pam

Marina sauce

 

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Into a big mixing bowl add the flour, baking powder and stir. Next add the milk and the egg and blend well with mixer. Then add the cheese and the pepperoni and blend well. Spray the mini muffin tin well and then spoon in the mixture. Be sure not to over fill the mini muffin tin cups.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 25- 30 minutes, or until they are golden brown.  This makes approximately 2 dozen pepperoni bites. 

 

 

 

 

 

adapted from a Goose Berry Patch recipe. 

Grilled Caprese Sandwiches

Grilled Caprese Sandwiches

    My hubby and I were lucky enough to go to Europe a few years back and while we were there, we absolutely feel in love with all things Caprese. The combination of fresh tomatoes, fresh mozarella, and fresh basil is absolute perfection. This sandwich is a great, fast way to get a caprese fix. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

8 slices of your favorite bread 

One ball of fresh mozarella, cut into 1/4 inch slices

4 Roma or Plum tomatoes, cut into 1/4 inch slices

Traditional Basil Pesto

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Heat skillet to medium. Spread one slice of bread with a thin to moderate layer of pesto to taste, put tomato slices on top of pesto. Grind pepper over tomatoes. Top with layer of mozarella and another piece of bread. Drizzle olive oil on skillet, place sandwiches on skillet with another heavy skillet on top to form a press (or use a panini maker). Cook for 2 or 3 minutes, flip and repeat until golden brown and mozarella is melty and gooey.

Notes: I used homemade bread and that always takes any sandwich over the top. You could also make your own pesto, which I have never tried but intend to someday.....I also find that it helps to drain the tomato slices a bit to take out some of the extra water. 

Source: anediblesymphony.blogspot.com

Chicken Salad with Grapes

This recipe comes from my sister-in-law who got it from an old roommate's dad or something like that. I have tweaked it a bit over the years, as is usual for most recipes I use. It uses sour cream as well as mayonnaise to lighten it up a bit. The other secret ingredient is fresh lime juice. It adds some brightness to the salad.

Please feel free to add or omit ingredients. And a lot of the measurements are approximations. I do not measure when I make this. I just add as I go. 

4 Chicken breasts cooked and cut into small cubes

3-5 Cups seedless red grapes cut in half

3-4 Green onions, chopped

1/2-1 Cup sliced almonds

1/2 Cup mayonnaise

1/2 Cup sour cream

Juice of 1 or 2 limes

1/2-1 tsp. dried thyme

Sprinkle of seasoned salt

S&P to taste

Combine chicken, grapes, green onion and almonds in a large bowl. 

In a separate bowl, combine the mayo, sour cream, lime juice, thyme, seasoned salt and S&P. 

Pour dressing over the chicken mixture and stir to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning and lime juice as desired. 

Serve with your choice of bread, rolls or crackers.

Cloud Bread

Though I found this recipe intriguing while browsing Pinterest, I never really felt a need to give it a try.  I mean, why should I try to make a nearly carb-less bread?  I'm perfectly happy with the carb-laden kind!  Well, it wasn't long before I found out that I'm prediabetic and need to drop some weight and get my carb intake under control.  At present time, I'm still working on it.

I won't say this recipe fulfilled any deep bread cravings, but it was nice to have SOMETHING to make a breakfast sandwich out of.  I've also toasted it and used it as a sort of tostada.  If you decide to give it a try, make sure to follow the directions very closely.

Ingredients:
3 eggs (separated)
3 Tbsp. cream cheese
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
2 tsp. stevia

1.  Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.  Separate the whites of the eggs into a mixer bowl and the yolks into a small mixing bowl.
2.  Into the YOLKS, whisk in the stevia until smooth and well-combined.  Into the WHITES, add the cream of tartar and mix until you get stiff peaks.
3.  Add a little of the whites mixture (maybe 1/4 c.) into the yolks mixture and stir together until combined.  This will lighten up the yolks mixture a bit before folding it into the whites.  Carefully fold in the yolks mixture into the egg whites.  Fold only!  Do not stir or whisk as this will make the whites "deflate".  Fold gently until the whites and yolks are combined.
4.  Place a sheet of parchment or waxed paper onto each of two cookie sheets.  With a large spoon or large cookie scoop, dollop the mixture in four or five piles on the paper/cookie sheet.  Use the back of the spoon to make these dollops into nice even circles.  You want these to be at least 1/2-3/4" thick.
5.  Bake on the middle rack of the oven for about 30 minutes (you really have to watch these, only bake until they are golden).  Since I had two large cookie sheets I switched their positions halfway through and just baked each sheet until the "bread" was a nice golden color.
6.  Allow to cool COMPLETELY on a wire rack (I just transferred the papers straight onto a wire rack).  Once cool, they will become soft but just out of the oven they are a bit crispy.  Store in a ziploc bag.

Makes 8 to 10 pieces

Notes:

• Another recipe that I saw said you could use the same amount of cottage cheese in place of the cream cheese.  Haven't tried that yet.
• The recipe I used called for 1 packet of stevia, but I only had it in a large bag.  A web search informed me that 1 packet = 2 tsp.
• The recipe I used did not suggest lightening up the yolks mixture with the whites, but I've watched enough cooking shows to know that this is a great tip and helps with the folding process (plus, it's always worked better for me personally).
• These are fairly fragile.  They stood up okay to an egg/sausage load for breakfast, but just barely and only because I sort of cradled the sandwich carefully.  Toasting them makes them crispy but may also make them taste more egg-y.
• One piece is about 38 calories and about .25g of carbs, by my calculations.
• I've learned that this recipe is also known as Oopsies.

Source:  all over the internet, but I used the recipe from Mom, What's for Dinner?

Stuffed Baguette

I am in favor of recipes that you can make ahead and leave in the fridge until needed.  This recipe reminds me of those pinwheel tortilla appetizers that you buy in the freezer section of Sam's Club.  I would imagine you could come up with several variations of this and pack them for picnics.

Ingredients:

Baguette about 14 inches long

8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
4 oz. fresh goat cheese
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/2 c. finely chopped red bell pepper
1/2 c. finely chopped sun dried tomatoes in olive oil
1/4 c. finely chopped kalamata olives
2 oz. finely chopped spicy salami
2 T. minced Italian parsley
1 t. minced fresh thyme
freshly ground black pepper
salt to taste (if needed)

Directions:

1.  Slice off both ends of the baguette.  Using a long thin knife and working from the both ends, hollow the baguette out leaving about 1/2 inch thick crust all around.

2.  Using an electric mixer beat the cream cheese until smooth and lump-free.  Beat in the goat cheese and garlic.  Stir in the rest of the ingredients.

3.  Working again from the both ends, fill the baguette with the cheese mixture.  Pack the filling tight.  Wrap the stuffed baguette very well in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days.  Right before serving, slice* the baguette into 1/2 inch thick slices and serve.  (I left them in larger sections but the small ones work great for appetizers.)

*Hint:  For the most neat looking slices, treat it as a cheesecake - each time slice it with a hot knife.

Source:  bakingobsession.com

Salmon Sliders

As a kid, we used to have Salmon Croquettes every so often, and this is really just a new use for them.  Canned salmon is pretty cheap and packed with Omega-3 fatty acids.  If you keep canned salmon around, as I do, you've got a quick, cheap go-to lunch or dinner.  I kind of just threw in whatever, so this recipe is not precise.

Ingredients:
1 can of salmon, drained*
chopped onion and peppers (I used a small onion and 1/2 to 3/4 of a bell pepper)
1 egg
salt and pepper
seasonings**
bread crumbs
oil (I used coconut oil)

1.  Empty the drained salmon into a medium bowl.  Using a fork, mash the bones and skin pieces together with the flesh until well mixed.*  Saute the chopped onion and peppers (I used a little yellow, orange, and red bell pepper) in oil  in a skillet on medium heat until they are to your liking.  (I like my onions slightly caramelized.)  Add this to the salmon in the bowl and stir together.
2.  Add the egg and seasonings, stirring until well-combined.**  Add enough bread crumbs so that the mixture forms patties easily...not too dry to fall apart, but not so wet that it's mushy.  Form into small patties about the width of the rolls you are using; mine were about a half inch thick.
3.  In a skillet on medium heat, allow the oil to heat up.  Carefully place the patties in the skillet and cook for a few minutes on both sides until browned.

Makes about 8 small patties

Source:  inspired by this but embellishments are mine

Notes:
*The bones and skins don't bother me; the bones are so soft they crush up easily.  But if it bothers you, take them out while draining.  Personally, I just don't want to bother!
**I used lemon pepper, but you can add any seasoning that you enjoy in your burgers (onion soup mix, Montreal steak seasoning, etc.).

Also,

• I used dinner rolls from Sam's for the buns.  I buy the big bag and divide it up by the dozen into freezer bags.  I keep them in the freezer and pull them out when needed.  For added flavor, after cooking the sliders, add some butter to the skillet.  Place the rolls cut-side down in the skillet and allow to "cook" until they are golden brown.
• For slider fixin's this time, I used provolone cheese, mayo, and spinach.  I would've thrown some avocado on there if I'd had some.

Chicken and Spinach Stromboli

My kids love Stromboli, but only the kind with ham and cheese. Mr. Blue Eyes and I like ham and cheese, too, but sometimes it's nice to zest it up a bit, don't you think?

One day I had some fresh spinach in the fridge, some chicken in the freezer, and I thought, "I wonder..."  Well, my friends, IT WORKED! And here I am to share this concoction with the world. Lucky you. :)

Ingredients:
1 Batch of Pizza Dough (or a frozen loaf of Rhoades, thawed)
2-3 Chicken Breasts, thawed
Crushed Peppercorn and Garlic Rub (or some variation thereof--use your favorite and what's on hand)
2 Cups Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
Fresh Baby Spinach Leaves

1. Rub the chicken with the seasoning and bake, fry, etc. until done. I use my panini maker to grill it. A George Foreman or out door grill would work great, too. Just cook the chicken. :)
2. Using a fork, shred the cooked chicken and set it aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
4.On a lightly floured board, roll out the dough into a rectangle.
5. Spread the mozzarella cheese over the dough until evenly covered. Spread the chicken over the cheese. Spread the spinach over the chicken. It should look like this:

6. Beginning at the upper long edge, roll the dough in toward you (like cinnamon rolls), carefully tucking spinach leaves as you go. Don't worry too much if they bunch a little. You'll win in the end.
7. Pinch the seam and ends shut and place in a jelly roll pan (or on a cookie sheet of some kind) seam side down.
8. Bake for 25 minutes.

Cut into slices and enjoy!

Source: An original

~Kara

BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches

Ingredients:

1 3 pound pork roast (if frozen, thaw before prepping)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Montreal Steak Seasoning (or your favorite steak seasoning)
3-4 cups Root Beer, Dr. Pepper or Coke
1 1/2-2 cups Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauce
6-8 rolls for serving

1.  Season your pork roast generously with the steak seasoning.  Be sure to massage the spices into your roast really well!
2.  Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet and sear all sides of the roast.
3.  Pierce roast a couple of times with a fork and place in a large crock pot.
4.  Pour soda over your meat, cover and cook on low for about 7 hours; or until meat shreds easily with a fork.
5.  Remove roast from crock pot and shred with two forks.  Put shredded meat back into the soda juices, cover and cook for 1 more hour.
6.  Drain juices from crock pot and pour in BBQ sauce.  Mix well, cover and cook for 30 minutes or until BBQ sauce is heated through.
7.  Serve pulled pork on yummy rolls and enjoy!  You could also add a handful of cole slaw to each sandwich for texture!

Source:  Jamie Cooks It Up!

Turkey Avocado Panini Sandwich

This time of year always brings out cabin-fever in my house. I get itchy for "summer food." And since our local grocery store had avocados at reduced prices (nice of them to comply to my mood, don't you think?), I thought, "What better way to kick winter in the bum?" (That's right. Bum.)

Ingredients:
2 slices Country White or Sour Dough Bread (or your favorite thick bread)
Turkey Breast, sliced thick*
2 slices Provolone Cheese
1/2 Avocado, mashed
squirt of lime
5 - 8 Cherry Tomatoes, halved

1. Add the squirt of lime to the avocado and stir until thoroughly incorporated.
2. Layer in the following order: 1 slice of bread, 1 slice of cheese, turkey breast, avocado, tomatoes, 1 slice of cheese, and top with the other slice of bread.
3. Smash them onto a Panini Maker until the cheese is melted and gooey. Mmm-MMMM!!

If you don't have a panini maker, don't sweat it! Toast your bread for a little added crunch and warmth.

*Left overs are great. We have also used deli slices, and Oscar Meyer Cutting Board turkey breast.

Serves 1

~Kara