Cabernet Burgers

Nothing better than burgers in the summer, right?  Things in New Jersey got a little warm this last week, so I thought I'd participate in the Grilling swap hosted by Sarah at A Taste of Home Cooking.

I love running across new versions of burgers.  While sometimes there is nothing better than a regular cheeseburger, sometimes it is nice to splurge on ingredients and do something like a Cabernet burger.

Cabernet Burgers
slightly adapted from Kylee Cooks
Ingredients
Glaze
2 cups cabernet sauvignon
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Butter
1/4 cup unsalted butter (1/2 stick), softened
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves, minced

Patties
1-1/2 pounds ground turkey
1/4 cup Cabernet glaze (above)
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Burger construction
4 slices white cheddar cheese
8 slices tomato, 1/2 inch thick
2 cups spinach
Buns

Directions
1) In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, combine the wine and brown sugar.  Cook until reduced to 1/2 cup, 25 to 30 minutes.  Set aside to cool.
2) In a small bowl, mix the butter and rosemary.
3) Warm up the grill (450-550 degrees).  Combine the meat and seasonings into four patties of equal size and thickness. 
4) Grill the patties over direct high heat, brushing with glaze for every 2 minutes.  During the last minute of cooking, place a slice of cheese on each patty to melt.
5) Lower the temperature of the grill to medium heat.  Brush tomato slices with oil, season with salt and pepper and grill until soft (2-4 minutes).  Spread the buns with the rosemary butter and grill until lightly toasted.  Build each burger with spinach, a patty, and tomato.

These burgers ended up being the type that cause juices to flow down your arms while you're eating them.  The wine made them very moist and juicy.  The grilled tomatoes made what is usually a common boring topping a little more delicious with char flavor.  My grocery store didn't have focaccia, so I just used regular buns, but I could see the focaccia taking this to another level.  I'm glad we had a chance to try these burgers, and enjoying them with the remaining bottle of wine was an added bonus.

Tex-Mex Sloppy Joes

Last Blogger's Choice recipe swap I participated in, I made Magic Monster Cookie Bars from Kate's Recipe Box.  This time around for the Blogger's Choice swap, I received Kate's blog again, so I decided to make one of the other recipes from her blog that I had wanted to make: Tex-Mex Sloppy Joes.  These have been going around a lot of blogs that I read, so I knew they had to be good.

Tex-Mex Sloppy Joes
slightly adapted from Kate's Recipe Box
Ingredients
1 can (14.5 oz) tomato sauce
2 teaspoons oregano
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried cilantro
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 1/4 lbs ground turkey
1 teaspoon canola oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
1 jalapeno, minced (without seeds for less heat, with seeds for more)
2 cloves garlic, minced
12 oz. beer, such as a light ale or lager
2 tablespoons ketchup
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon lime juice
Salt and black pepper to taste
Hamburger buns, cheese (I used pepper jack) and guacamole, for serving

Directions,
1) In a bowl, whisk together the tomato sauce, oregano, ground cumin, dried cilantro, allspice and Worcestershire sauce.
2) In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the ground meat, stirring occasionally until no longer pink, about 10 minutes.  Drain off the fat.
3) Add the canola oil to the pan with the browned meat then stir in the diced onion and the jalapeno. Cook until soft, about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook for an additional 30 seconds.  Stir in the tomato mixture, along with the beer, ketchup and cilantro until well combined.
4) Let all ingredients come to a low simmer and then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook uncovered for 15 minutes. 
5) Toast buns under the broiler until lightly browned.
6) Stir in the lime juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve on warmed buns with cheese and guacamole.

My modifications and substitutions were based on things that I couldn't eat in the original recipe.  I think the chipotle in adobo would add that smoky flavor, that these don't have.  However, these turned out to be the best sloppy joes that I have made so far.  I used ground turkey since I knew there would be so many other flavors.  I think what made these great was the addition of the beer.  It gave just that extra kick of flavor.  I did use pepper jack on top of using the jalapeno with the seeds, so ours were a little on the spicy side.  Thanks again for another great recipe Kate!


Thanks again Sarah, at A Taste of Home Cooking, for hosting the swaps.  They always result in great food!  Please find the other recipes from the swap below.

Chicken Parmesan Roll-ups

This time the theme for the recipe swap, hosted by A Taste of Home Cooking, was Chicken.  I entered this swap mainly because it seems like I'm always struggling to find new ways to eat chicken.  When I ask my husband what kind of chicken dishes he wants for the week, he always requests barbeque chicken, and while I love barbeque chicken, it is nice to find other recipes.

I received My Chicago Kitchen's Gluten Free Chicken Parmesan Roll-ups.  I've actually never made chicken parmesan before.  I made tofu parmesan back when I first joined the swap.  I was excited though because I think roll-ups can be a fun vessel for fillings.


Chicken Parmesan Roll-ups
adapted from My Chicago Kitchen
Ingredients
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

4 tablespoons parmesan cheese

8 tablespoons shredded mozzarella cheese, plus more for topping

1/8 cup frozen spinach, defrosted and strained

4 basil leaves, divided (I tore mine into small pieces)

4 roasted red pepper halves (I used jarred), trimmed to fit inside the chicken breasts

1 jar favorite marinara sauce (or 1 1/2 c. prepared marinara)

Toothpicks

 

Directions

1) Heat oven to 350 F.

2) Mix together in a bowl the ricotta, parmesan cheese, shredded mozzarella, and spinach.

3) Lay chicken down in front of you and distribute evenly the ricotta mixture.  On top of the mixture place basil pieces, and red pepper pieces.

4) Roll up the chicken breasts and secure them with your toothpicks. 

5) Pour 1 cup marinara into the bottom of a 9 x 13 in. pan and nestle in your roll-ups, seam side down. Top with remaining marinara and additional cheese. Bake uncovered 45-50 minutes, until cooked through. When ready to serve, spoon cooked marinara over the top.

 

 

Angie's recipe doesn't have a ricotta mixture on the inside, but since it isn't a breaded chicken dish, I felt it needed a little more filling.  The problem I ran into was putting so much filling into each chicken breast, that they were hard to roll.  These were delicious.  I loved the spinach and the roasted red pepper combination on the inside.  This dish was easy to put together and tasted really delicious.

 

Please check out all the other chicken recipes from this swap below!

 

 

Monster Magic Cookie Bars

For the longest time, I was scared of desserts.  My lean-to when I was asked to bring desserts were boxed Magic Cookie Bars from the baking aisle in Wal Mart.  When I was assigned Kate's Recipe Box for the Recipe Swap that A Taste of Home Cooking hosts, I ran across a lot of great sounding recipes (Tex-Mex Sloppy Joes and Make it Yourself Shamrock Shakes).  But when I saw the Monster Cookie Bars, I realized that I haven't touched Magic Cookie Bars since I got really into cooking.  While these are slightly different than the ones in the box at Wal Mart, I decided these would be what I'd make for the swap.

Monster Magic Cookie Bars
slightly adapted Kate's Recipe Box
Ingredients
9 full graham crackers
4 tablespoons butter, melted
1 can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup old fashioned oats
3/4 cup M&Ms
3/4 cup peanut butter chips
3/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions
1) Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Grease a 9×13″ baking pan.
2) Crush graham crackers into crumbs using a food processor or rolling pin.
3) Mix in melted butter until well-combined. Press crumbs into lined baking dish.
4) Evenly pour the sweetened condensed milk over the graham cracker layer. Sprinkle the oats, M&Ms, peanut butter chips and chocolate chips evenly over the sweetened condensed milk. Gently press in a little.
5) Bake for 30 minutes or until browned and pulling away from the edges of the pan. Let cool completely before cutting.

I love these bars because the graham crackers and the sweetened condensed milk base provide such a blank slate for any of your favorite dessert toppings.  I threw in some peanut butter chips that I had sitting in my pantry and I think it just enhanced the 'monster-ness' of these bars.  While I don't have kids, I think this would be a great rainy/snow day activity with your child.  Have them roll the graham crackers and build their idea of a monster cookie bar.  There is no wrong topping in the monster magic cookie bar world.

Please check out all the other great recipes below!

Chocolate Raspberry Tart w/ a Graham Cracker Crust

About three months before we moved from Wyoming to New Jersey, I bought tart pans...even though I had put a ban on buying new things right before the move.  They were like two dollars, and I convinced myself that I'd use them all the time.  About a year later, I've never used the tart pans...ever. 

So, when the Dessert swap, hosted by Sarah at A Taste of Home Cooking, produced a dessert that required a tart pan, I smugly said that I knew I'd need the tart pan eventually and that is why I bought it.  :)

Chocolate Raspberry Tart with a Graham Cracker Crust
from Life and Kitchen
Ingredients
Baking spray for the dish
1-1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup melted unsalted butter
3-1/2 cups fresh raspberries
8 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1-1/4 cups heavy cream
Small pinch salt

Directions
1) Heat the oven to 325°F. Spray the sides and bottom of a 9-1/2-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom.
2) Put the graham crackers and melted butter into a food processor and pulse until crumbly.
3) Pour the cracker mixture into the tart pan and press the mixture into the sides and bottom of the pan with the bottom of a measuring cup or a jar.
4) Set the pan on a baking sheet and refrigerate for 20 minutes to firm, then bake the tart crust about 15 minutes, checking and rotating if needed to make the sure the crust doesn’t get too dark. Set on a rack to cool.
5) Meanwhile, push 1 cup of the berries through a fine sieve, mashing with a spoon, into a bowl so the puree drips through; set it aside and discard the seeds.
6) Heat the cream over medium heat until scalding, but not quite boiling. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate; whisk to blend until the chocolate is melted. Stir in the raspberry purée and the salt.
7) Pour the mixture into the cooled tart shell. Refrigerate until the ganache is fairly firm, about 1 hour.
8) Arrange the remaining raspberries on top of the ganache; they should completely cover the surface. These berries won’t sink into the chocolate filling. The ganache is chilled slightly before the raspberries go on.
9) Chill until the ganache is completely firm, about 30 minutes, and serve.

The hardest part of this dessert is waiting for everything to chill so you can dig in.  One of my favorite combinations is chocolate and raspberries, so I loved these.  Plus the addition of fresh raspberries on top strengthens the raspberry flavors.  I feel like this dessert is calling me to get a bigger tart pan...but I'm pretty sure the two small ones will suffice.  A girl can never have too many kitchen gadgets, right? ;)

Check out all the other desserts that were made for the swap!

Chili Blanco

It is time for another recipe swap, hosted by Sarah at A Taste of Home Cooking.  The theme this time was Blogger's Choice and I received Dawn's blog: Simple Gourmet Cooking.

 

While looking through Dawn's blog, I discovered an old favorite: Mexican Stuffed Shells, so I made that one night.  Then, I was looking around her blog and came across this chili.  I have been looking for a good chile recipe that isn't a red-base chili, so I thought I'd try this one as my swap recipe. 

Chili Blanco
slightly adapted from Simple Gourmet Cooking
Ingredients
1 pound ground chicken or ground turkey
1 pound lean ground pork
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 Knorrs Concentrated Chicken Broth tubs
1 can Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
2 15-oz cans Great Northern Beans, undrained
1 15-oz can golden hominy,  undrained
1 4-oz cans diced green chile peppers, undrained
4 large fresh jalapeno chile peppers, seeded and chopped
3 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
Directions
1) In a 4-quart Dutch oven cook chicken, pork, onions and garlic over medium heat until pork is brown and onion is tender. Drain off fat.
2) Stir in concentrated broth, enchilada sauce, beans, hominy, green chile peppers, jalapeno peppers, lime juice, cumin, and white pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 40 min, stirring occasionally. Stir in cilantro.

When going through my cupboard for ingredients, I realized that I only had one can of green chiles, but I had an extra can of green chile enchilada sauce.  So, I added that in addition to everything.  Apparently the commissary on base doesn't like stocking different types of peppers, so they only had jalapeno peppers instead of poblano, so I just grabbed more of those instead. 

While it isn't as white as Dawn's, due to the enchilada sauce, I decided to keep the name.  I thought this chili was fantastic.  Jacob said that it was different enough and good enough to enter into a chili competition, which in my mind is a huge stamp of approval from him.  I served this with an herbed cheddar bread that has the texture of cornbread.  It was great for some of the dreary weather we've faced the past couple of weeks.  Definitely put this on your menu if you're looking for a non-red chili.

Please check out the other great dishes from the Blogger's Swap below.

Egg Sandwiches with Goat Cheese and Prosciutto

It is time for another recipe swap, and this time, I got our host Sarah from A Taste of Home Cooking.  I was really excited because in all the time that we've been doing the swaps, I have only ever gotten something from Sarah once.  Please visit Sarah's blog to look through six years dishes she's made while blogging.

While looking through her blog, I came up with so many dishes that I basically meal-planned my two weeks of food around Sarah's blog.  We loved every dish that I made, so it was hard to choose between the three that I actually took pictures of, which one I should actually post.  I was going to post about the Chicken Tostadas with Avocado Salsa, but then one of the other bloggers from my food forum posted it as part of her Taco Tuesday series...so I'll save that one for another time.  I finally decided on these delicious breakfast sandwiches.

Egg sandwiches with Goat Cheese and Prosciutto
slightly adapted from A Taste of Home Cooking
Ingredients
4 ounces goat cheese, softened
2 teaspoons dried chives
4 eggs
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
4 medium rustic rolls, halved crosswise, lightly toasted
4 tablespoons pesto
4 ounces sliced prosciutto
Directions
1) In a medium bowl, combined the goat cheese and chives; set aside.
2) Heat the butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Crack each egg into the skillet, and lower the heat to medium-low. After about two minutes, flip the egg and sprinkle with salt. Turn off the heat but don’t move the pan. Residual heat from the pan will finish cooking the eggs without drying the out while you build the sandwiches.
3) Spread the cut sides of one half of each roll with the goat cheese mixture and one half of the roll with pesto. Top the bottom half with a fried egg, then sliced prosciutto. Top with the other half of the roll. Serve immediately.

I tried making these with a scrambled egg type mixture as Sarah recommended, but ended up with more egg on my plate than between the bread.  The second time I made these, the fried egg worked much better, although Jacob said he liked the taste of the scrambled eggs better.  I love the combination of pesto and goat cheese, so I thought that that would be a delicious addition.  I only used chives because I forgot to buy green onions, but I think the green onions would be amazing as well because I didn't really taste the chives in the goat cheese mixture.  These breakfast sandwiches are super tasty and only take about 10 minutes to cook, so it is a win-win dinner.  Can't wait to make these again in the future.  Stay tuned for the tostada recipe as well, it was amazing too!

Please click through the dishes below to find other delicious recipes.

Orange Zest and Pecan Chicken

It's time for another recipe swap, hosted by Sarah at A Taste of Home Cooking.  It's hard to believe that I've been doing these swaps for almost two years now, and have found so many good recipes because of it. 

The theme this time was Celebrity Swap.  I swapped my recipe from Bobby Flay for Lamb and Red Onion Tacos with Tomato Relish, and in return received Orange Zest and Pecan Chicken from A Seasoned Greeting that she adapted from a Rachel Ray recipe.

I've started jogging in the evenings after work and this is a simple, not a lot of fuss meal that turns out fantastic.  It is such a great weeknight meal.  Usually Rachel Ray's dishes are ingredient intensive too, so I was glad to see that this recipe had no where near her usual ingredient count. 

Orange Zest and Pecan Chicken
barely adapted from A Seasoned Greeting
Ingredients

1 tablespoon EVOO

2 chicken breasts cut into tenders (I just left my chicken breasts whole)
1 cup orange juice (either fresh or from concentrate)
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup sweet BBQ sauce
1/3 cup finely crushed pecans
1 navel orange (you'll use the zest and the juice)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees

2)  Place the chicken in pan and season with salt & pepper, surround chicken breasts with orange juice. Cook 45 minutes (or until no longer pink).

3) In a bowl, mix the maple syrup and BBQ sauce. Zest the orange and stir in the zest. Juice the orange and stir into the mixture.

I have to say that I think the star of this dish is the sauce.  I really could have left the pecans off the dish and been perfectly happy, but this dish had really moist chicken and a sauce that was to die for.  The juice from the orange transforms the barbeque sauce into something unique yet completely delicious.  I have to say that I tried to serve this over some lettuce like Rachel Ray suggested but the sauce is a little too much for the lettuce, and it became a soggy mess with the lettuce.  However, the rice was a great compliment to the dish and absorbed the leftover sauce, which was a bonus too. 

Please check out all the other great Celebrity Swap recipes below!

Beef Stew with Herbed Dumplings

It's time for another recipe swap, hosted by Sarah at A Taste of Home Cooking.  It is time for another Blogger's Choice swap, and this time I received My Chicago Kitchen.  I don't remember ever looking at this blog before, and so I spent quite awhile looking over Angie's blog for a recipe. 

It has been getting colder here, and so I kept going back to her soup section.  I love stews, but usually they make so much that I really don't make them often.  Like Angie said in her post, she had never had rutebegas before this dish, and neither had my husband or I, so I thought it would be a great dish to try something new...that's what the swaps are for, right?  We found out during the course of this dish, that rutabegas are awesome. 

Beef Stew with Herbed Dumplings
barely adapted from My Chicago Kitchen
Ingredients
2.5 pounds boneless beef chuck, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tablespoons peanut oil
4 thick-sliced bacon strips, chopped
1 white onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
3 1/2 cups canned beef broth
1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes
3 carrots, peeled, cut diagonally into 1-inch pieces
1 rutabaga, peeled, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
2/3 cup whole milk
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons minced chives
2 tablespoons minced fresh Italian parsley
1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons cornstarch

Directions
1) Preheat to 325°F.
2) Pat beef dry. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Heat oil in a heavy, large ovenproof pot over medium-high heat. Brown the beef, stirring occasionally and scraping up browned bits, for about 8 minutes. Cook in batches if necessary. Remove to platter.
3) Add bacon to same pot. Sauté until crisp, scraping up browned bits, for about 5 minutes.
4) Add onions, garlic, thyme and bay leaf. Cover and cook until onions are tender, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes.
5) Return beef to pot. Add 5 cups beef broth and crushed tomatoes with purée. Cover and bring to simmer, stirring occassionally.
6) Transfer pot to oven. Bake until beef is just tender, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour. Add carrots and rutabagas. Cover; bake until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 20 to 30 minutes. Uncover and cook until beef is very tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove stew to range and simmer over low heat.
7) While the stew is simmering, prepare dumplings. Whisk milk and eggs in medium bowl to blend. Mix in chives and parsley. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add the milk mixture to the dry ingredients and stir just until blended.
8) Whisk remaining 1/2 cup canned beef broth and cornstarch in small bowl. Raise simmering stew to medium heat. Stir cornstarch mixture into stew. Return to simmer, stirring until sauce thickens.
9) Spoon dumpling batter in medium-sized dollops onto simmering stew. Cover tightly; simmer until dumplings are puffed and a toothppick inserted into center of dumplings comes out clean, about 15 minutes.

The only changes I made were the amounts of things.  Angie said this had about six servings, but we ate three bowls for one meal and there was more than half left, so even with the amounts changed, it still makes a lot of food.

This dish is absolutely amazing on a chilly, rainy evening.  I made it after work one night and let the flavors meld even more the next day.  The night we ate it, I thickened it with the cornstarch and made the dumplings, and the flavors were even more developed. 

I loved the tomato aspect of the dish.  I have only had stews with beef broth and the tomatoes added a new dimension to it.  I also love dumplings, and that is one of the things that made me click on the dish while looking through Angie's blog.  The dumpling makes the perfect accompaniment to the dish.

Beer Cheddar Risotto

It's time for another recipe swap, hosted by Sarah at A Taste of Home Cooking.  This time around, the theme was Side Dishes.  Always a good theme because I think everyone is always looking for new side dishes to go with the main dishes they have in mind.

I received Beer Cheddar Risotto from Ashley at Cheese Curd in Paradise.   I have to admit that I've always heard how much work risotto is, so I just haven't made it, and so while this sounded like a delicious combination, I really thought I would mess it up just because of what I'd heard.

The night that I decided to make this, my husband came home from work exclaiming that the Packers were playing on TV...he is a huge Green Bay Packers fan, so I knew this was the perfect dish for us.  We enjoyed it as Green Bay won the game (against whoever they were playing, haha).

Beer Cheddar Risotto

barely adapted from Cheese Curd in Paradise

Ingredients

24 oz of beef stock

1/2 small onion, diced

1 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoons olive oil
1 cups Arborio rice 
1/2 bottle of beer
3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/8 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Black Pepper, to taste

 

Directions

1) Place beef stock in a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer (do not boil). Keep warm over low-medium heat.
2)  Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter to pan; swirl to coat. Add onions and cook for 3 minutes and add garlic.

3) Stir in rice, and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly.

4) Increase heat to medium and add beer. Add 1/2 cup stock and cook 3-5 minutes or until liquid is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly. Continue adding remaining stock, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each portion of stock is absorbed before adding the next.

5) Right before you serve the risotto, stir in the cheese and season with black pepper. (Right before I plated, I stirred in another dash of beer.  I think it made the beer flavor a little stronger.)

 

 

I now think that things that take longer to cook and a little more attention usually turn out more delicious than the things that are just easy and throw together.  I couldn't get enough of this dish.  The leftovers were devoured the next day for lunch, and I think the flavors got even better the next day.  I think this is the best side dish that we've had in awhile.  I served this side dish with Grilled Honey Mustard Pork Tenderloin from Two Peas and Their Pod, it was a great combination.

 

Please check out all the other delicious side dishes that were made below.

 

 

 

Horseradish burgers with Havarti (H Squared Burgers)

After several weeks of being gone, I decided to join the recipe swaps hosted by Sarah at A Taste of Home Cooking.  Two months ago, I started a new job and I just couldn't figure out the balance between the new job and making dinner every night.  I'm very lucky my husband likes breakfast foods, we ate a lot of waffles in those first few weeks.

I joined right in time for the Blogger's Choice Swap, where we can choose whatever we wanted to make.  Confession time: my husband and I are still grilling.  Even though it is winter, the temperatures here are much warmer than they were in Wyoming at this time, so every few weeks we break out a burger, so I thought this Horseradish and Havarti Burger would be a perfect burger to try.

We loved it so much, we started calling it the H Squared Burger because we thought the original name was too much to say. 

Horseradish burgers with Havarti
barely modified from I Was Born To Cook
Ingredients
2 pounds ground beef
1/4 cup prepared horseradish
salt and pepper
sliced havarti cheese
buns
toppings and condiments of your choice (we only used mayonaisse and grilled onions)

Directions

1) Put beef in a bowl. Mix in horseradish, salt and pepper. Handform into 8 patties.

2) Grill burgers for about 8 minutes (for medium), then flip. Add cheese. Cover for 1 minute so cheese melts.
3) While cheese is melting, grill the hamburger buns. Serve with condiments and toppings.

These were some of the best buergers that we've had in a long time.  I loved the spiciness from the horseradish with the creaminess of the cheese.  My husband just kept asking if we could make them again, so in the course of a week, we had these three times for dinner.  He usually loads his burgers up with condiments, but he said these don't need anything but a little mayo.  If you grill in the winter, these should be next on your list, and if you wait until warm weather, make sure these are the first burgers you make.

Chicken Burgers with Garlic Rosemary Mayo

I've had Dawn's blog before for a Blogger's choice swap, so I knew that I would find something delicious to try on her blog.  As I predicted, it didn't take too much time to find something delicious.

We tried the Chicago Style Deep Dish pizza, which was delicious, especially with the homemade pizza sauce.  Unfortunately, it wasn't the prettiest thing, so even though it was awesome, and you should head over to Dawn's blog to try it, it isn't the star of this post.

I saw the Chicken Burger with Garlic Rosemary Mayo on A Taste of Home Cooking (the host of the recipe swap).  I remember pinning the recipe on Pinterest, and for a long time, I pass over it thinking it sounds good, but something always sounded better. When I saw it on Dawn's blog, I decided it was time to finally make it.

Chicken Burgers with Garlic Rosemary Mayo
slightly adapted from Simple Gourmet Cooking
Ingredients
For the mayo:1 cup light mayonnaise
1/4 cup fresh rosemary, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced

For the burgers:
1 pound ground chicken
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
4 hamburger buns
1 cup arugula, divided

Directions
1) Preheat grill to medium-high.
2) In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, garlic and rosemary. Set aside in the refrigerator.
3) In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, salt, pepper and 1/2 cup of the garlic rosemary mayonnaise mixture until well combined. Shape into 4 equally sized patties.
4) Grill for 6-7 minutes per side, or until burgers are cooked through. Transfer to a clean plate and let them rest for a few minutes.
5) Spread 1 teaspoon of the garlic rosemary mayo onto the cut side of each roll. Add the arugula to the bottom bun, then the patty. Top with the top half of the bun.

These were absolutely delicious.  I loved the subtle yet complex flavor.  I was surprised by how much my husband liked these.  It is definitely different than your typical mustard/ketchup combination.  Add these to your menu soon, you won't regret it.  Check out the other delicious recipes below.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Stuffed Cinnamon Buns

The theme for the Recipe Swap this round was breakfast.  I was excited when I saw that my recipe was Christine's Kitchen Chronicles since I guest posted for her not too long ago.   Her blog is full of a lot of great recipes, so I was excited to try these.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Stuffed Cinnamon Buns
from Christine's Kitchen Chronicles
Ingredients
For the Ready to Eat Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
3 Tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

For the Cinnamon Rolls:
2 cups milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup sugar
1 packet yeast (2-1/4 teaspoons)
4-1/2 cups flour (I used 1-1/2 cups whole wheat and 3 cups all purpose)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 stick (4 Tablespoons) butter
cinnamon
sugar
1 batch ready to eat cookie dough

For the Icing:

2 1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoon butter, melted 

2 teaspoon vanilla
4 Tablespoons heavy cream or milk

 

Directions
1)  Make the Cookie Dough:  In a small bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in milk and vanilla. Add in flour. Stir in chocolate chips.  Store in an air-tight container in the fridge.
2) Mix the milk, oil, and sugar in a large pot. Scald milk mixture (heat until not quite boiling) and then let it cool to room temperature.  If the liquid is too hot, you will kill your yeast and your rolls will not rise.
3) Sprinkle yeast over milk mixture and let it sit for a couple minutes.  Stir in 4 cups of flour to form a sticky dough. Cover pan and let the dough rise for 1 hour. 
4) After dough has risen, stir in remaining 1/2 cup of flour, baking powder, and baking soda until well combined. 
5) Divide dough in half. On a flour covered workplace, roll the dough out until it's about 1/8" thick and in a rectangular shape about 18 inches long and 12 inches wide.
6) Melt butter in a glass measuring cup or a small bowl. Pour half of the melted butter over the dough and spread using a brush. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon (the amount is up to you). Top with spoonfuls of prepared chocolate chip cookie dough. 
7) Roll dough toward you, keeping the spiral as tight as possible. Cut into 3/4 inch slices. Place in a greased pan.  
8) Repeat this process with the other half of the dough.  
9) Let the cinnamon rolls rise again for 30 minutes. Then bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes. 
10) While rolls are in the oven, mix together ingredients for icing.  You want it to be the consistency of a spreadable frosting.  Add powdered sugar if it is too runny and heavy cream if it is too thick. 
11) Let the rolls cool for about 5 minutes before icing.  

These are definitely more of a weekend recipe than a weekday recipe.  Since I don't have a lot of experience with yeast, I was scared, but everything turned out really good.  I don't know if these needed to be stuffed with cookie dough, but it made them different and they were good.  I doubled the amount of icing because we really like a lot of icing on our cinnamon rolls.  These would definitely be a great special breakfast for a holiday or a momentous occasion. 

Gnocchi Mac and Cheese

It's time for another Recipe Swap! The theme for this swap was Blogger's Choice, so I received Tasty Treats by Tina, and I could choose any recipe from her blog that I wanted to make.

It's getting cooler here in New Jersey.  To me, it feels like the humidity has left the air, and it has been hitting the low to mid-70s everyday instead of the low to mid-90s.  I thought I'd try to make something a little more comforting and fall-like, and landed on this Gnocchi Mac and Cheese.

I've only had gnocchi twice, and both times were at Olive Garden.  I thought the dishes were very good, and my favorite is their Chicken and Gnocchi soup.  I'm going to try to re-create that dish from A Taste of Home Cooking sometime this fall too. Can't wait.

Check out Tina's blog for other tasty creations.

Gnocchi Mac and Cheese
barely adapted from Tasty Treats by Tina
Ingredients
6 slices bacon  
1 sweet onion, diced
2 tablespoons white cooking wine
1 pound gnocchi
2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon dried sage
1 tablespoon flour
1 Cup milk
1/2 Cup Gruyere Cheese, shredded
1/2 Cup Fontina Cheese, shredded
1/2 Cup Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese, shredded

Directions 
1) Preheat oven to 375.
2) Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium low heat, turning frequently until crisp. Transfer bacon to a paper towel lined plate, chop and set aside. 
3) Add onion and cooking wine to the skillet with the bacon grease and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and caramelized, anywhere from about 30 minutes.
4) Drop the gnocchi into a pot of salted boiling water and cook until they float to the top, 2-3 minutes. Drain in a colander then return gnocchi to the pot.
5) Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and sage and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. 
6) Add the flour and whisk until it bubbles, then add the milk. Cook until slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes.
7) Add the Gruyere and Fontina and stir until melted. Mix in the bacon and caramelized onions. Pour over the gnocchi and stir until combined.
8) Transfer the gnocchi and sauce to a lightly oiled baking dish and cover with the Parmesan cheese.  
9) Bake until the cheese is golden and bubbly, about 25 minutes.  Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

I appologize for the picture.  It isn't the best.  However, this mac and cheese is fantastic.  The bacon and the caramelized onion add such flavor to the gnocchi, which are soft and amazing.  This was the perfect fall-type dish, and I can't wait to make more things with gnocchi.

Better Than Sex Cake

The theme of this recipe swap was desserts.  I was excited because I am definitely on a dessert kick, and I now find baking soothing.  It passes the time since I am new to New Jersey and still do not know many people.

My husband invited some people over for dinner, and since this recipe seemed really simple for a get together.  I wanted to make it so that I wouldn't spend all night in the kitchen, but instead getting to know the people that were coming over to the house.  It makes a 9 by 13 pan, and less than a third of the pan remained when the guests left that evening.  The guests absolutely loved it.

Better than Sex Cake
slightly adapted from Cheese Curd in Paradise
Ingredients
1 box chocolate cake mix (+ whatever it calls for on the back)
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 jar caramel sauce (or hot fudge sauce)
1-8 oz container of cool whip
4 Heath Bars, crushed

Directions

1) Make and bake cake according to box directions. As soon as it comes out of the oven, poke holes with the handle of a wooden spoon all over the cake. 

2) Pour sweetened condensed milk over the top. Let cool completely. 

3) Next spread caramel over the cake, and put in the fridge to set. 

4) When it is cool, spread cool whip over the top and then top with crushed candy bars. Refrigerate leftovers. 

 I think this cake has all the perfect elements: crunchy, gooey, chocolatey.  It is hard to keep it in the fridge and not eat it.  Everything absorbs and makes this one of the most moist cakes that I've ever had.  The Better than Sex cake that I've had before had caramel instead of hot fudge, so I used that to try to cut down on the richness.  This is definitely a piece of cake that loves a glass of milk.

German Chocolate Cake Brownies

Lately, I've been in a dessert craze.  I make them, and 24 people at my husband's office devour them.  What's not to love about that, right?

So when I got Simple Gourmet Cooking for the latest Blogger's Choice Swap, I went right to her dessert tag.  I love German Chocolate Cake.  I ask for someone to make it for me every birthday, so it seemed like a no-brainer to me.  I also made the Beef Wellington Hand Pies, which were really good, and the BBQ Chicken Pasta.  Dawn's blog is filled with a lot of great recipes, so head over there if you get a chance.

German Chocolate Cake Brownies
from Simple Gourmet Cooking
Ingredients
2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened

1

  box of German chocolate cake mix

1 

cup semisweet chocolate chips

1

  container coconut pecan frosting

3

  tablespoons milk

Directions

1) Heat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease or spray bottom and sides of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray. 

2) In medium bowl, combine butter and cake mix and mix with a fork until crumbly; separate out 1 cup of mixture and set aside. Press the remaining mixture in bottom of pan.

3) Bake 10 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over baked layer. Drop frosting by heaping tablespoonfuls over the chocolate chips and spread slightly. 

4) Stir milk into reserved cake mixture. Drop cake-milk mixture by teaspoonfuls onto frosting layer.

5) Bake 24 to 28 minutes or until cake portion is slightly dry to touch; cool 10 minutes in the pan. Carefully loosen edges of bars with knife. Cool completely. Refrigerate until firm.

I loved these brownies.  They were the classic German Chocolate cake flavors, in a much easier to eat form.  They were so easy to put together too, which makes them even more fantastic.  This was definitely my favorite thing out of a lot of good dishes that we tried from Dawn's blog.

Turkey Burgers with Cheddar and Cumin Aioli

I had never used a grill before I met my husband.  The first time I used it by myself, I was petrified.  I didn't know how to use the knobs or make sure that my food turned out okay, so it just seemed like an instrument to be afraid of and not embrace.

Three years later, I loved our grill.  Problem was, when we went to move, the grill that I had used to make so many good meals on, fell apart.  The movers told us that they wouldn't allow us to take it to New Jersey.  I was a little sad, but interested to see what our new grill would be like.  Just this past weekend we bought a new infrared grill.  It isn't put together yet...but I have to say I'm very excited to see what great food it delivers. 

As it turns out, we had this Too Hot to Cook theme for our recipe swaps.  Well, we hadn't purchased a grill before we made these, so I made them on the panini maker, and while I missed our grill, I think the panini maker did a fine job too.

Turkey Burgers with Cheddar and Cumin Aioli
barely adapted from Delicious Meliscious
Ingredients:

Aioli
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon coriander 
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus additional for brushing
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 garlic clove, pressed

Burgers
1 pound ground turkey
4 1/3-inch-thick red onion slices
1 large red bell pepper, quartered
4 slices white cheddar cheese
4 hamburger buns
Arugula
Pickle wedges
Avocado (optional)

Directions:
1) Whisk mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, garlic, cumin, and coriander in a small bowl. Season aioli to taste with salt and pepper. Aioli can be made up to a day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.
2) Place turkey in medium bowl. Add 2 tablespoons aioli; mix gently. Using damp hands, divide turkey mixture into 4 equal portions, then form each into 3/4-inch-thick patty, about 3 1/2 inches in diameter. Using thumb, make small indentation in center of each burger. Can be made 4 hours ahead. Cover and chill.
3) Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat) or panini maker. Sprinkle burgers with salt and pepper. Brush onion slices and bell pepper pieces with oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill onions and bell peppers until soft and charred, about 4 minutes per side.
4) Grill turkey burgers 5 minutes. Turn over; grill until almost cooked through, about 4 minutes.
5) Top each burger with 1 cheese slice and grill until meat is cooked through and cheese melts, about 1 minute longer.
To assemble: Place 1 turkey burger on each of 4 bun bottoms. Arrange grilled red pepper pieces, then grilled red onion slices over. Top each with dollop of aioli and some arugula. Cover burgers with bun tops and serve with pickle wedges, and any other desired toppings.

 

 

I turned the smokey aioli into a cumin aioli because I cannot have paprika.  I have to say that I liked the burgers in this recipe because I think that adding the aioli kept them super moist.  I do think that the overall recipe just turned out to be a pretty ordinary burger though.  While there isn't anything horrible to say about them, there isn't much that made them amazing either.  I do think that this recipe taught me that adding wet sauces to the meat mixture will improve how hamburgers come out though, which I'll definitely try on other burgers.

Cilantro Lime Chicken Tacos

I can't believe that I haven't posted in two weeks.  Time flies when you're moving.  In the last two weeks, I have moved from Cheyenne, WY to a base in New Jersey.  I did all the driving in two days and now have been trying to set up our house.  I promise that blog updates will happen more frequently now that we're getting situated.  Plus, I'm reunited with my husband (aka the taste tester), so I'm not eating leftovers for five nights in a row.

During my move, I decided to take on a recipe swap.  Genius, right?  Well, I thought it was nice because it was an open ended swap where I could tackle any recipe from What's Cookin' Chicago?.  It helped take away the thinking of what I should make when getting to a new place since all of the recipes are so amazing.

While I was at my parents for a few days, I made Cuban sandwiches from her blog, which were amazing.  I found a pork marinade that made such amazing pork, that I'm sure I'll use it for all my pork recipes in the future.  Definitely check out that recipe on her blog when you have a second since I didn't have time to take pictures.  They were definitely loved by everyone in my family.

When I got to New Jersey, I decided that I was going to make Cilantro Lime Chicken Tacos because they seemed easy and we both love cilantro, so I thought it was perfect.  I also made Chicken Parmesan Meatloaf, but made it too late to include it in this post.  Head over to What's Cookin' Chicago? to find some fantastic recipes that your whole family will devour.

Cilantro Lime Chicken Tacos
barely adapted from What's Cookin' Chicago?
Ingredients
cooking spray for sauteeing
2-3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in bite sized pieces
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon cumin
flour corn tortillas
taco garnishes (salsa, sour cream, cheese, etc)

Cilantro Lime Pesto
1 cup fresh cilantro leaves (do not include stems)
2 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons sliced, toasted almonds
3 tablespoons chopped, fresh garlic
1 1/2 teaspoon lime juice
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup chicken broth

Directions
1) Season chicken with salt, pepper and garlic powder.
2) In a skillet sprayed with cooking spray, saute chicken over medium high heat and cook through.
3) Using a blender, mix together the cilantro, olive oil, almonds, garlic, lime juice, parmesan, salt and chicken broth on low speed for 2 minutes.
4) Toss cooked, seasoned chicken with the pesto. Fill tortillas with chicken and top with preferred garnishes.

To say that we loved these tacos would be an understatement.  My husband inhaled four of them, and said that he would've kept eating them if he could.  He's still talking about them several days later too.  The pesto was a great way to pack a lot of flavor in a great sauce.  We'll definitely have to put these on rotation again for our next taco night.

Black Bean and Corn Dip

Confession: I love dips.  Like I said before, I think they're amazing.  But, I have to say that when you find yourself living alone, and you see dip in your recipe swap email, it is almost like reading "Leftovers FOREVER" instead.  


I knew the second that I got this recipe that I was either going to have to cut it down by a lot...or repurpose it into a meal, so it didn't seem so daunting.  I decided to eat mostly vegetarian while my husband was in New Jersey and I was in Wyoming, so I set out to find something vegetarian that would be complimentary to the dip.  I found exactly the recipe I needed in Sweet Beginning's Sweet Potato and Black Bean Tacos...the pairing couldn't be more perfect if you ask me.


Black bean and Corn Dip
barely adopted from Kickin it in the Kitch
Ingredients
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 can of corn 
1/2 can petite diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
Juice from 1 lime
1/3 cup Italian dressing
1 teaspoon cumin1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions
1) Mix all ingredients until well blended. Chill for at least 1 hour. Serve with tortilla chips or in tacos.  

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Tacos

slightly adapted from Sweet Beginnings

Ingredients
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 sweet potato, cut into a medium dice
2 teaspoons cumin
salt and pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt 

flour tortillas 

1 avocado, diced 

lime and cilantro to garnish

Directions
1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2) In a bowl, toss the diced sweet potato with the oil, 1 teaspoon cumin, and a pinch of salt and pepper.  Roast for 30 minutes on a foil-lined baking sheet.
3) Warm tortillas and spoon on some sweet potatoes, followed by corn dip, and any desired toppings.


This meal was beautiful.  I loved all the different colors that went together.  I almost felt bad eating it, but my stomach was complaining of hunger too much for me to ignore it.  I thought this dish tasted really great together.  I have to say that I tasted the dip by itself and the Italian dressing was a little overpowering to me.  However, in the tacos, everything balanced really well and you couldn't really taste the dressing.  This was a great combination, and I'm glad that I ventured to find other purposes for the Black bean and corn dip besides just on chips.