Whiskey Glazed Carrots

So these definitely do not fall into the category of healthy New Year resolution-fitting recipes but they are definitely tasty. These are another Pioneer Woman recipe and, like pretty much everything else from her I’ve made, these are delicious. And the leftovers are worthy of fighting over who gets the last bite. Make them, now. Then just run a few more minutes on the treadmill, it is totally worth it.

Whiskey Glazed Carrots

From The Pioneer Woman Cooks

1 stick Butter, Divided Into 1 Tablespoon Segments

2 pounds Carrots, Peeled And Cut Into Thick Circles (baby carrots work too!)

½ Cup Jack Daniels Or Other Whiskey

¾ Cup Brown Sugar

½ Teaspoon Salt

Ground Pepper, to taste

Gather all your ingredients (this recipe goes fast once it gets going!). Then melt 1 tablespoon butter in a skillet over high heat. Add carrots in a single layer in the skillet (will do two sets) and cook 60-90 seconds.

Remove all the carrots. Add the whiskey (keep your face back! trust me!). Let cook and evaporate for 30 seconds.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the rest of the butter. Sprinkle the brown sugar in. Stir. Add the carrots. Cover and cook for 5 minutes.

Remove lid. Add salt and pepper. Cook until glaze is thick and carrots are done. Will take around 5 minutes. Serve immediately (but hope for leftovers!).

Pepperoni and Parmesan Pasta Salad

I decided to make this pasta salad for my contribution to Mother's Day lunch.

It was so quick to throw together and the little bit I tried last night was awesome. I couldn't find the dressing that she mentions in this recipe, so I just used a bottle of Zesty Italian and it seems to work just fine. Although I would love to find that dressing, it sounds awesome.

Pepperoni and Parmesan Pasta Salad

From: Lemons and Love

INGREDIENTS

16 ounces of pasta, cooked to your preference

1 16 ounce bottle dressing

3/4 quarters of a bag of pepperoni, cut up

4 ounces shredded Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS

Combine drained pasta, 3/4 of the dressing, pepperoni and Parmesan. Mix thoroughly.

Chill for 2 hours, or overnight.

Mix in the last of your dressing before serving.

A Diner Meal

I love diners. They are so much fun to eat at, even though they are hard to find. There is a great 50s diner in Branson, Missouri, that I've been to with my parents, but that's kind of a long drive for a diner meal. Enter this alternative meal.

As soon as I saw this recipe on delish.com I knew I had to make them. First of all, I've heard some great things about Katie Lee Joel's recipes and, second, the picture looked incredible. These were incredibly easy to make, cheap to buy all the ingredients for, and so tasty. I will definitely be making them again. A great thing about these is that you can tweak the recipe for your tastes. You can add or subtract ingredients from the burger mixture and change up the toppings so they resemble your favorite burger. That is the sign of a great recipe to me.

These fries are also incredibly easy. We've made these a few times since we first ordered them as an appetizer at Outback Steakhouse when we were trying to use up a gift card. They are incredibly decadent and overkill but they are so good. You could also switch these up buy using different types of fries (even homemade fries would be awesome here) or a different mixture of cheese (I'm thinking Mexican Blend Cheese could be great here). They are also great because you can make as much or as little as you want by increasing the amounts. These would make a great item for a Superbowl party, a game night, or even just a lazy meal at home.

Cheese and Bacon Fries

Inspired by Outback Steakhouse Appetizer

Ingredients

1 Small Bag of Frozen French Fries Type of your choice (I used spicy)

2 Cups Shredded Cheese

1 Cup Crumbled Cooked Bacon

Bake fries as directed on bag (or for your homemade fries recipe). Remove from oven and sprinkle with cheese and bacon. Return to 350 degree oven for about 8-10 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Cheeseburgers

Adapted from: Katie Lee Joel as seen on delish.com

Ingredients:
1 Lb Ground Beef

1 Egg Beaten Lightly

1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder

1 Tsp Pepper

Butter

12 Slices Wheat Bread

12 Slices Cheese

Mix the ground beef, egg, garlic powder, and pepper together. Form into thin patties (mine made 6 patties) and cook in a heated skillet until done. When burgers are done remove from pan and allow to drain on paper towels.

Meanwhile butter one side of each piece of bread.

Wipe out the skillet and lay down brown, butter side down. Layer cheese, a patty, cheese and another piece of bread, butter size up.

Cook until the bread is toasted.

A Nerve Wracking Addition to Thanksgiving

Have you ever tried to make something that you've never tried or even seen before? I hate cook books that don't have pictures because I like to see what items look like so I know if mine look right. Anyone else? Now, have you ever made something that you've never tried or seen before, but that a large portion of your perspective diners not only remember but remember as a major part of their childhood? Yeah, pretty nerve wracking.

This was what I faced preparing for Thanksgiving. For some idiotic reason, that I have since forgotten, I volunteered to make the cranberry sauce for our Thanksgiving celebration using my great grandmother's recipe. My mom, aunt, and grandmother all very clearly remember this recipe, they remember not only eating it but also helping to prepare it. Needless to say I was a little stressed out. And when Doug turned to me half way through the making of the sauce, when our poor tiny Cuisinart food processor was whining in complaint and the counters were covered in fruit, and asked "does this look right?" it dawned on me that I should stop volunteering to make things........ ok, not really. But it did dawn on me that I really did not want to mess this up. Luckily it was deemed acceptable, if not quite sweet enough, and people actually did eat it, although we have a decent amount left.

This actually wasn't too hard to make, and it would be a lot easier with a larger food processor, and is really good. Although it didn't end up being the only cranberry sauce on the table, you can't take away the canned stuff without warning, I think it was a hit. And I will definitely be trying some more of my great grandmother's recipes, hopefully in slightly less stressful situations.

Grandma's Cranberry Sauce

I don't know the original source on this, it's a very old family recipe

2 Apples
2 Oranges
1 Bag of Cranberries
Sugar to taste
Grind fruit (can use a food processor); mix in bowl and add sugar to taste.

Variations: To make Jell-o salad add above ingredients to one prepared box of cranberry Jell-o and allow to chill for at least 1 hour. I didn't do this but my mom says it is good.

Cornbread Heaven in Salad Form: An Eat to the Beat Entry

Doug and I both share a love music, we actually met in band in high school (yeah that's right, we were band geeks). Over the years we've both played a number of different instruments (some well and some not so well; he always better than I). We love to share new songs that we've heard with each other, he loves to expose me to great old bands he enjoys, and I occasionally will force some so-so pop artist upon him. But there is one band that has a very special place in both of our minds: The Dave Matthews Band. The first time I ever rode in a car with Doug he had DMB playing and the song Crash Into Me came on. I had always loved that song and the music video (way back in the day when MTV still played videos) and we started talking about the band (he knew way more about them than I did) and how awesome they were (and shortly after the song ended we shared our first kiss). Needless to say, that became our song. The next year we went and saw DMB perform, our first concert as a couple and had a total blast. Last year when we got married we hunted for the longest time for the perfect song (our reception was at our church, so Crash Into Me was not appropriate: that whole "lift up your skirt and show your world to me" part kind of nixed it); going through lists online and through every cd we both owned before we finally went "hey what about" and then proclaimed Steady as We Go to be the winner. This past summer we went to another DMB concert (our first as a married couple) and had an incredible time. DMB concerts are a blast: they last for a very long time but you never notice it because you are having so much fun.

After the concert I went into a major DMB phase, listening to every one of their cds we owned. During this I realized that one song that I really liked wasn't played at our concert (but I later found out it was played at the first night's show). That song? Cornbread. I won't totally go into details about what this song is about (this is a family blog after all) but let's just say the Dave isn't inviting you over for a nice Sunday lunch featuring fresh baked cornbread! You can check out the lyrics here, if you want to form your own opinion on what the song is about. But it is an incredibly fun song that gets stuck in your head for days and I love it.

Now, I told you all that to lead up to this dish. Last summer Doug's cousin got married in Mobile, Alabama. It was a great wedding with an awesome reception that featured a bunch of tasty salads (among other things). And one of those salads was a Cornbread Salad that we all loved. Doug's aunt thought this was extremely funny because she said every Northerner loves that salad. Then she promptly stated that the caterer refused to give out the recipe. No problem. A few months later I received a cute community cookbook from Doug's grandmother as a gift at my bridal shower and what recipe was in the salad section? That's right, Cornbread Salad. And what's the main ingredient in Cornbread Salad? Cornbread, of course!

So, using DMB's Cornbread as my inspiration and backing track, I offer up this tasty side dish. It is relatively easy to make and very tasty to eat. And I declare it "A little bit of heaven, and a little bit of aw yeah." Try it out yourself, and check out DMB performing the song here.

I'm entering this into Eat To The Beat over at Elly Says Opa. This is a blog event that Elly created where you enter a food item that is in some way connected to a song or band, whether it is named after them or just somehow inspired. So go check out Elly's blog (and prepare to be hungry!)

Cornbread Salad

By Teresa Stanley

From Treasured Recipes By the Monticello United Methodist Church

1 (8.5 oz) package cornbread mix You could make from scratch if you wanted

1 Envelope ranch-style dressing mix I used Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix

1 Cup sour cream

1 Cup mayonnaise (or Miracle Whip)

1/2 Cup green pepper, chopped

1/2 Cup sweet red pepper, chopped I didn't add this item this time

1/2 Cup onion, chopped

1 (16 oz) Can pinto beans, drained

2 Cups fresh or frozen corn

2 Cups cheddar cheese, shredded I left this out

10 Slices cooked bacon, crumbled (optional) I added this

Bake cornbread mix according to package directions and crumble. Combine ranch-style dressing mix, sour cream and mayonnaise in a small bowl. In another bowl, mix together peppers, onions, tomatoes, pinto beans, and corn. In a 3-quart salad bowl, layer half of the cornbread, half of the vegetables, half of the cheese, half of the bacon, and half of the dressing. Repeat layers with remaining ingredients. Cover and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Note: Use low or no-fat sour cream and mayonnaise to reduce the calories in this dish. The longer this dish sits, the better it tastes.

I just mixed all the ingredients together (cornbread, vegetables, and bacon) and then mixed the dressing into it, that is how we had it before. I made this the day before we ate it and it was really good.

A Great Grilled Meal

So one of the greatest things about being married to D is that he is a whiz at grilling things. Seriously, give him access to a grill and a stocked fridge/freezer and you will not go hungry. So not too long ago D was off while I was at work and decided to make dinner on the grill. So he went digging into the disaster area that is our freezer to see what he could find: frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts and a half empty bag of frozen mixed berries. Now, my mind probably never would have seen how the two could ago together, but this genius that I married set right to work, pureeing the berries and making awesome marinade for the chicken. Now, this night we actually put dinner on hold when his parents called to ask us to dinner, so the chicken sat in its fruity bath for about 24 hours and ended up turning a shocking purple color. I will admit I was slightly (or majorly) freaked out by the color and was really afraid of what the chicken was going to taste like: but it was so good! It was really moist and it didn't really taste like a berry. The fruit just provided a perfect accent to the mix of spices that D used. I definitely recommend this meal, it is really good!

Now, the other thing that D has made a few times now is his grilled baby carrots. These came about one day when he was searching for a side to go with our meal and I told him there were carrots in the fridge. At first he says he wondered if these would work, but his Eagle Scout brain kicked in and he reverted back to his Scouting days of making foil meals while camping. He ended up throwing these simple ingredients together and making an awesome side dish that I now beg him to make. We actually just had these again last weekend and I already want more: they are basically like crack to me now, I just want to take the whole bowl and go hide in a closet and eat them all myself.

So, before fall weather gets here, fire up your grill and try D's concoctions. I promise, they're great! What the chicken looked like after the marinade and before grilling.

Berry Spicy Chicken

Created by Doug

1/2 bag frozen mixed berries

5 big tablespoons sugar

1 - 1 1/2 cups Cranberry juice

7 chicken breasts (or really as many as you want)

Grill seasoning (to your taste)

Red pepper flakes (again, to your taste)

Mrs. Dash (to your taste)

Season salt (to your taste)

Water

Place berried, sugar and a little water in food processor or blender and blend until they form a sauce (add more water in small amounts if necessary). Set aside.

Butterfly the chicken and pound flat. Add a little salt and pepper and let sit a few minutes.

Place the chicken in a bowl or plastic bag (whichever way you prefer to marinate meat) and add the berry mixture. Add 1 to 1 1/2 cups of cranberry juice.

Let marinate (ours sat for 24 hours, but at least an hour is best).

Remove the chicken from the marinade (pour it out) and place the chicken on a plate or platter.

Add the spices to your taste (the more you add the spicier it will be).

Grill the chicken until cooked.

Grilled Baby Carrots

By Doug

1 small bag Raw baby carrots

1 -2 tablespoons Butter

Salt and pepper to taste

Place the carrots in a sauce pan and cover with water, place over medium heat and bring to a boil. Allow the carrots to boil for 3 minutes.

Drain 90-95 % of the water off the carrots (keep a little).

Place the carrots in a large piece of aluminum foil (you'll want a good, heavy foil).

Cover with salt and pepper and cut the butter into chunks and place around the carrots.

Wrap the foil up into a pouch like shape.

Place on the grill. The cooking time will depend on how big your pouch is and how soft you like your carrots. A good idea is 10-12 minutes for a small pouch.

Cheesy Garlic Goodness

When I was younger my parents and I would drive 45 minutes north to the "big town" near us to go shopping and out to eat. One of the restaurants we would frequent was Red Lobster. Now, I've never been much of a seafood person (I blame this on living in a landlocked Midwestern state) but I loved to go to Red Lobster. Why did I, a seafood avoider, love to o there? The Cheddar Garlic Biscuits. I LOVE them. I could seriously just eat those while everyone else ate fish. So when a recipe for these biscuits popped up on the message board last year I was thrilled. Now I admit they don't taste exactly the same and they are made from Bisquick (which makes many foodies shudder), but they are incredibly yummy. I made them the other night with the Tomato and Mozzarella Pasta al Forno.

Cheddar Garlic Biscuits (aka The Red Lobster Biscuits)

From Good Eats 'n Sweet Treats

2 cups Bisquick mix

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

2/3 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon parsley

1/4 cup butter - melted

Preheat oven to 450 F.
Combine first 3 ingredients until moist. Drop onto greased cookie sheet. Bake for 8 minutes, or until golden.
While the biscuits are baking, mix melted butter, parsley and garlic.
Pour over hot biscuits and serve.