Wow! This is my 100th blog entry! As many times as I have thought of giving up, I always come back. How to celebrate this 100th entry? How about the best of J.J.? Some of my favorite recipes over the last 100 entries!
Refrigerator Pickles
What you need:
• A glass container of some type. I tend to use Mason canning jars.
• Cucumbers - English, seedless, pickling...whatever!
• 1/2 cup of white sugar
• 1 cup white vinegar
• 1 small onion - I like red onions or Vidalia, but you can use whatever you like.
Slice your cucumbers up...if I am serving to company I sometimes do fancy cuts. Slice your onion into rings. Pack them in your container in alternating layers. Mix your vinegar and sugar together BEFORE you put it in with the cucumbers, making sure all the sugar is dissolved. Chill in the fridge for at least four hours before severing. I usually do this first thing in the morning and let it sit all day before serving. Also when the cucumbers and onion starts running low...I just slice more and add to the "brine". Congratulations! You just made pickles! They keep for weeks at a time in the fridge and I think it is so delicious.
From First Entry: Why August 2, 2010
Peanut Butter Pie
- 1 prepared graham cracker crust
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1-8 oz. cream cheese
- As much peanut butter as you like to your taste
- 1 small tub of cool whip
Entry: Thanksgiving Pie? Oh my! November 19, 2010
Buffalo Chicken Wrap
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 2⁄3 cup franks red hot or Texas Pete pepper sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
- ¼ cup ranch dressing
- 1 cup shredded lettuce
- 1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese...want it really hot? Use pepper jack!
- 4 10-inch flour tortillas (warmed...again I use whole wheat)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder, to taste
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
Directions
- Pre season chicken with garlic powder, salt and black pepper to taste.
- Combine 1/3 cup of hot sauce and 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large plastic storage bag.
- Add the chicken and shake a bit to ensure chicken is evenly coated with marinade.
- Marinade chicken at least 30 minutes.
- Grill chicken until done.
- Slice chicken into strips.
- Place chicken in bowl and add 1/3 cup of hot sauce and dressing and cheese, mix well.
- Place chicken mixture and lettuce down the center of the tortilla.
- Roll tortilla in same fashion as a burrito.
- Cut in half.
Entry: Quesadillas, Wraps, and Salads! Oh My! February 25, 2012
Buckeye Bark
Ingredients
- 2 ½ pounds chocolate candy coating, divided
- 1 pound creamy peanut butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 stick unsalted butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
Put a long piece of parchment paper in
the bottom of a 9x13 inch pan, letting the parchment extend up two
sides of the pan and overhang slightly on both ends. (This will make
it easy to remove the bark from the pan once set); set aside.
Melt 1 ½ pounds chocolate according to
package directions and pour the chocolate into prepared pan, use an
offset icing spatula to smooth the chocolate into an even layer.
Transfer pan to the freezer for 5 minutes or until chocolate becomes
slightly hardened.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted
with the paddle attachment, beat together the peanut butter, powdered
sugar, butter and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Using your hands,
press into an even layer onto the hardened chocolate layer. Transfer
pan to the freezer for 5 minutes or until slightly hardened.
Melt the remaining 1 ½ pounds of
chocolate and pour it over the peanut butter layer, use an offset
icing spatula to smooth the chocolate into an even layer. Transfer
pan to the freezer until set.
Once chocolate is set, use a butcher
knife to break up the bark into small pieces. Store in the
refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes
before serving.
Entry: Holiday Cheer 2012 December 14, 2012
Beer Can Chicken
(You can also roast a chicken this way in the oven. Just place it as directed on an open half-filled can of beer, sitting up, in a roasting pan on the lower rack of your oven. Roast at 350°F until done (about an hour fifteen to an hour and a half for a 4 lb chicken). For an alcohol-free version of this recipe, just fill an empty soda can halfway with chicken stock and use it instead of the beer. I've also used Mountain Dew and Sprite!)
Cook time: 1 hour, 30 minutes to 2 hours
Ingredients
•1 4-pound whole chicken
•2 Tbsp olive oil
•1 opened, half-full can of beer, room temperature (I've found the cheaper the beer the better unless you are looking for a specific flavor profile.)
•2 Tbsp or more of a spice mix of your liking...I used Complete Seasoning by Badia. Great stuff you find it with the international spices.
•1 to 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 1 to 3 cloves of fresh garlic
1. Prepare your grill for indirect heat. If you are using charcoal, put the coals on one side of the grill, leaving another side free of coals. If you are using a gas grill, fire up only half of the burners.
2. Remove neck and giblets from cavity of chicken, if the chicken came with them. Rub the chicken all over with olive oil, then sprinkle the spice all over the chicken.
3. Make sure the beer can is open, and only half-filled with beer
(drink the other half!) If you want, you can the rosemary and garlic in
the beer can. Lower the chicken on to the open can, so that the chicken
is sitting upright, with the can in its cavity. Place the chicken on the
cool side of the grill, using the legs and beer can as a tripod to
support the chicken on the grill and keep it stable.
4. Cover the grill and walk away. Do not even check the chicken for at least an hour. (unless you see black smoke...I had a small fire!) After an hour, check the chicken and
refresh the coals if needed (if you are using a charcoal grill). Keep
checking the chicken every 15 minutes or so, until a meat thermometer
inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 160°F - 165°F. The
total cooking time will vary depending on the size of your chicken, and
the internal temperature of the grill. A 4 lb chicken will usually take
around 1 1/2 hours. If you don't have a meat thermometer, a way to tell
if the chicken is done is to poke it deeply with a knife (the thigh is a
good place to do this), if the juices run clear, not pink, the chicken
is done.
5. Carefully transfer the chicken to a tray or pan. I say "carefully"
because the beer can, and the beer inside of it, is quite hot. One way
to do this is to slide a metal spatula under the bottom of the beer can.
Use tongs to hold the top of the chicken. Lift the chicken, beer can
still inside, and move it to a tray. Let the chicken rest for 10
minutes. Carefully lift the chicken off of the can. If it gets stuck,
lay the chicken on its side, and pull out the can with tongs.
Serve and enjoy with grilled veggies or what ever you may enjoy with a roasted
chicken. Great thing to toss on grilled veggies...a tea spoon or less
of fresh cracked pepper per two table spoons of grated Parmesan cheese.
Mix well and sprinkle on lightly as the veggies come off the grill.
Rosy's Lemonade
Ingredients
•1 cup sugar (can reduce to 3/4 cup)
•1 cup water (for the simple syrup)
•1 cup lemon juice
•3 to 4 cups cold water (to dilute)
(You can also roast a chicken this way in the oven. Just place it as directed on an open half-filled can of beer, sitting up, in a roasting pan on the lower rack of your oven. Roast at 350°F until done (about an hour fifteen to an hour and a half for a 4 lb chicken). For an alcohol-free version of this recipe, just fill an empty soda can halfway with chicken stock and use it instead of the beer. I've also used Mountain Dew and Sprite!)
Cook time: 1 hour, 30 minutes to 2 hours
Ingredients
•1 4-pound whole chicken
 |
| Complete Seasoning is my salt replacement. Thanks, Melissa for introdicing me to it. |
•1 opened, half-full can of beer, room temperature (I've found the cheaper the beer the better unless you are looking for a specific flavor profile.)
•2 Tbsp or more of a spice mix of your liking...I used Complete Seasoning by Badia. Great stuff you find it with the international spices.
•1 to 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 1 to 3 cloves of fresh garlic
1. Prepare your grill for indirect heat. If you are using charcoal, put the coals on one side of the grill, leaving another side free of coals. If you are using a gas grill, fire up only half of the burners.
2. Remove neck and giblets from cavity of chicken, if the chicken came with them. Rub the chicken all over with olive oil, then sprinkle the spice all over the chicken.
4. Cover the grill and walk away. Do not even check the chicken for at least an hour. (unless you see black smoke...I had a small fire!) After an hour, check the chicken and
Serve and enjoy with grilled veggies or what ever you may enjoy with a roasted
 |
| Corn Grilled in the husk, chicken, and zuchini/yellow squash |
Rosy's Lemonade
Ingredients
•1 cup sugar (can reduce to 3/4 cup)
•1 cup water (for the simple syrup)
 |
| No, not that one! |
•3 to 4 cups cold water (to dilute)
- Make simple syrup by heating the sugar and water in a small saucepan until the sugar is dissolved completely.
- While the sugar is dissolving, use a juicer to extract the juice from 4 to 6 lemons, enough for one cup of juice.
- Add the juice and the sugar water to a pitcher. Add 3 to 4 cups of cold water, more or less to the desired strength. Refrigerate 30 to 40 minutes. If the lemonade is a little sweet for your taste, add a little more straight lemon juice to it.
Entry: "To alcohol! The cause of... and solution to... all of life's problems..." April 28, 2013
