Sweet, Spicy & Salty Candied Pecans

Servings: Makes 2 cups

1/2 cup Confectioners' sugar

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

4 teaspoons water

2 cups pecans

Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the Confectioners' sugar, kosher salt, cayenne pepper, and water.  

Add the pecans to the sugar mixture and stir until the nuts are evenly coated.

Transfer the pecans to the prepared baking sheet and arrange in a single layer. Do your best to make sure the nuts are evenly spread out (if they are clumped together, they won't cook evenly). Scrape out every last bit of glaze from the bowl and drizzle over the nuts. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the pecans are caramelized and the caramel on the baking sheet is a rich brown color but not burnt. (The nuts around the edges will darken first; watch closely so they don't burn.)

Immediately slide the parchment off of the hot baking sheet and allow the pecans to cool completely on the countertop (this stops the cooking process and prevents the nuts from burning). Once cool, remove the pecans from the parchment, breaking apart any clusters if necessary, and store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

Note: If the nuts are sticky after cooling, that means they are a bit undercooked. Pop them back in the oven for a few minutes and let cool again.

Chili Crunch/Crisp

 4 small shallots, thinly sliced

2 heads of garlic, separated into cloves, sliced

1½ cups vegetable oil

2 3" cinnamon sticks

6 star anise pods

1 2" piece ginger, peeled, very finely chopped

¼ cup crushed red pepper flakes

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

2 tsp. sugar

Bring shallots, garlic, oil, cinnamon, and star anise to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook, reducing heat as needed to maintain a gentle simmer and swirling pot occasionally, until garlic and shallots are browned and crisp, 20–25 minutes. (Take your time—you want to drive all the moisture out before they brown.)

Mix ginger, red pepper, soy sauce, and sugar in a medium bowl. Strain shallot mixture through a fine-mesh sieve set over ginger mixture. Let garlic and shallot cool in sieve (this will allow them to crisp further) before stirring back into chile oil.

Golden Rum Cake

 From: All Recipes
12 servings

1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix

1 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix

4 large eggs eggs

½ cup water

½ cup vegetable oil

½ cup dark rum

½ cup butter

¼ cup water

1 cup white sugar

½ cup dark rum

Step 1

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan. Sprinkle chopped nuts evenly over the bottom of the pan.

 Step 2

In a large bowl, combine cake mix and pudding mix. Mix in the eggs, 1/2 cup water, oil and 1/2 cup rum. Blend well. Pour batter over chopped nuts in the pan.

 Step 3

Bake in the preheated oven for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Let sit for 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto serving plate. Brush glaze over top and sides. Allow cake to absorb glaze and repeat until all glaze is used.

 Step 4

To make the glaze: in a saucepan, combine butter, 1/4 cup water and 1 cup sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat and continue to boil for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup rum.

Baby Back Ribs with Dry Rub and Homemade BBQ Sauce

RIBS

2 to 2 1/2 pounds baby back pork ribs
Salt and black pepper

DRY RIB RUB:

8 tablespoons light brown sugar, tightly packed
3 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon jalapeno seasoning
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
1/2 teaspoon rubbed thyme
1/2 teaspoon onion powder

SWEET AND SPICY BARBECUE SAUCE

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup ketchup, try our homemade ketchup recipe
1 tablespoon hot chili sauce (suggestion Sriracha)
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Salt and ground pepper, to taste

PREPARE RIBS

Heat oven to 275 degrees Fahrenheit (135C).

If the ribs still have the thin membrane covering the back of the rack, remove it. 

Season both sides of the ribs with a generous amount of the rib rub, meat-side up, into a large roasting pan or rimmed baking sheet. (It may be necessary to cut the ribs in half in order for them to fit into the pan).

Wrap up the ribs with aluminum foil, and then bake until the meat falls easily from the bones, 3 to 4 hours.

MAKE BARBECUE SAUCE

While the ribs bake, make the barbecue sauce. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat.

Add the onions and cook until soft and translucent, 5 to 8 minutes. Stir in the cumin and cook for an additional 30 seconds.

Add the ketchup, hot chili sauce, brown sugar, and apple cider vinegar. Stir to combine, season with salt then cook for 2 minutes. Set aside in preparation for the ribs to finish roasting.

Crockpot Bratwurst

 INGREDIENTS

6 original brats (I used Johnsonville)

2 (12 ounce) bottles beer (I used Blue Moon)

1 large yellow onion, sliced

3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon course black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Cook for 2 hours on high heat, reduce heat to low. Remove brats from slow cooker. Grill brats (or toss in a skillet) until you have sear marks (which gives you that yummy grilled taste) and place back in slow cooker until ready to serve.

Serve brats on a bun of your choice. Hoagie roll or big sesame seed buns are my favorite. Top with the crockpot beer onions and your favorite toppings (cheese, ketchup or mustard are our staples).

Serve and enjoy!

Philly Chicken “Steak” Sandwich

 From Creole Contessa 

https://www.creolecontessa.com/2013/07/30/philly-chicken-steak-sandwich-and-easy/?fbclid=IwAR0hqqhTCwgVul8pm-BYm0vTXTH5IJMlj3f656eF15vNOKMKw64tJO5q3Dw

Servings: 4

4 slightly frozen, boneless, skinless, chicken breast

4 hoagie rolls

1 vidalia onion, sliced thin

1 bell pepper, sliced

1 tablespoon creole seasoning

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon onion powder

1/2 tablespoon black pepper

For the Cheese Sauce

6 oz. heavy cream

4 oz. chicken broth

1 tablespoon hot sauce

1/2 cup jack cheese

1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese

1/2 cup pepper jack cheese

8 oz. sliced provolone cheese

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon flour

1 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon creole seasoning

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

For the cheese sauce, add butter to sauce pan over medium heat, add flour and whisk for 1 minute, add spices and whisk well. Pour in heavy cream and chicken stock, bring to a boil.

Reduce heat, add hot sauce, half the provolone cheese and all the remaining cheeses by the handful whisking well, after each addition. Remove from heat, sauce will thicken as it sits.

To prepare sandwich, slice slightly frozen chicken breast into thin strips about 1/4 inch thickness. Rinse chicken, pat dry and set aside.

Mix seasoning blend. Season chicken with all the seasoning blend except 1 tablespoon.  Slice bell pepper and onion.

Heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat, add bell pepper and onions, season with 1 tablespoon of seasoning blend and saute well for about 5-7 minutes, remove from pan and set aside.

Add 2 tablespoons more of olive oil to pan over medium high heat, add seasoned chicken breast and cook for about 3 minutes per side or until chicken is no longer pink, add veggies back to pan,mix well and cook for about 4 minutes more.

To assemble sandwich you can toast the bread if desired, add a slice of provolone cheese to bread, top with chicken, veggie mixture, and top with hot cheese sauce. Enjoy!

Chicken Poblanos Rojas

 5 fresh poblano peppers 

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts seasoned and cooked to your liking. 

4 tablespoons canola oil, divided

1 medium white onion, thinly sliced

1 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup Mexican crema or part sour cream, part creme fraiche

1 1/2 teaspoons chicken stock **Better than Bouillon**

salt and pepper

Note:  For more spicyness-add hot Rotel and some pepper jac cheese.

Directions

Char the poblano peppers directly over the gas flame on the stove or under the broiler until blackened on all sides. Enclose in a plastic bag and let steam for 10 minutes.

While peppers are cooling, coat the pan with 2 tablespoons oil and warm a large skillet on medium heat, add the chicken breasts and cook on each side until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Remove from the pan.

Add the other two tablespoons of oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. 

Peel and seed the peppers. Cut the peppers into 1/2-inch strips (a.k.a rajas) and add them to the onion and corn mixture and cook until the corn is tender, about 5 minutes. Add the heavy cream and Mexican crema, (or combination of creme fraiche and sour cream), add back the chicken, and cook until just bubbling, about for 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.