Tilapia Shrimp Po'Boys

Our last Super Bowl installment for this year is a fabulous one for sure; we both really loved this recipe. I'm sure this will also be a huge hit at your gathering, your friends and family will scream for more. I really hope you try one if not all of these fabulous ideas this Sunday for the game; they are all so quick, easy, affordable, and fantastic.

1 Tbs. - Butter
4 - Tilapia Fillets
12 Large - Shrimp (peeled, deveined)
1 1/2 Tbs. - Johnny's Salmon Seasoning
4 - King's Hawaiian Snacker Sub Rolls
1/4 C. - Mayo
1 Tsp. - Lemon Pepper
1/4 Tsp. - Dill
1/8 Tsp. - Lemon Juice

Melt butter in a frying pan over medium heat, sprinkle Tilapia and shrimp with the salmon seasoning. Cook the fish for about 5-8 minutes or until flaky and brown. Remove the Tilapia from the pan and set aside, cook the shrimp in the same frying pan for about 2-4 minutes or until they turn pink. In a small bowl mix the mayo, lemon pepper, dill, and lemon juice until well combined. Spread both sides of the snacker rolls with some of the mayo mixture then top with a piece of fish, layer 3 shrimp down the center of the fish and top with the other roll. These little Po'Boys would be fabulous with the addition of maybe some coleslaw or Pico De Gallo, no matter what you top yours with they will be a big hit for sure.

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Bacon Wrapped Hogs

With Super Bowl XLV just around the corner we needed to find another awesome recipe for game day....I think we found a real winner with this one, if you like pigs in a blanket and you like bacon you will love this dish.

1 - Kielbasa (cut into 4)
1 - Sheet Puff Pastry
4 - Slices Maple Cured Bacon
1 - Egg (beaten)
1/3 C. - Brown Sugar
Toothpicks

Sauce

1/3 C. - Honey BBQ Sauce
1/3 C. - Honey Mustard

Wrap each piece of kielbasa with bacon and secure each end of bacon with a toothpick, pan fry over medium high heat just until brown and crispy. Place the brown sugar onto a plate and roll each side of the cooked kielbasa in the sugar then place onto a baking sheet. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes, until the brown sugar has melted and caramelized. Take the baking sheet out of the oven and let cool for a few minutes so you can handle them to pull out the toothpicks. Cut the sheet of puff pastry into 4 equal sections and roll 1 bacon wrapped hog with 1 section of pastry. Place onto a baking sheet and brush with the egg wash, bake in a 4oo degree oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Mix the BBQ sauce and mustard together and serve with the bacon wrapped hogs....

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BBQ Sliders

Another great idea that is extremely quick, easy, and delish for the big game day is sliders. Sliders of all kinds have hit the nation hard upside the head; they are so great because you can virtually make them out of just about anything, so for that, I love the versatility of this tasty little sammie. This recipe is a great way to use up the left over BBQ and coleslaw from the Pulled Pork & Asian Slaw Roll-ups, if you have any leftovers to use.

1 12 Pack - King's Hawaiian Sweet Rolls (heated)
1 10oz. - Lloyd's Pulled BBQ Pulled Pork or Pulled Beef
1 8.5 oz. - Fresh Express Coleslaw Kit with Salad Dressing

In a bowl combine the coleslaw and dressing, mix until well combined. Slice open each roll in half, making a top and bottom bun. Spoon some of the BBQ onto the bottom of the bun and top with a spoonful of the coleslaw. Place the top bun on the coleslaw, plate the sliders and watch them be devoured by your family and friends!

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Apple Footballs

With Super Bowl XLV just days away we are still doing our football food countdown. Today is a dessert we posted back on 1-30-09 that was a huge hit at that party. These little morsels are so easy to make and so tummy pleasing, your guest will be begging for more.

2 - Small Gala or Fuji Apples (cored & diced)
1/4 C. - Splenda Brown Sugar
2 Tbs. - Butter
1 Tsp. - Cinnamon
1 Tsp. - Vanilla
1/2 Tsp. - Nutmeg
2 - Sheets Puff Pastry (thawed)
1/4 C. - Raisins
Cinnamon/Sugar for dusting

Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat and cook the apples, raisins, brown sugar and spices for about 5-8 minutes, until the apples a little soft and a nice tan caramel sauce has been reached. Set the apples aside to cool while you open up the pastry and cut 9 circles out of each sheet using a medium sized biscuit cutter. Place 1 Tsp. of mixture in the center of each round then fold over one side to the other and pinch to seal, then with a fork crimp the edge closed. Deep fry at 350 degrees for 2 minutes then turn and cook for another 2 minutes remove with a slotted spoon and roll in the cinnamon/sugar mixture. I had about 1 C. of filling left; I think it would be great on top of ice-cream, waffles or pancakes.

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Pulled Pork with Asian Slaw Roll - Ups

With Super Bowl just days away we thought this would be a unique and fun idea for a game day snack. We all love pulled pork and we all love crispy coleslaw so why not put the two together into one great dish, these turned out way better than I had hoped for.

1 18oz. - Lloyd's Honey Hickory Pulled Pork (heated)
1 Package - Nasoya Won Ton Wraps
1 8.5oz. - Fresh Express Coleslaw Kit with Dressing
1/4 C. - Sun Maid Golden Raisins
2 Tbs. - McCormick Black Sesame Seeds
Dash Rice Wine Vinegar
Water

Heat your deep fryer to 350 degrees. In a medium sized bowl combine the coleslaw, raisins, vinegar, sesame seeds, dressing and stir well. Lay out two won ton wraps overlapping enough to seal the two together with water. Then place about 1/2 Tbs. of meat towards one end of the wrapper, and then top with 1/2 Tbs. of the slaw. Roll up the won tons keeping it as tight as possible, seal the won ton with water on both ends and along the side. Make sure the won ton is totally sealed so you have no leaks while deep frying. After all roll ups have been made deep fry for 1-2 minutes or until golden brown and crispy, when cooking make sure to not over crowd the fryer. Serve alongside extra coleslaw or with a sweet chili sauce.

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Salsa De Gallo

My husband and I are part of the Foodbuzz Family on our cooking blog, every so often I get an e-mail asking if we would like to participate in some free products that have partnered with Foodbuzz. On these e-mails they sometimes give you the options to not only get the free items but to also qualify for a free HD Flip camera to create a video using the items they are featuring at the time. This last e-mail for some reason that am not sure of, I said yes to the camera, I know my friends, just what was little shy me thinking at the time. I guess really I was thinking that no way out of the hundreds of response Foodbuzz would get that they would ever pick me, boy was I wrong. I received an e-mail telling me Congratulations I had been chosen for this project, ConAgra foods and Foodbuzz would be sending me a goodie box. The e-mail said to please make a video about 2-3 minutes long using some of the ConAgra products they would be sending me, the e-mail said that I would be getting a can of Pam Cooking Spray, a jar of Peter Pan Peanut Butter, a can of Hunt's Diced Tomatoes and 2 Cans of Rotel. After I stopped freaking out I knew right away what I was going to make out of the great items. So my friends with a lump in my throat and my hands shaking like a leaf please take a look at my first cooking video and tell me what you think. Thank You Foodbuzz and ConAgra Foods for making me step out of my box!

1 14.5 oz. - Can 100% Natural Hunt's Diced Tomatoes (drained)
2 10 oz. - Cans Rotel Original
1 15 oz. - Can Black Beans (drained)
1 C. - Petite White Frozen Corn Kernels (thawed)
1/2 Medium - Red Onion (diced)
1/2 Medium - Sweet Yellow Onion (diced)
1 - Jalapeño (seeded & diced)
1 - Serrano Pepper (seeded & diced)
1 C. - Chopped Fresh Cilantro
2 Tbs. - Minced Garlic
2 Tbs. - Lime Juice
1 Tsp. - Salt

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour to blend the flavors. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. Serve with some crispy corn chips for dipping.

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Mac Cheesy Bites

A few weeks ago my little niece Kammy sent me a message on Facebook, she was telling me about a fabulous sample she had at Trader Joe's with her Mom and Grandma. She asked if I could try to recreate the little gem she had just eaten, I told her that we would do our best to make something as good as what she had tried. Kammy this post is all for you honey, I hope this is what you were looking for.

2 Tbs. - Butter
2 Tbs. - Flour
3/4 C. - Milk
1 1/2 C. - Sargento Shredded Mild Cheddar Cheese
1/4 C. - Kraft Parmesan Cheese, plus more to sprinkle on top
3 - Large Egg Yolks
1/2 Tsp. - Salt
1/8 Tsp. - Nutmeg
1/2 Lb. - Cooked Small Elbow Macaroni

Preheat oven to 425 degrees… Spray a 24 count mini muffin pan with cooking spray and set aside. In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat, whisk in the flour and cook for about 1 minute. Whisk in the milk and bring to a boil. While cooking mixture, whisk occasionally for about 2-3 minutes until thick. Add the cheddar and parmesan cheese stirring to melt. Remove from heat and stir in the egg yolks, salt and nutmeg. Stir in the macaroni until well coated. Spoon into the muffin cups pressing down firmly onto each one, fill to the top. Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden brown, let cool for another 10 minutes then using a teaspoon gently lift each bite. For those of you who want to be a little more health conscious just plate these and sprinkle with some additional Parmesan cheese then enjoy!

For those of you that like a little more crunch to their Mac & Cheese like we do this is a must try....

1 C. - Honey Panko Crumbs
3 - Eggs
2 Tbs. - Water
1 C. - Parmesan

Heat your deep fryer to 350 degrees, in a shallow dish mix the egg and water together, then in another shallow dish add the Parmesan and in one last dish add the Panko crumbs. One at a time place a Mac Cheesy bite into the egg wash, then into the Parmesan. Place the bites back into the egg wash and then finally into the Panko crumbs. Once you have them all coated place single layer as to not crowd the deep fryer and cook for 1 minute or until golden brown and crunchy, moving the bites around in the oil so they get cooked evenly. Plate these little gems and watch them disappear.

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Caramel Corn

My husband and I enjoy many movie nights at our house, he has our living room sounding and looking better than any theater. We have the full surround sound with a projector that my husband uses to put the movie on our wall; the screen size is about 96 inches. I love doing movies at our home for many reasons, to start with it is much cheaper to rent a blue ray movie for the theater quality picture and sound, it is just as good, if not better than any theater. Secondly, snacks are way less expensive at home, we consume a great deal of popcorn and who can afford the $15.00 for a soda and large tub of corn. For tonight's movie time I decided to make caramel corn, I have not made any in about 8 years. This recipe I am using came from someone my husband knows from work, her recipe and mine are the same except she uses the vanilla and her recipe uses light corn syrup but I prefer the color with the dark. I thought this would be a great new snack idea to ring in the first movie night of the New Year.

1 C. - Butter
2 C. - Brown Sugar
1/2 C. - Dark Corn Syrup (or light)
1 Tsp. - Salt
1/2 Tsp. - Baking Soda
1 Tsp. - Vanilla Extract (optional)
5 Q. - Popped Popcorn

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Place the popped corn into a roasting pan (a toss out kind works well). In a large soup pot melt the butter over medium heat, stir in the brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Bring to a boil and stir for 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla and baking soda, stir for about 30 seconds until the color changes and it gets fluffy. Pour the caramel over the popped corn and stir until well coated. Bake in the oven for 1 hour; bring out every 15 minutes to give it a good stir. Once the corn is done turn out onto wax paper or parchment paper to cool, once cooled break the large sections of corn into smaller pieces and enjoy.

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Posh Piggies

We have had such great response to this simple yet outrageously good appetizer that we wanted to re-post it again for New Years. We are just so amazed how this little sausage and pastry bite took off like a rocket when we posted it back on 1-29-09. I can't even recall how many other blogs we have stumbled upon and found our picture and the blogger's story of how they had made them or eaten them at another gathering and found them simply delish! I hope all of you new comers enjoy this recipe as much as everyone has in the past.

1 Lbs. - Sweet Italian Sausage Links (Johnsonville)
1 - Sheet Puff Pastry (thawed)
1 - Egg
2 Tbs. - Mayonnaise
2 Tbs. - Dijjonaise
¼ C. - Apricot Pineapple Jelly

Cut the sausage links into 36 half- inch slices; brown the meat on both sides in a frying pan over medium high heat. No need to fully cook at this time, all you want is to get both sides a little crispy. Set aside on a plate to cool while you get the pastry ready, lay the pastry out on your work surface then break the egg into a small dish and brush the entire surface of the pastry. Using a mini cookie cutter (I used a star) cut out 36 shapes from the pastry. Place the meat onto a baking sheet and cover each one with a piece of pastry and secure in place with a tooth pick. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 18-20 minutes. While the piggies are baking mix the jelly, mayo and mustard in a small dish, these are good served hot, warm and room temp. Dip and enjoy!

Side Note:

Instead of puff pastry you could use Pillsbury Crescent dough, lay the sections out flat and cut them into your desired shape. I also think Pillsbury Grands Flaky would work as well, I would maybe take each section of dough and separate into 3 pieces and then cut into shapes.

When it comes to the meat I think any flavor of sausage would be great and that maybe small sections of kielbasa would work also, kielbasa also comes in many flavors now so really you could have many options for these little gems.

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Bacon Wrapped Hogs

With Super Bowl XLIV just around the corner we needed to find another awesome recipe for game day....I think we found a real winner with this one, if you like pigs in a blanket and you like bacon you will love this dish.

1 - Kielbasa (cut into 4)
1 - Sheet Puff Pastry
4 - Slices Maple Cured Bacon
1 - Egg (beaten)
1/3 C. - Brown Sugar
Toothpicks


Sauce

1/3 C. - Honey BBQ Sauce
1/3 C. - Honey Mustard

Wrap each piece of kielbasa with bacon and secure each end of bacon with a toothpick, pan fry over medium high heat just until brown and crispy. Place the brown sugar onto a plate and roll each side of the cooked kielbasa in the sugar then place onto a baking sheet. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes, until the brown sugar has melted and caramelized. Take the baking sheet out of the oven and let cool for a few minutes so you can handle them to pull out the toothpicks. Cut the sheet of puff pastry into 4 equal sections and roll 1 bacon wrapped hog with 1 section of pastry. Place onto a baking sheet and brush with the egg wash, bake in a 4oo degree oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Mix the BBQ sauce and mustard together and serve with the bacon wrapped hogs....

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