bbq

Loaded Buffalo Chicken Sammies

June 26, 2018

4th of July is right around the corner, and in case you weren’t aware of it, it just so happens to be one of my favorite holidays. Sure it’s partly because of the fireworks, and partly because of the red, white and blue everywhere, but it’s mostly for all of the summer BBQ foods we get devour on this particular day. It’s a time for grilled burgers, hot dogs, chips and dips, and let’s not forget buffalo wings. Although, now that I think about it, we’re always looking for excuses to eat buffalo wings. Well, I’m here to tell you that you really don’t need an excuse. Go ahead and eat all of the buffalo chicken dishes your heart desires. These loaded buffalo chicken sammies take sweet Hawaiian rolls and fills them with a delicious salad of chicken, celery, carrots, bleu cheese, red onion, ranch and of course buffalo hot sauce. It’s the perfect bite of sweet and savory. They’re also topped with crushed blue corn tortilla chips because I’m forever in love with chips in my sandwiches, and something tells me you just might be too. Make these for your 4th of July gathering!

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Cheers to the Weekend: Mexican Street Corn Twice Baked Potatoes

June 30, 2017

So I don’t know if this is weird or gross or if I’m the only one who did this/does this, but when I was a kid, my mom would get us TV dinners (because they were inexpensive and kids love them). I used to get the salisbury steak one with mashed potatoes and corn, but that’s besides the point. Anyhow, what I’m trying to get at is that I would always mix the corn with the mashed potatoes. Always. I still do the same thing whenever I make mashed potatoes and corn and I kid you not, it is one of the best food combinations out there. Like peanut butter and jelly or eggs and bacon or cookies and milk or cake and ice cream, you get the point. Mashed potatoes mixed with corn is where it’s at. If you know exactly what I’m talking about, because you yourself are a closet mashed potato and corn lover, then step right up because we’re now best friends. You might as well get used to it. If you’ve never tried it before and think I’m about the craziest person out there, well you don’t know what you’re missing, and I as your friend cannot let you continue on this path. It’s a good thing I’m here because I’m about to change your life.

I’ve made a couple new interpretations of Mexican Street Corn (or Elote if you prefer) here on the blog over the years. If pizza is more your thing, this Mexican Street Corn Flatbread is the way to go. If you like fun and just plain outright delicious, then these Mexican Street Corn Dogs are a must, and don’t even think about talking yourself out of it. These Mexican Street Corn Twice Baked Potatoes are great for all of your 4th of July or Summer BBQ plans this year. But I don’t even have to say it because I think you already know this. Let’s make this a summer to remember, and the way to do that is with food. Cheers to the Weekend, my friends. Cheers.

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Savory BBQ Pulled Pork Cinnamon Rolls

March 25, 2016

I love to really turn things upside down in the kitchen, especially when it comes to making popular dishes that we’re all used to, and giving them a fun and interesting new makeover. Just like with these savory Falafel Waffles. Homemade falafel made into healthy waffles and then topped with a crazy delicious Mediterranean slaw. It’s just like what magic would taste like, if magic had a taste. I like to keep you guys guessing and just when you think you know what’s going on, I throw a curveball your way and take things in a different direction. As a big fan of cinnamon rolls, I decided that what the world needed more of was savory cinnamon rolls. There are plenty of sweet variations out there that people do so well, and so rather than give you another sweet creation, the next best thing are these Savory BBQ Pulled Pork Cinnamon Rolls. So let’s think outside the box and welcome them with open arms. Give them a big hug, and eat as many as you can.

The dough is not sweet at all, and while yes, I’m calling them cinnamon rolls, there really isn’t any sugar or cinnamon in the filling, although you really could if you wanted to as the sweetness from a bit of brown sugar would be great with the BBQ sauce and pork. So if you’re a fan of BBQ sauce, pulled pork and cheese, then you’ll definitely be best friends with these rolls. They’re the perfect recipe to try out over the weekend. Get started in the morning and while the dough rises and the rolls double in size, you could go around the house and get your chores done or cross things off from your to-do list. By the time the rolls are ready, you’ll be done with everything and you’ll have the greatest reward waiting for you. If you want to make these after Easter and have lots of leftover ham lying around, then by all means, dice up the ham and use it as a filling instead of the pulled pork. That would be a great use for that excess Easter ham.

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BBQ Fried Chicken Sandwiches

January 13, 2016

Today, January 13, happens to be Julian’s birthday. This is important for a lot of reasons. The first one being, it’s his big dirty thirty. Three. Zero. And that means that it’s kind of a big deal because it’s one of those big deal birthdays that should be made a big deal of. The second thing is that because of this special occasion, we all get to eat and enjoy these BBQ Fried Chicken Sandwiches. So let’s all say thanks to my fiancé because of his birth. (Thanks for being born Julian). We have you to thank for breaking our New Year’s resolutions so early on. Sure, we could be eating healthy right now, and yeah we probably should be sticking to our diets, but why would we do something like that? Especially when these fried chicken sammies are here calling out our names. That sounds like total madness.

While we’re on the topic of complete and utter madness, let’s talk about these biscuits for a hot minute. I think it’s important to single them out right at the beginning of this post, because they’re one of the greatest sandwich vessels ever created. This is what you get when you combine cornbread (everyone’s favorite) with biscuits (also everyone’s favorite). Cornbread biscuits. That’s right, cornbread biscuits. Biscuits that are cornbread. I really love my cornbread with lots of cheddar cheese, jalapeño, scallions, and corn. So I made sure to include these flavors into these biscuits, along with cornmeal, so that the biscuits have that same quality and taste of cornbread that we all know and love. Did you mind just explode?! Not yet? Well, don’t worry, there’s plenty still to explode your head about late on in the post. Like creamy coleslaw and fried chicken dipped in BBQ sauce. Did I mention that they’re all sandwiched together to create the best sandwich you’ll ever have?!

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Strawberry Rhubarb BBQ Wings

May 4, 2015

I don’t know about your mothers, but my mamma would much rather have a barbecue feast instead of a fancy brunch for Mother’s Day. She’s a boss like that. Don’t give her pancakes or waffles, or even eggs, on her special day. She’d probably flip a table over and demand smoked ribs with coleslaw and cornbread on the side. I’m totally kidding, she’s not really a tyrant like that. She’s actually the complete opposite, but for dramatic effect let’s say I’m not kidding. (Sorry mamma). Give her a big plate of chicken wings though—not just on Mother’s Day but any day of the week—and she’ll be happy as a clam. A clam, I tell you. Take these Strawberry Rhubarb BBQ Wings for instance, they would probably bring tears of joy to her eyes. More so than any flower or chocolate or card ever possibly could. I think it’s safe to say that grilled chicken wings are the new way to our mothers’ hearts. It’s so 2015 of us. We shouldn’t be fighting it, but rather we should be making and eating all of the wings. Don’t fight it. Just make the wings.

Forget about all of the traditional, normal, everyday gifts that most moms get year after year. They don’t want that! They’re tired of those presents. Take it from me, they want something much tastier. Something new and exciting. Something they can’t get enough of. Something they can get their hands and faces dirty with, and are forced to lick their fingers clean because they don’t want to waste one drop of this delicious sauce. Don’t let the idea of making homemade BBQ sauce scare you though. It can be intimidating, but it’s actually incredibly easy to whip up. The hardest part is letting it simmer away for half an hour without sneaking a taste or two. So that’s definitely saying something. But let’s face it, at time’s I’m super lazy aren’t you? So I’m all for a homemade sauce that I can just dump everything into a pot, and forget about it while it simmer’s on low developing its incredible flavor, without me having to do anything major to it, other than just stirring it every now and then.

I’m definitely my mother’s son because I can never resist using my charcoal grill for everything. To me, nothing beats that flavor you get from burning coals. Definitely not as good as a propane grill, and sure it’s probably not the safest for the environment but I couldn’t grill any other way. It’s what I grew up with. My childhood during warm summer days, eating hamburgers and hot dogs by the pool. With that being said I of course, had to fire up my grill for this recipe. Rest assured though, I have those of you who don’t have an outdoor grill covered. I’ve given you a few alternative options to be able to make these sweet and spicy wings yourself. I’m just thinking of you and your mother’s because you should totally make these wings for them. They’ll be happy you did.

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Calzones: BBQ Chicken & Sausage and Peppers

October 8, 2013

I go through this whole process to decide on what to make for dinner. Sometimes when I feel uninspired, I go to the market and let the store decide for me. “Hey store, what should I cook for dinner?” I’ll scream out loud as I walk in. Sure, I’ll get some stares but it’s mostly because they’re jealous they didn’t think to ask the store themselves. They understand. We’re in the same boat. I’ll take a stroll around and see what looks good on that particular day and I’ll usually get ideas just on that. However let me give you one piece of advice, I’m sure you already know this, but you should never go to the market on an empty stomach. It’s bad news. I can’t even begin to tell you how many times I’ve taken a trip to the grocery store starving and I end up having chips and a baguette for dinner. Maybe even a few string cheeses on the car ride. I’ll get home and be like “Hey guys, guess what! We’re having pretzels and ice cream cones for dinner.” That never goes over well, which is a shocker to me. I mean, who wouldn’t want plain ice cream cones for dinner? Sometimes I base meals solely on what I feel like eating on that day. I go through cravings like a pregnant woman—I’m assuming. I’ll get something in my head and won’t be able to rest until I eat it. It’s a blessing really. The same thing goes for the posts and newsletters I photograph. Most of the time—okay, maybe always—I end up making, shooting and sharing a recipe that I felt like eating at the time. Purely selfish of me I apologize (but not really because it’s a delicious way to work).

My family will always know when I really don’t feel like cooking because I end up making something super simple like tuna sandwiches, or turkey sandwiches, or grilled cheese sandwiches. There’s a theme here, sandwiches are easy to make. Take note. At the same time, whenever I whip up a batch of buttermilk pancakes and scramble a few eggs and call it dinner, they’ll know how lazy I’m feeling that day. Although breakfast for dinner is the best thing on this planet, so no one’s complaining. Certainly not me. I could eat breakfast for dinner all day every day. I digress though. This post came through a conversation with a friend. I hadn’t eaten a calzone since like elementary school, and then she made me one and I was like “Whoa that looks amazing! I haven’t eaten a calzone since elementary school!” She then told me, “You should make calzones for your blog!” I responded with, “Oh yeah, like BBQ chicken. Oh Oh and sausage and peppers!” We both stared at each other and laughed like if something was funny and these calzones were unattainable, but then we both stopped laughing immediately and just stared at each other knowing we just said something serious and genius. And that’s how these calzones came to life. I had the BBQ chicken idea in my head immediately and the sausage and peppers came to me a little later only because I thought in my head I would have to make a second kind because one of my sister’s hates BBQ sauce (total weirdo). This whole long story just to show you how I usually decide on what to make and shoot. That’s how my brain operates when it comes to food. The more you know.

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