Red Gold's Summer Grillin' Party and Bison Chili {Giveaway 7/13/15}

**Disclosure: We did receive product in order to bring you this giveaway. No other compensation was received. All opinions are 100% our own.

Red Gold is one of our favorite food companies! Red Gold has been a family owned company since the 1940's and has been operating for four generations. Plus, their tomatoes are grown here in the Midwest on family farms in Indiana, Ohio and Michigan! In fact, Red Gold has partnerships with over 50 Midwestern growers. Red Gold also takes its stewardship of the land very seriously. The company is attempting to achieve zero-landfill status by 2017. They also encourage growers to incorporate filter strips into their fields that not only protect waterways and prevent erosion but encourage a native wildlife habit to grow. One of the plants that grow in these strips is milkweed--the plant that monarchs are dependent upon. Such a wonderful Midwest brand!

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Our New Mexican Lasagna Recipe for Red Gold's Lasagna Party and {Giveaway 1/26/15!}

**Disclosure: We received complimentary product from Red Gold to bring you this recipe and giveaway. No other compensation was received. All opinions are 100% my own.

Red Gold is celebrating lasagna through February 3, 2015 and we are getting in on the fun with our new Mexican Lasagna Recipe!

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Peanut Butter Buckeyes!!! {Simple Recipe}

Last year, I decided to branch out from my usual round of holiday baking and tried Buckeyes. What a total success! My family could barely share them with anyone! Pretty easy, chocolate and peanut butter goodness! Here it goes:

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Fresh Vegetable Dip with siggi's {and a Giveaway 12/11/14}

**Disclosure: I did receive complimentary cups of yogurt to create this recipe and bring you this giveaway. No other compensation was received. All opinions are 100% my own.

Ever since my first trip to Iceland a few years ago, I have been hooked on skyr. Good for me that siggi's makes this Icelandic yogurt right here in the United States! I love the flavor and thick, rich texture of skyr. Plus, you will not find any artificial ingredients in siggi's which is a definite plus! Given skyr's thick texture, I thought that it would be a great and healthy base for a dip so I created a Vegetable Dip with siggi's and some of our favorite ingredients. Here is what I used:

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Spiced Up Cornbread For Red Gold's Summer Grilling Event {Through 7/23/14}

**Disclosure: We received products in order to facilitate a review and recipe. No compensation was received. All opinions are 100% my own.

While shopping at the grocery store and picking up a few things for the kitchen, I am sure that you often see cans of Red Gold. Well, did you know that Red Gold is from Indiana? Red Gold is a family company launched in 1942 that has been packing Midwest tomatoes ever since. Pretty neat, huh? Well, this summer Red Gold is holding its second Summer Grilling Party over on Facebook with recipes and giveaways! Many winners will win a festive Red Gold apron and one lucky winner will win a Big Green Egg Grill and a Red Gold grill pack! Awesome! The giveaway is going on through July 23!

Red Gold did provide me with some delightful tomatoes to try out--- Red Gold Diced & Green Chilies, Chili Ready, Basil Garlic and Oregano, Lime & Cilantro and Diced Tomatoes. Bet you didn't know they had so many varieties! The Red Gold Diced & Green Chilies inspired me to make an amped up cornbread. I have seen a number of spicy cornbread recipes in the past but have never tried one myself. This week seemed like the perfect opportunity and the result was a lovely cornbread with a nice bit of edge!

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Mixed Berry Cobbler {Simple, Berry Goodness}

It has been way too long since we have done a recipe on here! My hubby and I actually have a few that are in the formative phases but not quite there yet. This time of year is berry-good in our house as my husband snaps up organic berry deals. I was inspired by our recent collection of berries to make a cobbler for the Fourth of July. Cobblers are pretty easy and please most. I made ours in one dish wish we split three ways, but you can also easily bake cobblers in individual portions. I used cherries and strawberries in my cobbler, but you can simply add blueberries, blackberries and raspberries as well.

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PEEPS Easter Latte {Put a Sweet Little Cap on your Warm Beverage}

**Disclosure: We received complimentary samples in order to create a treat. No compensation was received. All opinions are 100% my own.

What says Easter more than brightly colored, sticky sweet PEEPS? Yellow, blue, pink, purple and more PEEPS will brighten up Easter baskets all over in  a few weeks. I had the opportunity to experiment with PEEPS recently and have come up with a fun latte perfect to add some spring fun to your morning. A little sweetness and a splash of color---lovely! However, I would like to share a few facts that I learned about PEEPS first.

The Peepstistics

The very first PEEP chick was hatched in 1953. So, they have been a favorite for quite awhile! Now, enough PEEPS are produced each year to circle the globe not just once---but twice! Back in the day, it took 27 hours--with a pastry tube--to make a PEEP chick. With today's automated process, it takes 6 hours to make a PEEP. Big difference! The distance between LA and NYC is approximately 70,000,000 PEEPS. That is one long rainbow! PEEPS are made in the U.S.A.---further solidifying them as the perfect Easter treat for us!

Flexing some Peepsonality!

After checking out all of PEEPS' sweet offerings, I was inspired to craft a latte. My husband and I each crafted one of our own using some delightful and spirited items! Here is how we flexed our Peepsonality!

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Creamed Parsnips with siggi's and a {Giveaway} 4/7/14

**Disclosure: As a siggi's ambassador, I have received complimentary product to sample. No other compensation was received. All opinions are 100% my own.

Lately, we have been on a root vegetable kick, exploring ones that are relatively new to us. The parsnip has quickly become one of our favorites. It is pretty easy to work with---think carrot--and has a nice, sweet flavor. Recently, I became an ambassador for siggi's so I thought this would  the perfect opportunity to be a little adventurous with the parsnip. I love, love, love siggi's skyr! Blending it with a parsnip seemed to be a no-brainer!

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St. Patrick's Day Menu Ideas: Make a Meal Worthy of a Four-Leaf Clover

My first year blogging, I shared my favorite St. Patrick's Day recipes for Corned Beef and Irish Lemon Sponge Pudding. These two are truly my gold standards--I have been using them for about 15 years. {Scary, I know!} I thought that I would share them again as well as some new ones that I have uncovered online. I am always tempted to make more for St. Paddy's Day but, with a family of three, the Corned Beef and Irish Lemon Sponge Pudding always seem to be enough. {Plus, I am sure my daughter will put in a plea for scones as well!} If you are working on putting your St. Patrick's Day menu, take a peek at some of these ideas:



Irish Lemon Sponge Pudding

Our family's traditional recipes:

• St. Paddy's Day Corned Beef
• Irish Lemon Sponge Pudding
• Scones

Inspirations from Irish Abroad:

Irish Abroad, a networking site for Irish abroad and in Ireland, has quite the collection of Irish-inspired dishes. Here are some ideas:

• Turnip and Potato Casserole
• Lamb Shanks Braised in Stout
• Roasted Salmon with Leeks
• Red Onion Tart with Cashel Blue Cheese
• Strawberry Fummery

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Balsamic Chicken and Wild Rice {Recipe}

I think that I have mentioned before how much I love Cooking Light. We have found some great recipes from Cooking Light and find them to be well balanced yet not to difficult to execute. One of our standbys from Cooking Light happens to be Sauteed Chicken Breast with Balsamic Vinegar Pan Sauce. Last night, I made it with a few tweaks. I wanted to share the recipe because it is a good one!

Ingredients:

2 large chicken breasts
1/3 cup vegetable broth
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tsp honey
1/2 Tbsp butter
1/2 Tbsp avocado oil
1 Tbsp chopped scallions
1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
3 Tbsp buckwheat
1/2 cup wild rice (dry)

Directions:

First, start preparing the wild rice according to the package directions. Wild rice does take a little longer to cook, so starting it a little before you prepare the chicken may be a good idea.

Then, mix the balsamic, broth and honey. I whisked the mixture lightly. Heat the butter and oil in a skillet. {I used my Le Creuset.} Mix the flour and the pepper in a shallow dish for dredging. You may want to cut the chicken breasts in half {we left ours big however bigger pieces take longer}. Dredge your chicken and pan fry. Fry for about 4-5 minutes on each side until golden brown. Since I left our breasts large, they did take about 7 minutes on each side. Once your chicken is cooked, remove it from the skillet. Add the scallions and sautee for 30 seconds. Next, add the liquid mixture. Scrape the pan to add the browned bits. Boil the liquid about 3 minutes--until the liquid has been reduced by 1/2. To plate, put some wild rice on your plate. Then, place the chicken atop the wild rice and drizzle with the sauce and scallions. For dinner last night, we also made some brussel sprouts.

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Chocolate Dipped Marshmallows {as promised}

So, I whipped up another batch of Alton Brown's marshmallows and dipped them in chocolate. If you want to dip your marshmallows, let them set according to Alton's recipe and then cut them. Once you have done this, prepare the chocolate for dipping according to this recipe:

Ingredients:

5 oz. semisweet baking chocolate, chopped
2 oz. 2% milk

Directions:

Line dish with wax paper. Grab some pop sticks for dipping. Heat water in the bottom of a double boiler. Pour milk into top pan and warm slightly. Then, add chocolate and mix while chocolate is melting. While melting chocolate, do not let the temperature get above 115 F. I usually end up finishing the melting process by removing the top pot from the heat and stirring. You can always move it back to the heat if you need to.

Once the chocolate is melted and smooth, dip your marshmallows and place them in lined dish. Cover dish. Then, place in refrigerator until chocolate has solidified.

Yum!

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Simple Sugar Cookies

I have one of those cookie bibles full of cookie recipes. There are pages after pages of sugar cookie recipes---over 1000, actually. I have morphed a couple of them into the sugar cookie recipe that we used this year. My husband and daughter can't keep their hands off them, so this one is a keeper!

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup butter {room temperature}
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions:

 Mix flour, baking powder and cinnamon in mixing bowl. Set aside. Next, cream butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Beat in eggs and vanilla extract. Then, gradually add the dry mixture to the wet. Cover and chill for 4 hours. {I chilled mine over night and had to let it warm a tad to be workable.}

When you are ready to bake, preheat oven to 400 F. Lightly grease 2 baking sheets. Prepare a floured surface for rolling out dough. Lightly flour rolling pin and cookie cutters. Roll out dough to desired thickness. Cut cookies and place on baking sheet with cookies about 1" apart. Bake for 8-10 minutes for desired brownness. {My husband likes his a bit crunchy. I like a mix of soft and crunchy.} Let cool on wire racks. Then, store or decorate and then store.

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Fluffy Marshmallows Thanks to Alton Brown {Homemade}

 

After having some fresh marshmallows in France and New Orleans this year, I just knew that I had to make them. I am not normally a marshmallow person, but the fresh ones are just so light and airy. My daughter and I used a recipe by Alton Brown for our first {and successful} attempt. I thought maybe I was a little ambitious by including my daughter on this project. However, she was eager to help and did quite a good job. She even was pretty good at not sneaking a lick until we were cleaning up. I found Alton's recipe to be pretty easy to follow. If you follow the steps, you will not end up with a sticky mess. Rather, you will end up with delightful, sugary puffs! If you are looking for a marshmallow recipe, Alton Brown's recipe is great. We plan on making some chocolate covered marshmallows for the holidays, so I will let you know how that goes!

**Updated: To see how we dipped them, head to our chocolate dipped marshmallows post.

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Shepherd's Pie {Easy Comfort Food}

My husband and I have been making Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Shepherd's Pie for longer than I care to mention. The recipe has been adapted over the years according to our tastes and what we have more readily available. I like this recipe because it is easy but tastes like much more effort was put into it. Nice, warm comfort food for winter!

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Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte

Once the crisp air of fall rolled in, I had an instantaneous craving--one that you are probably familiar with. I could not wait to have a pumpkin spice latte from a certain coffee joint! And, yes, I did indulge. Soon afterward, I discovered a Pumpkin Spice Latte recipe by Amy Jamieson on People's website. To add to my excitement, the recipe truly used pumpkin--not just the spices. Having just cleaned out a pie pumpkin, I had some pumpkin to spare. So, I thought that I would try the recipe. Tonight, I gave it a whirl and enjoyed it. The recipe is very easy and the latte is definitely one that is perfect for sipping during a fall evening spending time with the family or enjoying a good book. I adapted the recipe a bit, so take a peek:

Ingredients

3/4 cup 2% milk
1 tsp maple syrup
2-3 Tbsp pumpkin puree
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cinnamon + a pinch for the top of the latte
1 pinch ground ginger
1/2 cup coffee

Directions

Make coffee according to preferred method. Add all other ingredients to food processor or blender except the pinch of cinnamon. Blend on high speed until frothy. Then, pour into saucepan on stove top and warm. Do not heat to boiling. Then, pour milk mixture on top of 1/2 cup of coffee. Sprinkle with a pinch of cinnamon. Yum!

I love that this recipe uses real pumpkin and that I actually know every ingredient in it. Plus, it is surprisingly easy to make at home!

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Cleaning our Pumpkin and Roasting Seeds!

Today, my daughter had a day off of school so we began working on our pumpkins. My daughter does not quite accept the difference between pie pumpkins and carving pumpkins. So while she likes me to make pie or bread in the fall, she also wants me to carve my pie pumpkin. I guess moms don't get a break!

We cleaned out our pumpkin by using pumpkin carving tools and a melon baller. The melon baller actually made the process pretty easy. We kept the pulp separate from the seeds. Once we finished, I put the pulp in a pot, added 2 cups of water and heated the pulp for 2 hours until it was pretty smooth. I simmered it on low heat to keep the pumpkin from burning. If the pulp is not smooth enough, you can puree it. I put this aside in the refrigerator for baking this week.

Next, we moved onto the seeds. There is nothing like fresh pumpkin seeds in the fall!

Here is what we did to make our seeds:

Ingredients:

Pumpkin seeds from one pumpkin
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp celery salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

Rinse the seeds in a colander. Boil them for 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 300 F. Strain the seeds and pat dry. Pour them into a bowl and mix with 2 tsp olive oil, 1 tsp celery salt and 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Spread the seeds onto a baking sheet, preferably with sides. Bake for 15 minutes. Then, take seeds out of oven and flip the seeds. Sprinkle a little more cinnamon. Bake for 15 more minutes. Stir again. Heat 15 more minutes. Seeds should be lightly golden brown when finished. Cool and eat!

The olive oil really makes these pumpkin seeds addictive. They taste like popcorn!

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Yummy Beet Chips! {Recipe}

I first tried beets a couple of years ago as a natural food dye. Then, I tried them in a few dishes and did not particularly care for them. However, I cannot deny that beet chips are pretty tasty! Beets are a source of fiber, folate, Vitamin B, beta-carotene and potassium. The vitamins probably pack a better punch eating the beets raw. However, I am not quite there yet, so the chips will have to do! Maybe if I eat more chips, raw beets will become more palatable!

Making beet chips at home is pretty easy, especially if you have a mandoline. Baking the chips does take a little bit of time and patience. However, the chips are worth it!

Ingredients

2 medium beets, peeled and sliced thin
1/2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp tarragon

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Toss sliced beets with olive oil and tarragon. You can use a different spice if you would like. I have also made beet chips with basil as well. Arrange beet slices on baking sheet. Make sure that they are not layered. Place another baking sheet on top and put in oven. You will need to bake the chip about 40 minutes. However, around the 15 minute mark, take a peek to see how the chips are coming along. Since mine were hand cut, they were not of uniform thickness. Therefore, I found a few that were already done at the 15 minute mark. I then checked every 5 minutes to remove any that were done. When the beet chips are done, they will be lighter than the original deep red. When they are finished, they will cool pretty fast.

This recipe only yields enough chips for two servings. You can definitely adjust up to fit your needs.

These chips can actually make a really nice and vibrant garnish. We had a cucumber soup with our chips and the contrast between the red color of the beet chips and the white of the soup was neat.

**Thank to Martha Stewart for the technique using the pans. Last week, my chips took forever on one pan. The double pan idea works well!

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Reubenesque Potatoes and a {giveaway!}

As the temperatures begin to dip outside, piping hot dishes right out of the oven sound more and more appealing. Nothing is quite like
a nice warm meal after being out in brisker temperatures. Recently, Klondike Brand Potatoes contacted me about using Klondike Rose Potatoes in a new recipe inspired by fall produce. Being a total potato fan, I had to meet the challenge.

I discussed last week that I have been buying this awesome red cabbage from our local market. It is surprisingly sweet. Love it! Inspired by this cabbage, I opted to give a little reuben spin to the Klondike Rose Potatoes. Notice I said spin--I am straying a bit from a traditional reuben. The resulting dish was tasty and one I would make again.

Ingredients:

2 large Klondike Rose Potatoes
2-3 slices pastrami
1/2 cup sliced red cabbage (sliced thin)
1/4 cup diced Emmental cheese
1/4 cup yogurt
1 tsp horseradish

Directions:

Wash and peel potatoes. Cut into wedges. Boil potato wedges for 15-20 minutes. When they are done, they will be soft when you touch them with a fork. Preheat oven to 350. Slice pastrami into small stripes. Slice red cabbage into thin strips. Layer potato wedges into a casserole dish.

Then, layer on the pastrami. Finally, layer the cabbage on top. Place casserole dish into oven and bake 10 minutes.

 While baking, melt cheese in sauce pan over low heat. As cheese is melting, add yogurt. Continue to melt while stirring. This will take awhile. However, you will want to heat the two ingredients slow to prevent curdling. (I walked away to look at spices and strayed a little too long, so we got a little curdling.) Once almost entirely melted, add horseradish. Remove the potatoes from the oven. You can either drizzle the sauce on and serve or stick the potatoes back into the oven after drizzling on the cheese sauce for a little browning.

Result: Yummy potatoes with a great serving of healthy, red cabbage!

Win Potatoes!

In addition to sponsoring this wonderful recipe, Klondike Brands is sponsoring a great giveaway for our readers! One reader will receive a bag of Klondike potatoes! This giveaway is open to U.S. residents 18-years-old and older and will end on September 25, 2013. Klondike Brands is responsible for sending the prize to the winner. Enter below!


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**Disclosure: Klondike Brands provided potatoes for creating this recipe. No compensation was received for this post. All opinions are 100% my own. 

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Festive Turkey Meatballs

I have been making turkey meatballs for years and the recipe has morphed quite a bit. I finally have a meatball that we all love and shockingly can all eat. I do credit the wonderful red cabbage I have been buying at the Farmers' Market for my inspiration. I tell you, I can probably eat a whole head of it. The cabbage has a lovely sweetness to it that you do not usually get from store bought cabbage. The recipe is very easy and you can easily make a large batch to freeze some for a future meal.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey
1/2 cup finely chopped red cabbage
1/4 cup diced white or yellow onion
1 egg white
1/4 cup cornmeal (you can increase this upon taste)
2 Tbsp brown mustard
1 tsp fresh sage
1 tsp dried tarragon

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Mix ingredients in large mixing bowl. You may need to mix a bit by hand to make sure the ingredients are well incorporated. I have used both pyrex and corelle bakeware to bake my meatballs. Form meatballs using a medium-sized spoonful of the mixture. With the pyrex or corelle, you will not need to spray the bakeware. Once the meatballs are formed, bake for 25 minutes. Check for doneness around to 20 minute mark if your meatballs are on the smaller side.

We found these meatballs to be pretty moist and tasty. Plus, the color from the cabbage is a nice touch!

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Red Gold Summer Recipes, Sweepstakes and Giveaway {Ends 8/29/13}

**Disclosure: We received complimentary product in order to make an accurate review. No other compensation was received. Opinions are 100% our own.

I am sure that many of you have seen Red Gold Tomatoes at the store and some of you have even used them in your cooking. Did you know that Red Gold has been a family-run company since 1942? Plus, Red Gold's manufacturing facilities are located in our neighboring state of Indiana. I recently learned about these facts and was really happy to learn that Red Gold products are made so close to home! I love to support local companies whenever possible, so it is nice to know that Red Gold is so readily available.

Red Gold currently has some exciting things going on that I would like to tell you about. First, Red Gold has a number of recipes perfect for your summer grilling. You can actually use some of their flavorful tomato combinations to add a little pizzazz to your burgers. We decided to give their Caribbean Chicken Burger a whirl and enjoyed the tasty results. Here is the super-simple recipe:

Ingredients:

1 lb ground chicken (we substituted turkey)
1 (14.5 oz.) can Red Gold Petite Diced Tomatoes with Lime Juice & Cilantro
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup bread crumbs (we substituted cornmeal)
salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:

Drain your can of tomatoes well--and I mean well. Combine first 4 ingredients in a bowl. Form into patties and season with salt and pepper. Grill to your desired temperature (recommended 160 degrees for entirely cooked burgers.)

Voila! A tasty burger! (We made ours petite!)

Besides these fun recipes, Red Gold is also running a cool sweepstakes through August 30, 2013. Red Gold will be giving away a Green Egg Ceramic Grill & Smoker as well as 1000 red tomato aprons! You can learn about how to enter this sweepstakes through Red Gold's Facebook page.

Want some more fun? One of our readers will win a prize pack from this wonderful Midwestern company! The prize pack will include a 5 can selection of 14.5 oz cans of Red Gold Tomatoes as well as a bottle of Jalapeno Ketchup and a Red Gold apron! The giveaway will end on 8/29/13 and is open to US residents 18-years-old and older. The prize pack will be sent to the winner by Red Gold. You can enter the giveaway below:

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