A Fork In Each Hand

Cheesy Pigs in Blankets

I’ve been oddly hungry for hot dogs lately which, if you’ve been following me for a hot minute, means turkey dogs in my world. It’s rare that I buy turkey dogs but there was just something that came over me which made me, no required me, to purchase those weird meat stick things. I came home from the grocery store and pulled out the hot dogs and whole-wheat buns with the plan to have one right away. But those precious, soft, and seemingly fresh buns turned out to have a pocket of mold right in the middle of the pack. So into the trash they went. I ended up having a hot dog on its own with nothing but yellow mustard which was okay but I didn’t want to eat a whole pack of dogs that way. I remembered this recipe for Cheesy Pigs in Blankets and went back to the store the next day specifically for pizza dough to make these little piggies.

Turkey dogs are halved and rolled up with mozzarella cheese into triangles of pizza dough and baked until plump and golden brown. A mixture of ketchup, barbecue sauce and yellow mustard makes for a perfect dipping sauce for these little bites which can be made for either a light dinner or impressive appetizers. I loved pigs in a blanket as a kid and I’m now reminded of how much I love them as an adult. I may never eat a hot dog with a bun again.

The ingredients:

Let dough stand, covered, for 20 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a 12 x 4inch rectangle. Cut rectangle into 4 (4 x 3inch) rectangles; cut each rectangle in half diagonally to form 8 triangles.

Divide cheese evenly among triangles; place in the center of wide ends.

Place 1/2 hot dog at the wide end of each triangle; roll up, pinching ends to seal. Arrange rolls on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray.

Bake at in a preheated 425°F oven for 12 minutes. Combine ketchup and remaining ingredients. Serve with rolls.

Additions: None

Omissions: None

Substitutions:

Finely shredded mozzarella cheese

Overall Rating: Love It

Source: Cooking Light magazine

Tangy Coffee Barbecue Sauce

I realized the other day that I have a ton, I mean a ton, of recipes for barbecue sauce. And yet I continue to buy chicken breasts but leave them in the freezer because who wants to eat plain old chicken breast? It never occurs to me to pull out one of these recipes and actually make a barbecue sauce to add some pizzazz to baked or grilled chicken. This past weekend when I was paging through my recipes, I kept stopping at these sauces and suddenly realized I already have the ingredients to make most of them, like this Tangy Coffee Barbecue Sauce. Duh! So long boring chicken!

Ketchup and coffee are the basis for this sauce which is simmered together with a little brown sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, and chili powder. Black pepper, balsamic vinegar and soy sauce are added at the end to give it and even bigger zing. Add it to chicken, pork, beef or even veggies for a little extra zip. ‘Tis approaching barbecue season so don’t go and get one of those bottled preservative messes, make some scrumptious sauce of your own. It’s cheaper and tastes so much better!

The ingredients:

Combine ketchup, coffee, brown sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, and chili powder in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat; stir in pepper, balsamic vinegar, and soy sauce.

Additions: None

Omissions: None

Substitutions: None

Overall Rating: Love It

Source: Cooking Light Magazine

Roots, Greens, and Shoots Quinoa

June 13, 2013
Shannon
0 comments
food, nuts, quinoa, spinach, sweet potato, vegetarian

Have you been hearing about “superfoods” lately? Foods that are supposedly the most nutritious food we can put into our bodies? Well, I have. The list of the top superfoods can vary by professional or article but I’ve seen enough written on the topic to know that quinoa, sweet potatoes, and spinach are all top contenders. So when I came across a feature in Cooking Light magazine of different low-calorie quinoa combos, I was drawn to this Roots, Greens, and Shoots combination.

With nothing more than roasted sweet potato, baby spinach, toasted pecans and scallions, this quick meal is about as nutritious as you can get. If you have a spare sweet potato or some leftover cooked quinoa, you also have a speedy meal. But if not, either roast a sweet potato in a 375 degree oven for 30-40 minutes or buy a super-simple pre-wrapped sweet potato and microwave according to the directions. Quinoa, which has become an easy replacement for rice in my house, can be cooked in 15 minutes with a 2:1 water ratio. Although there isn’t any dressing or other flavoring to this dish, you might think this would be pretty bland but on the contrary, the combination of the sweetness in the potato, the crunch of the pecans and the zing of the scallions made this easily one of my favorite quick meals I’ve ever made. In fact, it’s super.