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Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese

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I recently met with the owner of a local grilled cheese restaurant who approximately one year ago closed her former location with intentions on opening in a new hood. It took some time, but finally the opportunity came in the perfect cozy little package. Almost ready to open, she still had to write the menu on the board, get her liquor license and complete a few other tasks, but without a doubt, she was ready to rock in roll.

Around the same time I stopped in to check out the new digs, I came across a photo of a jalapeno grilled cheese I had made once upon a time. There are many of those once upon a time photos that never got matched up with a recipe. Suddenly I wanted grilled cheese. And jalapenos. So it happened and here it is in all it’s glory. Important to note I use mayonnaise to “butter” my bread. It works just as good as butter and is cheaper.

Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese

5.0 from 4 reviews
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Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese
Author: 
Serves: 2
 
Ingredients
  • 1 jalapeno pepper
  • olive oil
  • ⅓ cup softened cream cheese
  • 1 tsp old bay
  • pinch kosher salt
  • pinch finely grated black pepper
  • 4 pieces of bacon
  • Loaf of bread
  • ½ cup grated cheddar cheese
  • mayonnaise
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 475F.
  2. Cut jalapeno in half and remove seeds and veins. Place on a foil lined cookie sheet and drizzle on some olive oil. Rub all over and put in oven for 5-10 minutes or until peppers have softened and have a light char on them. Remove from oven and either skin them or set aside to cool (both way works). Once cooled enough to handle, rough chop them and mix in a bowl with cream cheese, old bay, salt and pepper.
  3. Cook your bacon. Drain, set aside.
  4. Slather four pieces of bread with mayonnaise. On the other side of each slice, spread a thin layer of the cream cheese mixture.
  5. In a large skillet over medium heat, add bread with cream cheese mixture, mayonnaise side down. Top with two pieces of bacon and ½ of the grated cheese. Top your with remaining slice of bread, mayonnaise side up.
  6. Cook on medium low until melty and golden, 4 to 5 minutes, then flip and cook 5 minutes more.
  7. Remove from pan and let sit. Repeat with second sandwich.

 

Dublin Coddle

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Dublin Coddle is not a term you hear every day. Unless you are Irish or from Dublin. The first time I heard it earlier this year I couldn’t stop staying Dublin Coddle. I would even try to add my best and Irish accent and fail miserably.

While channel surfing, You Gotta Eat Here, the Canadian version of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, popped up and caught my attention. They were in Ireland and were featuring a Chef making a Dublin Coddle. Some things are just meant to be. Dublin Coddle Dublin Coddle. See? It’s catchy.

A coddle is an Irish dish often made to use up leftovers like bacon, potatoes and sausage. It dates back to the 1700s and is traditionally a dish eaten during the colder months. The name ‘coddle’ is most likely derived from caudle, which comes from the French term meaning to boil gently, parboil or stew. Or so the research indicates.

Guess what? I wanted to make it. What I saw on TV was simple enough and reminiscent of another recipe I used to make a long time ago (well ok in the 90’s);  smoked sausage, potatoes and carrots, cooked together in a pot with water, salt and pepper. Maybe some parsley for colour.

For my coddle I used a local craft beer from Village Brewery, and bacon. Be sure to have crusty bread to mop up the broth and even better on St. Patrick’s Day. Here’s how we did it.

 

dcoddle

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Dublin Coddle
Author: 
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 1 pkg of bacon, cut into a chunks
  • 3 mild Italian sausage, uncooked
  • 1 medium yellow onion, sliced
  • 1 pkg smoked Mennonite sausage, sliced into chunks
  • 2 lbs or 6 medium yellow potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
  • ½ cup parsley, chopped
  • good pinch salt and pepper
  • 4 cups warmed chicken broth
  • 1 bottle of beer
  • Crusty bread
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375F.
  2. Heat a large, oven safe Dutch oven or casserole pot over high heat. Add Italian sausage and the bacon and cook long enough to add colour but not cook through, about 5 minutes. Remove them to drain on paper towels. Drain all grease except two tablespoons. Once sausage cools cut on diagonal into large chunks.
  3. Add onions and Mennonite sausage to pot stirring to scrape up and bits on bottom and let cook about three minutes. Add potatoes, cooled sausage, bacon, parsley and salt and pepper.
  4. Pour in chicken broth and beer. Bring to a boil then immediately reduce heat and cover the pot.
  5. Place covered pot in preheated oven and cook for 3-4 hours. After 2 hours check your liquid level and add more stock if needed.
  6. Serve hot with fresh crusty bread.

 

Village Brewery Black Smith

 

 

Beef Stew with Bacon

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Beef Stew with Bacon
Beef Stew with Bacon

A long time ago my mom used to cook the shit out of pork and beef roasts. Truth be known I was in a recent session with Vikram Vij and he also advised his mom would cook the shit out of things to, so I blame him for my potty mouth. The only way I could choke down her roasts was to smother them in HP Sauce – more truths. This continued mistreatment of roasts while I was a child led me to have trust relationships with roast beef. I do enjoy beef, like I really really enjoy steak, satay, stir-fry. We also enjoy roasts on a regular basis as a family, however I still am not a huge fan of roast beef. But I will eat it.

Beef Stew with Bacon
Beef Stew with Bacon

This leads us to stew, another cut I have a strange relationship with. Possibly for the same reasons – it was made regularly and slightly over cooked. My family enjoys stew so it’s made flavourful and moist in this house. Mostly.

Beef Stew with Bacon
Beef Stew with Bacon

In my quest to love stew, I added some sauteed mushrooms, chopped chives and broken chunks of double cream brie. And a few hot pepper flakes. Go big or go home right? Guess what? I LOVED it! We get a flavour punch from adding leftover frozen beef broth from our last Teriyaki Beef Fondue. What you’ve never had a beef broth fondue? You really should. Regular beef broth is also dandy in a handy. Finally some leftover parsnips resembling potatoes went into the stew and nobody was the wiser (winning).

Beef Stew with Bacon
Beef Stew with Bacon

I finished the stew with a few sprinkles of hot pepper flakes cause I like the heat!

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Beef Stew with Bacon
Author: 
Recipe type: dinner, lunch
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 4 slices thick cut bacon, chopped into 1 inch pieces
  • 2 lbs beef stew cubs (boneless beef chuck cut into 2 inch cubes)
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 3 carrots, chopped
  • 2 parsnips, peeled and chopped
  • 4 yellow potatoes,c hopped
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 2 celery stalks, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic.
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 3 cups beef broth
  • 1 tbsp fresh thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 lb cremini mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 2 tbsp parsley, chopped
  • 1 tbsp chives, chopped into longer pieces
  • ¼ cup double cream brie, tore into smaller pieces
  • 1 baguette, torn into crusty chunks for dipping
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350F.
  2. In a large wide 6-8 quart heavy pot with a lid, fry bacon pan over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  3. Add your beef to pot in smaller batches, add flour and stir until lightly browned. Remove bacon and beef to platter. Toss in carrots, parsnips, potatoes, onion, celery and garlic. Stir occasionally and cook for another 6 minutes.
  4. Push vegetables aside, making a hole in the middle of pot and add tomato paste. Stir for about one minute then mix in vegetables.
  5. Pour in beef broth, bay leaves, salt and pepper and thyme. Bring to a boil. Drop in beef and bacon, cover and cook in oven until meat is very tender 1 - 2 hours.
  6. Season with salt and pepper, remove bay leaves and serve hot with mushrooms, chives, brie, a sprinkle of parsley and crusty bread.
Notes
To saute mushrooms add 1 tbsp butter to a hot pan. Toss in mushrooms and stir until moisture is released. Season with salt and pepper and cook until brown.

Tomato Soup with Sausage

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Lately I’ve been craving soup. Specially french onion soup but I haven’t had the booze I needed to make the broth sing. Recently I took some out of town clients to Charbar for lunch, a fairly new Argentinian style restaurant I’ve admittedly been to several times. I ordered the lunch special (and they did to) of half a salad and the daily soup. I encouraged them to have the fugazza (pizza) with their soup. The soup was an Argentinian inspired tomato & sausage soup. Wow was it ever good. In fact all four of us at the table completely enjoyed the soup. I decided to try and make my own version of this soup at home.

Have you heard of Spolumbo’s sausage? They are local sausage maker and the sausage is preservative and chemical free. I use it in pasta sauces, soups and we especially love it grilled on the BBQ. You can use whatever uncooked sausage you love in this soup. I also added a small piece of leftover parmesan rind as I’ve seen chefs do this to add flavour and depth. It did something because the soup was the best tomato soup I’ve ever had.

It’s a simple soup that screams flavour.

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Tomato Soup with Sausage
Author: 
Recipe type: lunch, dinner
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 2 cups uncooked Italian sausage
  • 3 strips bacon
  • canola oil
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 - 28oz can whole tomatoes
  • fresh thyme, couple sprigs
  • parmesan rind, any size
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 2 bay leaves, dried is fine
  • salt and pepper
  • ¼ cup cream
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • parsley
Instructions
  1. Heat a sauce pan over medium heat and add the bacon. Cook until crisp, remove from pan, chop and set aside. Pour out all but approximately 1 tbsp of the bacon fat.
  2. Remove sausage from casing and add to pan breaking up into smaller pieces. Cook for 3 minutes and add the garlic and onions and cook until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Drizzle in a little oil if needed.
  3. Add tomatoes, thyme, parmesan rind. chicken broth and bay leaves. Turn heat down to simmer. Season with salt and pepper and let cook for about 25 minutes. Add more chicken broth if soup cooks down.
  4. Discard the thyme, bay leaves and Parmesan rind. Puree the soup in a food processor or with an immersion blender until smooth and leave in pan. Stir in the cream and butter. Season with salt and pepper.
  5. To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle with the bacon and parsley.

 

 

Bacon Wrapped Turducken

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Thanksgiving has different meanings for different folks. Many celebrate and express gratitude through their religion, while others look forward to the tradition of spending time with loved ones, friends, community, and enjoying the harvest. There is typically always food involved, and it’s tradition to cook a turkey. Did you know Thanksgiving day is celebrated primarily in Canada and the United States? Last year our International German student was quite amazed to learn about a holiday she knew nothing about, and even more surprised at the feast we had prepared to celebrate this day. Thanksgiving definitely blew her away, so imagine how she felt when she learned and participated in her first ever Halloween.

In my youth we spent holidays with friends as family lived too far away, and winter time travel across Provinces from that small northern town was not exactly something you wanted to do willingly. Today we live in a City where we also have next to no family around, so we make our own traditions, and have recently started spending Thanksgiving with friends, alternating houses every year.

turd v1

This year, Echelon Foods asked if we would be interested in sampling one of their Bacon Wrapped Turduckens. Having had an Echelon Turducken roughly 4-5 years ago, I knew we were in for a treat. Well who am I kidding, they had me at bacon. One great experience can only be made better with bacon, right? At this point my European followers might be wondering what a turducken is. Simply put it’s a deboned chicken stuffed in a duck stuffed in a turkey, and in this case, wrapped in bacon with an Italian sausage stuffing inside. Some even call it a Three Bird Roast. Luxurious, yet simple, solid but unique. The question begs to be asked – how does a turducken becomes a turducken?

the meal

Since it wasn’t our turn to host Thanksgiving dinner this year, I left the turducken in the very capable hands of my girlfriend Jody who is also a delicious cook. Our biggest hurdle and decision which should have involved wine was…do we cook low & slow, or do we rev it up a little and getter done. We choose the quicker method, and Jody cooked up that turducken like a pro. You can tell by the photos it came out beautifully. 12 of us sat down to enjoy the feast, the friendship, our health, the food & wine and our bacon wrapped turducken.

Important to note this turducken is available locally throughout the year. It’s a beautiful addition to a meal and something you might just get hooked on.

Echelon Foods provided me with a turducken to try and review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Bacon Turkey Chili

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When my husband and I first met we were all sports all the time. Then kids came along and sports went by the way side. Kids are only little once and we choose to do family activities vs spending tons of time in front of the TV. Doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy game day food however!!

Super bowl was coming, we all love bacon, and chili (well the boy picks the beans out), so while shopping for groceries I decided on a bacon turkey chili for game day supper. And to add another level of flavour, I was going to add in some of the chipotle in adobo sauce I had resting in the fridge. Even though we didn’t get to watch the game, we enjoyed our game day chili.

My husband loves deviled eggs and admittedly I do to. But it’s a once a year kind of ordeal. We hadn’t had them in so long I again decided on a whim to make deviled eggs. After all it was super bowl Sunday. In addition I sliced up some sweet potato into thin slices and sauteed in the pan for some extra goodness.

It’s really popular to “put an egg on it” these days, so I put a deviled egg on the chili. I had an aha moment. One of my new favourite things and next time it will either be a fried or poached egg that goes on top.

 

Bacon Turkey Chili
Bacon Turkey Chili

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Bacon Turkey Chili
Author: 
Recipe type: dinner, lunch, game day food, snack
 
Ingredients
  • ½ package bacon, chopped
  • 1 large shallot (or two smallish ones), diced
  • 2 lbs ground turkey
  • 1-2 tsp cumin
  • 2-3 tsp chili powder
  • ½ tsp chipotle in adobo
  • salt & pepper
  • 1 - 796 ml can diced tomatoes
  • ½ cup chicken stock
  • ½ can tomato sauce
  • 1 - 340 ml can red kidney beans, rinsed
Instructions
  1. In a large pot add bacon and render over medium heat until cooked.
  2. Add shallot and saute for 2 minutes. Add in your turkey and cook with bacon & shallot until no more pink remains breaking it up as you go.
  3. Stir in cumin, chili powder, a good pinch of salt & pepper, chipotle in adobo, diced tomatoes, chicken stock and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer.
  4. Let flavours marry for about 30 minutes or so. Pour in your beans stirring to mix in.
  5. Simmer another 10 minutes and then serve with your favourite fixins or put an egg on it.
Notes
Eggs: poached, deviled or fried
Fixins: chopped peppers, onion, grated cheese, chopped tomatoes

 

10 Game Day Snack Ideas

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I love Game Day food. Bits, bites and everything in between. A day to be naughty and allow yourself a cheat day, if of course you are following a healthier eating regime. I scour the internet when game day approaches looking for new ideas or inspiration for some tasty bites. This year I decided, albeit kind of late, instead of sharing all my own game day posts individually, I would do a post with some of my favourite game day bites. So I picked my top ten favourites and assembled them into this 10 Game Day [Super Bowl or Grey  Cup] Snack Ideas.

Most of these are simple to make. You got this.

Buffalo Chicken & Bacon Dip

If you love the flavour of buffalo chicken, you will love this simple dip made with added love from Bacon.

Buffalo & Chicken Bacon Dip
Buffalo & Chicken Bacon Dip

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mini Chili Cheese Balls

It’s easy to get carried away eating these as they are small and delicious. Hint: make extra.

Mini Chili Cheese Balls
Mini Chili Cheese Balls

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Baked Potato Skins with Pancetta

Ever go to a restaurant, order something and think I can make it better at home. That’s where these came in. I did make them better at home. And ate them ALL.

Baked Potato Skins with Pancetta
Baked Potato Skins with Pancetta

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Honeyed Chili Chicken Wings

Wings & sports. They just go together. These wings are baked not fried and encompass a sweet & spicy bite.

Honeyed Chili Chicken Wings
Honeyed Chili Chicken Wings

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Curried Up Spinach Dip

My weakness (well there are many) is a good spinach dip. I love curry so the two together seemed like the perfect marriage (I was right).

Curried Spinach Dip
Curried Spinach Dip

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Bakers Beef Chili

What’s a big game without a big ole bowl of steaming Chili. Made in the slowcooker to make life easier. This one is packed full of flavour & I love the addition of the crunchy bits on top (optional).

Bakers Beef Chili
Bakers Beef Chili

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Pizza Burgers

Again when I think game day I think burgers & beer. These Pizza Burgers get a little extra love (pepperoni) and are requested all the time. Winner.

Pizza Burgers
Pizza Burgers

 

Blue Cheese Pecans Stuffed Mushrooms

Whoa do I loves me blue cheese. Pair it with pecans and stuff into mushrooms to bake until melty & delicious kinda melts my heart.

Blue Cheese Pecan Stuffed Mushrooms
Blue Cheese Pecan Stuffed Mushrooms

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Candied Bacon & Brown Sugar Baked Brie

Who doesn’t love a baked brie. How about one with candied bacon? Find the candied bacon recipe here: Candied Bacon

Candied Bacon & Brown Sugar Baked Brie
Candied Bacon & Brown Sugar Baked Brie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Bites

Bacon & cheese seem to be a reoccurring theme in this post. So why not end it with these delicious bites. I jack up the cream cheese with a little something and add a new level of flavour. Yum. O.

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Bites
Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Bites

Badlands Pickle Burger

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Like it or not, Fall is around the corner. It’s the perfect time for pickling or canning extra vegetables from the garden. In fact I am wanting to make another batch of these tasty Quick Pickle Cucumbers since there are so many of the smaller cucumbers in the stores and markets. Everyone in our family loves these little bites.

Our Bakers Burger Blast Burger Recipes have been far and few between this year. I’ve created a couple of burgers but haven’t tested them to the point of perfection (in my books). When I came up with this burger recipe I tried a few different kinds of cheese, with the sausage, without the sausage until eventually these flavours really worked well together. Biggest challenge was trying NOT to eat all the pickles before the burgers were done!!

Here in Alberta we have what’s known as the “Wild West” Badlands. They are a type of dry terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been eroded by wind and water leaving behind beautiful statues and scenery. We love to visit the Badlands and this is how the name came to be.

The perfect burger for the pickle lover!

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Badlands Pickle Burger
Author: 
Recipe type: dinner, lunch, burgers
 
Ingredients
  • 1 lb ground chuck (burger)
  • 1 link Italian sausage in casing (we love Spolumbos)
  • ½ small onion, grated + juice
  • ½ cup dill pickles, minced
  • Salt & pepper
  • 4 slices Aged Applewood Cheddar Cheese, (slice thin)
  • Tomato, sliced thin
  • Butter Lettuce
  • Buns
  • Bacon slices, cooked
  • Dill Pickle Aioli
Instructions
  1. Remove sausage from casing and place in a bowl. Add ground chuck, grated onion with juice, pickles and a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix to combine.
  2. Form into 4 patties. Over medium high heat, grill burger until done, about 3-4 minutes per side.
  3. Place cheese slices on burgers just before burgers are ready to come off the grill and cover grill for a couple minutes or until cheese is melted.
  4. If you like your bun grilled, put it on grill and toast it while cheese is melting.
  5. Assemble burger with tomato, lettuce, bacon slices, and dill pickle Aioli.
Notes
To make Dill Pickle Aioli combine 1 cup mayonnaise, ¼ cup dill pickles chopped fine, 1 tbsp pickle juice, ¼ tsp cayenne pepper, 1 tsp fresh dill chopped, 2 tsp jalapeno minced, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Let sit in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before serving.

 

Grilled Rustic Bacon Wrapped Chicken

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My 3rd and final entry into the Great Cream Challenge 2014 was this really tasty Grilled Rustic Bacon Wrapped Chicken. For those that don’t know, this cross Canada recipe challenge pairs 3 Canadian Food Bloggers against each other in a special monthly cooking challenge. At the beginning of the year you pick three challenges (one per month) to participate in using real cream, and then start recipe testing until you find a winner.

One of the themes I picked was Grilling, perhaps cause the rest looked easy?! (honestly no idea why I choose grilling lol) When it came time to create and submit the recipe, I panicked for a few minutes thinking about how to use real cream on the grill. But once I settled down, I was able to brain storm and realize there are many options when it comes to grilling with cream.

And so enters a stuffed chicken breast (with cream cheese, cream and other goodies), wrapped in bacon, slapped on the grill and finished with a sage cream sauce. It was very good and of course you can use anything you like to stuff the chicken breast. I used what I could find in my fridge/pantry.

Grilled Rustic Bacon Wrapped Chicken
Grilled Rustic Bacon Wrapped Chicken

I enjoyed being part of the challenge, and got to know several of the food bloggers better through this friendly competition. Here is how I made the Grilled Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Chicken.

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Grilled Rustic Bacon Wrapped Chicken
Author: 
Recipe type: dinner, lunch
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 1 bunch asparagus
  • 2 tbsp butter, softened, divided
  • Pinch of salt and pepper
  • Cooking spray
  • 4 oz Canadian Cream Cheese, softened
  • 1 tbsp 35% cream
  • 2 tbsp sundried tomatoes (not in oil), finely chopped
  • 2 tbsp artichoke hearts (canned), finely chopped
  • 1 tsp fresh sage, chopped
  • 3 boneless and skinless chicken breasts, pounded to ¼” thickness
  • 6-10 thin slices of bacon
  • Wooden toothpicks
  • Sage Cream Sauce:
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 1 tbsp flour
  • ¾ cup chicken stock, room temperature
  • ½ cup 35% cream
  • Salt & pepper
  • ½ tsp fresh sage, chopped
  • 1 tbsp Canadian Parmesan , grated
Instructions
  1. Trim asparagus ends. In microwave melt 1 tbsp of butter. Toss asparagus with butter and season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Spray grill pan with cooking spray and add asparagus. Grill over medium high heat for 5 minutes or until desired tenderness. Remove from grill and set aside.
  2. With electric mixer, beat together cream cheese, remaining butter and cream until blended and smooth. Chop two of your grilled asparagus stalks into thin slices. Add to bowl along with sundried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, and sage. Mix well.
  3. Lay out chicken breasts. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper. Take approximately 2 tablespoons of your cream cheese mixture and spread over each piece of chicken.
  4. Carefully roll up each chicken breast. Wrap each chicken breast with two pieces of bacon. If your breasts are large use three pieces of bacon. Secure bacon and ends of chicken roll ups with toothpicks.
  5. Grill over medium high heat, turning frequently until bacon is browned, approximately 5-6 minutes. Continue to grill over indirect heat for another 10 minutes or until chicken juices run clear. Remove to platter and let sit for 10 minutes.
  6. Slice and serve with remaining grilled asparagus and sage cream sauce.
Notes
Sage Cream Sauce: In a saucepan over medium heat melt butter. Whisk in flour and let cook for two minutes. Slowly whisk in a little of the chicken stock. As it thickens pour in the rest of the chicken stock stirring as you go. Whisk in your cream until sauce is smooth. Sprinkle in a pinch of salt and pepper.
Remove from heat and toss in sage and Parmesan cheese. Stir until cheese has melted and serve immediately over chicken on or on the side.

 

 

Grilled Cheese Wafflewich

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You won’t believe how easy these Grilled Cheese Wafflewich’s are to make. We experiment a lot with our pie irons when we go camping and are assembling quite a collection of these fantastic camping cooking tools. One of my favourite things right now to make with them is pie using canned pie filling and some dough I bring along and mix up on the spot. Treats on the fire.

More favourites include making pizzas in the pie irons and of course grilled cheese sandwiches. I love to grab leftover hamburger buns, or any kind of bread I can squish in and make a grilled cheese adding anything I can find. Breakfast sammy’s this way are equally fantastic using ham or bacon, scrambled eggs, cheese, veggies and the beat goes on.

We haven’t been camping yet this year but have four trips planned for the summer. I can’t wait. Until then the urge hit this weekend for one of the pie iron grilled cheese sammy’s so I pulled out the waffle maker. Plus I had some burger buns to use up. And some bacon.

The husband and the boy loved it. The girl was gone for the night so didn’t get to partake.

Make any variation you like, using regular bread or buns that are squishable. You will not be able to press a bun that is too firm (ie: pretzel bun) in either the pie iron or waffle maker.

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Grilled Cheese Wafflewich
Author: 
Recipe type: lunch, breakfast, dinner, snack, camping
Serves: 2
 
Ingredients
  • 2 burger buns
  • 2 slices havarti
  • 3 pieces bacon, cooked & halved
  • ½ green apple, cored & sliced into thin pieces
  • butter
  • waffle maker
Instructions
  1. Turn on waffle iron. Mine is set to medium (or a 3).
  2. On the outside of each bun (top and bottom) slather just a little butter on.
  3. Place bottom half of bun on waffle maker grill.
  4. Lay 3 pieces of bacon down. Add one piece of cheese.
  5. Top the cheese with 4 slices of green apple.
  6. Place the top part of the bun on top.
  7. Repeat with second bun.
  8. Close waffle iron and let it cook away until it yells (beeps) at you.
  9. Cut in half and enjoy.

 

Roasted Garlic & Sausage Casserole

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This year I was asked to be part of The Great Cream Challenge 2014. This cross Canada recipe challenge pairs 3 Canadian Food Bloggers against each other in a special monthly cooking challenge. At the beginning of the year you pick three challenges (one per month) to participate in using real cream, and then let the recipe testing madness begin.

My first challenge was in January and called The Slow Cooker Challenge. I made a Dulce de Leche Bread Pudding and came in 2nd out of 3 bloggers. It was a ton of fun.

My second challenge quickly followed and this Roasted Garlic & Sausage Casserole, was my recipe submission for April’s The Family Brunch Challenge. A little more labour intensive with a few extra steps, but it is well worth it and perfect for a special Mother’s Day or Father’s Day Brunch at home. This time I placed…..2nd out of 3 bloggers! Foiled again ha ha but at least I lost to another Alberta Food Blogger. My 3rd and final challenge is coming up in June, so who knows, maybe third times a charm? I’ve had a great time either way and loved the friendly competition with my fellow food bloggers.

To save time you can cook up your sausage, potatoes, roast your garlic, and toast your bread cubes the night before. Assemble all the next morning and Bob’s Your Uncle. Or Fred.

Either way family breakfast casseroles started with my mom and this family breakfast casserole is a fun tradition I have continued with my own children. This version has some roasted garlic, fresh tomatillos, and is topped it with cooked bacon and fresh eggs.

It’s definitely luxurious, but then everything in moderation, right?

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Roasted Garlic & Sausage Casserole
Author: 
Recipe type: Brunch, breakfast, lunch, dinner
 
Ingredients
  • 4 croissants, cut into 1 inch pieces
  • ½ onion, chopped
  • 225 gr or 5 pork sausages
  • 3 cups yellow potatoes, cut into same sized cubes
  • 2 tomatillos (or 1 red tomato), chopped
  • 1 bulb garlic
  • 1½ cup old cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 1½ cup monterey jack cheese, shredded
  • 6 eggs + 4
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 tsp chives, chopped
  • ⅓ cup cooked bacon, chopped
  • salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350F.
  2. Spray or lightly grease an 8 x 8 baking dish. Set aside.
  3. To roast the garlic, cut ¼ - ½ inch off the top of the garlic bulb. Place on tin foil. Drizzle with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. Wrap tightly with foil and roast in oven on baking sheet for 50-60 minutes. Set aside and let cool.
  4. Place croissant cubes on baking sheet. Place in 350 F oven and toast for 5 minutes. Stir pieces and toast for another 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
  5. Remove sausage from casing and place in sauce pan over medium high heat. Break it up with a potato masher until it resembles smaller crumbles. Cook about 5 minutes and add your chopped onion. Continue to cook until sausage has browned and onion is soft.
  6. In a second pan over medium high heat, pour a drizzle of olive oil. Add potatoes and cook, stirring for about 5-10 minutes allowing potatoes to brown slightly and crisp. Turn heat down, season with a pinch of salt and pepper and let potatoes cook for another 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour ¼ cup of stock into the pan and place a lid on. Let steam until most of the stock has been evaporated. Remove lid and test for doneness. If needed let them cook another 5-10 minutes until soft. Remove from heat and pour into bottom of greased casserole dish.
  7. In a medium sized bowl lightly beat your eggs. Add in milk, cream, chives and a pinch of salt and pepper.
  8. On top of potatoes add your browned sausage and onions. Sprinkle on a little cheese and add your croissant cubes, nestling them into the potato and sausage mixture. Squeeze your roasted garlic out of the bulb and drop all over casserole. Sprinkle on tomatillos. Pour on egg mixture and let sit for about 15 minutes allowing bread to soak up some of the liquid.
  9. Sprinkle on the rest of the grated cheese, cover with aluminum foil and place in 350 F preheated oven for 35 minutes. Carefully remove dish from the oven and aluminum foil from the top. With the back of a spoon make 3-4 indents in the bread mixture. Crack one egg at a time into a small custard dish and slowly pour one egg into each indentation. Carefully sprinkle cooked bacon around the eggs. Return dish to oven and bake another 15-20 minutes or until the egg whites are set and yolk still runny.

 

Bacon Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

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I’m thrilled to share with you these cookies took 3rd place in a Canada Wide contest sponsored by the Food Bloggers of Canada and Eat In Eat Out digital magazine! The contest was the Christmas in July Cookie Contest 2012.

A couple years ago I started buying hubs Vosges Bacon Candy Chocolate Bars for his stocking at Christmas. He is hard to buy for and I was getting desperate when I heard about these chocolate bars. Well elated does not even describe how we felt after tasting bacon & chocolate together. This is a match made in heaven.

And so calling all Bacon Lovers and Chocolate Lovers. I’ve been inspired by Vosges and wanted to create a chocolate chip cookie with bacon. I decided to take it a step further and add peanut butter to my bacon, chocolate chip cookie creation…booya!

What I came up with was a lovely tasting cookie that is not too sweet. Of all the flavour profiles in this cookie none are over powering…..instead you get a little bit of everything in each bite. Bacon lovers stand united and chocolate reigns supreme in the delightful bacon infused chocolate chip cookie.

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Bacon Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe type: Snack
Serves: 36
 
Ingredients
  • ½ cup butter, softened
  • ½ cup peanut butter
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • ½ cup white sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1½ tsp vanilla
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • 2 cups flour
  • ½ cup Reese minis peanut butter cups, chopped
  • ¾ cup chocolate chips
  • ½ cup bacon, cooked & chopped
Instructions
  1. In a bowl beat your butter & peanut butter until smooth. Add in your brown sugar & white sugar mixing to combine. Beat in eggs and vanilla.
  2. In a separate bowl whisk together your baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and flour.
  3. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture. Gently stir in your chocolate chips, bacon and chopped peanut butter cups.
  4. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto parchment lined baking sheets, approximately 2 inches apart.
  5. Bake in 375 F oven for 13 minutes, rotating pans after 7 minutes. Let cool completely on racks.

Baked Potato Skins with Pancetta

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Years ago a good friend of mine used to order these all the time whenever we would go out for some good eats. I loved them to and would always sneak one or two from her plate, never ordering my own batch as there were other things enticing me.

Making your own cheesy, crunchy, melt in your mouth baked potato skins is as easy as it sounds. They really do taste as good (if not better) as when you order it in a restaurant or pub. Another perfect appetizer to make if you are having friends over to watch a game as you can prep them in advance and have them ready to pop into the oven.

You can vary the cheese for a different flavour, but we tend to stick with old cheddar for this one. I do not mix any of the leftover potato back in since we are not making stuffed potatoes and these taste really good as is. You can fry up the leftover potato and make a delicious hash or hasbrowns.

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Baked Potato Skins with Pancetta
Author: 
Recipe type: lunch, snack, game day food, appetizer,
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 3 or 4 large baking potatoes
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ⅘ slices bacon or pancetta, cooked and cut up small/crumbled
  • 1.5 cups shredded old cheddar cheese
  • ½ tsp paprika
  • 2 green onions, sliced thin
Instructions
  1. Get your potatoes ready for baking by rubbing with oil and sprinkling with salt. Wrap individually in tin foil and bake in 425F oven for approximately 1 hour or until tender. Let cool enough to handle.
  2. Cut potatoes in half lengthwise, scoop out flesh and leave ½ inch thick walls. Cut halves in half again lengthwise and place all cut side up on foil or parchment lined baking sheet.
  3. In bowl, toss together bacon, paprika and cheddar cheese. Sprinkle over potato skins. Bake in 425F oven for 15 minutes or until skins are crisp and cheese melted. Sprinkle with green onions and serve with sour cream.
Notes
The leftover potatoes make the perfect hashbrowns.