HELLO!!

Whew!! I need to get my blog back on track! It has been a few years since my last post!! I promise to do a weekly update!!! Lot's of things have been going on!! LOL!!

Bacon Ranch Potato Salad

My mom makes THE BEST potato salad!! She makes it old school, with the Miracle
Whip and the relish and the eggs. Me, always looking for something new, decided to create this delicious bacon ranch potato salad!! The crisp, crunchy bacon and chopped green onions take this over the top!! My family enjoys this and I hope yours does too!!

1 5lb bag of white potaoes, peeled and cut into chunks (bite-sized)
1 stalk of green onions, chopped
2tbl of sugar
1 packet of dry ranch dressing (Hidden Valley)
4 tbl of salad supreme
Mayo (Hellmans) 1cup or more to taste
Pepper to taste
6 slices of bacon

Cook bacon in pan until nice and crisp (always start bacon off in a cold pan). Drain on papertowels and set aside. (Save the bacon grease!! Lots of uses for it.)

Peel the potatoes and place in salted water, boil for 10-15 until tender, but not mushy. Drain and run under cool water.

In a mixing bowl, add the ranch packet, mayo, sugar, salad supreme and black pepper. Add potatoes on top and mix well (try not to overmix, or that will cause the potatoes to breakdown and become mashed potatoes). Crumple bacon and sprinkle on top of salad, and sprinkle chopped green onions on top as well!!! You can eat this warm or cold!!

Shrimp and Tuna Deviled Eggs

My Malik LOVES deviled eggs! It was to the point where they were a Sunday staple, like my bacon ranch potato salad (the recipe is to follow). I get tired of the same ole same ole so I decided to kick it up a notch and add minced steam shrimp and canned tuna. The result is out of sight and trust me, if you make this, be sure to make double, cause they will not last long!!!

1/2 dozen of eggs
Relish ( I use Mt. Olive. The best) to taste
Mustard 1tsp
Mayo (use Hellmans) to taste
Sugar just a sprinkle
1/2 lb of shrimp, steamed with old bay finely chopped
1 can of tuna packed in water and drained and flaked
Salt to taste
Pepper
Old bay seasoning (reduced sodium or the garlic one)

Boil eggs: Place eggs in ice cold water in a nice sized pan and bring to a boil, covered, for 5mins. Turn the heat off and leave the eggs on the burner for the next 15 minutes. Drain the water and gently roll the pan around with the eggs in to break the shells. Peel under cold running water. Seperate the yolks and put them in a mixing bowl.

Using a potato masher, mash the eggs yolks until mushy and somewhat smooth. Add all of the other ingredients to taste, stirring well. You should have a nice amount of shrimp in each one!! And if you have any shrimp leftover, as I do, eat it!!! LOL!! Decorate with paprika (Hungarian is the best paprika).

Lemon Chicken

Chicken. I love chicken, and it is NOT because I am black (smile) but because it is a blank canvas for whatever seasoning you want to put on it!! Chicken is also cheap. Especially dark meat, which is my favorite!! I love thighs and drumsticks!! Here is one of many recipes I have for chicken drumsticks!! Enjoy!!

1 family pack of cleaned drumsticks
4 lemons (about one cup of freshed squeezed lemon juice)
1 1/2 sticks of butter
Seasoned salt (I would say about three good shakes in the butter mixture)
Pepper (fresh cracked pepper, three good turns of it in the butter mixture)


Shake seasoned salt and pepper all over the chicken (two shakes and two turns of each). Set aside.

Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium-low heat (dont burn the butter), add the lemon juice and seasoned salt and pepper, stir. Dip the chicken into the butter mixture and place on a greased cookie sheet lined with foil. Pour a little of the butter mixture over the drumsticks and bake at 375 degrees uncovered, for 1 hour. After 30 minutes of baking, turn the chicken and let both sides brown. After the hour if the chicken isn't brown enough, place under broiler until brown. Serve with lemon slices and enjoy!!

NOTE: You can baste the chicken with the butter mixture during baking, but you MOST boil the marinade for 5-10 minutes to kill the bacteria BEFORE BASTING!!!!

Thanksgiving Turkey

I love the holidays!!! All the good things are made this time of year!!

This here is my take on Thanksgiving turkey!! Not stuffed or dried out, but tender, juicy tangy turkey that will even taste good cold!!

Two bottles of Criollo Mojo marinade (Goya makes a great mojo marinade)
13-18lb turkey
two oranges
two limes
two lemons
one thickly sliced onion (sweet)
one small round plastic trashcan
Adobo seasoning (Goya)
One apple for aromatics

Rinse and clean turkey. Save the packet that comes within the turkey for gravy. Generously season the turkey with the adobo. Set the turkey aside.

Shake the mojo marinade to loosen up the bits that settle to the bottom, and pour one container of the the marinade into the small trashcan. Add the chopped onion, and set the turkey on top of the onions breast down. Cut the citrus in half and squeeze all over the back of the turkey, and then use the other container of mojo and pour it also over the back of the turkey. Put the lid*** on the turkey and set someplace cool (I use my deck) and marinate anywhere from 24-48 hours,turning the turkey every 12 hours.

Turn oven on 500 degrees. Remove the turkey from the marinade and disregard the marinade. Line a roaster pan with foil and set the turkey in the roaster pan the the wings tucked in. Add the apple sliced in half into the mouth of the turkey. Rub generously with olive oil and bake in the oven on high heat until the turkey browns, about 25-30 minutes (keep an eye on it cause the mojo marinade has vinegar in it, and with the citrus, it can easily burn. You want a nice mahogany color).

Once browned, turn the oven down to 325 degrees, cover the turkey with foil and bake the turkey for 3-3 1/2 hours. Once done, do not cut it right away!!! Let it sit for 15-20 minutes. Use the yummy juices leftover in the roasting pan to make giblet gravy!!

Giblet gravy- Rinse the innards that is in the packet under cool water. Put a cup of water into a sauce pan and season with the adobo, black pepper. Boil until the innards are well done, about 20 mintues. Drain and pull the meat of the turkey neck, and finely chop the rest of the innards. Put back in sauce pan. Using a strainer, pour the turkey drippings into the saucepan, about 2 cups full, and in a glass mix 4 tbls of flour with 1/4 of water in a glass, and pour the mixture into the saucepan. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil until thicken. Season with salt and pepper. Serve alongside the turkey.

***My lid for my turkey trashcan is very tight!! Make sure you purchase a trashcan that has a snap on lid!!!

Sweet Potato Pudding

Sweet potato pudding, sweet potato casserole, sweet potato fluff!! Soo many different names and variations on this awesome casserole. Well, here is my version. Smoot, sweet, with a hint of pineapple and whiskey. Toasted marshmallows just sets it off!! Gosh, my mouth is watering!!

Ingredients:

4 large sweet potatoes or yams

1 stick of butter (yeah, I said butter)

1/2 cup of white sugar

1 can of crushed pineapple

1/2 cup of brown sugar (gotta mix the brown and white, don't act shocked)

2tsp of vanilla

2tsp of nutmeg

2tsp of ginger

1 egg

2tbl of cinnamon

2 miniture bottles of whiskey (1 for you to drink and one for the recipe, smile)

1/2 cup of milk

one bag mini or regular marshmallows

Preheat oven to 375. While the oven is preheating, scrub the potatoes under cold running water, and then wrap in foil. Put in the oven for 1-2 hours or until they feel soft to the touch.*** Remove from the oven and set aside to let cool enough to handle, but not too cool (or you can be like me and take skin off while hot. I am crazy like that).

Put the sweet potatoes in a bowl with the stick of butter and mash first. Then, here is the fun part, put the mixture in either a blender or use your stand mixer (I used my trusty mixer for this part). And beat for 5 minutes, scraping down the sides. After the 5 minutes, add your sugars and egg, clean your beaters off if you have to get rid of the strings. Add the milk and beat again until smooth, anywhere between 5 upto 15 minutes ( I am talking babyfood consistency).

Sir in your spices and the whiskey, pineapple, pour into a greased 13x9 casserole dish or, a greased round casserole dish. Bake for 30 minutes at 350. Add your marshmallows and either broil low for 5 minutes or throw that sucker back in the oven at the 350 temp until the marshmallows are nice and golden and to your liking.

***The skin should pull away easily if they are done. If not bake them longer until it is.

You can add alot to this!!! Pineapples, sauteed apples, coconut, they all go good in this recpie.

Cake Honey Butter Cornbread

This cornbread is the mother cornbread of all cornbreads!!!! Soft, moist, sweet, dense, just like cake!!! Great for dinner or desert!! Once you make this delicious cornbread, you can put the box Jiffy Cornbread to bed!!! Enjoy!!!

Dry ingredients:

2 cups of flour

2 cups of cornmeal

1 cup of sugar

2 tbl of baking powder

1 tsp of salt

Wet ingredients:

5 eggs

1 cup of oil

2 1/2 cups of milk

Butter, honey of course!!!!

Grease a 13x9 inch pan. Set aside.

Mix the dry ingredients first in one bowl, in another bowl, mix the wet ingredients until well mixed. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until well blended (don't overmix it).

Pour into the greased pan, bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle of the cornbread!!! Once you remove it from the oven, top the cornbread with pats of butter and let it melt over the cornbread. Then squeeze some good quality honey over the top. DON'T BE STINGY WITH THE BUTTER OR THE HONEY!! YUMMY!!!!!