Oh, NUTS!

Spicy, Smoked Nuts.

We smoked pistachio nuts (with shells) using a spicy, smoked recipe from a friend.  Always READ the recipe before you go shopping!  We didn't, and bought a bag of pistachio nuts with shells, when the recipe clearly states, WITHOUT shells.  Oh well, we gave it a whirl.  Not bad, but I think the shell held in the moisture which made the nuts too soft.  Next time, we'll buy 'em without shells and write an update to this post.

See below for recipe:

Baked Stuffed shells in a tomato basil sauce served with a side salad, and diced tomato bread.







Fall is the perfect time to fire up your indoor oven and let your house fill up with the aroma of homemade meals!  One of our go-to-meals for the Fall season is baked Italian dishes.  So, on the first cool day, we opened the windows, and made stuffed shells.  The aroma of basil and garlic throughout the house had us pacing in the kitchen waiting for dinner.  

When You Need Iron...

You grill a few Sirloin Steaks, a London Broil and baked potatoes!

              We only purchase meats from our local Acme Market* -- Lancaster meats are the best!

*we were not compensated by Acme for this post.

When We Cry Fowl...

It's Time to Smoke a Whole Turkey!

Prepped & Ready for Smoker

The turkey went into a salt brine for 24 hours in the fridge before we seasoned the turkey with salt, pepper, sage, and rosemary.  Don't forget to season your pats of butter before inserting them under the skin of your turkey (around the legs, wings and across the breast).  The seasoned butter will keep your turkey moist plus add the great flavors of your spices into the meat of your turkey.  


We smoked the turkey for about 6 hours, basting every 45-minutes to keep the turkey moist during the smoking process.

We made smoked turkey (Gobbler sandwiches).  Sliced smoked turkey, turkey seasoned filling, cranberry sauce, with mayo on a kaiser roll -- Delicious!!  

Quesadillas, Philly Style

Philly Cheesesteak Quesadillas 

Quick! Easy! Tasty! 

 We used steak, cheese, onions, peppers and mushrooms.  We also cheated and made them with our Quesadilla maker!  Pump out 10 quesadillas in under 15-minutes!   

We served our quesadillas with a fresh diced salad (from our garden) tomatoes, cilantro and jalapeno with fresh made corn chips from our local Acme Market* and a dollop of sour cream. 

*We were not compensated by Acme Market for this post.

Can't Pass Up a Smokin' Hot Butt

11 lb. Pork Butt with our signature dry rub:  

• Brown Sugar
• Cayenne Pepper
• Spanish Paprika
• Salt
• Pepper
• Chili Powder
• Garlic Powder
• Onion Powder
• Cumin

This dry rub will give the butt a nice dark exterior during the smoking process, and will keep the interior moist and juicy. 

We smoked this butt at 225 degrees for 10 hours--we also mopped the butt every few hours with a mix of: Apple Juice, Apple Cider Vinegar and Hot Sauce. 

We also ventured down the path of to make our version of a homemade crock pot pork and beans.  Our first shot at this was good, but too spicy.  We added pork belly, onions, and hot longs from the garden.  

Build It, They Will Eat!

    

 Friday Night Fire Pit Dogs!   

 Perfect pre-fall weather means the perfect time to get ready for your outdoor fire pit to start blazing for warmth and for creative outdoor cooking.

We had cooler temps over the Labor Day holiday so we opted to breakout the charcoal briquettes and build a fire to grill hot dogs on our outdoor fire pit.  We placed two cement bricks inside the pit then added in the briquettes.  Once the briquettes were nice and hot, we cooked our hot dogs on the grate over the coals and enjoyed a pre-fall night around the fire with beer, dogs and some great tunes.

First Pre-Fall Fire

    

What is in Your Pocket?

You can't go wrong with this fun Friday night family meal.  Skip ordering the pizza and pack the family in the kitchen for a fun family cooking night making Calzones.  For those who are not familiar with Calzones, they're an oven-baked, folded pizza dough filled with your favorite pizza toppings or just about any fun "hot pocket" type of ingredients you can put inside a pocket pizza. 


We cheat and buy our pizza dough pre-made from the local pizza shop for $1.00 each.  Here's a tip, if you are going to buy it from your pizza shop, please keep it refrigerated until you're ready to roll out the dough.

We made three different Calzones; 

1) Ham & Cheddar Cheese
2) Peppers, Onions, Mushrooms, Garlic (sauteed) & Mozzarella Cheese
3) Italian Chicken, Roasted Red Pepper (homemade) & Mozzarella Cheese. 



Roll out your pizza dough, fill your shell, pull lid over your filling then crimp ends using a fork--place on lightly oiled baking pan. 

 Cut three small slices into the top of each clazone prior to baking in the oven at 400 degrees for 12- 15 minutes. 

Let your calzone (s) sit for about 5 minutes after you remove them from the oven--slice and enjoy!

We served our calzones with a marinara dipping sauce and a few cold Michelob ULTRA Beers. 

Yes, our calzones are inside a pizza box.  When you buy your pre-made dough from the pizza shop, they pack the wrapped dough inside a pizza box for transport.  We keep the box and reuse it to serve and store our calzones--easy clean up! 

We were not compensated by Michelob for this post. 

This is a "stick-up"...

Mark LOVES food-on-a-stick, so this past week I agreed to eat an entire meal on a stick, but it had to include steak. We picked up a buy one, get one free steak from our local Acme Market then built our entire meal around the beef using vegetables we had in our house and a few items from our garden.

We used; mushrooms, pre-boiled potatoes, onions, we also added in peppers and grape tomatoes from (The Kordes Fresh Garden).  

We seasoned each meal with salt and pepper and grilled them on medium heat for 4 minutes, then turned them for another 3 minutes.  

 Fast!
 Easy! 
Oh, So Good!

We made a total of 22 sticks to feed 4 four of us. We had plenty of leftovers.

We served this meal with a Spicy BBQ Sauce. 

We were not compensated by Acme Markets for this post.

No Food Stylist Here...

Just fresh veggies from our garden and a few items from our local Acme supermarket.

Tomato / cucumber / basil salad with grilled Italian bread, sliced mozzarella cheese and oil / balsamic vinegar dip.

 

Grilled smoked sausage with grilled eggplant and zucchini. 











A quick and easy Friday night dinner sitting poolside with a refreshment.

Cajun Spiced Shrimp Tacos

  Cilantro / Lime Slaw 

 

        Cajun Shrimp pan fried to perfection.

  The Finished Product --

  A Cajun Shrimp Taco with Cilantro, Lime Slaw topped with fresh cilantro and don't forget the cocktail: a Michelob Ultra beer!