Author: Jill

Sausage Primavera

My sister-in-law, Laurel, brought this delicious dish over when Creed was born. We enjoyed it so much and she was so sweet to share her recipe! It has also turned into a meal that I love to prepare on Christmas Eve with the pretty red and green peppers. It is quick and comforting and just what we always need to start the holiday off right!

8 ounces thin spaghetti
1 T. olive oil
1 green bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 1/2 pounds smoked sausage, sliced (I love Hillshire Farms Polska Kielbasa for this.)
1 T. parsley flakes
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. garlic powder or 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
Dash of cayenne pepper
4 to 5 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated
Garnish: fresh basil

Cook the spaghetti according to the package directions. Drain and keep warm.

Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the peppers, onions, and garlic, if using fresh. Stir-fry until vegetables are crisp tender. Add the smoked sausage and heat a few minutes longer. When vegetables are cooked as you like, add the parsley and other seasonings and continue to cook just a bit longer. After the mixture is combined well, toss with the spaghetti. Pour into a large bowl and add the Parmesan cheese tossing to coat.

I enjoy this with a chiffonade (a french slicing technique of stacking the leaves, rolling them up, and then slicing thinly) of fresh basil as a garnish too! Delicious! And fancy too, huh?

Corn Dip

Ross Ann Hill was a fun teacher I taught with, my first year of teaching in Idalou,TX, so many, many years ago! Did you catch that? I was trying to see how many times I could use a form of teach in a sentence back there….I’m quite talented! Yeppers. Any who…. she brought this to the hospitality room for a UIL meet that year. 20 years later, this is still my “go to” dip! It works for all occasions, all year long. Thanks, Ross Ann! And if you need it for Christmas, garnish it with diced red and green bell peppers, like I did. Works like a charm.

1 can of Mexi corn
1 small white onion, chopped finely
1/2 stick of Cracker Barrel Sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
4 oz. mayonaise

Mix well and serve with Fritos.

English Toffee

When I think of Christmas candy, my Aunt Shirley’s English Toffee is the first thing to pop into my mind! It has the best texture and the Hershey’s chocolate and pecans really bring it all together….and speaking of that, it is super quick and easy to throw together! The perfect thing during this beautifully busy time of celebration!

2 sticks of margarine
3 T. water
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts, I use pecans
6 regular sized Hershey chocolate bars

Melt margarine; add sugar and water. Cook over high heat, stirring constantly, until the color of brown. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and nuts. Pour onto buttered cookie sheet and spread thin. Break Hershey bars over the top. As it melts, spread all over. Cool well and break into pieces.

Grasshopper

This cocktail says to me, welcome! Glad you could come and I’m so glad to see you! Here, let me take your coat and please make yourself at home. I hear lots of laughter and see twinkling lights. It’s Christmas, ya’ll!….This drink also says to me, now that your house is straight, the presents are wrapped, your new peppermint pine needle candle is going, have a seat, grab your Mary Kay Andrew’s Christmas Bliss novel, sit down, relax, be grateful!….Whatever this cocktail says to you, listen! It is very delicious. Delicious is wise in my book.

1 ounce creme de menthe
1 ounce creme de cacao
1 ounce heavy cream

Combine all the ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously until chilled well and combined, about 15 seconds. Strain into a chilled coupe or red plastic solo cup…tricky right there. Garnish with a dusting of freshly grated nutmeg.

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Spicy Pretzels

This recipe comes from Great Aunt Ann on my husband’s side of the family. She seems to always come up with delicious treats to share as gifts during the holiday season. I really like this recipe because it’s super easy and super yummy! They are perfect to take to parties, to pack up for road trips, or to make for bake sales!

2 (16 oz.) Rold Gold Tiny Twist pretzels, or the pretzel of your choice
1 (16 oz.) bottle Orville Redenbacher popcorn oil
1 pkg. dry Italian dressing or Ranch dressing
1 T. crushed red pepper flakes

Whisk popcorn oil and spices together in a large bowl. Add the pretzels and toss to coat. Leave out 6 to 8 hours until the seasoning is absorbed, stirring occasionally. This is also great for saltines or oyster crackers.

Caution Flag Chili with Flat-Tire Corn and Black Bean Toppers

Now ya’ll know right off hand, that I did not name this recipe! This is Rachael Ray strait out! And this chili IS spicy! So, she had good reason to start with a caution flag. With that being said, the corn and blackbean “pancake” toppers really help to tone down the heat and the combination really ends up being magical! Creed and Fally girl really enjoy this one too. It feels so fresh and healthy, to me, which is a good thing considering all of my Southern food addictions! I think Rachee wrote this for Nascar fans. But whether you are into cars or not, this one is a keeper.

2 T. extra virgin olive oil
2 poblano peppers, seeded and thinly sliced
2 lbs. ground sirloin
1 medium onion, chopped
3 to 4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 T. grill seasoning, such as McCormick’s Montreal Steak Seasoning
2 T. Worcestershire sauce
2 chipotles in adobo, chopped, plus 1 T. adobo sauce
1/2 cup steak sauce, such as Peter Luger or A1 (I’m not a huge fan of A1, but that’s what I usually have on hand, and I don’t add as much. It can be strong in flavor to me.)
1 cup beer
1 cup beef broth
1 (28 oz.) can crushed fire roasted tomatoes
1 pkg. corn muffin mix, preferably Jiffy, batter made according to package directions for corn pancakes
1 (15 oz.) can black beans, rinsed, drained, and patted dry with paper towels. I leave out that last paper towel part. ha
1/2 T. ground cumin
2 scallions, finely chopped
Softened butter, for greasing a skillet or griddle

Heat the evoo in a medium soup pot over medium-high to high heat. When the oil smokes, add the sliced poblanos and char them for a couple of minutes, then scoot them off to the side of the pan and add the meat. Break up the beef and brown it for a couple of minutes, then add the onions and garlic. Season the meat with the grill seasoning, Worcestershire, chipotle, and adobo sauce. Cook until the onions are tender, 5 to 6 minutes more, then stir in the steak sauce and beer. Cook the beer off for 1 minute, then add the stock and tomatoes and reduce the heat to low.

Prepare the corn pancake batter according to the package directions. Heads up….I skip this next part because I prefer the look of the black beans whole for picture taking lol, plus it’s just plain easier!…Finely chop the beans in a food processor and stir them into the corn batter. Season the batter with the cumin, and stir in the scallions.

Heat a nonstick skillet or griddle pan over medium heat. Butter the skillet or griddle, then pour 3 to 4 inch corn pancakes. Flip the cakes when the bottoms are deeply golden and cook them for another minute or two on the second side. Repeat with the remaining batter to make 6 cakes. Top each bowlful of the chili with a corn and black bean pancake; these are your flat tire toppers, according to Rach! Fun stuff!

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Slow Cooker BBQ Ribs

Today, I needed something simple to throw together for supper. It was a day of playing “catch up” and a day that we all needed to have a home cooked meal. We’ve been running every which way preparing for the holiday, so we’ve been grabbing takeout and nothing sounded better to me than ribs. Meaty ribs and mac and cheese. And it was one of those days, that who has time for ribs and mac and cheese?? Well, thanks to the good old crock pot, elbow macaroni, velveeta, and a bag salad, all of my dreams ended up coming true. I need to follow my dreams more often…. cook more ribs in a slow cooker! They tasted great and nothing could have been easier!

2 T. brown sugar
1 T. paprika
1 T. table salt
5 lb. baby back ribs
3 cups BBQ sauce, like Sweet Baby Rays

Mix the dry ingredients together and rub them on the meaty side of the ribs. Place the ribs in the slow cooker. Cover all sides of the ribs with the BBQ sauce.

Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. Wallah. Dinner is done.

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Whipped Hot Chocolate

With Santa about to arrive, and the very cold spell we have coming up next week in west Texas, hot chocolate is definitely on the brain around my house, as I’m sure it’s been on most everybody’s brain right about now! I’m still cooking out of Ina’s Barefoot Contessa Family Style cookbook this week and ran across her whipped hot chocolate recipe. It is soooo delicious! It’s like a Hershey Kiss in liquid form. As far as I know, I can’t think of a piece of chocolate that satisfies me quite as well as a good ol’ Hershey Kiss. Add creamy half and half, vanilla, and some coffee and you’ve really got something! And no worries if you don’t like coffee, it is used primarily just to bring out chocolate’s natural flavor. Let’s get to whipping up some, shall we?

2 1/2 cups whole milk
2 cups half and half
4 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
4 ounces milk chocolate, chopped (I used Hershey’s…hence the kiss part.)
1 T. sugar
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 tsp. decaffeinated instant coffee powder

Garnish: spray whipped cream and mini chocolate chips

Heat the milk and half and half in a large saucepan over medium heat to just below the simmering point. (Just nice and hot.) Remove the pan from the heat and add both chocolates. When the chocolates are melted, stir in the sugar, vanilla, and coffee powder. Reheat gently.

To froth the hot chocolate, whip it in the sauce pan with an immersion blender. You could also carefully pour it into the jar of a blender with a tight seal and blend on high speed for about 30 seconds. (I use my immersion blender, as does Ina….if you don’t have one, I recommend it! They are great for soups as well!) And I don’t know why a simple kitchen whisk wouldn’t work if you wanted to try that instead of the other ideas to add a little froth. But Ina claims that this chocolate takes on a whole new flair when it’s really whipped!

Pour the chocolate into mugs and I like to serve mine with spray whipped cream and mini chocolate chips! Stay warm, friends! …..and by the way, Santa will like this too!

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Linguine with Shrimp Scampi

This recipe is a super simple, crave-worthy shrimp pasta! Comforting pasta and the bright fresh flavors of lemon and shrimp are a classic. This is a simple meal to entertain with or enjoy it on a much needed “eat at home, but it needs to be easy” kind of night. That checks off two awesome boxes in my book! Ina Garten wrote this recipe and it is from her Barefoot Contessa Family Style cookbook.

Vegetable oil
Kosher salt
1 1/2 pounds linguine
6 T. (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
5 T. good olive oil such as Olio Santo
3 T. minced garlic (9 cloves)
2 pounds large shrimp (about 32), peeled and deveined
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Grated zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (4 lemons)
1/2 lemon, thinly sliced in half-rounds
1/4 tsp. hot red pepper flakes

Drizzle some vegetable oil in a large pot of boiling salted water, add 1 T. of salt and the linguine, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, or according to the directions on the package.

Since this involves delicate shrimp that cooks in a hurry, I recommend having your ingredients prepped and ready to go before starting.

In a large (12 – inch) skillet, melt the butter and olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic. Saute for 1 minute, being careful not to burn the garlic. It will turn bitter tasting if it burns! Eeep! Next, add the shrimp, 1 T. kosher salt, the pepper and saute until the shrimp have just turned pink, about 5 minutes, stirring often. Remove from the heat, add the parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice, lemon slices, and red pepper flakes. Toss to combine.

When the pasta is done, drain the cooked linguine and then put it back in the pot. Immediately add the shrimp and sauce, toss well, and serve with crusty garlic bread and good salted butter. Delish!

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Candy Cane Pinwheel Cookies

These Christmas cookies are so delicious and the perfect addition to that cute holiday jar you have sitting on your counter or the cookie tray you’re planning. They have a very subtle pepperminty taste, but their looks of course really say peppermint…. And Christmas, and Santa, and holiday time, and candy canes, and presents, and food is love and all of those great, happy, fun things during this time of celebration! Now lets get down to what really matters….getting them baked and into our bellies!!

3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
16 T. or 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. peppermint extract
1/2 cup finely ground peppermint candies (about 20 and I use a food processor to grind them.)
6 drops red food coloring

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. With an electric mixer on medium-high, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg until mixed well. Reduce speed to low and add the flour mixture, and mix until the dough forms, about 1 minute. Remove half of the dough and reserve. Add extracts, candy, and food coloring to remaining dough and mix until combined.

Place the reserved dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper and roll into a 14 by 8 inch rectangle. Repeat with peppermint dough, then place it on top of the plain dough and press gently to help them stick together. With the long side facing you, roll dough into a log. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or up to 3 days.

Adjust your oven racks to upper-middle and lower middle positions and heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Slice chilled dough into 1/4 inch rounds and place 1 inch apart on prepared baking sheets. Bake until edges are just golden, 12 to 14 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Let cool 10 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough. These can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Yield: About 4 1/2 dozen

*Careful not to overbake, or they will turn a salmon color instead of the pretty pink they are supposed to be.