Buffalo Chicken Dip

This is great for parties, BBQs or just a really good way of satisfying the munchies. This makes a lot of dip so be prepared!

Ingredients:
16 oz cream cheese (let soften)
3/4 cup of Frank's Red Hot Sauce
1 lb. of chicken breast
1 cup of bleu cheese dressing
1 cup of crumbled/chopped bleu cheese
2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese

Cut chicken breast into small cubes and cook.

Mix the softened cream cheese with the hot sauce until well blended.

Add chicken, bleu cheese, dressing, and 1 cup of cheddar, mix well. put mixture into oven or BBQ/smoker safe pan

Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup of cheddar on top to make a nice cheesy crust.

You can place this mixture in the oven for 30 minutes at 350 or until cheese is melted or you can place it in a smoker and heat it off of indirect heat at 225 for 2 hours.

Serve with tortilla chips and/or celery

Chocolate Tuxedo Covered Strawberries

These are a simple and delicious treat to add to any Valentine's Day. Unlike your boring chocolate dipped strawberries, these are dressed to impress!

Ingredients:
Fresh strawberries
Milk Chocolate (or Dark if you prefer)
White chocolate

**Note: You will need either an icing bag with a normal point tip or a sandwich bag with one of the corners slightly cut off. Instead of a double boiler you can place a small pot in a larger pot full of boiling water.

Using a double boiler melt the white chocolate.

Completely dip the strawberries and set on a sheet of plastic wrap or parchment paper and put in the fridge.

Once the white chocolate has been given time to cool and harden, melt the milk chocolate.

Take the strawberry and dip one side slightly in the milk chocolate so that it rests diagonally on the strawberry and repeat for the other side.

Place strawberries back on parchment paper and fill your icing bag with remaining melted chocolate. (May want to heat the chocolate up a bit to make it a little more melted)

Down the white center area of the strawberry make 2 dots of chocolate (buttons) and then above those make a bow tie by making 2 triangles with a dot in the center.

Your finished product should look like this:

Spicy Shrimp Over Pasta

This is a simple dish that will satisfy any shrimp lover's appetite. It's got the perfect amount of zing to it and tomato and herbs give it a great taste. It's also low in fat too! This was my Valentine's Day dinner that I made for my husband.

Ingredients: 
1/2 lb shrimp
8 ounces linguine, fettuccine, or spaghetti
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 green onions/scallions, chopped
2 tbsp lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1tbsp fresh basil, chopped or 1 tsp dried basil
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons dry white wine
1 tomato, chopped
Black pepper
Fresh Mozzarella (optional)

Boil the pasta until al dente. Drain but keep 1 cup of pasta water. 

Put some olive oil in  large non-stick skillet and evenly grease the pan.

Heat skillet on medium heat and add shrimp, lemon zest, garlic, scallions, red pepper flakes. Stir around for a couple minutes until the shrimp turns slightly pink.


Add tomatoes, salt, basil, lemon juice, and white wine. Cook for another until shrimp is fully cooked.

Add 1 cup of pasta water to shrimp make sauce (or less if preferred)

Spoon shrimp over pasta and pour some sauce over pasta

Sprinkle black pepper over pasta and place slices of fresh Mozzarella on top and place in the broiler until cheese is melted.

Serve and enjoy!

Italian Grilled CHeese

This isn't your ordinary grilled cheese sandwich. This sandwich is packed full of flavor and is by far one of the best grilled cheese sandwiches I've had. It's simple and quick to make which is always a plus!

Ingredients:
2 slices of Italian bread (white will do too but Italian bread is better)
1 tomato (Heirloom works best)
Garlic Salt
Fresh or dried Basil
Mozzarella cheese
Olive oil
Crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
Balsamic glaze (optional)

Assembly:

On each slice of bread place desired amount of mozzarella and top with desired amount of garlic salt.

Place 2 slices of tomato on one slice of bread and top with desired amount of dry or fresh basil and crushed red pepper.

Drizzle balsamic glaze over the tomato and place other half of sandwich on top.

Heat some olive oil in a skillet and cook evenly on both sides until done.

Peanut Brittle

I love peanut brittle. It's a tasty snack that is very simple to make and I figured I would share the recipe with you. You can substitute the peanuts for almonds or sunflower seeds or just about any nut you may fancy. It takes about a half hour to make and then some time for it to cool down so you can eat it.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup sugar
2/3 cup water
2/3 cup light corn syrup
2 tbsp butter
3/4 cup peanuts (or other nut/seed you want)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp water

Grease a cookie sheet or line it with parchment paper.

In deep skillet bring water, corn syrup, and sugar to a boil. (stir occasionally)

Once mixture has reached 250F add butter and peanuts and cook until light brown in color (roughly 290F). Remove from heat

Add baking soda, vanilla, salt, and water to brittle mixture and mix well.

Transfer mixture to prepared cookie sheet and spread evenly with a greased/buttered spatula

Let cool, break up and enjoy!

Brigadeiros (Chocolate Balls)

Brigadeiros are a Brazilian treat that my grandmother used to make. They have a great creamy taste and a fudge-like texture. They are very simple to make and make great treats to put out when company comes over. The best part is, you only need 4 ingredients!

Ingredients:
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon butter
3 tablespoon cocoa powder
Spinkles (optional)


Combine sweetened condensed milk, butter and cocoa powder in medium saucepan.

Cook over medium-low heat, stir vigorously

Cook the mixture until it thickens enough to show the pan bottom during stirring.

Pour the mixture in a greased dish and let it cool to room temperature. Take small amounts of the mixture with a teaspoon and make 1 ½ inch balls.

Roll the balls over sprinkles to decorate. (optional)

Note** Grease your hands with margarine to make the balls easily.