Monterey Chicken

This recipe is an oldie, but a goodie.  I think I've been making this one since early marriage and that has been quite a while.  We love to cook and experiment so we are constantly trying new recipes here.  with the exception of some of our tried and true family recipes that we make often like Green Chile Stew, Greg's Chili or Gran Gran's Chicken Spaghetti, there are not a lot of recipes that are in regular rotation.  In fact, when we made this, we both agreed this is a recipe we should make more often.  I love grilled chicken.  One of the recipes that IS in our constant rotation is a Green Chile Chicken Sandwich.  Just a marinated chicken breast, grilled and topped with cheese and diced green chiles.  This chicken preparation is just a tasty variation of that.  It's a hearty main dish, it would be delicious as chicken sandwich, and it's a great way to use up a little leftover bacon and cheese. We will definitely be making this more often.  

One of our favorites. We need to make 
this way more often.

Once your seasoned chicken breasts
are cooked, brush them generously
 with your favorite barbecue sauce.

Top with shredded cheddar cheese.

Add cooked and crumbled bacon,
diced Roma tomatoes and chopped
green onions.

Broil under a low broiler until cheese melts.

Serve with your favorites side dishes
for a delicious and flavorful main course,
or on a toasted bun for a
delicious chicken sandwich.

Be sure to add this one to your regular
recipe rotation.  I know we will!

MONTEREY CHICKEN 

(serves 2)

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
your favorite seasoning
salt & pepper
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 Roma tomato, diced
3 green onions (green parts only) sliced

Season your chicken breasts on both sides with your favorite seasoning.  We used Cuso's Southwest Sand and salt & pepper.  Place in a hot skillet with a small amount of neutral oil.  Cook approximately 4-5 minutes per side, or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.  When the chicken breasts are done, place on a baking sheet that is lined with foil or parchment for easy clean-up.  Brush the chicken breasts allover with barbecue sauce.  Top with shredded cheese, bacon, tomatoes and green onions.  Broil in the oven on low broil until the cheese melts.  Serve immediately while the toppings are hot and bubbly.

Twinkie Poke Cake

I'm a sucker for nostalgic desserts.  One of my favorite things to prepare is Twinkies on our Blackstone Griddle.  Once they become crisp and caramelized, I serve them with fresh strawberries and whipped cream and call it Griddled Twinkie Strawberry Shortcake.  It's a really fun and impressive dessert, but it's not one I made when we are busy entertaining, or absorbed in watching a baseball game.  I say that, because I made this specific cake when we had guests over to watch OU Baseball playing their way to the national championship.  In the past both my Southern Pecan Praline Poke Cake and Coconut Cake have been huge hits.  And both start with a boxed cake mix.  I figured a Twinkie poke-style cake would be a huge hit, easily made ahead and a great dessert to enjoy while we watched the game.  This cake turned out unbelievably delicious, with a frosting that is so reminiscent of that delicious sponge cake filling. Seriously the frosting could just be in a post by itself, it is that good. 

A delicious, nostalgic dessert.

The ingredients.
Make sure you have oil and eggs 
to prepare the boxed cake mix.

Prepare the cake mix according
to the package directions.
Bake and let cool completely.

Mix together butter and marshmallow
fluff until smooth.  Add the powdered
sugar, milk and vanilla to create 
the tastiest frosting.

Place part of the frosting into a piping
bag and pipe into holes made in the 
cooled cake.

Use the remaining frosting to frost 
the top of the cake, spreading until smooth.

Serve and enjoy.

TWINKIE POKE CAKE

1 box yellow cake mix PLUS: oil, eggs, water needed to make the cake

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 large (16 ounce) container marshmallow fluff
3 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Prepare the cake mix according to the package directions in a 9x13-inch baking pan.  Allow the cake to cool completely.  With the bottom of a wooden spoon, poke holes allover the cooled cake.

While the cake is cooling prepare the filling/frosting.  In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the butter and marshmallow fluff, mixing until smooth.  Add in the powdered sugar a little at a time until combined.  Add in the milk and vanilla.  Once this is smooth and combined, place about 1/3 of the frosting mixture into a piping bag fitted with a larger tip.  (The open-circle style works best.  I could not find that one, so I used a larger star tip and it worked just fine.)

Carefully pipe the frosting into the holes in the cake, making sure to fill them up.  Use a spatula to smooth out any overfill.  Use the remaining frosting to frost the top of the cake, spreading until smooth.

Roasted Tomatoes & Burrata Cheese with Crostini

Since all of the food recalls this year, I've been skeptical about serving lettuce and other ingredients.  Which is really frustrating because the weather has been so hot.  We should be right in the heart of cool and refreshing salad season.  Since we can't really trust the produce right now, we've mainly been sticking to stuff from our own garden, which means tons and tons of cherry tomatoes.  Earlier in the summer, the Devilish Nephew and family came to visit. I certainly did not want to make anyone sick so I kept it safe and made a watermelon and feta cheese salad.  The adults enjoyed that and the tiniest devils love a good wedge of watermelon.  Mr. Devilish Dish grilled some delicious spice rubbed chicken thighs.  We enjoyed a batch of Frozen Aperol Spritzes.  All I needed was something featuring my harmless and abundant cherry tomatoes from my garden.  I've seen variations of this recipe allover the internet, featuring all kinds of ingredients, but I decided to keep it simple.  You could definitely add olives, fresh basil or anything else you desire, but the simple combination of tomatoes, roasted garlic and cheese tastes absolutely delicious as is.  This was a huge hit with everyone.  It would make a lovely snack with a crisp glass of wine, but since we are not eating lettuce right now, this has become a side dish in our meal rotation with no complaints!

This is so good.
We could eat this every day.

Easy to make and easy clean up.
Everything goes in one dish.

While the tomatoes and garlic roast,
get your baguette ready to
toast into crostini.

Look how good this looks.
Roasted well and a tiny bit of char
on a few tomatoes.

Use tongs to squeeze the roasted
garlic cloves out of the head 
of garlic.

Grab a fork or potato masher
and mash everything together.

Get some burrata cheese.
Drain away the liquid.

Tear the burrata into pieces and 
nestle it down into the hot
tomatoes and garlic.

Once the cheese melts, stir
everything together.

Serve with toasted crostini.

So delicious and a great use
for a big harvest of cherry tomatoes.

Serve as a side dish, or enjoy as an 
appetizer with a crisp glass of wine.

ROASTED TOMATOES & BURRATA CHEESE WITH CROSTINI

2 cups fresh cherry tomatoes
3 heads fresh garlic
olive oil
salt and pepper
one container burrata cheese
1 baguette

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Add the cherry tomatoes.  Generously drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Leaving the garlic heads intact, cut off the top.  Drizzle the cut part with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Nestle amongst the tomatoes and bake in the oven for an hour.  Remove the dish from the oven.  Using tongs, carefully squeeze the roasted garlic from its paper
squeezing the roasted garlic cloves into the tomatoes.  Discard the garlic papers.  With a potato masher or fork, smash the garlic and roasted tomatoes together.  Remove the burrata cheese from its liquid.  Tear into pieces and place in the hot tomato mixture.  Stir together allowing the cheese to melt completely.  Serve with crostini for dipping.

To make the crostini:  Slice the baguette into thin slices and place on a baking tray.  Lightly drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.  Bake in the 400 degree oven approximately 4 minutes per side or until crisp.