Jalapeño Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Is there a better comfort food than a great grilled cheese sandwich? Maybe. I think fried chicken and macaroni and cheese come pretty close. During a recent football party, I put together a grilled cheese menu and this one, the Jalapeño Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwich, was my favorite.
Assembling the Jalapeño Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
This grilled cheese uses Cheddar, cream cheese, jalapeño strips (all the ingredients in a jalapeño popper) and bacon. Why hasn’t anyone thought to add bacon to jalapeño poppers? That’s a mystery. Anyway, this is super easy to make and quick.
Ingredients:
- 2 jalapeños, seeded and cut into strips
- 4 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
- 10-12 pieces of nice crusty bread, cut along the bias
- 4 TBSP cream cheese
- 4 TBSP salted butter, melted
- 1/2 pound sharp Cheddar cheese, sliced
Unsalted butter is a necessity when grilling sandwiches.
Directions:
- Preheat a panini press, griddle, grill or skillet.
- Spread cream cheese on one slice of bread.
- On another, place two slices of Cheddar cheese.
- Lay three or four jalapeño strips on the cream cheese side.
- Sprinkle bacon on top of cream cheese side.
- Place cheddar cheese side, cheese down on top of the cream cheese side.
- Brush melted butter on top of sandwich and place buttered side down on the panini press.
- Brush top side with melted butter.
- Shut panini press and grill four to five minutes or until Cheddar cheese is melted. Alternately, flip sandwich after two or three minutes if using a griddle, grill or skillet.
- Cut in half then serve.
Use a panini press to make the perfect grilled cheese sandwich.
You may think this Jalapeño Popper Grill Cheese Sandwich recipe is spicy, but to me, fresh jalapeños aren’t too spicy. Especially, when compared to pickled jalapeños. The peppers give the sandwich a nice crunch.
Be sure to pick a nice bread that won’t fall apart. I used a jalapeño-Cheddar bread from my local Whole Foods and it was perfect. Try this sandwich next time you need some good ‘ol fashioned comfort food.
Tags: Bacon, Cheddar Cheese, Comfort Food, Cream Cheese, Grilled Cheese, Jalapeno, Jalapeno Popper, Panini, Sandwich, Sandwich Recipe
Boudin Egg Rolls
One of my favorite things about cooking is the opportunity to fuse ethnic dishes. In this case, it’s the Chinese egg roll and Cajun boudin into Boudin Egg Rolls. I call it Casian cuisine. And man, are they good.
I used boudin straight from Lafayette, but the store-bought kind will probably work as well. In my opinion, the smokier you can find, the better.
Boudin + Egg Rolls = Deliciousness
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup chili oil
- 1 1/2 lb. boudin
- 10 egg roll wrappers
Directions:
-
- In a Dutch oven or other heavy-bottomed pot, heat oils to 350F over medium-high heat.
Serve Boudin Egg Rolls with Creole mustard and/or pepper jelly
- Remove the boudin from the casing.
- Finely chop up casing and add to boudin. NOTE: Adding the casings back in is optional.
- Place 2 TBSP boudin in center of each egg roll wrapper.
- Wrap from bottom up and then fold the sides in and top down.
- Fry until golden brown on all sides.
- Drain on paper towels.
- Serve with Creole mustard and/or pepper jelly as dipping sauce.
These Boudin Egg Rolls were surprisingly simple to make. There’s not much assembly required once you get the hang of rolling the egg rolls.
I will definitely be adding these Boudin Egg Rolls to my tailgating cuisine repertoire. They are perfect to grab, dip and go. They may just be one of my new favorite appetizers.
Tags: Boudin, Cajun, Cajun Recipes, Chinese, Egg Rolls, Louisiana Recipe, Recipe
Bone Marrow on Toast with Goat Cheese and Black Pepper Fig Jam
Bone Marrow
Hands down, Bone Marrow on Toast with Goat Cheese and Black Pepper Fig Jam is one of the best appetizer recipes I’ve yet to create.
I also call it Blood and Bone Toast for short so it may make a nice addition to an adult Halloween appetizer spread. This recipe may look like a lot of work, but it’s surprisingly easy to prepare.
Ingredients:
For the Black Pepper Fig Jam:
- 1 lb. Mission figs, diced
- 2 TBSP lemon juice
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 TBSP cracked black pepper
- 2 TBSP butter
For the rest:
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- On a large baking sheet, stand bones up vertically and roast for 20-30 minutes or until marrow is melting inside the bone.
- While bones are roasting, in a small pot, melt butter then add all Black Pepper Fig Jam ingredients. Bring to a boil and let simmer on low for 20-30 minutes.
- Remove fig jam from stove and refrigerate to let cool.
- Remove bones from oven and on a separate baking sheet, arrange bread pieces in a single layer and toast for 7 or 8 minutes.
- While bread is toasting, over a bowl, remove marrow from bones by using a kitchen knife (the narrower the better) to push or scoop out the marrow from the bone.
- Once bread is toasted, fig jam has cooled and bone marrow has been extracted, prepare the toast by spreading goat cheese on first, followed by fig jam and top with roasted bone marrow.
Black Pepper Fig Jam
All these ingredients may seem like a weird combo. Hell, bone marrow itself may seem like a weird ingredient. But, I promise you this appetizer is decadent and full of flavor.
I should probably actually jar some of the black pepper fig jam. To me, it and the bone marrow are the equally award worthy costars in this recipe for Bone Marrow on Toast with Goat Cheese and Black Pepper Fig Jam.
Tags: Appetizer, Appetizer Recipe, Black Pepper, Bone Marrow, Fig Jam, Figs, Goat Cheese, Recipe
Bob Armstrong Dip
WARNING: Prepare the following recipe with extreme caution. Symptoms of serving this recipe include: foodgasms, overeating, chip disappearance, double dipping, eyes rolling back and generally euphoria.
Now that I’ve posted a full disclaimer, this is one of the best dips in the world. I was first introduced to Bob Armstrong Dip while eating at Mattito’s restaurant in Dallas. It’s not on the menu — something I full understand so the restaurant soundtrack doesn’t consist of When Harry Met Sally moments. Anyway, enjoy!
Ingredients:
For the guacamole:
- 4 avocados, chopped and mashed
- 1 lime, juiced
- 2 TBSP olive oil
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh jalapeño, chopped
- 1/2 red onion, diced
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Bob Armstrong Dip is a combo of guacamole, chile con queso and taco meat.
- 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
- 2 celery stalks, finely chopped
- 1/2 red onion, diced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 TBSP cumin
- 1 TBSP garlic powder
- 1/2 TBSP salt
- 1/2 TBSP ground black pepper
For the chile con queso:
- 1 can tomatoes with green chilies
- 2 celery stalks, finely chopped
- 3/4 cup reserved liquid from ground beef
- 1 pound 2% milk Velveeta cheese
- 1 TBSP cumin
- 1 TBSP garlic powder
- 1/2 TBSP salt
- 1/2 TBSP ground black pepper
You’ll get a lot closer to Bob Armstrong Dip than this.
- In a large bowl, mix together all guacamole ingredients and chill.
- In a large skillet, stir in bell pepper, celery, onion and spices from taco meat ingredients. Spread uncooked ground beef on top.
- Cook over medium heat until meat starts to simmer then break up meat and simmer on low for about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Drain liquid from cooked ground beef and reserve for chile con queso.
- In a sauce pan, combine all ingredients for chile con queso except the cheese.
- Bring to a light simmer and gently simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Turn down heat and add cheese. Simmer until cheese is melted.
- Warm a 9×13 inch casserole dish or pan.
- Spread guacamole into the pan, then add the taco meat, and top with chile con queso. Stir well to incorporate all ingredients.
- Serve with plenty of chips.
To keep this Bob Armstrong Dip warm, you can place it in the oven at 250F.
This is supposed to be served as an appetizer, but you may want to plan to serve it as an entree. It’s impossible to resist the dip known as Bob Armstrong Dip. Get ready to have your mind blown by this Tex-Mex concoction. It’s worth every bite.
Tags: Avocado, Cheese, Chile con Queso, Chips, Dip, Dips, Ground Beef, Guacamole, Taco Meat, Tex-Mex, Tex-Mex Cuisine, Tex-Mex Dip
Silken Tofu with Kimchi
Looking for a vegetarian entree or appetizer that’s full of spice and loaded with nutrition? Look no further. This recipe for Silken Tofu with Kimchi is delicious and takes about 15 minutes to make.
Kimchi is a Korean dish that’s a spicy blend of spicy peppers, cabbage and other Asian vegetables. I used storebought kimchi I got from our local Asian market, but feel free to make your own. Here’s a recipe.
Ingredients:
Directions:
- Boil a pot of water and add tofu and simmer until the tofu is warmed through. This should take about 5 or 6 minutes.
- Drain the tofu.
- Divide the tofu evenly between 2 bowls (or 4 if making as an appetizer). Drizzle each portion with half of soy sauce and half of chili oil. Divide kimchi evenly atop both bowls of tofu.
- Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds, then serve.
Silken Tofu with Kimchi serves 2 to 4
I was surprised at just how much flavor is in this dish given the limited amount of ingredients and easiness to prepare it. The only problem is that I was left wanting more.
While this can be served as an entree or an appetizer, it’s probably better as an appetizer as the portions are small. I chose to eat mine as an entree as I had a tennis match to play an hour later so I wanted something light. This Silken Tofu with Kimchi definitely fit the bill.
Tags: Asian, Asian Food, Asian Recipe, Kimchi, Kimchi Recipe, Recipe, Silken Tofu, Soy Sauce, Tofu, Tofu Recipe, Vegan, Vegan Recipe, Vegetarian, Vegetarian Recipe
Watermelon, Cucumber and Feta Salad
This is one salad that’s perfect for Summer. It’s also full of healthy ingredients and won’t blow your daily calorie intake.
This Watermelon, Cucumber and Feta Salad is perfect for picnics, backyard barbecues and even a weeknight dinner. It has a nice crunch and even better taste. Plus, no cooking required!
Ingredients:
Directions:
- Cut up all the fruit and herbs and mix in a large bowl.
- Add in feta cheese, salt, pepper and vinegar then toss well to mix.
- Serve and enjoy.
Watermelon and cucumber complement each other well.
That’s it. Super simple, right? If virtually impossible to mess up.
You can play around with the amount of herbs, salt, pepper and vinegar to add based on your taste preferences. I’ve found it doesn’t keep too well so I would eat it within two days of making. Otherwise, it gets a little soggy. It’s so good it’ll probably be gone in one sitting anyway.
Tags: Basil, Cucumber, Feta, Mint, No-Cook Recipe, Salad, Summer Recipe, Summer Salad, Vegetarian, Watermelon, Watermelon Salad
Prosciutto-Wrapped Pears
Honestly, I’m not sure I’ll ever post a recipe easier than this one. If you can’t make it, there may be no hope left for you in the culinary arena.
Regardless of the difficulty (or lack thereof), this appetizer goes great with the bubbly which is a huge plus around New Year’s. Give it a try before 2012 gets here.
Ingredients:
- 2 pears, quartered (cut into a total of 8 slices)
- 4 slices of prosciutto, halved
- 2 TBSP olive oil
- 1 TBSP sugar cane vinegar (or other sweet vinegar)
- 1/4 cup walnuts, for garnish (optional)/li>
- 1/4 cup blue cheese, for garnish (optional)
Prosciutto-Wrapped Pears
- Wrap prosciutto around pear slices and place on a serving plate.
- Drizzle with olive oil and sugar cane vinegar.
- Serve.
Aside from being super easy to make, these Prosciutto-Wrapped Pears have a nice savory/sweet combo working. They are appropriate for nearly any party.
And like I mentioned earlier, they go really well with champagne. Cheers.
Tags: Appetizer, Pears, Prosciutto, Recipe
Po' Boy Livin' Rich 