Onion Rings

It feels a bit wrong to label this post as a "vegetable" dish. I don't really know what nutrients are in onions to begin with, but I'm pretty sure there were none in these by the time I ate them. Maybe I should have a category called "Breaded & Deep-Fried"...

It really isn't that often that I go the whole hog and deep fry something, but if you've ever been pregnant, you understand the power of food cravings... power that will even cause you to consume food that you KNOW will give you miserable heartburn. And with no husband home this evening to tell me how gross he thinks onions are (I can't understand him), tonight was the perfect time to cave in and try making my own onion rings for the first time. Behold one of the marvels of the world.

The only problem with this recipe is that it was so easy, I will be tempted to make it FAR too often (kind of like the dangerous chocolate cake in a mug). I can't even explain just how much I adore onion rings. I have already promised myself that when I am no longer pregnant, I will make the whole recipe just for myself. Ahh, bliss.

Ten points for me for remembering to take step-by-step pictures!

Old-Fashioned Onion Rings
From: allrecipes.com

You'll need:

1 large onion, cut into 1/4" slices (I only used half the onion... I felt I was pushing my luck with the heartburn as it was)
1 1/4 c flour
1 t baking powder
1 t salt
1 egg
1 c milk
3/4 c bread crumbs (I used Italian and it was AWESOME. I also skipped the seasoned salt.)
seasoned salt, to taste
oil for frying

Heat your oil in a deep fryer (does anyone really own one of those?) or in a deep saucepan. (I heated mine on medium-low - 3 out of 10, to be exact - and it was perfect. Don't burn your oil. Yuck.)

Separate the onion slices into rings and set aside. Get out a wire rack and put some foil or wax paper under it... trust me.

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Dip the onion slices in this mixture until they're coated and set aside.

Using a fork, whisk the egg and milk into the flour mixture. Dip the floured rings into the batter and place on the wire rack to set until the batter stops dripping. (This only takes a minute or two.)

Spread the bread crumbs in a shallow bowl or plate. Dip the battered rings in the crumbs and scoop the crumbs over them to coat.

Deep fry in oil for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.

Stop drooling. Seriously.

Drain on paper towels.

Season with seasoned salt if you want. Otherwise, grab the ketchup and get busy.

Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup

I saw this on Pinterest and re-pinned it 13 days ago, and I've made it twice since then. That should tell you something. There weren't many steps along the way to take pictures of, so here's the finished bowl of soup:

This is creamy, warm, and flavorful, and perfect for a rainy day... or any day, really. Enjoy.

Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup
Adapted from: This Blog, via Pinterest

You'll need:
2 (14 oz) cans diced tomatoes, with juice (I recommend petite diced)
4 c chicken broth
1 c finely diced celery
1 c finely diced carrots
1 c finely diced onions
1 t dried oregano OR 1 T fresh oregano
1 T dried basil OR 1/4 c fresh basil
1/2 c butter
1/2 c flour
1 c Parmesan cheese
1 t salt
1/4 t black pepper
2 c half & half, warmed (original recipe recommends reducing this to 1 1/2 c. I just used 2 c whole milk instead, and it was plenty creamy)

Put the tomatoes, broth, diced veggies, oregano, and basil in your crock pot. Cover and cook on low for 5-7 hours, or until you just can't wait any more.

Make a roux: True story, I had never done this before. I felt like I was living out a Food Network fantasy. :) Sorry there are no pictures, but it's difficult to take a photo while constantly whisking...

To make the roux, melt the butter over low heat in a saucepan or large skillet. Add the flour and stir constantly with a whisk for 5-7 minutes. Slowly stir in 1 cup hot soup. Add another 3 cups gradually and stir until smooth. Then add the whole mixture back to the crock pot.

Add the Parmesan, salt and pepper, and warmed half & half (or milk) and stir. Cover and cook on low for another 30 minutes.

Serve with crusty bread or a grilled cheese sandwich for delicious dunking. Mmm.

Chipotle Cheeseburgers

Chipotle Dinner, Part II. My mouth waters just thinking about this sandwich... a spicy, rich pairing of two of my favorite food groups: cheeseburgers and Tex-Mex. If that sounds good to you, give this one a try.

Chipotle Cheeseburgers
Adapted from Taste of Home
Serves: 4

You'll need:
up to 1/2 an onion, diced (I used a bit less)
2 T minced fresh cilantro
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
1 t onion powder
1 t garlic powder
1 t seasoned salt
1/4 t ground black pepper
1 lb ground beef
4 buns
Toppings, like tomato, lettuce, sliced cheese (I used cheddar) and... I added Miracle Whip, and it was awesome.

Combine the first seven ingredients.

Crumble the ground beef over that mixture, then dig in with your hands and mix well. Shape into four burger patties.

Whip out your gas grill, George Forman, skillet, or broiler, and cook those burgers.

Serve on buns with your choice of toppings.

I served ours with these chipotle sweet potatoes.

Chipotle Sweet Potatoes

Tonight was Chipotle Dinner night. Two awesome recipes, both from Taste of Home, with similar flavor profiles: a spicy and delicious dinner. Up first: Chipotle Sweet Potatoes.

These tasty tubers are roasted in balsamic vinaigrette and then dressed with an awesome mixture of honey, chipotle peppers, cilantro, and more vinaigrette. Hope you enjoy!

Chipotle Sweet Potatoes
From: Adapted from Taste of Home
Serves: 6-8

You'll need:
4 large sweet potatoes
2/3 c balsamic vinaigrette, divided
1/4 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1/4 c fresh minced cilantro
3 T honey
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced

Peel your sweet potatoes and cut them into about 1/2" cubes.

Toss your sweet potatoes with salt and pepper and 1/3 cup of the vinaigrette. Spread them into a single layer on a greased cookie sheet or two.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes until tender, stirring once. Cool slightly. Meanwhile, whisk together the remaining vinaigrette, cilantro, honey, and peppers.

Put your potatoes in a serving bowl, pour the dressing over top, and toss to coat.

Enjoy! I served ours with these chipotle cheeseburgers... fantastic combination!

Pancakes

I debated whether or not to publish this recipe, but it has come to my attention that some people (a) actually don't know how to make good pancakes, or (b) actually buy Bisquick. Allow me to be very opinionated for a moment: Bisquick does not make real pancakes. It is expensive. You say it's convenient - I say, give this recipe a try. I guarantee you have all these ingredients in your kitchen right now, and if it takes you longer to make the batter than it does to heat the griddle, you need to get in that kitchen more often! :)

Pancakes
From: My mother-in-law, Carol, adapted from the Betty Crocker Cookbook
Makes: 8-10 6" pancakes

FIRST: PREHEAT YOUR GRIDDLE. If your griddle is still heating up while you pour the batter, you pancakes will be WEIRD.

Mix together your dry ingredients:
1 c flour
1 T sugar
1 T baking powder
1/2 t salt

Whisk in:
1 egg
2 T vegetable oil
1 c milk

(Did you notice that you only need 3 measuring cups/spoons? That makes me happy. Anything to cut down on the number of dishes!)

Pour your batter onto your PREHEATED griddle, like so.

You'll know it's time to flip when the edges are dry and the big bubbles on top are popping, like this:

Flip those babies over and use the spatula to push down on them gently. My husband, the pancake connoisseur, has reprimanded me for neglecting that little move.

In about two more minutes you have gorgeous (albeit naked) pancakes.

Let's dress those up a bit.

Breakfast for dinner - always a hit with the family! Rebecca sure likes them.

Feel free to toss in a few blueberries while your batter is on the griddle - because the only thing better than pancakes is blueberry pancakes. Or, cover and refrigerate the batter you didn't use at dinner... wait until the kiddos are in bed... and break out the chocolate chips.

Mmmm... dessert.

Hope that helped someone out there. Because life without good pancakes is no life at all.

Breakfast Casserole

I should probably make my friend Chrissy a co-author of this blog, since so many of my great recipes come from her. If you're like me, you've probably had a few too many breakfast casseroles in your life: usually dry, crumbly, filled with nasty American cheese and too much sausage. Allow me to introduce you to a completely different breakfast casserole. A more sophisticated one.

Breakfast Casserole
From: Chrissy
Serves: 8-12

You'll need:
4 slices thick bread, cubed (Chrissy uses sourdough; I used homemade white)
1 lb  ham, cut into small cubes
12 eggs
1 c sour cream
1 c milk
3 green onions, chopped (save dark green tops for garnish on top)
1 1/3 c shredded cheddar cheese, divided

Give your 9"x13" casserole dish a light coating of non-stick spray. Layer the cubes of bread evenly in the pan. Top with the cubed ham.

Beat together all 12 eggs...

... the sour cream, and the milk. Stir in the green onions and 1 cup of the cheese. Pour this mixture evenly over the top of the ham and bread. Top with the remaining cheese and the tops of the green onions. Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes to an hour, until the top has puffed up and a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Basically, until it looks like this:

Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Cincinnati-Style Chili

One of the sad parts about living the military life is that you're often forced to live far away from regional chain stores and restaurants that are near and dear to your heart. For me, Skyline Chili is one of those places (along with Hobby Lobby and my true love, Steak N Shake). Living far from Ohio meant that finding a way to make my own "Skyline" chili was a necessity. This was a lucky google find from cooks.com. It's not a perfect replica of Skyline's recipe, but it is really excellent Cincinnati-style chili. Of course, that means you have to serve it Cincinnati-style: either on a hot dog with shredded cheddar and diced onions, or (my favorite) over spaghetti noodles with shredded cheddar and diced onion. And of course, a bottle of hot sauce on the side.

For those of you whose life has sadly not included Cincinnati-style chili so far, allow me to try to explain how this is different from any other chili you've ever had. If you look at the ingredient list, you'll notice a lot of flavor you don't usually find in chili - like cloves, allspice, cinnamon, and - yes, I really mean it - chocolate. It looks bizarre to see these listed next to vinegar, cayenne, and garlic, I know. But the result is a sweet-and-spicy combination that will blow your mind. If you've never had Skyline before, do yourself a favor and make a half-recipe and give it a try. For those of you like me who wanted to bring Skyline home - here's your chance!

Cincinnati-Style Chili
From: here
Serves: 8

You'll need:
3 lb lean ground beef (your beef will not be drained, so fattier beef means greasier chili)
2 qt water
2 lg onions, diced
2 (16 oz) cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained
29 oz can tomato sauce
1/4 c chili powder
2 T white vinegar
2 t cinnamon
2 t Worcestershire sauce
1 oz unsweetened baker's chocolate
1 1/2 t salt
1/2 t allspice
1/2 t cayenne pepper
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t ground cloves
hot sauce to taste (Take it easy - just a few dashes for now. You can add more on your plate, but you don't want to cover up all those spices.)

In a large kettle, heat your water to boiling. While the water is heating, use your fingers to crumble the raw ground beef into little pieces into the kettle.

Appetizing, right? It gets better. Add the onions and simmer for 30 minutes.

When 30 minutes is up, throw everything else in the kettle.

Stir it in. And voilà... your kitchen (and soon your entire house) will now smell like a Skyline restaurant.

So now the hard part: let it simmer on low, uncovered, for 2-3 hours. That's right... you have to wait. Just tell yourself it will be worth it to have all those flavors married together. It will also reduce down to a nice, thick consistency.

When the interminable waiting is over, boil your spaghetti, grate your cheddar, finely dice your onion, and sit down with your plateful of heaven.

BBQ Hamburgers

I think this recipe is especially appropriate this time of year. After all, what are you going to do with those leftover hamburgers after your cookout? Let's face it - reheated hamburger is not an exciting dinner.

It's about to be.

Mix up the easy sauce. Put your fully cooked burgers in the sauce. Simmer on the stove or freeze and enjoy later. Could life be any easier?

Definitely a knife-and-fork sandwich. It probably seems like a lot of sauce, but trust me, you'll want to pile it on.

BBQ Hamburgers
From: My mom
Makes: flexible - up to 8 burgers

You'll need:
2 onions, diced
2 T butter or margarine
2 c ketchup
2 c water
1 c BBQ sauce
few dashes Worcestershire sauce
up to 8 fully cooked hamburgers

Saute your onions in the butter in a saucepan. When they're tender, add all the other ingredients (except for the burgers), stirring well over medium-low heat. Add your burgers, cover, and simmer on low for at least 30 minutes.

I served it with these awesome potato rounds. I know, healthy. Come on, I had some fruit.

Cheese & Bacon Potato Rounds

Ever look at a recipe and think, There's no way this would NOT be delicious? This is one of those recipes.

You had me at "cheese" and "bacon."

Bonus: Super easy. Five ingredients.

Cheese & Bacon Potato Rounds
Adapted from allrecipes.com
Serves: 4

You'll need:
4 medium baking potatoes, cut into 1/2" slices
2-3 T butter
salt & pepper
8 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
8 oz shredded cheddar cheese (I used sharp, of course)
1/3 c green onions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Brush both sides of the potato slices with melted butter; place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Bake at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown on both sides, turning halfway through cooking time. When the potatoes are done, top with the bacon, cheese, and green onions. Put the cookie sheet back in the oven until this...

... turns into this.

Serve with sour cream for dipping and enjoy.