SMASHBURGER Taco

 The princess and Uncle Parker thinks we need to have a new “Taco Tuesday" post and they wanted to share their creation of the SMASHBURGER TACO, (the newest, hottest videos trending all over Facebook). They were actually really good. Check out all the videos and choose one to try, you can’t go wrong… here is our favorite:  https://fb.watch/EQOnCSAxXw/?fs=e

Homemade Hummus

 Toss-Together Tuesday:::::::: spent time today tossing some things around on my desk while enjoying (from a far) the 13 1/2 inches of snow setting in my front yard. Glad I could spend the day inside, hanging out stamping with the youngest princess and my new Keto friendly menu. Here are some highlights from today.... 💕

Enjoy.

 Cauliflower & Roasted Red Pepper Hummus Ingredients

16 ounce can chickpeas, drained (save liquid) 

4 tablespoons chickpea liquid

1/2 cup cooked cauliflower cooled

1/4 cup roasted red pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 clove garlic, or more to taste

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon paprika 

1 teaspoon of “Everything Bagel” Seasoning

1/2-1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2-6 tablespoons cold water

Instructions

To a food processor, add the drained and rinsed chickpeas, chickpea liquid, cauliflower, red pepper, olive oil, garlic, nutmeg, paprika, salt, lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of cold water.

Puree for about 4-5 minutes until smooth and creamy. If it's not quite creamy or too thick, add a few more tablespoons of cold water. This will help fluff it up and make it creamy and smooth.

Taste and season with additional salt, garlic, tahini or lemon juice if needed.

Add to a bowl and garnish with toppings of choice. Serve with pita bread and veggie sticks or spread on toast, sandwiches, mix into pasta or use anywhere else you like.

Hot Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

Toss Together Tuesday:

This recipe makes a large batch (about 50 teaspoon sized dough balls)

For the cookie dough:
1 Chocolate Cake Mix
2 eggs
1/3 cup oil
Mix all together and chill for a least 30 minutes before rolling into dough balls. Next roll and place dough balls on a greased cookie sheet. Bake At 350* for 6-8 minutes. The cookies should be soft and doughy to the touch.

For toppings:
1 cup melted chocolate chips
Mini marshmallows
Melt chocolate chips and put small amount of melted chocolate in center of cookie and place marshmallows on top of melted chocolate.
I also added toffee chips to mine with marshmallows. Then the other plate of cookies have white chocolate, cherry chocolate chips and red colored coconut flakes.

TWD: Granola Cake

Our challenge today was to make granola cake. I have tried this recipe before for a breakfast/brunch cake and it was really good. This time I added pumpkin and bananas for an extra boost of energy. very 

I was amazed at the textural sponginess of these little cakes. They were very tasty and easy to make. 

                                                               







In keeping with the TWD tradition, we have agreed to not publish the recipe but will tell you that you can find the recipe in Dorie's new cookbook entitled "Baking Chez Moi" 

Cracked Wheat Bread

• 1cup  cracked wheat 
• 1½ boiling water
• 2 tablespoons active dry yeast 
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 cup warm buttermilk
• ¼ cup  molasses
• 4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 2½ to 3 cups all purpose flour or bread flour
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted (for brushing loaves)

1. In a bowl, place cracked wheat and pour boiling water over it. Let sit for 1 hour to soften.
2. Next combine the yeast, buttermilk, molasses, sugar, salt and butter in with softened wheat.
3. In a large bowl (I use my mixer with the paddle attachment) mix together the whole wheat flour and half of the all-purpose flour. Stir in the wheat mixture until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the rest of the flour, ½ cup at a time, until the dough pulls from the side of the bowl and forms a ball.
4. Replace the paddle attachment with the dough hook if using the electric mixer, knead the dough in the mixer for about 3 minutes and turn out the dough and finish kneading by hand, Or if kneading completely by hand, place onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for about 5 minutes until the dough is soft and springy, but still tacky. The dough should spring back when gently poked with your finger.
5. Place dough in a bowl with a tablespoon of soft butter and coat the dough ball with it. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel. Allow to rise at room temperature for about 1½ hours until doubled in bulk.
6. Gently deflate the dough by just pressing down on it. Form into 4 round loaves or divide in half for two 9 X 5 greased loaf pans. If making rounds place on parchment paper or lightly greased sheet pans. Brush the tops with melted butter and loosely cover with kitchen towel, allow to rise for about 30 minutes. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
7. Bake loaves in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes. The loaves should be done when tapping them with your finger sounds hollow. Remove bread from the oven and let cool before slicing. 

Homemade Cheez-its & Cheddar Puffs

We decided it was a "Toss Together Tuesday" kind of day and we decided to make Homemade Cheez-its and Cheddar Puffs. They are so easy to make and very tasty. I was surprised at how close they taste to regular store bought crackers.

INGREDIENTS:

10 ounces extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons heavy cream 

1 tablespoon water                                                  1 egg white

Any assorted eatable seeds and or spices., like sunflower, sesame seed, poppy or pumkin seeds...

DIRECTIONS:

1. in a clean and very dry food processor mix the cheese, butter, flour and salt pulsing on low speed until combined and course in texture. Slowly add 2 tablespoons of the heavy cream and mix as the dough forms a ball. If needed, add the additional tablespoon of water a little at a time until the dough forms. Divide the dough into two small balls, wrap with plastic wrap, you can refrigerate and keep dough for up to three days. 

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two Large baking sheets with parchment paper.  Next roll each  dough ball into a very thin 10x12-inch rectangle (the dough should be no more than ⅛-inch high). In bowl, beat egg white and water until foamy, brush on top of dough. Using a fluted pastry wheel, cut the rectangles into 1-inch squares, then transfer them to the baking sheets. Sprinkle with assorted seeds and or spices.

3. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes, or until puffed and browning at the edges. Immediately move the crackers to wire racks to cool completely, then store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

"Back to School" Snack Mix

  Fall is in the air and today is the last big summer type holiday here at the beach. Having been a Teacher for many years and now finding myself with a lot of spare time on the computer I have discovered that I want to munch more, therefore I gain weight fast. So, I thought for today to kickoff our new Annie's Pantry format, we would start out with a fun, new, healthy, "Back to School" snack that is great for all ages. I love this snack both from a teacher and a snacker's point of view. It is very low-cal and totally nut free, its a great snack for the whole family and can be safely taken into the classroom.

Quick & Easy Snack Mix
 Makes:16 (1/2-cup) servings

4 cups air popped popcorn
1 cup raisin bran
2 cups TEDDY GRAHAMS Graham Snacks, any flavor

1 cup diced dried fruit mix (We like the tropical mix)     

MIX all ingredients in large bowl. 

                                                          Store in airtight container or ziplock bag. 

"Tuesday's with Dorie" - Baking Powder Biscuits

Yummy.... Yummy... Yummy! I think I like these better than I do just a plain Old Fashioned Buttermilk Biscuit... and they were even better smeared with fresh homemade butter and homemade mixed berry jam!

lots of people struggle with making great biscuits, so here are a few tips...

Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Get out a sharp 2-inch-diameter biscuit cutter (I used a glass, and it was fine), and line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.

Whisk the flour(s), baking powder, sugar and salt together in a bowl. Pour about 1 cup of the cream over the dry ingredients, grab a fork and start tossing the ingredients together. If necessary, add more cream, a spoonful at a time, until you’ve got a nice soft dough. Now reach into the bowl with your hands and give the dough a quick, gentle kneading – 3 or 4 turns should be just enough to bring everything together.

Lightly dust a work surface with flour and turn out the dough. Dust the top of the dough very lightly with flour and pat the dough out with your hands or roll it with a pin until it is about 1/2 inch high. Don’t worry if the dough isn’t completely even – a quick, light touch is more important than accuracy.

Use the biscuit cutter to cut out as many biscuits as you can. Try to cut the biscuits close to one another so you get the most you can out of this first round. By hand or with a small spatula, transfer the biscuits to the baking sheet. Gather together the scraps, working them as little as possible, pat out to a 1/2-inch thickness and cut as many additional biscuits as you can; transfer these to the sheet. (The biscuits can be made to this point and frozen on the baking sheet, then wrapped airtight and kept for up to 2 months. Bake without defrosting – just add a couple more minutes to the oven time.)

Bake the biscuits for 14 to 18 minutes, or until they are tall, puffed and golden brown. Transfer them to a serving basket. Makes about 12 biscuits

You can check out other fans and fun recipes at  "Tuesday's with Dori".

"ATW80DS" - South Pole Chicken Pockets

 Hydroponic gardens and growing chambers produces the only fresh food that most of the stations on the South Pole will eat during their nine-month winter isolation.

Between February and November, there are about five months of complete 24-hour darkness, and the temperature ranges from -50°F to -100°F, so the bright lights, humid air, plant smells and colors of all sorts are just some of the reasons the“winterovers” are thankful for this escape from the hostile environment outside. Salads are enjoyed the most...

Ingredients:

1 pound peppered bacon

4 medium potatoes, chopped (we like mashed)

3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped

4 fresh Green Beans for each meal

1 medium onion, chopped

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves for each meal

1 teaspoon butter for each meal

4 small sprigs of fresh rosemary

garlic salt to taste

Directions:

1.	In a skillet over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until evenly brown. Drain, chop coarsely, and set aside.
2.	On 4 large squares of heavy duty aluminum foil, evenly distribute the potatoes, bacon, beans, carrots, and onion. Arrange the chicken breasts over the vegetables, Top each with 1 teaspoon  butter, and rosemary, season with garlic salt. Fold the foil over the ingredients, and tightly seal.
3.	Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat.
4.	Place foil packets on the grill, and cook for 20 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.

"ATW80DS" - Greenland Suaasat

Reindeer meat is one of the staples of Greenland along with seal. Living in Greenland requires a special diet to stay healthy and help them face the challenges of weather. The distance between fellow Greenlander's living in the small clusters of cities and villages dotting the Northern most island in the Arctic can be tough. The high meat content (marine mammals, fish, game, birds) of a typical Greenlander's diet provides the physical endurance needed to live year-round in the remote climate.

 

1 pound reindeer meat, cubed  (we used venison)
2  quarts water
2 cups pearl barley
3 onions, chopped 

1 cup sliced wild mushrooms
2 carrots, sliced 

1 cup cherries, dried
1 lemon, zest only
1 sprig rosemary, chopped
1 sprig thyme, chopped
1 bundle sage, chopped
sea salt and black pepper

 

Pour the water into a large pot and add the meat (as is), the vegetables, the cherries, the mushrooms, the salt and pepper to taste and the herbs and bring to a simmer, simmering on medium heat until tender about 1 hour.
Add barley and the lemon zest, check and correct the seasoning and cook until the soup is thick about 30 minutes.

"ATW80DS" - Danish Aebleskivers

I grew up on these yummy little balls of sweet goodness, they are part of my Danish heritage. Speaking of heritage I am actually in the air as I post this, flying to St. Louis to see my oldest Son, wife and Sugar Bear (granddaughter). We sat on the runway for an hour this afternoon waiting for this to pass over us... It was exciting and scary all at the same time.

Aebleskivers Ingredients
2 cups flour
2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups buttermilk
3 large eggs, separated

6 cardamon seeds ground

powder sugar for dusting

maple syrup and/or peanut butter

In a large bowl, combine flour, salt and baking soda. In two bowls separate your egg whites and yolks. Add buttermilk and egg yolks to your flour mixture. Beat egg whites until light and fluffy forming soft peaks. Gently fold in egg whites into flour mixture.

Preheat an aebleskiver pan on medium heat. Grease each cup with vegetable oil. Fill each hole approximately 2/3 capacity with batter. Cook approximately 1-2 minutes on the first side. Flip using a wooden skewer and cook another 1-2 minutes on the second side. If filling aebleskiver, fill ½ way and cook 1-2 minutes on the first side. Fill the middle of each pancake with ½ t filling, top with another tablespoon of batter, flip and cook another 2 minutes until golden brown. Remove from pan, sprinkle with powered sugar and serve with Maple Syrup and peanut butter.

 Optional Fillings: Nutella, Chocolate chips, blueberries, raspberries, sautéed diced apples, applesauce, jellies or jams.

Yield 35-40 Aebelskivers

"ATW80DS" - Tomato & Broccoli Tapenade

Okay... So one big thing I am learning is that Toss-Together Tuesday's are not a good thing. An unplanned meal can lead to sooooo much bad snacking and junk food cravings. I eat so much high calorie stuff on Tuesdays, corn dogs smothered in guacamole with tortilla chips and cheese, followed by orange jell-o with cool whip and candy bars. That was not counting: breakfast (toast, cheddar cheese and an orange), lunch (yogurt, pork chop, Mt. Dew and Bruschetta with Tomato & Broccoli Tapenade), or snacks (peanuts, candy corn, a  full king sized Whatchamacallit Candy Bar,  and 4 mini white powered donuts). And may I point out that none of the above items are actually that bad for you, it's just the way I put them together in a meal or meals. I was so BAD today!!!!

      But the one thing that I did want to share about the afternoon was the new  

recipe that I made today. It is a Mediterranean style of Tapenade and it was so tasty and easy to make.

Ingredients

• 1 cup fresh tomatoes, chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh broccoli, finely chopped
• 2-4 small white button mushrooms, chopped
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon finely chopped red pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 ounces crumbled feta cheese
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 narrow Italian or French loaf of bread
• 1 head garlic, cut in 1/2 crosswise

Directions

1.   Place chopped tomatoes, basil & mushrooms in a large saute pan. Stir in the 2 tablespoons olive oil, (save the other 2 for bruschetta), red pepper, garlic, basil, black pepper, and balsamic vinegar and mix well, warm up on low for 2 minutes. Cover and chill for at least four hours before serving.
2.   To make the bruschetta base: Slice the loaf of bread, on the bias, into 1/2-inch slices, (about 12-15 per loaf). Rub each slice   with fresh garlic clove and then brush with olive oil. Place bread in oven on sheet pan, bake on 350 until golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes on each side. Serve warm with chilled Tapenade.
3.    To serve: Fold feta into Tapenade, Place bread slices on serving dish, spoon 2 tablespoons of Tapenade onto each slice of bread and serve.

Nutritional Information 

Serving size is 2 pieces... 
Amount Per Serving:   Calories: 114 / Total Fat: 11.1g / Cholesterol: 8mg / Sodium 110mg / Protein 2.0g

"ATW80DS" - Bit-O-Irish Cheesecake (from Kraft)

Several years ago I came acrossed this recipe from Kraft for this yummy cheesecake and we started making it to go along with our Memorial Day BBQ Brisket.

What You Need

1-1/2 cups  finely chopped PLANTERS Pecans

2 Tbsp.  sugar

3 Tbsp.  butter or margarine, melted

4 pkg.  (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1 cup  sugar

3 Tbsp.  flour

1 cup  BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream

1/4 cup  Irish cream liqueur

4 eggs

To Make It

HEAT oven to 325°F.
MIX nuts, 2 Tbsp. sugar and butter; press onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan. Bake 10 min.
BEAT cream cheese, 1 cup sugar and flour in large bowl with mixer until blended. Add sour cream and liqueur; mix well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each just until blended. Pour over crust.
BAKE 1 hour 5 min. or until center is almost set. Run knife around rim of pan to loosen cake; cool before removing rim. Refrigerate 4 hours.

"ATW80DS" - Oxtail Stew with Mashed Cauliflower

When I boys were younger, we had a lady from Ghana come stay with us for awhile. SHe helped out with the kids and the house work. She was an incredible cook and her favorite meal was oxtail stew. She would make a big pot of it and we would eat on it for days. Of course Her and I were the only ones who liked it... :)

Ingredients

• 4 pounds oxtail
• 1 medium onion
• 2 garlic clove chopped
• 3 8oz canned tomatoes
• 2 tablespoon tomatoe paste
• 1 sprig of thyme (1 teaspoon thyme)
• 1 teaspoon curry
• 1 green bell pepper
• 2 green onions
• 1 maggi/1 tablespoon bouillon
• 1 habenara pepper (optional)
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Boil oxtail with salt, pepper and some chopped onions in a medium pot until tender. It will take approximately 40 to 45 minutes. I used pressure cooker to shorten the process. Reserve the stock for later use. Remove fatty oil if desired
2. Add ½ cup oil to the pot/pan and fry the oxtail for about 5 minutes.
3. Then, add the chopped garlic to perfume the oil and meat , continue frying the meat for1- 2 minutes, be careful not to let the garlic burn
4. Next add tomato sauce, tomato paste, curry and fresh thyme . Stir the pot frequently to prevent the sauce from sticking to the pot
5. Add salt and bouillon according to preference with about 2 cups of stock. Bring to a boil and let it simmer to blend all the flavors and reduce acidity of the tomato sauce. Approximately 30-40 minutes. Stir occasionally adding water as needed
6. Finally add green onions and green pepper. Adjust seasonings, soup consistency with water/stock and salt.
7. Serve warm with desired side dish.

Mashed Cauliflower 

Ingredients

• 8 cups bite-size cauliflower florets (about 1 head)
• 2 - 4 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled
• 1/3 cup nonfat milk or chicken stock
• 1 teaspoon butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground pepper to taste
• Snipped fresh chives for garnish

Preparation

1. Place cauliflower florets and garlic in  boiling water, cook until very tender, 12 to 15 minutes. (Alternatively, place florets and garlic in a microwave-safe bowl with 1/4 cup water, cover and microwave on High for 3 to 5 minutes.)
2. Place the cooked cauliflower and garlic in a food processor. Add milk,  butter, salt and pepper; pulse several times, then process until smooth and creamy. Transfer to a serving bowl.  You can drizzle with the  2 teaspoons oil and garnish with chives, if desired. Serve hot.

Nutrition

Per serving: 107 calories; 7 g fat ( 1 g sat , 4 g mono ); 3 mg cholesterol; 10 g carbohydrates; 0 g added sugars; 5 g protein; 4 g fiber; 339 mg sodium; 288 mg potassium

"ATW80DS" - Horchata (Chilian Recipe)

Horchata, also known as orxata or "rice water", is a refreshing, yummy, sweet Spanish drink made with rice, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and sometimes almonds. It is a great off set for the spicy foods and is very popular in Latin America and Spain. Other versions can be made of almonds, barley, herbs or tigernuts. The following recipe will make 6 cups. I have a friend and her husband grew up in brazil, she was telling me that his grandma use to make horchata and sometimes she would take all the rice stuff leftover after straining and cook it in milk and they would eat it like we do oatmeal. So we thought we would give it a try. Then as usual, here at the pantry we like to play, so we thought it might make a good pudding, kind of like rice pudding, so we took our Horchata mixture and added 2 eggs, blended well and cooked it over medium heat until thick. We served it chilled with whipped cream and sprinkles...  ( Photo below) It was actually pretty good, had the texture of grits but tasted like rice pudding. 

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup uncooked white long-grain rice 1/2 cup sliced almonds 4 cups warm water 2 cups milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 2/3 cup white sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS: 1. Pour the rice, almonds and water into a blender; blend until the rice just begins to break up, about 1 minute. Let rice mixture stand at room temperature for a minimum of 3 hours. 2. Strain the rice water into a pitcher and discard the rice. Stir the milk, vanilla, cinnamon, salt and sugar into the rice water. Chill and stir before serving over ice.

"ATW80DS" - Yellow Pepper & Spinach Salsa

For our Toss Together Tuesday Challenge, we would invite everyone to make their favorite salsa and share it. The only catch is you can only use items that are already in your pantry. On shopping allowed today.

Here is ours... From Guatemala

Yellow Pepper & Spinach, why spinach? Well because Cilantro and I do not get a long very well, but I do like the green leafy look that it gives to salsa and we have a lot of fresh spinach hanging at the pantry... So why not? :)

Ingredients:

1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 large yellow sweet pepper  (diced)
1 small handful fresh spinach (washed & shredded)
1/2 diced fresh onion
1/2 diced fresh jalapeño pepper or 1 fork full of canned jalapeño sliced (diced)
1 teaspoon of jalapeño juice (add more the hotter you like your salsa)
1 tablespoon katsup
Sprinkle of sugar
Sprinkle of salt to taste

Mix all the ingredients together and let rest at least two hours before servings.

"ATW80DS" ---- Cape Cod Lobster Rolls

Since we are enjoying Breakfast & Brunch this week, we thought we would share our version of the recipe with all of you.... The idea behind why we consider this a Thrifty Meal is because your only expense should be the Lobster and maybe your hot dog buns. You should have everything else either in your pantry or in your garden by now... Also if you want to use it as a Monday Makeover meal, use lite mayo and wrap it in lettuce leaves or tortillas instead of buns.

CAPE COD STYLE LOBSTER ROLLS

Ingredients

    * 1 pound cooked & chilled lobster meat, cut into large pieces
    * 1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley
    * 1/16 cup finely chopped tarragon leaves
    * 1/2 cup mayonnaise
    * 1 lemon, juiced
    * 1 green onion, diced
    * 1 stalk celery, diced
    * Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
    * 4 hot dog buns
    * 4 leaves flat green lettuce shredded

Directions:

In a large, chilled bowl, mix all ingredients well, making sure not to mash the lobster. Season well with salt and pepper. Grill or caramelize each hot dog bun and line with shredded lettuce and fill evenly with the lobster salad.

"ATW80DS" - Pacific Northwest

       The method of plank cooking starts with the Native Americans of the Northwest who would put whole salmon on large cedar planks and place it over a fire, yet others feel like this technique is a Scandinavian tradition that was brought to America by early travelers.  Either way the plank held the fish together while the cedar plank smoldered and flavored the fish with smoke. This process of grilling fish has become popular and several companies manufacture planks specifically for this purpose. What most people don't realize is that you can do so much more with a plank than grill salmon.

We bar-b-Que our Trout and Grouper on a cedar plank because it is a good way to grill fish without the fish falling apart, we use the planks more now than our fish baskets. Also the planks help to pull some of the fishy taste out of the meat. The smoke from the wood really enhances the flavor of the fish.

Cedar Plank  Fish

 Ingredients:

• 2 12-ounce salmon, whole trout cleaned (living on the east coast, we use croaker or sunfish)
• 1/2 cup fresh dill, chopped
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 lemon sliced thinly
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 untreated cedar plank large enough to fit the fish 

Preparation:

Soak the cedar plank submerged in water for 1 hour. Preheat grill. Lightly coat inside and outside of each trout. Season inside with salt and pepper and stuff with lemon slices and dill. Place soaked cedar plank on grill over direct medium heat. When cedar plank starts to smoke place fish on plank. Grill for about 15 minutes or until the fish is done. The flesh should be opaque and plank easily. Remove from grill. This trout makes a great smoked fish appetizer or spread. To make spread remove bones and skin from the meat and break the meat up and mix with cream cheese.

Side note:  It's good to keep a spray bottle handy in case you're plank catches fire (rarely happens if you soak overnight)

"ATW80DS" - Gyros & Greek Salad

We had a quick stop in Greece. (Actually we attended a local Greek festival as a Field Trip.) While we were there we had Gyros & Greek Salad for Dinner.

Recipe:
4 - 6 lamb chops
1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp lemon juice1 cup water
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1⁄2 tsp kosher salt
1⁄4 tsp pepper
4 pita breads
1 cup shredded Lettuce
1 medium tomato (diced)
1 medium red onion (diced)

In a slow cooker or large baking dish...Mix Lamb, oil, lemon juice, garlic, spices, water, salt and pepper; stirring to coat. Cover and cook for 2 to 4 hours until meat is tender.

Meanwhile, make the Tzatziki Sauce (recipe found below): Stir all the ingredients together, cover and refrigerate.

Just before serving, shred and debone Lamb, then return the lamb to juices in slow-cooker to keep warm. Warm pitas as package directs; top with sliced meat. Serve with lettuce, tomato, onion and Tzatziki sauce.

Tzatziki Sauce:

• 1 cup Greek yogurt
• 1 cup diced seedless cucumber
• 1 Tbsp snipped fresh dill
• 1⁄4 tsp Kosher salt

If anyone would like to join us in our Challenge "Around the World in 80 Days", next we will be at the Turkey.

TTT's - Scallop & Bacon Alfredo

I had this wild idea to take my favorite dish of Bacon Wrapped Scallops & my favorite recipe of Pasta Alfredo and combine them together for a new found friend, AND this is what I came up with...

Scallop & Bacon Alfredo

serves 2-4

1/4 cup butter
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 onion (diced)
1 clove garlic, (crushed)
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
10-15 large Scallops
1/2 lb. of bacon (diced)
2-4 cups of Favorite Pasta (cooked)

In a medium sauce pan over medium heat add butter, Bacon and onion. Cook until bacon is done and onion is tender. Add Cream, Garlic, cheese, stir and reduce until it will coat and stick to a spoon when stirred. Add Scallops to sauce and turn slowly every two minutes until scallops are done. (about 4-6 minutes on each side depending on how large the scallops are) Drain Pasta and place in serving bowl, Pour Scallop Alfredo mixture over warm Pasta, Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve...