bbq turkey meatballs

Oh, how I love this meal. When my dear friend Cara (who is expecting a baby girl in just a couple weeks!) gave me The Pioneer Woman cookbook years ago, she wrote a note in there that I had to try the meatballs. With so many amazing recipes in the book, I knew this one had to be really good if she'd singled it out. And she was. so. right. These are pure comfort food, and who doesn't love that? I lightened them up a bit by using turkey, but we've made them with beef several times as well and it's fantastic. As would, I imagine, anything be that's covered in this spicy, tangy, addictive sauce.

BBQ Turkey Meatballs (adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks)
serves 3-4

you'll need:
3/4 lbs. ground turkey
1/3 cup quick oats
1/2 cup milk (I used skim)
1/3 cup minced onion
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
couple dashes of Tabasco (or more or less if you'd like!)

In a bowl, combine the turkey, oats, milk, 1 tablespoon onion, salt, and black pepper. Stir with a fork to combine everything together. Roll the mixture into tablespoon-size balls and refrigerate for 30 to 45 minutes to firm.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat the canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Dredge the meatballs in the flour, shaking off the excess. Brown the meatballs until lightly browned on all sides (You may have to do this in batches, depending on the size of your skillet). As they brown, place them into a baking dish.

In a medium bowl, stir together ketchup, sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire, the remaining onion, and Tabasco. Drizzle the sauce evenly on the meatballs in the baking dish.

Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until bubbly and hot. Serve over buttered egg noodles or alongside mashed potatoes. Yum!

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korean bbq naan pizza

I'm getting back into the swing of the busy days and nights that come with the beginning of a new school year. I still love to cook after a long day, no matter how tired I am. Something about it is so relaxing, and it gets me out of my "teacher mode" for the day. I always feel better if I've cooked dinner, but - real talk - it's the cleaning up of dinner that sometimes has me reaching for the Thai takeout menu.

I'm trying to get it together more this year. A new school year resolution of keeping a clean, organized kitchen so that I can enjoy my cooking more. Cleaning up as I cook, loading the dishes right away, emptying the dishwasher every morning so I'm ready to go later that night.

Don't ask my husband how this is going. I'm working on it, k?

Naan pizzas might be the best weeknight meal ever. They're quick, so easy, and most importantly absolutely delicious. This one, with a Korean BBQ twist, is completely out of this world. Think the most tender short ribs, creamy mozzarella, and a spicy vinaigrette drizzled on top. Dreamy.

It does take a little bit of work, with slow-cooked meat (from this incredible recipe that I adore) and a homemade BBQ sauce. But! since I cooked the meat in my crockpot all day long, it was mostly passive work! I made the BBQ sauce the day before, but if you'd rather, you can find a good Asian BBQ sauce at the grocery store instead. These are trivial matters. The most important thing is that these pizzas are on your dinner table.

Korean BBQ Naan Pizza
makes 4 pizzas

for the pizza, you'll need:
4 naan breads
olive oil, for brushing
6 tablespoons Korean BBQ sauce (If you'd rather buy it, I've tried this one from Whole Foods, and it's great.)
1 lb. shredded Korean beef
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
2 scallions, thinly sliced
handful of cilantro, roughly chopped

for the vinaigrette, you'll need:
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons raw honey
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons vegetable stock
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1 tablespoon toasted white sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. If using a pizza stone, place inside oven to preheat.

Lightly brush naan with olive oil. Once oven is preheated, place breads onto preheated pizza stone or baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven. Brush each naan with 2 tablespoons BBQ sauce. Divide the beef, mozzarella, onion, and scallions evenly over the 4 pizzas. Return to oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, until cheese is bubbly.

While the pizzas are baking, whisk together all of the vinaigrette ingredients together and set aside.

Remove pizzas from the oven and serve with a sprinkling of cilantro and a drizzle of the vinaigrette. Enjoy!

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cane syrup pulled pork sandwiches

Today's guest post comes from one of my biggest blog crushes, Erika of Southern Souffle. This gal is legit. Not only is she hilarious, but she cooks up some serious Southern comfort food like pecan pie granola, andouille slider burgers, and, omg y'all, spiked Arnold Palmer pops. Do you see why I adore her? So I'm pretty happy to have her today, and you should be too... I mean, check out these sandwiches...

Well Hellloooo there!

Let me start off with a big thanks to Marie for allowing me to bring my ridiculousness to her lovely blog!  This is my first guest post and I'm at a complete loss over what to say. Before that, I was at a complete loss over what to make. Fortunately but unfortunately, I made these pulled pork sandwiches yesterday. This is fortunate, because it gave me something delicious to use for this post. This is unfortunate, because in the process of devouring my sandwich, there was an incident, a mishap of spilled BBQ sauce on my favorite light blue dress.

My favorite light blue dress that I purchased at full price from Anthropologie during a moment of insanity.  At the time the purchase didn't seem crazy... No, no.. American Express gives you 30 days to come to that realization. So now I have a cute little blue dress with an abstract painting of BBQ sauce on it. But the tender, juicy, tangy-sweet tastes of these sandwiches were so worth it.

These pulled pork sandwiches, are everything that I love about food and BBQ... minus Bourbon. There should have been Bourbon.

Instead, there is Cane syrup mixed in with your basic ingredients for BBQ sauce, and what you have is a succulent piece of pulled pork that can barely be contained by 2 pieces of bread.

Cane Syrup is a sweetener, made from the concentration of cane juice that's been cooked in open kettles. It was often incorporated into a lot of dishes growing up. For as long as my memory serves me, the distinctive yellow Steen Brothers label was constantly sitting on the counter. Waiting its turn to be poured into the marinades, the cake mixes, the gingerbreads and sometimes even the cocktails.

It's truly a southern staple... sorta like Duke's mayo.

With Marie being in Texas and I in the great state of Georgia, we share a love of BBQ. So let's have a cookout, a backyard soiree. I'll bring these little beauties, Marie will bring her Coconut Banana Cream Pie, and y'all bring some napkins. Better yet -- bibs, cause this could get messy.

Cane Syrup Pulled Pork Sandwiches 

Prep Time- 20 mins Cook Time- 6 hours Yield- 12 servings 

Ingredients: 

1 pork roast, preferably shoulder or Boston butt

2 tbsp paprika

1 tbsp garlic powder

1 tbsp light brown sugar

1 tbsp dry mustard

2 tbsp kosher salt

Cane Syrup BBQ Sauce:

½ cup cane syrup (I use Steen Brothers)

3 cup ketchup

2 tbsp yellow mustard

1tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp hot sauce

2 garlic cloves, smashed

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cayenne

½ tsp freshly ground pepper

Hamburger buns

Directions:

In a small bowl, mix paprika, garlic powder, brown sugar, dry mustard, and salt.  Rub spice blend all over pork roast. Place roast in bowl or container, cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight.

When ready to cook, whisk together all ingredients for the sauce in a separate bowl until well combined. Place pork roast in slow cooker. Pour prepared sauce over the meat, set slow cooker to high and cook for about 6 hours.

Remove the roast from slow cooker and shred with a fork. Return the shredded meat to the slow cooker mixing in with the sauce. Let sit in slow cooker on low until ready to serve.

Serve piled on a bun topped with slaw if you like.

Adapted from Food Network

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creamy bbq chicken pizza + jim lahey's no-knead pizza dough

I think, this week, let's talk about pizza! Yes?

I've been on a pizza-making kick lately, and can't wait to tell you guys about it. I've been obsessed with finding the perfect pizza dough recipe for a while now (I have seriously never used the same recipe twice), and the three I'm going to share with y'all this week are all to die for. Crispy, chewy, air-bubbly... just perfect.

Let's start out with this one. I think I was the last person on Earth to try this recipe, but don't be like me! This is as simple as it gets (no knead!), and it's the best pizza dough I've ever made. It's incredible!!!

Although you can (and should) top this pizza with anything and everything, I decided to try out Bev's Creamy BBQ Chicken Pizza because... well, do I really need to explain?!

Real talk: this pizza dough will change your life.

Jim Lahey's No-Knead Pizza Dough (adapted from Girl Versus Dough and Handle the Heat)
makes four 10 to 12-inch pizzas

A quick word about what sounds like the longest rising time ever: the recipe calls for at least an 18 hour rise time, but I'm a terrible planner and very impatient when it comes to pizza. I made my dough in the morning and let it rise all day, about 12 hours, and it turned out perfectly. This dough is forgiving and compassionate to my scatterbrained ways. That being said, the longer you let it rise, the more developed the flavor will be.

you'll need:
3 3/4 cups AP flour
1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups lukewarm water

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, yeast and salt. Add water gradually and stir with a spoon until combined and a dough forms (you may have to use your hands to bring it all together... but you don't need to knead!). With floured hands, bring to dough together in a ball. Transfer the dough to a clean, large bowl and cover it with plastic wrap or a tea towel. Set dough in a draft-free place until dough is doubled (or more than doubled) in size, 12-18 hours.

When dough has risen, punch it down and transfer it to a lightly floured work surface. Divide dough into 4 equal pieces. Take one portion of the dough and gather 4 corners to the center to create 4 folds. Turn seam side down and form into a ball. Repeat with remaining portions of dough. Allow to rest, uncovered, for an hour. When dough is fully rested, it's ready to shape and top as you like! See below for what I did...

*If you'd like to make this dough ahead of time, that's great! Dough will stay good for 3 days in the refrigerator, well-wrapped in plastic wrap. When you're ready to use it, allow it to come to room temperature for 2-3 hours before using. Dough will also keep in the freezer for 1 month. Defrost the dough overnight in the fridge, then allow to sit at room temperature as you would with the refrigerated dough before shaping.

Creamy BBQ Chicken Pizza (toppings adapted from Bev Cooks)
makes 2 12-inch pizzas

you'll need:
1 lb. cooked chicken breasts, chopped into bite-size pieces (I used rotisserie chicken)
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup BBQ sauce, plus 2 tablespoons
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup pickled jalapenos
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons chopped green onions, for garnish

Place a pizza stone in your oven, and preheat the oven to its highest temperature (mine is 550 degrees F). Allow to heat for at least 30 minutes.

Toss chicken with 2 tablespoons BBQ sauce and set aside.

In a small bowl, mix heavy cream and BBQ sauce together until completely combined and smooth.

On two pieces of lightly floured parchment paper, press out each pizza dough ball to 10-12 inches in diameter (one pizza on each piece of paper). Evenly spoon the creamy BBQ sauce over each crust, then top with chicken, red onions, jalapenos and cheese.

Carefully(!) remove the preheated pizza stone from the oven and slide one of the pizzas on parchment paper onto it. Return to oven and bake for 7-12 minutes, until cheese is browned and bubbly. Repeat with other pizza.

Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before slicing. Garnish with green onions, and rejoice!

*Coming later this week: no-knead whole wheat pizza dough, and spicy garlic bread pizza dough. Yipeeeeee!!!

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cinco de mayo recipes!

Sunday is Cinco de Mayo! Are you ready? I'll take any excuse to indulge in excessive amounts of guacamole. Here are some ideas for a whole day of feasting on Cinco de Mayo!

Buenos Dias!

Green Chile Cheddar Drop Biscuits

Mexican Breakfast Pizza

Chipotle Pepper Jack Scones

Green Chile Quiche

Snacks and Appetizers

Mexican Camp Bread

Chorizo and Peppers Quesadillas

Baked Jalapeno Poppers

Meal Ideas!

Mexican Pasta Bake

Lightened Up Neiman Marcus Tortilla Soup
Slow Cooker Ranch Chicken Tacos

Chorizo and Jalapeno Pizza

Baked BBQ Ranch Turkey Tacos

Chicken and Avocado Enchiladas

Slow Cooker Enchilada Soup

Green Chile Brisket Enchiladas
Baked Turkey Taquitos

Something Sweet!

Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies

What about you? Are you cooking up anything for Cinco de Mayo?

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sweet & spicy bbq grilled cheese + 10 grilled cheeses i'm dying to try

Did you know that April is National Grilled Cheese Month? Yes, it's a thing. And now that you know, let's have a grilled cheese party!

You can really throw anything in between two slices of bread with some cheese and call it a grilled cheese. Some of my favorites? This potato-leek-mozzarella version is a total winner. Here are 10 others I am dying to try:

Grilled Mascarpone and Roasted Jalapeño Pistachio Pesto Cheese Sandwich from Bev Cooks. Oh. my. goodness.

Grilled Hatch Chile Pimento Cheese Sandwiches from Confections of a Foodie Bride. Counting down the days until hatch season for this one.

Cobb Grilled Cheese from Foodie Crush. So much beauty!

Mexi Grilled Cheese with Avocado, Pepper Jack and Refried Beans from Feed Me Phoebe. This has my name written ALL over it.

Bacon Guacamole Grilled Cheese from Closet Cooking, who, by the way, just released an eCookbook devoted to grilled cheese!

Comte and Pepper Grilled Cheese from A Cozy Kitchen. Because Comte.

Grilled Cheese with Apricot Jam and Arugula from Love and Olive Oil. Sounds like heaven.

Bacon, Egg and Hash Brown Grilled Cheese from Brown Eyed Baker. Breakfast for dinner is always a good choice.

Mini Grilled Cheese and Tomato Sandwiches from Averie Cooks. Cute food always tastes better.

Pickles and Brie Grilled Cheese from Joy the Baker. Because it sounds just weird enough to be insanely delicious.

And, chances are, if you are anywhere near Pinterest, you've seen this Sweet & Spicy Caramelized Onion BBQ Grilled Cheese from Ring Finger Tan Line. I tried it. I loved it. I've made it at least three times since. Hop on over there for the recipe!

What are your favorite grilled cheese creations?! Any you are dying to try? I'd love to hear - feel free to post links to recipes in the comments!

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baked bbq ranch turkey tacos

Easy, crowd-pleasing, delicious? I got ya covered.

Tacos are a no brainer when it comes to simple, happy food. And these tacos, with a little BBQ twist? Oh, yes please.

You can certainly skip the baking step in this recipe and just serve as usual. But the baking step just kind of bring everything together, melting the cheese perfectly and crisping up the shell awesomely. So, if you have the time and self-control, do bake these. I love this method! I think you will too.

Baked BBQ Ranch Turkey Tacos
makes 6 tacos

you'll need:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 lb. ground turkey breast
2 tablespoons ranch seasoning (If you're using a ranch seasoning packet rather than homemade, still measure out 2 tablespoons so as not to overwhelm the poor turkey with too much seasoning.)
1 1/2 cups BBQ sauce (I use this one)
6 crispy taco shells
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
avocado and sour cream, for garnish

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add turkey and begin to break up and cook. Add ranch seasoning. Cook turkey until thoroughly done, then lower heat and add BBQ sauce. Stir and simmer for 3-4 minutes.

Line up taco shells standing up in an 8x8 dish. Divide turkey among taco shells. Sprinkle cheese on top of each taco and then bake for 10 minutes.

Serve with sour cream and chunks of avocado to garnish. Hope y'all enjoy!

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crockpot spicy chicken + jalapeno cheddar buns

This meal has my name written ALL OVER IT. Easy, insanely flavorful and SPICY crockpot chicken; homemade bread with JALAPENOS and CHEESE. This was made for me.

Of course, it's totally unnecessary to make your own buns for this sandwich, but I promise you that this bread recipe is very easy, relatively quick, and SO worth it. They also freeze well, so delicious homemade hamburger buns will be just waiting for you next time you need them. And that is a great feeling.

Crockpot Spicy Chicken on Jalapeno Cheddar Buns (chicken adapted from a stovetop version at Portuguese Girl Cooks)

Recipe for the jalapeno cheddar buns HERE.

for the chicken, you'll need:
1 chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups tomato puree
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon mustard
1/4 cup hot sauce (I use Frank's)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Mix all ingredients except chicken together in your crockpot. Lay chicken thighs on top and give a good stir so chicken is completely coated in the sauce. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 3-4 hours.

When chicken is done, shred with two forks in crockpot, then pile onto jalapeno cheddar buns (or whatever bread you're using). Add more sauce as desired. I garnished ours with leftover coleslaw, but garnish however you like!

Hope y'all enjoy this super easy, delicious meal!

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slow cooker peach bbq chicken sandwiches

life is really busy right now, isn't it? it seems that things rarely slow down, but with the holiday season, things are extra hectic.

enter this meal. simple as can be. waiting on you when you come home from a busy day. this is total comfort food, and though the flavors are a bit summery, there was something nice about that on a cold night. this is one of those meals we'll be coming back to again and again.

slow cooker peach bbq chicken sandwiches
serves 4

you'll need:

1-1.5 lb. chicken breasts

1 jar spicy bbq sauce (16-18 oz.)* 

1 jar peach preserves (8-10 oz.)

1/2 onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, chopped
8 slices of bread (i used good old sourdough)

1 avocado, for topping (optional)
coleslaw (i subbed green onions for the cilantro because that's what i had on hand), for topping (optional)

place chicken, bbq sauce, peach preserves, onion, and garlic in your slow cooker. mix well so that everything is combined well. cook for 6-8 hours on low or 3-4 hours on high.

when chicken is finished cooking, remove it from the slow cooker, along with a bit of the sauce, and place it in a bowl. shred using 2 forks and add more sauce as desired.

to assemble your sandwiches, toast up your bread in a skillet with a bit of butter. top with chicken, sliced avocado, coleslaw, and a bit more sauce if you wanna. top with other slices of bread, and enjoy!!

*a note about the spicy bbq sauce - y'all know i like things hot, but it really is necessary for this recipe in order to cut the sweetness of the peach preserves. flavors mellow out so much in the slow cooker, so it really won't be spicy at all. promise!

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bbq tortilla casserole

this recipe is pure texas comfort food. but, unlike a lot of comfort foods, this can be thrown together super quickly. i assembled everything in the morning, popped it in the oven right before it was time to eat, and we were eating ourselves silly in no time.

here's what you'll need:

1 lb. meat (i used leftover pulled pork, but you could use shredded chicken, ground beef, whatever you have on hand. or, leave the meat out completely for a hearty vegetarian dish)

1/2 cup red onion, diced

1/2 red bell pepper, diced

1 jalapeño, chopped

1 1/2 cups bbq sauce (jarred or homemade - this is my favorite homemade recipe) 

2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

6-8 corn tortillas

preheat the oven to 400. meanwhile, in a medium size bowl, combine the meat, onion, bell pepper, jalapeño, 1 cup cheese, and 3/4 cup bbq sauce. 

in an 8x8 casserole dish, spread 1/2 the meat mixture across the bottom. top with a layer of corn tortillas (i tear mine into small pieces to make sure every square inch is covered with tortilla).

repeat!

you're almost there...

last, pour your remaining bbq sauce on top and sprinkle the top with your leftover cheese. take a handful of the cheese and sneak a bite. mmmm. 

oven-ready!

bake about 25 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and the edges are browning.

and that's it! your tummy will love you for this.

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