JD and I had a great weekend...relaxing day together on Saturday, then had a great time Sunday visiting friends at our old neighborhood.  Nearly everyone from the "hood" was there, even other defectors like us!  BP, as usual, pulled out all the stops so there was waaaaaay too much food...burgers and dogs, sausages, grilled onions, roasted red peppers, fries, chips and queso....

These yummy bites were my contribution...so incredibly simple and yet so incredibly delicious.  Once the plate cooled off (be careful; they are VERY hot at first!) they were gone in a flash.  Next time I need to make a double batch.

Bacon-Wrapped Pineapple Bites
adapted from Tasty Kitchen

1 pound bacon
1 can pineapple chunks, drained
1/2 cup brown sugar

Cut pound of bacon in half.  Crumble brown sugar into shallow bowl.  Take a bacon slice and dredge in brown sugar to coat both sides.  Wrap the bacon around a chunk of pineapple and secure with a toothpick.  Repeat with remaining bacon and pineapple chunks.

Grill over hot coals until bacon is crispy and cooked through.  If you don't have a grill, place bites on rack rack in shallow pan lined with foil and bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes.  Use the broiler if necessary to get them nice and crispy.  Let cool slightly before devouring.

Growing up, didn't you hate it when your favorite TV show cheated you with a "clip show" episode?  I haven't seen a "clip show" in quite awhile...do TV shows still do them?

The memory of clip show episodes came to me when writing this post.  I know it's a total cheat, but I wanted to post SOMETHING before the big game...(1) to confirm that my blog still works and (2) to hopefully get my creativity going again.  Fingers crossed this actually works!

Here's some of my favorites that would be perfect for a Super Bowl party...

Appetizers

Pretzel-Wrapped Sausage Bites

Spicy-Sweet Wings

JD's Chex Mix

Caramel Popcorn

Main Dishes

Dinner on the Grill

Slow-Cooker Pulled Pork (sorry no picture for this one)

Yankee Chili

Lasagna

Desserts

Fudge Brownies

Chocolate Toffee Bars

Peanut Butter Cookies

Cocktails

Classic Margarita

Tequila in the Tropics

Enjoy your Super Bowl Sunday!

Yes, Suzy's Goodies lives!  I wish I had some riveting story to explain my absence, but alas, nothing exciting.  No overseas trip, no all-encompassing work project, no kitchen remodel, no marathon LOTR viewings.

But now I'm back!  And with a simply delicious, simply gorgeous, perfect appetizer or light salad for summer.  Especially this summer, when it seems like every day gets more and more like a swamp.

Balsamic Watermelon Caprese
adapted from watermelon.org

1/4 cup olive oil
1 large sweet onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1/2 cup dry vermouth
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced into rounds
seedless watermelon, sliced into squares, 3"x3"x1/2"
fresh basil leaves

Put oil in heavy skillet and heat over medium high heat.  Add sliced onions and saute until golden.  Add the vermouth and sugar and reduce heat to medium.  Simmer, stirring, until most of the liquid has evaporated.  Add the vinegar (keep your face away from the fumes!) and simmer until reduced, about another 2 minutes.  Remove from heat and let cool.

Alternate slices of watermelon and cheese on serving plates (3 slices of each).  Top with a spoonful of the onions and drizzle with the balsamic juices.  Garnish with fresh basil leaves and serve.

I started my cooking class last week (Tuesday), and you'd think I would have recipes galore to share on my blog, wouldn't you?  JD also thought he was getting home-cooked meals all this week.  Yeah well, neither one of those things happened.  For whatever reason, I could not get motivated to be creative this week.  Long week at work, way too cold outside and way too dark when I got home every night.  All I wanted to do was snuggle under a blanket on the couch and watch trashy TV.  So I did.  Nearly every night.  And all day Saturday.

Regardless, the class was awesome...great teacher, good format, enthusiastic fellow students, and I know I'm going to love each and every Tuesday for the next five months.  We covered knife skills and we learned how to make stocks (chicken stock, fish stock, veal stock).  I'm hoping to have some good blog posts later this week, with stuff learned from my class as well as some other goodies.

In the meantime, I thought everyone would get a kick out of what I made in the kitchen this week...

These:

And these:

And these:

Then we wanted some queso dip, so we made that...

And that was my week.  I did make some cookies yesterday for the football party, as well as margaritas, but that's it.  To paraphrase Jules from Pulp Fiction, that's some real gourmet shit, don't you think?

I am still recovering from the huge disappointment yesterday...stupid Steelers beat my Ravens.  Such a letdown.

However, there is still a lot of great football ahead (I hope the Patriots kick some Steeler ass next week!) so you'll need some good munchie recipes...like this one.  This is a nice change to the typical pigs-in-blankets...with chewy pretzel dough instead of flaky biscuits.  Serve with your choice of dipping sauce...I made some simple honey mustard, but barbecue sauce or even ranch dressing would be equally good.  Enjoy!

Pretzel-Wrapped Sausage Bites
adapted from Foodie With Family

4 cups bread flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
2 quarts water
2 tablespoons baking soda
2 14-ounce packages cocktail smoked sausages (Lil' Smokies)
1 egg white, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
melted butter

Combine flour, sugar, milk, 1/2 cup water, salt and yeast in mixer fitted with dough hook.  Mix on low for 6 minutes, or until dough is smooth and elastic (but still a bit sticky).  Place dough in greased bowl,, cover with a damp towel, and let rise in a warm place for 35 minutes, or until doubled in size.

Line sheet pans with parchment paper and spray with nonstick spray.

Cut off a ping pong ball sized piece of dough (keep the rest covered so it doesn't dry out) and roll into a cord 1/4-1/2 inch in diameter.  Wrap cord around a sausage, cut off excess, and pinch to seal.  Place on parchment-lined sheet pans.  Let rise, uncovered for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees and bring 2 quarts water to a boil.

Add baking soda to the boiling water.  Carefully lower some of the wrapped sausages into the boiling water.  After about 45 seconds (the dough will get puffy), remove with a slotted spoon and return to parchment-lined pans.  Brush each sausage bite with the beaten egg white, and sprinkle lightly with kosher salt.

Bake for 16 minutes, or until glossy and golden brown.  Brush each sausage bite with melted butter and serve.

I hope you had a safe and fun New Year's Eve...JD and I spent the evening with good friends and lots of yummy (and supposedly lucky) food.  These were on the menu and were so good.  The only problem is we had to hide them until the kids went to bed.  They look so innocent, but they hide a tasty secret.  If you happen to have some Champagne left over (or if you don't want to stop the celebrating), you should try these!

Champagne-Marinated Grapes
adapted from Cocktail Parties, Straight Up!

2 pounds red and/or green seedless grapes
1 bottle Champagne or other dry sparkling wine (I used Prosecco)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons superfine sugar

Rinse grapes well under running water.  Cut bunches into clusters of 3-5 grapes each.

Pour Champagne into large bowl with a tight-fitting lid.  Add 1/4 cup sugar and stir gently to dissolve.  Add the grapes and lemon zest.  Cover and chill overnight.

Drain grapes and gently blot dry with a paper towel.  Sprinkle with superfine sugar, and arrange in serving bowl or platter.

Mmmmm...mushroom bites with sausage and cheese...(insert drooling Homer Simpson image here)...

Try these next time you have a party!

Stuffed Mushrooms
adapted from The Pioneer Woman

24 ounces white button mushrooms
1/3 pound sausage
1 shallot, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 egg yolk
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper, to taste

Clean mushrooms, then pop out the stems.  Finely chop the stems and set aside.

Arrange the mushroom caps on baking sheet.  Sprinkle with salt.

Brown and crumble the sausage in a skillet.  Remove from skillet with slotted spoon and set aside.

Add shallot and garlic to skillet and cook over medium heat for a few minutes.

Pour in wine, stir and scrape up the yummy brown bits, and cook until liquid evaporates.

Add the chopped mushroom stems and cook for 2 minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Set aside to cool.

Combine cream cheese and egg yolk in bowl.  Stir in Parmesan cheese, cooled sausage and cooled mushroom stems.  Put bowl in refrigerator for 30 minutes or so.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Spoon the sausage mixture into each mushroom cap, mounding on top.

Bake 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.  Let cool ten minutes before serving.

JD is watching baseball right now, so Caramel Popcorn was a good choice for this week's Finger Food Friday.  This is so much better than the stale stuff at the store!

Caramel Popcorn
adapted from allrecipes.com

1/2 cup popcorn kernels
3 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla

Put popcorn kernels and oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat.  Cover, but leave lid ajar a bit to let steam escape.  Cook, shaking pot occasionally, until popping stops.  Remove from heat; pick out and discard any unpopped kernels.

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.  Spray a large roasting pan with non-stick spray.  Put the popcorn in the roasting pan.

Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat.  Add brown sugar, corn syrup and salt and cook, stirring constantly, until it comes to a boil.  Boil without stirring for 4 minutes.  Remove from heat and add baking soda and vanilla; stir to mix well.

Pour caramel over the popcorn, stirring to coat evenly.  Bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.  Let cool, then break into pieces.

Another work week is over...Friday is here!  Are you ready for some sports?  Baseball playoffs, college football (Ohio State is #1!) and of course, the NFL (go Ravens!)!  Here's something for your sports-watching pleasure...

There are some bar food items that will never go out of style...mozzarella sticks, wings, sliders, and of course, potato skins.  The thing is, these are soooo much better when you make them yourself!

Potato Skins
adapted from Simply Recipes

6 medium russet or Yukon Gold potatoes
butter
canola oil
kosher salt and pepper
6 strips bacon
4 ounces grated cheddar cheese
sour cream
a few scallions, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Scrub the potatoes well, then rub all over with softened butter and prick several times with a fork.  Bake for an hour.  Remove from oven and let cool.

While the potatoes are baking, cook the bacon until crispy.  Drain, cool, and chop.

When the potatoes are cool, cut them in half longways and scoop out the insides, leaving a 1/4" shell.  Save the scooped out potato for another use.

Increase oven temp to 450 degrees.  Brush canola oil all over the potato skins, both inside and out and sprinkle with salt.  Bake on a rack in a roasting pan for 10 minutes, then flip the skins over and bake for another 10 minutes.  This makes the skins super-crispy so they can hold up the toppings without getting soggy.

Set oven to broil.  Arrange potato skins on rack, skin side down.  Sprinkle with pepper, then evenly distribute cheese and bacon among them.  Broil for 2 minutes (watch carefully!), or until cheese is bubbly.

Sprinkle with slliced green onions and serve with sour cream.

Then open up your own bar.

More munchies for your football party this weekend...

Ham & Cheese Pretzel Bites
recipe adapted from The Culinary Couple

1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon brown sugar
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup warm milk
3 cups flour
1/2 cup finely chopped ham
1/3 finely grated cheddar cheese
6 cups water
4 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1-2 tablespoons coarse salt

Mix together the yeast, 1 teaspoon brown sugar and warm water in a large bowl.  Let stand at room temperature until foamy.

In a separate bowl, combine the 2 tablespoons brown sugar and warm milk; stir until dissolved.  Stir 3 cups flour and milk mixture into the yeast mixture in the large bowl.  Mix until soft dough forms.

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead to form a smooth ball.  Put in clean bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise about 2 hours, or until doubled.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line sheet pans with parchment.  Divide dough into 4 equal pieces.  Stretch and roll one piece on floured surface into a 12-inch rope, then flatten into a 12" by 8" rectangle with a rolling pin.  Press 1/4 of the ham and cheese onto the bottom third of the rectangle.  Stretch edge of dough over filling, pinch to seal, then roll tightly to a rope. 

Cut into 12 pieces and move to sheet pan.  Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.  Let bites rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a large pot.  Add the baking soda and reduce heat to keep water at a simmer.  Cook bites a few at a time in the water, for about 20 seconds, turning once.  Remove with slotted spoon and return to baking sheet.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.  Brush with butter and sprinkle with salt.  Serve with whatever dipping sauce floats your boat (honey and mustard, ranch, barbeque) or just by themselves...yum!