Creamy BBQ Chicken Pinwheels

These delicious appetizers make a very rich satisfying snack. My husband adores them and I was pretty pleased with how they turned out.

I chopped half a pound of cooked chicken breast into small cubes and set them aside.

I put 4 oz of cream cheese in the microwave for one minute. Then I added three tablespoons of my favorite BBQ sauce and mixed well.

Then I diced up ten green onions and shredded about two cups of cheddar cheese.

Spread the BBQ cream cheese onto a large wrap. I used an actual pinwheel wrap but that's not necessary. Then sprinkle the remaining ingredients on top. I found that I had enough cream cheese for two wraps, so I made two. If your wraps are smaller you may need three. Carefully roll up your wrap and bake for ten minutes at 400°. With a very sharp knife, cut into slices. Enjoy warm or cold, I prefer warm. There you have it. Another great dish from my kitchen to your table.

Picture Perfect Ham

I bought a shank ham for Thanksgiving this year, with big plans for the leftovers. That doesn't mean I didn't dedicate my day to making this thing amazing the first time around!

Like most hams one buys at the Mega Mart, my ham was full cooked, with water added. The big beautiful bone in the middle helped maintain moisture all the while, even as a certain beagle sighed longingly, knowing it would soon be his. I don't use the bone to make soup, but by all means, you can. It adds great depth and unmistakable flavor to bean soup, and a more tasty addition to bean soup has yet to be discovered.

I started out simple. I opened a can of pineapple and drained all the juice into the bottom of the electric roaster, before lowering in my cold ham. I put the lid on and let him cook for an hour, undisturbed, at 350°.

At fifteen minutes to the hour mark, I pureed half the can of pineapple and mixed it with half a cup of marischino cherry liquid, a half of a cup of brown sugar and two tablespoons of honey. I brought this liquid to a simmer, careful to continuously stir so nothing scorched.

With this, I glazed my entire ham. Then I used toothpicks to secure marischino cherries and pineapple slices to the outside of the ham.

I lowered the heat to 300° and re glazed him every hour for three more hours. Then I glazed him one more time and turned off the heat. The results were a moist, flavorful ham, with a beautiful contrast of sweet and salty.

I recommend everyone prepares a holiday ham in a similar fashion. This meat is as versatile as it is delicious. You can make omelettes, breakfast sandwiches, hot ham sandwiches, ham and cheesy mac, scalloped potatoes, cheesy ham and hashbrowns, eggs Benedict. The sky is the limit!

So there you have it, another great dish from my kitchen to your table!

Sweet Potato Turnovers

Amongst all the fantastic food on Thanksgiving, I made a special dish to try to get my husband and daughter to eat sweet potatoes. They both wrinkle their noses at the sight of them, so I hid them away. But believe me, they are definitely the star of this dish!

I diced up a large sweet potato into small cubes. Then I tossed it with seven strips of Bacon, chopped up small, a quarter cup diced scallions and two heaping tablespoons of butter. Then I roasted them at 300° for an hour. Then I let them cool completely before stirring in 4oz shredded cheddar cheese.

I used premade biscuits to save time, but homemade would be FANTASTIC in this dish. I rolled each biscuit as thin as possible before placing a small chunk of butter on one part of the disc, then piled on a liberal tablespoon of sweet potato filling before folding the other side over and pinching to seal. Bake at 375° until golden brown and delicious.

And there you have it! Another great dish from my kitchen to your table!

Halloween Dinner

Halloween dinner was very fun this year. Instead of rushing it, then bolting out the door before she rubbed the face paint off, we sat down and made a fun easy meal.
On the menu tonight was Mummy Dogs and Jack O Lantern Empanadas. Both of which were cute and delicious.
Mummy Dogs are as easy as can be. Take a package of hot dogs and cut it open, bam, your base is complete. The next step is to open up a tube of refrigerated biscuits, I uses the flaky layers kind. Split each raw biscuit in half and flatten each half down. Cut thin strips of the biscuit. Wrap these strips around your hot dogs, leaving a very small gap between each strip, and a half inch near the top of your hot dog to put his face. Bake in a 350° oven for ten minutes or until golden. Dab on mustard "eyes" and a mustard "mouth" with a toothpick.
The empanadas are just as easy. Take a refrigerated pie crust and unroll it. You could always make your own too, of course. Using a cookie cutter, cut out your desired shape. Since its Halloween, I chose pumpkins. Your crust is ready for the filling.
The filling is very simple. Cube up a large potato extra small. I used my automatic dicer. Microwave your potatoes for six minutes. To your hot potatoes add 4oz cream cheese and a cup of cheddar cheese. Mix well before scooping a tablespoon of your potato mixture onto one of your crust cut outs. Top with another cut out, sealing the edges by pinching them.
After you have all your empanadas stuffed, its time for the faces. Using the scrap dough from the cut outs, cut out little eyes, mouths and noses for your Jack O Lanterns. Simply press these one, gently.
After your faces are in place, scramble one egg and brush onto the tops of each empanada. Bake them in a 400° oven for 13 minutes or until crispy and golden brown. There you have it! I hope you enjoyed these nice little tricks to getting some great treats from my kitchen to your table!

Halloween Cheeseball

My little guy is made out of cream cheese, diced ham, green onions, Cheddar cheese and yellow bell pepper for the eyes and mouth. His stem is a broccoli stem, so he's 100% edible and spookily delicious!

Just mix all your ingredients except the cheddar cheese, yellow bell pepper and broccoli stem in a large bowl. Once thoroughly mixed, shape into a ball. Your hands will get dirty so if youre against it, wear some food grade latex gloves.

After you have a ball, roll it in shredded cheddar cheese. Now he's orange. Add your face and stem, then Voila, you have a great snack from my kitchen to your table.

Delicious Deviled Eggs

Deviled Eggs are easily the most recognizable of the pot luck standards. Who hasn't had a mouthwatering deviled egg while maneuvering through a table full of potato chips and store bought salads? Simple, tasty and easy to make, deviled eggs are one one of the most beloved appetizers out there.

Boil twelve eggs. I get my water going at a rolling boil before lowering my eggs in gently. I buy my eggs a week or two ahead of time, because older eggs are easier to peel. Boil for ten minutes. No more, no less. Take them out of the boiling water immediately, and put them in a strainer. Run them under cold water to make them bearable to the touch and peel them as quickly as possible. The trick is to crack each end and find where the air pocket was.

Then all you have to do is cut each egg straight down the middle lengthwise. I use a straight edged paring knife. Once you have the eggs halved, you can move on to a more delicate process of GENTLY removing the yolks from the white with a spoon.

Place all your whites on your serving plate and all your yolks into a bowl. Before adding any of your mix ins, crumble the yolks with a fork. You will have fluffy yolk crumbs. I add three healthy tablespoons of miracle whip, a tablespoon of sweet relish and a teaspoon of mustard. Mix well. You should have a nice creamy filling.

Scoop your filling into the cavity on each white, careful to distributed the filling as evenly as possible between the whites. Top each deviled egg with pepper or paprika or even leave it as is. Now you have a fine batch of traditional deviled eggs.

Traditional not your style? That's okay because there's very little you can't stuff an egg with. Want a heartier deviled egg? Prepare the traditional eggs and add finely chopped Bacon and very small chunks of potato. Want something a little zippier? Prepare the traditional eggs, omitting the relish for finely diced jalapenos and shredded cheese. Want to try something truly unique? Prepare the traditional eggs, and mix in some cream cheese, finely minced green onions and very finely chopped ham. With so many ways to make deviled eggs your own specialty, why aren't you making them right now?! Another great dish from my kitchen to your table.

BBQ Nachos

One of my daughters favorite snacks happens to be a great way to utilize leftovers. Today I used leftover pulled pork, but you can always use any barbacued meat, or even leftover sloppy Joe meat.
Slice three medium russet potatoes very thin. Sprinkle with olive oil and mesquite seasoning. Bake in the oven at 400° for about twelve minutes.

Spread your homemade chips out on a plate evenly. While they're still warm, sprinkle shredded cheese as evenly as possible over top of them.

Reheat your barbacued meat in the microwave before spreading on top of your chips. Then top with more BBQ sauce. Voila. A delicious snack from my kitchen to your table.