Green Beans and Bacon

We have been wrapped up in watching the Olympics on TV lately.

I really enjoy all the games, especially ice skating, and snowboarding. I try to watch all the events, but  it's close to impossible to catch every single game.

They started out with a glitch! But it still was very beautiful.

I loved her hat! Her work uniform is awesome:)

The snowboarding event was so awesome!

This is how my son watches the Olympic's

(Semi-interested) 

Not a great night for some of the skaters, but we're still

Rooting for the home team:)

We had dinner tonight and the side dish of green beans and bacon was on!

I am embarrassed to admit that I have been eating while watching the games lately.

But it's only once every two years right? 

So here is to a wonderful dinner and here is to team USA!

1 can of green beans

1/2 cup sliced onion

1/2 pound bacon chopped to 1 inch pieces

1 clove minced garlic

1/4 Teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Salt and pepper to taste 

Begin by cooking bacon on med-high heat, until crisp but somewhat soft. Remove bacon and set aside. Discard all but 1 tablespoon of bacon fat from pan, then return pan to stove. Add onion to the pan and let it get a bit browned and translucent, about 3 minutes. Then add garlic and crushed pepper. Cook garlic for only a minute, so not to burn, then quickly add green beans and cook for about 2 minutes then add bacon and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for another minute or two, then transfer from heat to a serving dish.

Bacon Wrapped Sausage Bite's

 

 

 

Yesterday was Super Bowl Sunday. We watched the game and ate some really good snacks! Even though the game was really disappointing due to the fact that the Broncos got smashed, the snacks were still awesome! Super Bowl Sunday is always a big deal in our house, and this year felt a little different because I just got home from a short trip, so preparing for game day snacks was a little rushed and unplanned.

I was still able to make the most delicious Super Bowl snack that I have ever had. They disappeared within minutes! This snack is so easy and is perfect for the meat lover, and picky eaters. I have both!

The sweetness from the brown sugar, gives the bacon an addicting flavor and the saltiness from the sausage makes this snack complete. I love sweet and salty:)

Ingredients:

1 pound bacon

2 packages pre-cooked smoked sausage links

1/2 cup brown sugar

Toothpicks

Per-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Begin by cutting the sausage into 1 inch pieces. Wrap a piece of sausage in a piece of bacon that is about 2 inches long, and secure with a toothpick. Place bacon wrapped sausages on a foil lined baking sheet. Sprinkle sausages generously with brown sugar. And bake for about 45-50 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer sausages to a serving dish.

New Year's Stir-Fry Hoppin' John

Every year on New Year's Day, I make food that represents good luck throughout the year. I just feel good knowing that I started my year in a lucky way. There are many traditional foods that have been said to bring good luck if you eat them on New Year's Day. In Asian country's, in is customary to eat long noodles, as this signifies a long life. The secret is to eat the noodles without breaking them.

In some country's, eating lentils is said to bring good luck because they resemble coins which represent wealth.

The many seeds of a pomegranate are said to bring good luck because they too represent prosperity.

Fish are considered good luck because they swim forward, signifying progress in the new year.

Pigs are root forward when getting food, so that is why pork is  considered lucky food on New Year's Day.

Cooked greens look like money and are believed to bring money in the new year.

And black eye peas are famous for New Years because they too look like little coins. And that's what I will be making today.

I saw this recipe for a black eye pea stir fry in fitness magazine last year that used Canadian bacon, but I'm going to try this dish with good old bacon and an addition of cabbage to represent the greens.

It is always good to start the new year right, so here we go!

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/4 pound on chopped bacon

About 1 cup chopped cabbage

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 cup sliced celery

1 14-ounce can black eye peas, rinsed and drained

1/4 teaspoon salt

Ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

I begin by placing oil, onion, garlic and red pepper flakes in a large skillet, and cook for 10 seconds just to combine. Add bacon, celery and cabbage and cook  

3-4 minutes or until bacon browns a bit and cabbage is tender/crisp.

Add black eye peas, rice, salt and a sprinkle of black pepper and stir to combine. Cook until rice is heated through, about 2-3 minutes. Top with a sprinkle of parsley, serve and enjoy! 

Along with this recipe, I wish you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous new year!

Miracle Grill Mat Review - Lil' Smokies and Beans Recipe

dff920e618a1b035a7c282ac69ccfdd21b14ec4a2f35cec1c0

This is not a sponsored post. I just love QVC. I recently saw an on air demonstration for these grill mats and I fell in love with the idea! 

You can now cook veggies on the grill without a grill pan, without the fear of veggies or foods falling through the grates, without all the leftover mess on the grates. You can fry an egg right on the mat, fry cheese right on the mat. That's right I said fry cheese! 

Cheese came right off!

It is non stick so it cleans right up. And when you grill a steak on it, you still get great grill marks without flare-ups. This was all done on a QVC on-air demonstration, so I got to see it in action on live T.V. but since it is still a bit warm here in California, I am going to grill some food to try it out for myself.

I found them very easy to use, just place them on the grill before turning on grill.

When grill is warmed up just place meat and veggies as you normally would on a grill. Everything cooked so well and the finished food  looked even better than cooking on a grill without the mat. 

Now you can fry bacon on the pit!

The food was absolutely tender and delicious , and the mess cleans right up, just use a wet towel to wipe it off.

The veggies never fell through the grates and they cooked beautifully.

You can cook bacon and eggs right on the grill with these mats!

Check out my bacon and eggs happy face:)

Everything came out wonderful 

Here is a bacon egg burger. YUM!

From QVC website:

Get out of sticky situations with this set of nonstick mats. The two grill mats are designed to reduce flare-ups and burns, while helping to keep foods juicy, tender, and with great grill flavor. The ultimate baking mat allows for cooking and baking with no sticking and no need for fats and sprays.

Includes two grill mats and one baking mat

Microwave-safe; oven-safe up to 500F

PTFE-free nonstick fabric

Measure approximately 13"W x 15-5/8"L

5-year Limited Manufacturer's Warranty

Made in China

This comes with two grill mats and one baking mat which I tried out with simple pumpkin cookies and when the cookies cooled I tried to lift one with my hands. That did not turn out so well. The bottom of the cookie stuck to the baking mat and while removing the cookies with a spatula worked a little better, I still prefer parchment paper to this baking mat:( 

I had high hopes for the baking mat but for now I am sticking to parchment.

The grill mats make up for the baking mat. And I feel that it was still worth buying.

Yes these mats need to be cleaned by wiping them down with a wet cloth then when they have cooled, take them into kitchen and clean them well with a dishcloth and warm water and soap. But compared to scrubbing down grill grates, this is a breeze. 

And the best part is, it is only  $19.86 for two grill mats and one baking mat! 

How awesome is that!

We made some bacon and egg burgers!

http://www.qvc.com/The-Ultimate-Grill-and-Baking-Mat-3-pc-Set.product.K39683.html

Now for the recipe:

To go with our barbecue, I have prepared some barbecue baked beans. This dish is a regular when we grill, as it goes with EVERYTHING!

And even though I did not bake them, I am still calling them that because it sounds better than cooked beans:)

I love the way these beans taste. They are smokey with a spicy kick from the heat of the Serrano and crushed red pepper, and when dipped into with a tender piece of steak, your in heaven!

They do not take long and I usually make them while the hubby bubby is grilling, so everything is done at the same time.

Lil smokies or cocktail smoked sausage about 4 oz

2 15oz cans van camps pork and beans

Half a small onion sliced

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 Serrano pepper sliced

1/4 Teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 Teaspoon crushed red pepper

In a saucepan on medium high heat, add olive oil and cook sliced onions and sliced Serrano pepper until translucent. 

About 5-7 minutes. Add ground pepper and crushed red pepper and cook about a minute more. 

Add lil smokies,Stir to combine and cook on medium low a few minutes more or until sausages have browned just a bit. 

Add both cans of beans, stir and cook on low simmer for about 20-30 minutes.  

Serve warm.

This dish is best served with steak and some sour cream, fried pork chops, hot dogs or even fried eggs!

You can add other meats to these beans like bacon, hot dogs too!

So this is me last barbecue before the cold weather really starts to come around and I hope you like it.

Do you still que in the fall?

Potato and Egg Scramble

Potato and Egg Scramble 

What do you do after an extremely stressful weekend with cranky people, bills to pay, disorganized house to clean and big decisions to make? Well when it comes to a worry-wort like me, I eat. And that itself is not easy to do because when I am stressed or depressed I eat and then I feel better, but I have been trying to eat healthy lately and so eating away stress is really hard to do. So what to do with those healthy baked potatoes from last night? You make breakfast.

I love Leftovers, especially potatoes. There are so many things I can do with them. I made some baked potatoes yesterday and I has some leftover baked potatoes that nobody ate. Usually leftover baked potatoes, I find are not really 

appetizing, but when fried up with a little bit of butter, everything is right with the world again:)

This is a breakfast that will bring anyone to the kitchen saying "what is that smell" 

The smell of bacon wakes everyone up. My favorite meal of the day is truly breakfast. And for me, well food just makes me feel happy. So here is a breakfast that I would like to share with you.

2 large baked potatoes (diced)

4 eggs

4 slices bacon

1 tablespoon of butter

salt

ground black pepper

Begin by dicing up the leftover baked potatoes into little bite-sized

Pieces, set aside. Take 4 slices of bacon and cook them in a pan on medium-high heat until browned. Remove bacon from pan to a paper towel lined plate to drain from fat. Discard all but 1 teaspoon of bacon grease from pan. Add diced baked potatoes to the pan with a dash of salt and ground black pepper and stir to combine. Let potatoes get a bit browned in pan for about 2 minutes. Chop cooked bacon slices in to bite sized pieces and add cooked bacon bits to potatoes. Let them cook together until potatoes have softened up and browned a bit more, about 2 more minutes. In a medium bowl whisk 4 eggs until combined. Add 1 tablespoon butter to potato bacon mixture and stir to melt butter and to combine. Add whisked egg mixture to pan and stir gently with a spatula to let the eggs scramble up light and fluffy.

I love making breakfast with leftovers. How about you?

Next up I will be working on a holiday meal that will provide a leftover meals

That will warm the upcoming winter.