Salted Caramel Pretzel M&M Blondies...omg!

 

Oh yeah, you heard that right! Let me repeat: Salted Caramel Pretzel M&M Blondies...and yes, they do taste THAT good! Damned Pinterest! Very rich, salty, chocolaty, etc. PERFECT for my company picnic today, as it was all women! Some of my coworkers said this was a little too rich....whatever....I had "thirds"!

I am DEFINITELY making this again!

 

 

Salted Caramel Pretzel M&M Blondies 

 

1 cup butter (2 sticks), room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 eggs

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons coarse sea salt

2 1/2 cups flour

2 cups Pretzel M&Ms

1 cup chocolate chips (semi-sweet or milk chocolate)

a 14-ounce bag caramels, unwrapped

1/4 cup milk

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9 X 13 baking dish with non-stick spray and set aside.  Cream butter and sugars together in a large bowl.  Add vanilla and eggs and mix well.  Add baking soda, flour and salt, stirring until combined.  Fold in M&Ms and chocolate chips.  In prepared baking dish, press 1/2 of batter into the bottom of the dish.  Bake for 8-10 minutes, until just beginning to set, but not golden brown.  While the "crust" is baking, put the unwrapped caramels into a microwave-safe bowl, along with the milk.  Microwave for 2-3 minutes, stirring every minute until melted.  When the "crust"is done, remove from oven and pour melted caramel on top.  Drop spoonfuls of the remaining batter on top of the caramel, and spread as well as you can. Return to oven and bake for 15 minutes, until golden brown. 

 

*I didn't have the "cubes" of wrapped caramels, I had a partial bag of meltable "caramel bits".  I combined them with 2 tablespoons of water and microwaved for about 2 minutes, until melted. 



Almost hands-free dill pickles

 

 

Got cukes? Pounds of them? I found an AMAZING, simple dill pickle recipe that does not involve fancy canning techniques...just jars and a refrigerator!  I found this recipe YEARS ago in Real Simple Magazine, but I've never tried it.  Last year, when I made dill pickles, I used a pre-packaged mix found in the canning/freezing section of my supermarket. This recipe was almost that simple, but I could "tweak" it a bit.  I left out the sugar and increased the garlic-oh yum! I also threw in some dill heads from my garden, which makes the jars look super pretty! The pickles were VERY garlicky and crunchy; just like I like 'em!

 

 

                      

 

Refrigerator Dill Pickles 

For Each One-quart Jar, you will need:

a pound, or so, cucumbers, peeled, seeded and sliced any way you like (I made spears and chunks)
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 small onion, sliced thinly
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon dill seed
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
2 teaspoons Kosher salt (it dissolves better than table salt)
3/4 cup hot water

Place the cucumbers in jar with tight-fitting lid.  In a bowl, combine the vinegar, onion, garlic, sugar, dill, peppercorns, salt and hot water.  Stir until the sugar and salt dissolve.  Pour the vinegar mixture into the jar with the cucumbers, cover and refrigerate for at least one day before serving.  The pickles will last up to one week.  

Don't they look BEAUTIFUL in my fridge?

Today's Brilliant Idea: Caprese Salad

 

Got tomatoes? How about a bazillion tomatoes? It's definitely "tomato time" in my garden; I've probably got a dozen ripe ones every few days. Especially difficult to deal with are the cherry tomatoes, as they are best eaten raw, and due to the sheer quantity of the little things! Behold the easy-peasy Caprese salad:

In a large bowl, combine a dozen or so cherry tomatoes, halved, 8 ounces Ciliegine (small mozzarella cheese balls), halved, and a handful of fresh basil, torn into pieces. To serve, scoop a spoonful or two onto a plate, drizzle with vinaigrette and sprinkle with coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve to your girlfriends. Have seconds. Vow to make recipe again!

It's Blueberry Time!

 

 

 

 

Here in the Midwest, we had a pretty long strawberry season, which is now being followed by an even longer blueberry season.  Good deal for us berry lovers! I usually freeze a majority of the blueberries I pick, and then bake a few dozen muffins (which I also freeze).  I'm always looking for OTHER things to make with berries too, and jam seemed like a yummy thing to try.  One disclaimer, the recipe I used seemed extremely sweet, which may be something you like. Not that it's "bad", it's very blueberry-ish, but pretty sweet.  And, the addition of Jell-o really helped it "set". 

Lemon Blueberry Jam (thanks to http://danielleguyer.com)

4 cups fresh blueberries

2 cups sugar

a 3-ounce box lemon Jell-o

2 tsp. fruit pectin powder (like Sure Jell)

Puree blueberries in a food processor or mash with a potato masher (for chunkier jam). 

 

 

Place the blueberries in a medium saucepan, add the sugar and cook on medium heat until it boils, stirring constantly. Simmer on low for about 20 minutes, and then add the lemon

Jell-o and pectin. Cook until powder has dissolved.

 Remove from heat and pour into seal-able jars. Place in refrigerator to cool and thicken.

 

This recipe made one pint (16 ounce) jar and two half-pint (8 ounce) jars of jam.  Enjoy!

Today's Brilliant Idea: Cucumber Salsa

 

 

When you grow cucumbers in your garden, you usually run out of ideas for what to do with ALL those cucumbers you get in a season...you can only make so many jars of pickles! The bad thing about cucumbers versus summer squash, like zucchini, is that you CANNOT freeze it for later use. I saw a recipe for cucumber salsa online, via a friend's Facebook post, and it sounded easy-peasy!

 

I "tweaked" the original recipe I found online; it's pretty simple to prepare and can be modified to your liking! Here's what I threw together the other night:

 

Cucumber Salsa 

 

2 cups finely chopped cucumber (peeled and seeded)

1 cup finely chopped tomato

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

a handful of fresh cilantro, chopped

a sprinkling of garlic powder

 a splash or two of lime juice

1/4 cup, or so, ranch dressing (you can also use sour cream or plain yogurt)

sea salt, to taste

 

Optional additions: minced jalapeno pepper or ground cumin

 

Lightly toss all ingredients together in a bowl and serve with tortilla chips - or over grilled salmon, like I did!

 

Local Flavor: barbecued chicken

 

 

Where I live, in Northern Indiana, there is a food that epitomizes warm weather: "Port-a-Pit" chicken. The company, officially called Nelson's, is based in a VERY small town, yet is known state-wide. Their portable barbecue "pit" signals a local fundraising effort, and the smell of the cooking chicken fills the air, enticing you to stop and pick up a few halves. Yum! I have no idea how much of this chicken my family eats in a season (it's not available year round); it's always a hit! If you're so inclined, check them out at http://nelsonsbbq.com. 

 

My brother, an Arizona resident now, for 20-odd years, occasionally gets cravings for this local delicacy.  He recently asked if I have a recipe for the sauce, which makes this chicken soooooo good, so I dug up some chicken barbecue sauce recipes from my "archives" (giant three-ring binder full of recipes).  I have NOT tried these recipes, despite the fact that I cut them from a local paper almost 20 years ago. Why don't all of you (my readers, if I have any) try it out and let me know....or maybe I'll finally buckle down and give it a whirl!

 

Chicken Barbecue Sauce #1  

 

4 cups water

2 cups white vinegar

1 stick butter or margarine

4 Tbl. salt

5-6 Tbl. Worcestershire sauce

 

Mix ingredients in large pot and add chicken (breasts, thighs, legs or halved chicken).  Heat to boiling and cover.  Boil 10 minutes, then remove from heat.  Let the marinated chicken set overnight.  To cook, place chicken on a hot grill and grill about 10 minutes on each side.  According to "Betty from Topeka", marinating overnight is the key.

 

Chicken Barbecue Sauce #2 

 

1 stick butter

1 cup cider vinegar

1 cup water

1/4 cup salt (this is correct)

2 Tbl. Worcestershire sauce

 

Stir ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat until well blended.  Marinate chicken in the sauce.  Baste often during cooking in oven on on grill. 

 

 

Happy Grilling!

 

 

 

 

 

Today's Brilliant Idea

 

 

 

 

Happy 4th of July! I'm waist-deep in festive foods today: S'mores squares, taco dip, popsicles, beer-garitas and of course, watermelon!

 

This idea has been ALL OVER Pinterest, so OF COURSE I had to try it! Such a fun and easy way to eat watermelon! Just cut into wedges, make a slit in the rind with a paring knife and insert a popsicle stick! It's preschooler approved and a little less messy (but so much more special) than holding the watermelon with your fingers!