Flaming Bacon Mac & Cheese

I love macaroni and cheese.  I always have.  I can eat it plain, or I can mix things up in it.  I'll eat the boxed stuff if I have to, but what I have been craving for a while was the homemade stuff that you bake in the oven.  I had that as a child, and usually liked it.  I say usually because sometimes I had that weird little kid thing going on where you want the boxed stuff because you don't get it as much.  It seems like it's special, even though it really isn't.  Thankfully growing up made me appreciate a good baked mac and cheese.  Unfortunately I wasn't quite sure how to make one, and was a bit worried it would taste like flour and grossness.  I didn't want to use a processed cheese "food", but I had always been told that real cheese doesn't work well.  Thankfully I found this recipe at Eat More Heat that would pique my curiosity enough to give it a whirl.

It's really not hard at all!  I'm not sure why  I was worried about it now that I've made it.

I didn't have some of the stuff the original recipe called for, but I substituted where I needed to and it worked.  This mac and cheese is VERY hot!  You can cut back on the peppers or the seasoning if you must, but this stuff tastes good.

 

This song is appropriate.

Flaming Bacon Mac & Cheese

 

Ingredients: 

• 1 lb of bacon 
• 3 to 4 cloves of garlic - minced
• 3 green onions - chopped finely
• 1 1/2 sticks butter
• 3 cups milk
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 tsp cajun seasoning
• 2 tsp chile powder
• 2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 3 cups monterey jack cheese
• 3 cups sharp cheddar cheese
• 3 cayenne peppers - diced
• 2 jalapeno peppers - diced
• 1 Hungarian wax pepper - diced
• 1 lb box macaroni 
• Plain breadcrumbs - for topping
• Parmesan cheese - grated for topping

Directions:

1. Cook bacon and reserve fat.  Note: you can still oven cook the bacon if you so choose, just make sure to pour the fat into the pan you'll be using to make the sauce.
2. Saute onion, garlic, and peppers in a large pan with the bacon fat over medium heat until peppers are tender and garlic is lightly browned.
3. While onion, garlic, and peppers are sauteing, warm milk over medium heat. While milk is heating, add butter and flour to the garlic and onions.
4. Pour warm (not boiling) milk into the butter and onions mixture. Stir until thick.
5. Reduce heat to medium low and add seasonings and crumbled bacon.  Simmer for 5 minutes to allow the seasonings to do their thing.
6. While sauce is simmering, boil macaroni until al dente.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
7. Add cheese to sauce and stir until well blended and cheese is melted.
8. Spray 9x13 pan with cooking spray.  Place drained pasta in pan, and pour sauce over pasta.  Stir pasta and sauce until well mixed.
9. Cover mac and cheese in bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese.
10. Bake until brown and bubbling, approximately 30 to 35 minutes.

Serves 6 to 8

Sloppy Joes sans Canwich

Sometimes I make something and am horribly disappointed in it, yet Mr. Monkey will insist that it's not as bad as I think it is.  This recipe started out as something else all together.  I made the original, and thought the whole thing tasted too sweet and was disgusting.  Mr. Monkey said it was fine if you didn't eat the cornbread part.  Indeed, the Jiffy cornbread was too cake-like, and the recipe wanted way too much of it.  The meat part wasn't bad though, and thus we decided to try it again as a sloppy joe sandwich.

It was awesome... though I did put a bit too much spice in.  I'll put the recipe up as I made it, but be aware that it will be spicy, and you might want to make adjustments.  I would recommend cutting out the cayenne and/or jalapeno peppers.

The "sans Canwich" part of the name is a play on the name of a certain canned sloppy joe mix.  You don't need that stuff to make a great sandwich!

Sloppy Joes sans Canwich

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 22 oz ground turkey (or 1 lb of your favorite ground meat)
• 3 cloves garlic - minced
• 2 green onions - sliced
• 1 medium red or orange bell pepper - chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper - chopped 
• 1 cayenne pepper - chopped 
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1 1/2 ground cumin
• 3/4 tbsp sriracha (Rooster) sauce
• 1/2 tbsp chipotle Tabasco sauce 
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 3 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tsp liquid smoke (optional)

Directions:

1. Add olive oil to a large pan and warm over medium heat.  Add ground turkey and brown.
2. When turkey is brown and broken up into smaller pieces, add the garlic, peppers, green onion, salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, hot sauces, and liquid smoke.
3. Simmer until peppers are tender.
4. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and tomato sauce until combined.  Lower the heat and allow to simmer until it's hot all the way through and is thickened.
5. Serve over your favorite bread or buns!

Serves 4

Acorn Squash for Breakfast!

That wee little sock monkey is encouraging you to try something new!  What is that?  Acorn Squash for breakfast, that's what!  Acorn squash has a slightly sweet taste on it's own, and the texture can be pretty smooth (especially if you puree it).  It takes a little bit to bake it, but when it's done you can either eat it all on its own, or mix with something else.  You could even make muffins and bread as you would with pumpkin!

Steel-cut Oatmeal with Acorn Squash mixed in!

Basic Acorn Squash

Ingredients:

• 1 large acorn squash - should feel heavy and firm to the touch 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil.
3. Place acorn squash in center of the pan, and place pan in the oven.
4. Bake for 45 minutes, turning the squash at least twice during baking time to ensure even cooking.
5. Squash will be done when you can easily slide a paring knife into the side.
6. Remove squash from oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes before attempting to handle it.
7. When squash is cool enough to handle (but not cold), slice in half.  Scoop out the seeds and stringy pulp.
8. Remove the meat from the skin.  There will be harder woody parts inside where the ridges of the squash were, so be sure to remove those too.
9. Either puree the squash or mash with a large spoon. 

From here you can add honey, brown sugar, butter, or cinnamon if you so desire and eat it on its own.  You can also mix it with oatmeal, or use it in place of pumpkin in a pumpkin recipe.

Serves 2 to 4 depending on serving size.

Zucchini Mediterranean Style with Jasmine Rice

I try to have at least one dish each week that is meatless.  It doesn't have to be vegan, but it does have to be vegetarian.  I do this mainly to make sure I'm eating well, but also to save a touch of money.  Meat can sometimes be expensive, so not having to buy as much helps out.  I'd like to think a dish like this balances out the whoopie pies and chocolate pancakes I love to make.

Zucchini is in season, so I can find it easily at the Farmer's Market and it's pretty cheap.  This dish was very flavorful and pairs nicely with the Jasmine rice.  I didn't make it too spicy, and decided to rinse the canned beans first to improve the flavor.  The recipe comes from All Recipes; and while it calls for cannellini beans, you can use navy beans like I did.

Zucchini Mediterranean Style with Jasmine Rice

 Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup Jasmine rice
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 green onions - chopped finely
• 1 large bell pepper - chopped  (I used orange)
• 4 cloves garlic - minced
• 1 (14.5 oz) can of whole peeled tomatoes - quartered
• 3 cups chopped zucchini
• 1 tbsp Greek Herb Blend seasoning
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 1 (15 oz) can of navy beans - drained and rinsed 

Directions:

1. Bring water to boil in a large pot.  Add salt and rice to water. Reduce heat to medium low and cover.  Allow to cook for 15 minutes.  Remove from heat, stir once, and cover again for 5 more minutes.  Fluff with fork when ready to serve.  While this is going on...
2. Heat oil in a separate pan over medium heat.  Add the onion, bell pepper, garlic, and zucchini.  Cook until zucchini is tender.
3. Add tomatoes and seasoning.   Reduce heat to medium low to low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.  Stir occasionally.
4. Add navy beans, stir, and allow to cook for 5 to 10 minutes uncovered.
5. Serve over cooked Jasmine rice.

Serves 3 to 4