Pineapple Breeze Punch

Granddaughter #2 requested a summertime punch for our Memorial Day meal. She loves the flavor of pineapple, so this one was an easy fix!

1 large can of Pineapple Juice

1 2-liter Sunkist Pineapple Soda

1-quart Pineapple Sherbet

Chill the pineapple juice and soda until cold. Add juice and pineapple soda to a large punch bowl. Spoon pineapple sherbet onto the top of punch and serve.

For an adult beverage, a shot of pineapple vodka can be added to each serving.

Memorial Day 2018 Table

Some of my most favorite tables are the Patriotically themed tables. I love the combination of red/white/blue. Fiestaware shines on this table.

A sweet friend gifted me these lovely gardenias from her garden. They were the perfect centerpiece.

The square silver chargers set off the rich Fiestaware colors in all their glory!

Wing Wednesdays: Hot Pepper Infused Honey Glazed Wings

It's Wing Wednesday! I'll begin the blog post by stating that of all the wings I've made in my lifetime, THESE were my favorite!

Recently, we enjoyed the National Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburg, TN. One of the vendors at the Festival was the Mojo Bee Company. One of their products for sale was a Hot Pepper Infused Honey. As soon as I saw the bottle (and tasted the honey!), I knew I was going to glaze some chicken wings.

One of the secrets to great baked wings is to cook them at a low temperature for at least an hour, increase the heat and let the wings crisp, and then glaze with the honey mixture.  Then, back into the oven for a little bit longer and you're in for a great treat!

2 lbs. chicken wings
kosher salt
black pepper
4 T. butter
1/2 cup Mojo Bee Company Hot Pepper Infused Honey

Preheat oven to 275 degrees F. Spray a rimmed baking sheet with non-stick spray.

Place chicken wings in a single layer on baking sheet. Season well with salt and pepper.

Place in oven and let bake for an hour. Remove from oven and, using tongs, turn chicken wings over. Increase heat to 375 degrees F. Return wings to oven for 20 minutes.

Heat butter and honey together over low heat. Remove wings from oven and brush butter/honey mixture evenly over wings.

Return to oven for 5 minutes or so until glaze browns on the wings. Serve immediately.

You can check out Mojo Bee Company on Facebook!

Dining Out Gulf Coast: Pepper's Mexican Grill, Port St. Joe, FL

Let me begin by saying that we LOVE Pepper's Mexican Grill and Cantina.  Pepper's is always a must when we visit nearby Mexico Beach.  An added bonus for today's meal is it's Cinco de Mayo! To say everyone was in a festive mood is an understatement.  

Chips and Salsa were delivered promptly. As in before we even opened the menus! From a previous visit, I remembered the name of the particular margarita I had enjoyed.  We both ordered the Guadalajara Margarita (medium sized please!) $11.99 each and worth every penny.  This is the best margarita I've ever had anywhere, hands down. 

The chips were fresh and hot and the salsa was extremely fresh tasting with just a hint of heat.

We ordered Queso Fundido to enjoy while we reviewed the extensive menu for our entree options. With this cheese dip, you have your choice of grilled chicken, Mexican chorizo, or mushrooms. We opted for the Mexico chorizo. Served VERY HOT along with flour tortillas.  $7.99 

I was determined we were not going to order the same old chimichangas, enchiladas, tacos, etc. Sweet Harold went along with the plan and ordered Camarones a la ADiabla which is fresh local shrimp sauteed in their homemade cayenne pepper sauce.  $12.99  If you like a little heat, order this one. The flavor didn't overpower the delicate shrimp. I would give anything for their recipe for the cayenne sauce! He chose beans and a salad as his two sides. The salad had plenty of sour cream and guacamole as the dressing. He was very happy with his choice.

Now it's my turn! How's this for a celebratory dish:  The Mariachi. My order was a LARGE piece of grilled fish topped with juicy shrimp, tomatoes, onions, cilantro, and jalapenos.  $15.99.  I chose beans and grilled veggies for my sides. I didn't miss the rice at all. The fish was perfectly cooked, the shrimp were plentiful, and the vegetables included broccoli, carrots, squash, and zucchini.  Everything on this plate was perfect.

Even with a large crowd of Cinco de Mayo celebrants, service was never rushed and the food was delivered very promptly. Ask for Lucaz. He was a great server today!

Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers

Sweet Harold LOVES stuffed peppers. I've been trying to come up with a filling that doesn't have rice. (We're trying to be mindful of those pesky carbs right now!) One of our favorite sandwiches is Philly Cheesesteak, so why not combine all those good flavors into a stuffed pepper? This was an experiment that worked out deliciously!

4 yellow, red, or orange bell peppers

2 T. olive oil

1 pound beef round steak, sliced very thin against the grain

2 t. paprika

1 T. granulated garlic

2 T. Worcestershire sauce

1/2 t. salt

1 t. freshly ground black pepper

2 T. unsalted butter

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced

1 large green bell pepper, thinly sliced

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. freshly ground black pepper

16 slices of provolone cheese

chopped fresh parsley for garnishing

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with non-stick spray.  

Wash and slice yellow, red, and orange bell peppers lengthwise and remove seeds and inner membranes.  Place the prepared bell peppers in the prepared baking dish. Carefully add 1/4 cup water to the bottom of the baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

While peppers are baking, prepare the filling.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place meat in skillet along with paprika, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. Stirring frequently, cook until meat has cooked through and remove meat to a bowl and cover. Keep as much sauce in the skillet as possible.

Add butter and 1 T. of Worcestershire to skillet along with the sauce from cooking the meat. Add onions, bell peppers, salt, and pepper.  Lower heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes or so until onions and peppers have softened.

Remove peppers from oven. Cut each slice of provolone into four pieces. Place two pieces into the bottom of each pepper. Divide beef equally into each pepper. Then, divide peppers and onions equally into each pepper. Top filled peppers with remaining cheese pieces. Cover baking dish with foil and return to oven.

Bake for an additional 20 minutes.  Remove from oven and top with chopped parsley. Serve immediately.

Grilled Smokehouse Maple Grilled Pork Tenderloin

As I was perusing the new seasoning blends at the grocery store, I happen to see a new (to me) product from McCormick.  McCormick's Grill Mates Smokehouse Maple seasoning blend has a wonderful maple taste that's slightly smoky. Simply sprinkle over pork, chicken, or salmon at a ratio of about 1 T. per pound of protein. Tenderloin is very lean so make sure you have an instant-read thermometer handy to keep a close eye on the internal temperature while cooking.  

2 - 1 lb. pork tenderloins

2 T. McCormick's Grill Mates Smokehouse Maple seasoning blend

Preheat gas grill on high until grill reaches a temperature of 400 degrees F.

Unwrap pork tenderloins and pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle on both sides with the seasoning blend. Place on hot grill and lower heat to maintain a constant heat temperature of 350 degrees F. Let pork cook until it releases easily from the grill. Turn the tenderloin over and continue cooking. Cook the pork to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.

Remove the pork from the grill and place on a serving platter. Let pork rest 10 minutes or so before slicing. 

I would definitely recommend the seasoning blend. The pork was so juicy and flavorful. I'm so glad grilling season is here!