Food Favorite

In no time at all we will be shelving our chili recipes and enjoying the lighter foods once again. Making salad dressings from scratch and creating some amazing summer salads. We enjoy our comfort foods and hot chocolates so much all of the colder seasons but after so long we want the lighter side of eating and drinking. That is what makes each season so great. We look forward to the changes they bring.

It is time for cheese balls to make their appearance around our house. They are a fast and easy treat that can be prepared ahead of time so when you have those surprise guests you will be able to have something tasty for them to snack on. There are all kinds of additions to can add to your cheese balls to make them different from using a different cheese to chives even. Cut and placed on crackers cheese balls an sausage balls are a great addition to any gathering.

It seems everything just taste a little better when you are on a camping trip. I have never had bacon and eggs as delicious as the ones my mother would make for us when we were on vacation. We would pack our travel trailer up four times a year and head to the mountains or the beaches. We once even went to the Grand Canyon and Carlsbad Caverns. The foods my mom could make on that small stove as we anxiously waited enjoying fun board games watching the sun set was the best there ever was. Still to this day I love eggs cooked on the go. We bring our farm fresh eggs that our hens so lovingly lay for us each time we go camping. Our kids just love the experience and so do we. I know one day our kids will be talking about how delicious the foods were that we cooked on the campfire just as I still do myself.

When a friend of ours planned their wedding they wanted to go full out. They planned their wedding down to the last detail including the butter creme wedding cake. Everyone had so much fun at this huge affair and after the romantic wedding we all sat down to a fried chicken and cornbread dinner! We were all stunned at their choices after such a formal affair but there again weddings are often filled with surprises. This was one of the most beautiful weddings we have attended and the chicken was simply incredible. We found out later that the bride’s grandmother had actually fried all of that chicken herself. The entire dinner was prepared by her family under the watchful eye of her grandmother of course! How cool is that!

After watching a cooking show I was impressed. It was new ways to make traditional dishes. One thing that this cook was making was onion rings. We have all had them and most everyone loves a great onion ring. This chef dipped the onions in buttermilk and then in meal and then in buttermilk and then in pancake batter! This was new for me. I had not thought of pancake batter as a batter for onion rings. Everyone on the show was so taken by how good they were. People actually drove for miles to get a basket of onion rings. I will not drive to go and get them because it is thousands of miles for us but I will venture to my kitchen and make some. I can not wait to taste them. Just something else to do with pancake batter and onions!

There is nothing like the smell of country gravy first thing in the morning when there is snow covering every thing outside. It just makes anything taste better when it comes to the heartier foods. We are looking forward to the more hearty flavors that we naturally think of when cold weather is here such as chilies.

Everyone loves chicken. There are so many ways to prepare chicken is part of it’s appeal. Each recipe offers a different flavor from the chicken as well which makes chicken a very pliable option for cooks wanting to change things up a little in the kitchen. From baking to barbeque and we can not forget broiling this versatile meat is a staple in most kitchens. Something as simple as some dry ranch dressing mix and bread crumbs coated on chicken breasts and then placed in the oven on a coated baking sheet creates a dish from our ovens that is tasty and fast without tying up too much time in the kitchen in preparation. Many cooks today want to be creative but finding the time for lengthy preparations is not an option with family needs to tend to. That is why when we see an oven option meal we gravitate towards it. They can be better for our families then a fried food option and offer great flavors. Just a dash of this or a dash of that totally changes up a recipe so one main ingredient can be changed to give a totally different flavor.

Although it may not be the healthiest way to make beans we so much enjoy putting several strips of bacon in water to boil before adding our beans. Everyone just loves our beans and we never have left overs! We add bacon to all types of beans from field peas to butter beans. We then lightly salt if needed and pepper. Partner our beans with anything from cornbread to a tasty meatloaf and you have a delicious meal that everyone loves.

There are so many ways to improve on the traditional dishes. We have found that every thing these days is getting a spruce up through sauces. We went to a dinner party recently and they were serving meatloaf with dipping sauce. Now we have always enjoyed meatloaf but I have never actually had a separate dipping sauce for it. The sauce was a mushroom gravy based white sauce and I have to admit it was delicious!

If you are going to make nachos at home many people do not realize the importance of heating the chips. Heating the chips totally changes the taste of the chips if you are using processed chips for your nachos. A good heated chip can give your chips that you are dipping or using for nachos that taste of a fresh made chip. Just a little tip for those of us that just love and enjoy chips and salsa or nacho night!