Ready, Set, Cook! #27

I am off and running today with a husband in oral surgery (general anesthesia, so I must be there to drive him home), one child home from school with a fever and a snowstorm coming so that school may be out early for the ones who went today...and I don't have a chauffeur!

So, today's 3 are yanked directly from a recipe I have on file. There's no meat, poultry or fish here, but remember, your virtual pantry is fully stocked. If you haven't played yet, click the button above for rules of play.

1/2 cup sweet onion; chopped
1 cup diced Italian plum tomatoes
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Sunday Dinner Breakfast

We had a lovely, warm, filling and lazy breakfast today. I'm hoping the rest of my day will stay the same.

Dutch Babies ala Melanie with warm buttered maple syrup
Turkey Bacon
Pummelo (aka Chinese Grapefruit)

The kids thought the pummelo was great fun and they loved the flavor; no sour faces. I am enchanted with the way they look inside when cut in half. Pretty, isn't it?

New Books

I adore getting "new" cookbooks. Today I stopped in at my favorite bookstore, The Recycle Barn. Their stock is all pre-owned and very reasonably priced. I also have "credit" there from books I had taken to them to resell, so I pay even less than most.

I found 4 wonderful books to add to my collection today:

Real French Cooking  by Brillat Savarin
The Breads of France  by Bernard Clayton Jr.
More Classic Italian Cooking  by Marcella Hazan
and The Olive Season by Carol Drinkwater (Not a cookbook, but worthy of my collection!)

Now I need to find the French books a home here:

More Recipes

As promised, here are two recipes from that group of moms that I talked about in my last post. I think they did a fab job!

From Mirz mom to 8 at Lots of Kids

I'd do Hot Dog Hash. I would chop up the hot dogs. I would seed and dice the pickles finely. I'd add BBQ sauce and cook. Assuming it's a staple, I would add some honey to it to mellow out the pickle's tanginess. Again, assuming I had some sort of potato around, I'd used diced potatoes (either fresh, canned, or frozen). Heat and cook until browned, either mix in hot dog mixture or serve over the top.

If I didn't have potatoes on hand, I would serve it over mac&cheese or flavored rice.


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Melanie at Dandelions and Roses

Spicy Dogs and Rice

1 pkg hot dogs, cut into bite-size pieces
1 3/4 c water
2/3 c BBQ sauce
1 Tbsp prepared mustard
2 tsp dried minced onion
1/2 tsp pepper
2 c uncooked instant rice
1 c (4 oz) shredded cheddar cheese
1/3 c chopped dill pickles
3 Tbsp bacon bits (the soft kind or the hard kind)

In a skilled over medium heat, mix hot dogs, water, BBQ sauce, mustard, onion, and pepper.

Bring to boil; stir in rice. Sprinkle w/ cheese. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 5 min.

Sprinkle w/ pickles and bacon. Makes 4 servings.

R,S,C #26 Recipes

We have recipes! Dalene and I are obviously of the same school of thought here and Ian has outdone himself with such meager ingredients. Great job, guys!

I also pitched these 3 ingredients to a group of moms and, sure enough, they all came up with great and varied ideas! I'll check with them if I can share and will get back with that asap.

I'm missing a recipe from my sister-in-law (check her out at Going Gluten-Free), but after hearing that my niece went to the ER for stitches, I'm not too worried about this game!

Dalene our Compulsive Writer at From the mixed-up files of a middle aged mind sent in this:

Tailgate Party Beans

1 pkg. BallPark Beef Franks
1/2 lb. ground beef
1/4 lb. bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 onion, chopped
4-5 large dill pickles, chopped in bits larger than the chopped onions
2 cans and kind of red beans, drained
1 can black beans, drained
1 jar of your favorite BBQ sauce

Brown ground beef with chopped onion.
Grill BallPark Beef Franks (the only brand I'll eat,
and even then, only if they're cooked on the BBQ).
Chop into 1-inch pieces. Dump beef and onion mixture,
crumbled up bacon, cut-up hot dogs and all the rest of
the ingredients together in your crock pot.
Cook on low for 4-6 hours. Serve hot.
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Ian from The Gallumphing Gourmand submitted this:

Hot Dogs Supreme

6 large hot dogs
8 strips of crispy cooked bacon, plus the bacon fat
4 oz cooked shrimp, tails removed
1 large dill pickle, cut in half lengthwise, then sliced thinly
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
BBQ sauce

Yorkshire Pudding batter:
1/2 cup milk
1 egg, well-beaten
1/2 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

Cook the hot dogs in boiling water until they float to the top.
Remove from water.
Place the cooked bacon, the shrimp, salt, pepper and
garlic into a food processor, and pulse a few times to
create a rough mixture. Do not puree. Shallowly slice
each hot dog lengthwise along the seam from end to end.
Use a small measuring spoon or something similar to
scoop out about half of the hot dog meat.
Place a couple slices of pickle into each hot dog,
then fill each one with the shrimp and bacon mixture.

Now make the Yorkshire pudding
Combine the egg and milk; beat until they’re frothy.
Use electric mixer on low speed to gradually beat in t
he flour and salt; when all the flour has
been added, then turn the mixer to high and beat until
smooth. Let stand 30 minutes.
While the pudding batter is resting, preheat the
oven to 450ºF. If using a glass baking dish, then
preheat to 425ºF. Pour about 2 tbsp of the bacon
fat into a 8”x8” pan. Heat the empty pan in the oven.
Make sure you keep an eye on it, as it will start to smoke.
Pour batter into hot pan; and lay in the stuffed hot dogs.
Bake for 10-15 minutes until pudding has risen, and has
browned slightly.

Serve with mashed potatoes and BBQ Sauce.
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And my own, which is a variation of my Hearty Bean Casserole:

RSC Bean Casserole

5 slices bacon-diced
1 clove garlic-minced
1 small onion-chopped
1 small green pepper-diced small
1 lb hot dogs sliced in 1/2" lengths
4 c cooked beans (any type)
3/4 c barbecue sauce

Cook onion, pepper and bacon together until onions
are translucent. Add garlic and cook briefly-do not brown.
Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into
2 qt casserole and bake 30 minutes at 350F until bubbly.