I love wings. In turn, I can guarantee that his won’t be the last wing recipe done during this meal challenge year. My wife knowing how much I love blueberries found this recipe for Blueberry Barbecue Sauce. Obviously, the sauce needed to be done first, so I’ll explain the sauce prep first, which will then be followed by the wing prepping.
We hit up Spotify again while for the tunes. This time I just wanted some fun, happy music, so we did the playlist: Summer 50s/60s Beat.
The Line-up (Ingredients) for the Sauce 2 tbsp olive oil 1 large red onion, finely diced 1 shallot, minced 3 cloves garlic 3½ cups fresh or frozen blueberries 1 large apple diced 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger 3 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce ½ cup strong black coffee ½ cup bourbon, (or substitute apple juice – ha, we used Maker’s Mark) 1 cup ketchup ½ cup apple juice (We used a Capri-Sun) ¼ cup brown sugar ¼ cup maple syrup ½ cup balsamic vinegar ½ tsp black pepper ½ tsp kosher salt ¼ tsp ground cumin 1 tsp chipotle powder, (more or less to taste) 1 tbsp smoked paprika ½ tsp cinnamon
(Mmmm – fresh blueberries!)
The Line-up (Ingredients) for the Wings 3 lbs of chicken wings Salt and pepper for seasoning 1/2 cup honey 1 1/2 tsp hot sauce
Game Plan (Instructions) for the Sauce
1) In a medium sized sauce pan, heat oil and cook the onion, shallot and garlic over medium low heat until softened but not browned. Always put in the onion and shallot first. Garlic can cook (and burn) within 30 seconds.
2) Add all the other ingredients, stir well and simmer over low heat for about 45-60 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has reduced, the apples have softened and the mixture begins to thicken.
(I thought this shot looked oh so good!)
3) Let the sauce cool before pureeing until smooth in a food processor.
4) Store in airtight container in the fridge if you are using it within a week or so. Otherwise, freeze it in airtight containers. Also, properly preserving it in mason jars could make it last all summer.
So, that’s it for the sauce. We then borrowed our wing recipe from here.
Game Plan (Instructions) for the Wings
1. Mix together the sauce that we just made, honey and hot sauce and then set that bowl aside.
2. Season the chicken wings with salt and pepper, then grill them on medium heat until the skins are browned and they are almost cooked.
3. At that point, turn the heat down to about medium low and begin to brush on the honey barbecue glaze, continuously turning the wings and building layers of sticky sweet sauce. I coated them at least 3 times with the sauce while they were on the grill. Serve immediately off the grill. Well . . . let ’em cool down slightly.
(I posted this shot on social media – I was so excited for the end result.)
(end result – we did a loaded up baked potato, too)(I also took mini video of that good looking shot)
This was by far my most favorite meal that we have made so far during this meal challenge and definitely one of the meals that I was most proud of. I was just so happy to be a part of it, while enjoying the entire process and, yes, the final delicious outcome. This is a meal that we will be revisiting again and again! The bonus part is that we had so much of the sauce left over . . . the mealtime fun continues on into the next meal challenge!
Well, it’s been awhile “off”, but I’m back at it again. Meal Challenge plans were made but then swimming pools were offered and we visited. And then, the swim time visits trickled into dinner time visits at said swimming pool locations. AND – when delicious meals are offered, my family happily accepts. However, in the meantime, the Meal Challenge plans kept getting pushed back. Nevertheless, an open night was found!
Where I found this recipe is one of my favorite places to visit for ideas – Jessica Merchant’s website – How Sweet Eats. She does have a couple cookbooks available, but I truly enjoy her weekly (you can also pick “daily” when subscribing) emails. They are always inspiring and each of them always seems to have something new that I want to be trying. Now, after all that praise, I ended up not being too fond of our outcome (sorry – no spoiler alert). However, as you’ll see, we “shortcutted” some things and that’s probably what did us in. I mean . . . we all still ate the meal and it was in no way bad, BUT – we could have done a little better job of following the recipe. Like the other challenges, simply click on the recipe title for the link of what was borrowed (adapted?). As always, I’ll lay out what we followed as well as the changes that were made along the way.
Meal prep music provided by Spotify with their playlist, Bluegrass Junction. Lauren chose this “tunage” for the evening. Unfortunately, I don’t have anything nice to say here. Again, Lauren picked it.
And the beverage of choice for both pre-game and during:
(Yeah, we did the box wine thing again)
The Line-up (Ingredients)
SUN DRIED TOMATO PESTO 1 cup packed basil leaves 1 7 oz jar sun dried tomatoes in olive oil 3 garlic cloves, minced ½ cup freshly grated Stella Parmesan Cheese ¼ cup toasted pine nuts ½ teaspoon salt ½ teaspoon pepper ⅓ to ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
We totally cheated here and went with store bought pesto:
(Major shortcut, but how about them blue nails on Lauren?)
LASAGNA 8 ounces lasagna noodles, broken into thirds (another shortcut here and this is probably what did us in – we used oven ready noodles) 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 shallot, thinly sliced 4 ears corn, kernels cut from cob (we used fresh Jersey corn – important to say that – corn from New Jersey. That’s what I was taught.) 15 ounces ricotta cheese 1 (8 oz) ball Stella Fresh Mozzarella 1 cup freshly grated Stella Parmesan Cheese 1 handful basil leaves, for garnish
Game Plan (Instructions)
SUN DRIED TOMATO PESTO Word for word – this is what Jessica’s website says to do. I’ve got nothing to add here because ours came from a jar: Combine the basil, sun dried tomatoes (and the oil from the jar), garlic, Parmesan, pine nuts, salt and pepper in a food processor. Pulse until combined. With the processor on, stream in the olive oil, starting with ⅓ cup. You may need a bit more depending on how much olive oil is in your jar of tomatoes.
LASAGNA Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil so you can cook the lasagna noodles. Cook them according to the package directions, but shave 1 minute off the cook time so the noodles are al dente. Drain the noodles once they are finished boiling. (Remember – ours were already done and “oven ready”). Heat an oven-safe 8 or 10-inch skillet over medium-low heat and add the olive oil. Add the shallots with a pinch of salt and pepper and stir. Cook until softened, about 3 minutes.
(My wife loves shallots – she says that it’s as if garlic and an onion had a baby)
Next, stir in the corn kernels. Then, stir in the pesto. Take the noodles and fold them into the corn and pesto mixture in the skillet. Add on some spoonfuls of ricotta cheese and a few slices of the Stella Fresh Mozzarella, along with grated Stella Parmesan Cheese and, of course, save some for a topping! Make sure the noodles are all coated and then top with remaining sliced mozzarella and Parmesan.
Bake the lasagna for 25 to 30 minutes. Remove it from the oven and garnish with extra fresh basil. Serve!
(You know – Garnishing it with fresh basil might have brightened up this shot more.)
Again, short-cuts were made because impatient and “starving” children were waiting. But – my wife and I still had fun putting together the meal and completely realize that if we would ever do it over again, we’d follow the original recipe. Lesson learned – maybe. 🙂
It was Sunday morning and my mother, sister and I were all in the kitchen for breakfast. My chair sat closest to the top of the stairway from the family room, so I could easily turn to my left and see the happenings of this room. Only five downward steps away lay Beau Brummel or while I was growing up with this black poodle of a dog, Bosie. Standing over him was my dad, who was sadly shaking his head. Bosie was not doing well and was apparently due a return trip to the vet on Monday for something my sister and I were not aware of. Nevertheless, we were simply told (warned) on the previous night (Saturday)that he was very, very sick and it definitely showed this Sunday AM.
Picture of Beau Brummel
(So, not Bosie.)
While growing up, the first routine goal of my Sunday morning regimen was to stay home from church. My dad’s a minister, therefore I’m the son of a preacher man. Cool song, but that’s about it. Otherwise, it’s church every week. No matter how many times or how loud I played the Twisted Sister’s song, “We’re Not Gonna Take It”, I still found myself pouting in a pew on Sunday morning. “Thanks be to God.” Not really.
I was lucky though . . . actually, my dad would jump all over me for that and correct me, so let’s start that paragraph over. I was blessed though, because the church we went to was typically over between 11am to 11:30am. However, end time all depended on the sermon durations, kool-aid drinkings, and/or baby dunkings. Normally, I got home in time for the ever important 1 o’clock kick-off time of my Beloved Birds. Yes, I was blessed to have my church wrap up their cult callings in time for my pigskin yearnings.
At this point, I really need to mention the fact that my dad was indeed a minister, but just not at this church . . . nor at any church. However, he’s legit – very legit actually. He was schooled enough in religion to earn his doctorate. But, at this time of his career, he moved beyond individual churches and was chief dog of the pastoral care department in the biggest hospital of D-ware – kind of funny saying something is the biggest in the smallest state.
(Yeah! Hollywood knows about us!)
Nevertheless, my dad’s job at the hospital was to chat it up with the living dead. I know that I’m trying to joke about a very serious subject, but that’s the only way I know how to deal with something of this solemn-tude (made up word). Within this arena, my dad is clearly the man that I will never be. How he can hold someone’s hand while assuring them the afterlife that they both just prayed for, now awaits them at the light at the end of the hospital hallway is beyond me. And to think that while growing up, I would greet him at the door with my lame ass issues of playing baseball, dating chicks, and how annoying my little sister was.
“Hey son, I just watched seven people die today as I assured them that God awaits them at the gates of heaven. Meanwhile, you stand here griping to me about some 16 year old girl who won’t give you the time of day? How about you go Stridex your face for the umpteenth time today and quit taking long showers . . . we know what you’re doing in there.”
Deep down, I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what he yearned to say; I mean, the man grew up in Detroit. We visited there for one summer vacation. One. That’s all we needed to see. The interesting part of the trip was visiting a home where several of his friends were gathering to meet up with him. Wives, kids, the old gang. Unfortunately, they sent us kids outside to play. In this case, I had to toss around the football with a couple weak armed Michigan want-to-bes. After about 15 minutes of watching them miss and then watching their return throws go everywhere but to me, I headed inside for what I told was a “break.”
Not thinking too much of it, I just walked in. Being summer, it was only the screen door that I needed to open. Being just a screen door, nobody heard the entry made by the kid (me). Loud conversation continued with f-bombs, bullshits, and god damns. Feeling initially shocked, a grin slowly crept across my face as I realized the owner of some of these creative dishings. It was my father – the Rev, as his friends liked to call him. Suddenly, my mom appeared in the foyer and realized what I had just witnessed. I was proud, but she hustled me outside again to the boys of Michigan – neither one became a Wolverine or Spartan.
Alright, so now you know that it wasn’t my dad that I was disrespecting at the front of the church every week. Instead, it was some other dude (or in some cases/stories, a dudette) that was on stage . . . er, at the podium or pulpit – take your pick. I mention stage, because during the church’s annual Christmas Pageant, people would always say that I could do it because of my dad. Are they saying my dad is acting up there? Hmmmm.
(not in the pageant, but still very funny)
Actually, for one Christmas Eve show, I forgot my lines. Went blank. Congregation stared. Instantly, I hated Christmas. Bring on New Year’s. During this forgetful mishap, I knew what was supposed to happen next, but didn’t have the words to get there. In turn, I randomly waved the kid on and pointed for him to continue. Who knows – maybe the audience thought it was the other kid, but I’m guessing that my wide eyed dumb look gave myself away. I was also very open about screwing things up afterwards. FYI – anyone who really knows me; realizes that I moved past my disdain to Christmas. In fact, when people ask me about my religion, I tell them that I believe in Santa – love the guy.
That leads us to questioning God. “Wait – what about Beau Brummell?” Okay, I’ll get back to the dog lying at the bottom of the steps, but I don’t write about these religious tangents too much, so I’m running (typing) with it. Back in the same church that I went blank on Christmas Eve on its stage, I questioned the existence of God with my Youth Group. Now, for these groups, this is probably a common topic that could creep up, especially at this teenage age. But remember who my dad was – which meant, I was a P.K. (Preacher’s Kid). Holy Shit said the church ministers . . . internally, of course.
That was quite a time. Everyone had a different story or tale or happening to prove the existence of God. Basically, what it came down to, they scared me into believing because when my parents die, they will go to heaven. “Don’t you want to go where your parents will be?” Uh, thanks. Where do I sign up for the “I believe in God club”? I’m sorry, but the stories, tales, and happenings were lame. But that junk about going where my parents are going or not, that scared the crap out of me. I chanted out what I was supposed to, got baptised, and became a member of the church.
Funny side note – We had a lock-in that Saturday night prior to the big baptism day and church member day. A lock-in. With teenagers. They let us wander around and a small group of us began playing strip poker. I was winning when they caught us all. If they told me that God had created the breasts that I had just seen, my faith would have become so much . . . stronger. Notice how I didn’t write the easy joke out of “harder.” All class here.
(oh – the goodies you can see with a hand like this)
Back to the dying dog. I loved that dog. My mom had him prior to my little sister, me, and my dad. That dog allowed us into its life. In turn, I only got to know when he was old. Dogs as puppies are awesome and that’s when I think they build their loyalty the most. Nobody messed with my mom when Bosie was nearby. Toy poodle with a dude. He owned the La-Z-Boy Chair in the family room. Nobody else could sit there at the end – his chair. We had to put a towel on it though because he was slower and slower reaching outside in time. In fact, back in the day, he would walk near the back door and bark in order to instruct us to let him go outside for his business. Towards the end, he would just head over in that direction. If you didn’t join him fast enough to open the door, he’d piss right there on the carpet. I loved that dog.
Beau “look alike”
Back to the original scene of this short – dog dying at the bottom of the steps, dad standing over him shaking his head and repeating, “he’s going”, my mom and sister start crying, and me – sitting there wondering if we would be going to church or not. Today was a big one – it was freaking Easter. Bet that holiday never had that adjective before. Anyway – we ended up staying home from church because of the loss of our dog, Beau “Bosie” Brummell. I loved that f’in dog.
Third meal in and already I had no idea of what to choose for din-din. All my saved up recipes were not intriguing my significant other either, so I asked what upcoming meals that she had in mind. She mentioned this one and all I had to hear was Bacon. I’m in! Like the other challenges, simply click on the recipe title for the link of what was borrowed (adapted?). As always, I’ll lay out what we followed as well as a couple changes that were made along the way.
Meal prep music provided by Pandora and their 60s Oldies Radio. “Son of the Preacher Man” led it off – perfect.
The Line-up (Ingredients) 5 crispy bacon strips cooked
(Be sure to cook this before everything else)
3 oz fresh spinach 1 large garlic clove 1 tbsp oil for cooking 16 oz whole baby bella mushrooms try to pick out larger mushrooms
(We didn’t go with the baby ones . . . we pulled out the big guns of the portobello mushrooms)
4 oz cream cheese 1 egg 1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
(We only had bread crumbs and Italian Seasoning, but not any ordinary seasoning – Penzeys Spices)
1 cup Italian cheese mix Salt Fresh cracked black pepper 1/4 cup Italian cheese mix for topping 2 crispy bacon strips crumbled, for topping
Game Plan (Instructions)
1) Preheat the oven to 350.
2) Wash mushrooms and remove any stems. Toss mushrooms lightly in olive oil and then set aside.
3) Preheat a small cooking pan and 1 tbsp of olive oil on medium heat.
4) Chop spinach and add it to the pan. Cook covered over medium heat until almost cooked. Mince garlic and add it to spinach. Dice bacon strips and add it to spinach as well. Mix well and cook until spinach is done. Take off heat.
5) In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, bread crumbs, cheese mix, egg, salt and pepper. Mix very well until all combined.
6) Add spinach and bacon to the cheese mixture. Keep it going until it’s evenly mixed.
7) Place mushroom cups into a baking dish. Carefully fill mushroom cups with cheese mixture pressing down lightly to squeeze in a little more.
8) Sprinkle each stuffed mushroom with a little bit of cheese and bacon.
9) Bake about 17-20 minutes.
Final product – boom!
I was happy with the outcome of this meal. The kids (age 11 & 4) were not the biggest fans and simply split one of the mushrooms. In all honesty though, I was very alright with that sine then I had the remaining one the next day on the road with work. AND – Delicious again!
Oh – we did have beverage during the making of this meal – here’s the warm-up (beer) and then the meal beverage (wine).
(Unfortunately, neither one of these joined me on the road the next day with the leftover ‘shroom.)
Originally, this meal was going to be played out on Sunday night (6/28), but then my wife wasn’t feeling it. That’s cool. She wanted to make Cobb salad and we would save the Mahi Mahi dinner for another night. Unfortunately, we probably should have “swam” with the fishes (weak, I know) for dinner. Since it wasn’t the meal challenge dinner, I did have other husband/daddy duties to attend to and simply left her alone to prep this meal. But then, she cut herself – twice. Call was made to the bullpen and I stepped in for a lot of the preparation. We joked that I should have done this one for the Challenge instead. ANYWAYS – the fish was planned for the following night. BUT – again there was a delay, but this time with work & family “FUN” (sarcasm) made us go with the quick and easy pasta & sauce for Monday night. For Tuesday (6/30), it was our anniversary night, so we ordered a special dinner from Ole Tapas – Mmmmmm. Finally, on Wednesday (7/1), the Meal Challenge #2 occurred.
The Line-up (Ingredients) * 1/8 cup maple syrup * 3/4 tablespoon Cajun seasoning (can use more or less depending on whether or not you want a sweeter or spicier meat) * 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder * 2 Mahi-Mahi fillets
** That’s it for the ingredients, but then within the very first direction, they suggest to saute with some onions. So, go get yourself an onion. But then, my wife said, “Hey, let’s add some of our cherry tomatoes from the garden, so, you might want to grab a handful of them as well.
Game Plan (Instructions)
1) Mix all ingredients together except for the fish (and onions and cherry tomatoes). Spoon mixture over fish.
2) Briefly, saute the onion and cherry tomatoes together. They suggest cooking spray, but we used butter. It was at this point that I proudly stated, “Ooo – I can melt butter!” As my wife cut up the onions and cherry tomatoes, she then joked, “And, in six months, you can change the batteries in the fire alarm.” Nice, huh. She’s obviously referencing our beloved Christmas movie that we watch every Thanksgiving weekend – Elf.
I have to admit in the movie it mentions changing triple A’s, but since when? I only know the alarms taking the 9-Volt battery, which I believe keeps that part of the battery industry in business.
3) Add in the fish and continue the sauteing for about 3-5 minutes on the first side and 2-3 minutes on the second side. Add more of the syrup mixture if you want.
(Yeah – not colorfully pleasant)
Recipe says: “Best served with rice” (but, we did couscous AND artichokes!)
(recipe sold separately – ha)
Sadly, the linked recipe from above made this suggestion at the very end:
***Can also marinate fish for a few hours for maximum flavor.***
Thanks (more sarcasm). Nevertheless, here’s the final product!
Artichoke made this meal a winner.
Another side note – see that drink peeking in the upper right corner of the final picture. That was a concoction that my wife and I just randomly came up with (poor decision). For starters, we pitted some black cherries and tossed them in a blender. We then added vodka and blended away! We each had a glass of Butter Beer Soda aka butterscotch flavor soda. Our blended mix was then added to each of our glasses and stirred. Couple black cherries were tossed in as a final garnish. I wish I could say – “Mmmmmm”, but I can’t. In addition, I don’t know if I can even say “Mmmmmm” about the dinner, but maybe the drink was to blame. Nevertheless, I just want to be honest and state – neither one will occur in our kitchen again. Can’t wait for Meal #3!
First recipe challenge and I went with the longest name ever . . . don’t hold me to that, but it’s still pretty long. Click on the link above and you’ll see where this recipe was borrowed (adapted?). However, I’ll lay out what we followed along with a couple changes we made.
(warm up drink)
The Line-up (ingredients – not much changed from the original)
CUBAN FISH 1 pound skin on mahi mahi or salmon 1/4 cup olive oil juice of 1 lime 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice 3 cloves garlic 2 green onions 1/4 teaspoon paprika and cumin 1 teaspoon salt + pepper corn or flour tortillas warmed (we did the corn tortillas but probably would have enjoyed the flour ones more)
CITRUS MANGO SLAW 1 grapefruit 1 cara orange or blood orange (no fun oranges, we rolled with a basic navel one) 1 mango sliced or diced 1 jalapeno seeded + chopped 1/3 cup cilantro chopped juice of 1 lime 1/2 cup red cabbage shredded salt to taste
CHIPOTLE CREMA 4 ounces cream cheese softened 1/4 cup Crema or mayo 2 in canned chipotle chilies adobo finely chopped (instead of this, we used green chiles and adobo seasoning) 2 tablespoons buttermilk juice of 1/2 a lime salt and pepper to taste
Game Plan (Instructions)
Add the olive oil, lime juice, orange juice, garlic, green onions, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper to a blender. Blend until chunky smooth. Place the fish in a 9×13 inch baking dish, pour the marinade over the fish. Allow the fish to sit in the marinade while you prepare the rest of the meal, at least 15 minutes. Do not let the fish sit longer than four hours in the marinade.
Not so scrumptious at this point
To make the slaw/salsa, cut off the peel and the white pith from all around the grapefruit. Working over a small bowl, use the knife to cut between the membranes to release the grapefruit segments into the bowl. Squeeze the juice from the membranes into the bowl. Remove the grapefruit segments from the bowl and cut into bite size pieces; return to the bowl. Now do the same with the orange, but only remove the inside membrane if desired. Add the mango, jalapeno, green onions, cilantro and lime juice. Taste and season with salt. We went ahead and mixed in the shredded red cabbage here.
This picture already looks delicious!
To make the crema, mix together the cream cheese, crema Mexicana (or mayo), chipotle chilies, lime juice, buttermilk and a pinch of salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Cover and place in the fridge until ready to use. When ready to cook the fish, heat a grill pan or cast iron skillet over medium high heat (may also use an outdoor grill). Once hot, add the fish, skin side down, and sear for 3-4 minutes, brushing the fish with the marinade as it cooks. Flip and cook until your desired doneness. Don’t forget to remove the skin.
Grilling time with my favorite spatula
To serve, dice the fish into pieces. Warm the tortillas and fill with fish. Top with slaw, crema and shredded red cabbage (again, we actually added this already to the slaw itself). Sprinkle with cojita cheese if desired.
ta – daaaaaaa!
My warm-up drink had ended. So, this was the perfect “in-game” beverage.
