Can I Have S’more?

The Sandlot was a favorite movie of mine growing up. I remember we got to watch it one year in elementary school (either third or fourth grade) and they fast forwarded through the pool scene when Squints fakes drowning just so he can smooch Wendy Peffercorn. Of course, one of my favorite scenes was their “camp-out” when Hamilton “Ham” Porter asks Scotty Smalls if he wants a s’more, and he replies with “how can I have s’more if I haven’t had anything yet?” Ahh, classic.

So, what’s the point of all that blabbering? Well, I had s’mores this weekend! This month’s Hormel Extended Family Food Blogger theme was a camp-out. I was sent some graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate to help facilitate my event. While a camp-out wasn’t in my cards, I was able to make a s’mores pie, and hunker down with my fiancé waiting for Hurricane Irene to hit. Thanks to the generous folks at Hormel, I only had to supply the chocolate and butter for the delicious s’mores pie recipe I found over at How Sweet It is.

I mean, just look at that thing! I knew I had to make it before the storm hit us in New Jersey, just in case the power went out. While my fiancé was filling water bottles, I was making pie – priorities. I almost ruined the entire pie when I tried to roast the marshmallows, and they literally caught on fire. I was able to scrape off the char, and it looked like nothing had happened. After that almost fiasco, I set to have my first attempt at faux meatballs with pasta (recipe coming soon).

We had our own little camp-out by the TV watching The Weather Channel, enjoying our spagetti and “meat” balls, red wine, and s’mores pie. Thankfully, we never lost water or power, but the surrounding areas definitely got hit hard. The evening proved that indoor campouts can be fun, too!

I Scream for Coffee

When MomCentral contacted me with the offer to sample Starbucks’ new ice cream flavors as part of a blog-tour, I jumped at the offer! I remember discovering Starbucks and their frappucinos in middle school, and became immediately obsessed. One day I had two mocha frappucinos, and I had so much energy into the wee-hours that I rearranged my room. My parents awoke to a newly designed room, and a very tired Danielle.

Needless to say, finding out that they had frappucino flavored ice cream, my fiancé and I immediately went for the mocha flavor. My mom’s favorite ice cream flavor is coffee, so I grew up enjoying it as well. She loves the flavor because she loves her k cups. While I was tempted to go for the plain ‘ole coffee, I couldn’t pull myself away from frappucino. Even though this weekend was full of rain and wind, I couldn’t help but make some sweet treats. With the fear of power going out at any moment, I tried to make everything I could on Saturday. Thankfully when I awoke on Sunday we still had power, so I was able to enjoy some ice cream.

After sampling some on it’s own, I had a genius (well, I think) idea – ice cream sandwiches! Using graham crackers, the ice cream, and chocolate chips, I assembled these beauties simply by taking about 2-3 tablespoons of ice cream and spreading it on one graham cracker, placing the other graham on top, and sprinkling some chocolate chips around the sides. Super simple, and delicious!

The ice cream really does taste like their drinks, and considering how big a fan I am of Starbucks speciality drinks, I definitely plan on getting some more of these delicious ice cream flavors and making more treats. Perhaps a milkshake version of the mocha coconut frappucino? Yum!

*Disclaimer: I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Starbucks and received coupons and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Summer Pasta

While doing my weekly shopping at Wegmans a few Mondays ago, in need of some pasta I discovered a new to me shape called nuggets which a professional maker for pasta taught me. They are basically a tighter corkscrew than your average spiral pasta, and about 1/3 of the size. Intrigued, I picked up a box, and now have a new favorite pasta shape. The box came in handy for Monday night’s late-night pasta dish.

Since marathon training has been picking up (I ran 16 miles on Saturday – whoop!), the miles are getting longer during the week, meaning less time for cooking once we actually get home from work and get our run in. With the summer days dwindling, I need to make sure I get in as many light post-work runs I can! So quick, easy, and most importantly tasty meals are becoming even more important than usual.

But enough about my “busy” life, you’re all busy too! So why not make this quick and easy pasta? I’m completely obsessed with basil because of the way it envelops a room with it’s sweet smell, so I’m always eager to buy it. And, since I’m my father’s daughter, I love a good hunk of garlic. Throw that with some cheese (a requirement for me) over pasta, and you’ve got yourself a winner.

Summer Pasta
– serves 3 –

Ingredients
3 cups dry pasta, any shape (I used nuggets)
1 cup basil leaves
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp olive oil
3/4 cup ricotta cheese
1 large tomato, diced
*optional – shredded parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes for garnish

Directions
1. Bring a pot of water to boil, and cook pasta until al dente, about 10-12 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, combine basil, garlic, and olive oil in a food processor, and pulse until combined
3. Drain pasta once fully cooked, and add in basil puree with the ricotta cheese and tomatoes. Stir to ensure everything is incorporated.

I’m Still Here!

It seems as though everything has taken a backseat these days.

As marathon training has been increasing (or at least trying to increase despite my never ending aches and pains), so have other commitments.

The kitchen hasn’t been completely abandoned, but it hasn’t been utilized to it’s potential in quite some time. Not to mention, by the time I am done making anything blog-worthy, I can’t be bothered taking pictures (read: bugging my fiance to take a picture), and then remembering to write about it. I know, I’m a horrible blogger. Thankfully, I do have two things I have to write about soon.

So, instead of blogging and publishing posts just for the sake of doing so, I promise I’ll have some yummy stuff soon!

All the Single Ladies

This past Saturday was my bachelorette party. While I’ll spare you all the juicy details, I do want to share all the delicious food that was enjoyed! Everyone came to my house, and we hung out eating and drinking, until our limo arrived. We’d hired it from this Home Page. When it did, we were off to the city to enjoy dinner and a show at Lucky Cheng’s. If you’ve never heard of it, just take a gander at the website. That’s all you need to know. My sister did my hair and makeup, which was pretty awesome!

Of course, in trying to be the hostest with the mostest (a phrase used frequently in my house growing up), I had to make some goodies. I also tried to be smart, thinking the more food we had available, the better because no one likes a hangover. This was extremely import for myself, as I had completed my longest run EVER to date earlier that morning (14 miles!). I made this amazing Queso Fundido, which was awesome! And of course, I had to make cupcakes.

As part of the favors for my bridal shower, my future mother-in-law got little bottles of wine for everyone. So, we had quite a few bottles left over, so I figured my bachelorette party would be an excellent time to use some. Everyone loves a little boozy baking! I used just regular ‘ole brownie boxed mix and baked them as cupcakes. For the frosting, I made a merlot buttercream, and it was awesome. It was also the first time I got to use my KitchenAid stand mixer! I’m never using a hand mixer again.

We’re only 30 days away from the big day. There’s going to be a lot of wedding (and marathon training) activities in the coming weeks!

merlotcupcake — Check out the sweet cupcake toppers!

Brownie Cupcakes with Merlot Frosting
– makes 12 cupcakes –

Ingredients:
1 box brownie mix (I used chocolate fudge)
1 egg
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup water
3 cups confectioner’s sugar
1 cup merlot
1 cup butter (room temperature)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare brownie mix according to package, separate brownie mix into a lined cupcake pan (about 2 tbsp worth). Bake about 25-30 minutes
3. In a stand or hand mixer, cream butter, adding in vanilla followed by the wine. Slowly incorporate the sugar until the consistency is thick and everything is well combined.
4. Allow cupcakes to cool before frosting!

Beer Bread Pizza

One of my favorite things to make during the week is semi-homemade pizza. It’s straight forward, easy, and almost always comes out delicious. While I love the premade pizza doughs that come two to a package, I figured it was time for me to be a little more creative. For some reason, making dough scares me, and that’s the main reason why I’ve shyed away from making a truly from-scratch pizza. Late one night, though, it dawned on me – beer bread pizza!

Thanks to the beer, making bread this way is a whole lot easier. I don’t need to worry about adding yeast, kneading it for a certain amount of time, and then trying to entertain myself as I patiently (read: not patiently at all) wait for it to rise. My fiancé was skeptical about the idea, but I figured I’d give it a whirl. I mean really, what could go so horribly wrong that it would be a total fail?

Using my generic beer bread recipe, I spread it out on a baking sheet (no snazzy pizza stone for me), so I suppose it was more like a flatbread, or a Sicilian styled pizza since it was somewhat rectangular. The ususal baking time for the entire loaf in a bread pan is an hour, so I decided to bake the bread for 45 minutes, take it out and add our toppings, and then continue to let it cook for another 8-10 minutes. I went with a BBQ themed pizza since I wasn’t sure how the flavors of traditional pizza sauce and beer bread would be. But in my head, BBQ sauce and caramalized red onions married quite well with beer. Thankfully, I was right.

I’m now left wondering what other combinations I can put on this beer bread crust, because it was pretty awesome.

BBQ Beer Bread Pizza
– makes 1 pizza –

Ingredients:

For the dough:
3 cups of all purpose flour
4 1/2 tsp baking powder
3 tsp salt
3 Tbsp of sugar
12 oz. your favorite beer

For the rest of the pizza:
1 medium red onion, sliced
1 Tbsp salt
1/4 cup your favorite BBQ sauce
1/2 cup shredded cheese of your choice (I used mozzarella, though I bet gouda would be awesome)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Combine dry ingredients, and slowly mix in beer until fully incorporated
3. Spoon the mixture onto a greased baking pan, or pizza stone if you have one
4. Bake for 45 minutes
5. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a skillet, and add sliced red onion and a Tbsp of salt. Sautee for about 10-15 minutes, until they are tender and begin to caramelize
6. Once the pizza is done, pull it out to add the BBQ sauce, cheese, and onions. Bake for an additional 8-10 minutes.

Giveaway Winner!

Happy Friday!

Courtesy of Random.org, a winner of the Hormel Prize Pack has been determined! Drum roll please…

The winner is Kate McG! Congrats! You can e-mail me your address; foodosaurusrex [at] gmail [dot] and I’ll the prize pack will be on it’s way!

I hope everyone has a fun weekend planned. I’ve got lots of miles and lots of yummy food on the agenda for the weekend!

Summed Up

As you know, I’ve recently started my official training for the Philadelphia Marathon in November. While I’ve overcome my nagging shin splits, I seem to have developed some tightness in my right hip, which could be a number of things. Thanks to my excellent Googling skills, I’ve decided it’s either Hip Bursitis, tendonitis, or ITBS. Either way, all I can do is keep on keepin’ on… meaning lots of foam rolling, ice, and Advil. It’s definitely been getting better since it came about two weeks ago, but it’s far from gone. Ahh, the life of a runner.

I decided to lead this post with that tid-bit of information, simply because of a realization I had during my 8 mile run on Monday afternoon. Firstly, I’d like to preface the run with the fact that I wound up leaving work early that morning due to getting sick in the bathroom. I have no idea what was wrong with me, but come late afternoon and a series of naps later, I felt fine enough to run. So, I headed to the gym (thanks thunderstorms), and set myself up for an 8 miler on the dreaded treadmill. I decided simply getting through the run was my main goal, so I set my pace at about 6.1, and just went.

While running, I was glued to The Food Network, watching 30 Minute Meals, Giada at Home, and Barefoot Contessa. Towards the end of my run, I realized that right there was pretty much the summation of my existence… running and food. Not a bad existence, if you ask me!

I happened to watch an episode of Giada at Home, where she hosted a little get together and grilled a bunch of different kabobs. This of course made me want one immediately, and it was convienient that veggie kabobs just so happened to be on our menu for the week! They were quick and easy, which was much appreciated after a long day at work, a trip to the allergest with the fiance, and then a run. The last thing I wanted to do was put effort into dinner. Thankfully, little effort was required, and it was delicious. Of course, you can make these bad boys with just about anything your heart desires, so get creative!

Veggie Kabobs
– makes 10-12 kabobs –

Ingredients:
1 medium eggplant, diced into large chunks
1 zucchini, sliced
1 red onion, diced into large chunks
1 green pepper, diced into large chunks
1 cup your favorite marinade (I used Ken’s tomato basil dressing)

Directions:
1. Preheat grill to medium-high heat
2. Combine all of the veggies together, and pour the marinade over them, mixing to ensure even coating. Set aside for about 30 minutes (or longer, if you have the time!)
3. Using kabob skewers, string the vegetables on one at a time, alternating (piece of eggplant, zucchini, green pepper, onion, repeat). Make sure to leave room at the top and bottom for accessibility!
4. Grill kabobs for about 15 minutes (depending on your level of char preference), making sure to rotate at least once

Sunday Barbecue and a Giveaway!

For this month’s Hormel challenge, I decided to stick with a barbecue theme. With the weather being so warm, I’ve wanted seasonal meals pretty much every day. It seems like the default meal preparation of choice when having a gathering during the summer months is to fire up the grill. So, that was exactly what I did.

If you remember, I received a pretty sweet goodie bag as a “welcome” to the Hormel Extended Family Food Blogger. Well, they want to offer a Foodosaurus Rex reader a similar goodie bag! All you have to do is leave a comment telling me about your favorite thing to grill (it can be anything)! You have until Thursday at 9pm EST to enter.

On the menu was pulled pork sandwiches, baked beans, and grilled stuffed jalapenos. Of course, this was all cooled down with some of our favorite beers. I grabbed a tub of Lloyd’s pulled pork, and it had enough flavor that was all we needed on the sandwich front. As for the baked beans, I grabbed a can of Bush’s black bean fiesta “grillers.” My fiancé and I were of course drawn to it as soon as we saw mention of black beans, chipotle, and peppers. I’m not a huge fan of “traditional” baked beans so this was a delicious change of pace – I’d definitely recommend them!

As for the stuffed jalapenos… yum. I had tried my hand at them about a year ago with stuffed poblano peppers as well, and had baked them. So, when I saw YumSugar had a recipe for them on the grill, I had to give them a try. Below is the recipe for how I made mine.

Grilled Stuffed Jalapenos inspired by YumSugar
– makes 10 jalapeno halves –

Ingredients:
5 large jalapenos, sliced and deseeded
1/3 cup whipped cream cheese
1/4 cup Mexican or taco blend cheese
3 scallions, diced
2-3 Tbsp Panko bread crumbs

Directions:
1. Preheat grill to medium-high
2. Combine cream cheese, shredded cheese, scallion, and bread crumbs
3. Fill each jalapeno with the cheese filling, trying to fill each one evenly
4. Grill for about 8 minutes, until bottoms are lightly charred (either put them in a gril basket, or use some foil)

Don’t forget to enter the giveaway! Leave a comment about your favorite thing to grill, and do it before Thursday at 9pm EST!

Anytime Pizza

With the high temperatures this week, I struggled with what I should make for dinner each night. I didn’t want to turn on the oven, but the thought of standing outside and grilling in the heat was too much to bear. So, I cranked up the air conditioning and got to work, this time on pizza.

I’ve been meaning to make a breakfast pizza for awhile, but hadn’t gotten around to it. I had breakfast pizza for the first time while staying at The Borgata in Atlantic City, at their buffet. Until that point I hadn’t thought of a breakfast styled pizza, but after having a slice was immediately convinced it’s a great idea.

So when one of the things I got in my Hormel Family Food Blogger welcome package was bacon, I decided that would be the perfect vehicle for my breakfast pizza. In addition to the bacon, I added some eggs, scallion, cheese, and seasoning. Since I used a pre-made pizza crust, it was so quick and easy. Because it’s so fast and requires little effort, it’s great as a quick week night meal, or even as something easy to throw in the oven on a Saturday or Sunday morning.

Breakfast Pizza
– makes one pizza –

Ingredients:
1 pre-made pizza dough crust, or your own
1 cup shredded cheese (I used mozzarella, but any kind will work)
3 scallions, diced
4 slices of cooked bacon, chopped
3 eggs
1/4 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp dried basil

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Layer pizza with cheese, bacon, and scallion. Crack each egg over the pizza (I did a triangle formation to try and prevent them from spreading into one another). Top with oregano and basil.
3. Bake for about 20-30 minutes, until crust is crispy and eggs are cooked through