Philly Mac & Cheese

Philly Mac & Cheese Patti was born & raised in Philadelphia, so she knows something about cheese steaks. Ken was born in Texas so he knows something about big beef. We were both craving comfort food and macaroni and cheese fills the bill. But, not with the shaved meat you get in Philly cheese steaks. We wanted a big, beefy cheese steak taste. Sunday at…

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Teriyaki Sirloin Kabobs

Teriyaki Sirloin Kabobs I was looking forward to date night this week. Always lots going on here and there is never enough time to get the things you want done. Seems for Ken “honey-do” lists are like recipes, just an outline! You’re lucky if you get a few of the things you need done in a day. It was one of those times. Patti and…

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Pizza Fatty Video

http://youtu.be/9qT0rwlbyRc?list=UUiQQgeeiljVzZFv966eI91Q We have done a few Fattys now with the Southwestern influence and one with a Hawaiian twist. I have been thinking on doing another one but I wanted to be completely different than any we have done before. For those of you that don’t know what a Fatty is let me explain. It is the ultimate meat loaf. But, instead of the ground beef…

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Bacon Explosion with Cheese

Bacon Explosion with Cheese Guest Chef Rusty Stander from TipsforBBQ SLC, Utah http://tipsforBBQ.com http://makingvanilla.com One of my favorite barbecue recipes has got to be my Bacon Explosion with Cheese (originally posted on "http://tipsforbbq.com/Recipes/Pork/BaconExplosionRevisited. It's a recipe that is simple to do and looks amazing any way you slice it. Cooking doesn't have to be hard. Make it fun, make something good and learn while doing…

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Lemon Rosemary Spatchcock Chicken

Lemon Rosemary Spatchcock Chicken We love grilled chicken; it’s economical, easy and full of flavor. We grow our own rosemary and have a lemon tree…an “aha” moment. It was simple enough for a weeknight dinner and pretty enough for company. We served it with our garlic mashed potatoes and fresh steamed green beans with a bit of butter. Easy and so simple on our Green…

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Smoked Spaghetti Squash Carbonara Style

Smoked Spaghetti Squash Carbonara Style It’s summer squash season! One of favorites is spaghetti squash. It’s so versatile for any spaghetti recipe and has no carbs, so it’s healthy, easy and delicious. We get ours at the Murrieta Farmer’s Market because it’s “from the farmer” fresh and they’re happy to share recipes. We got this one from Engle Farms changing it just a bit because…

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Coffee Rubbed Chuck Roast

Coffee Rubbed Chuck Roast We have done a few big chuck roasts now, we think they are great. I am thinking about retiring my crock pot. What I like most about doing these big roasts is that someone always has them on sale. We made roast beef burgers, BBQ beef sandwiches and stringed beef burritos all week. Patti likes to put a piece of the…

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Birds Nest Garlic

Birds Nest Garlic I love roasted garlic, add a little rosemary and things just get better. The trouble I have is in finding garlic big enough for the grill. The only time I see the big stuff is on TV. We cook a lot with garlic and buy it by the 5 pound bag already peeled. Not having any big bulbs for the grill I thought…

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Hotlink Cornbread Skillet

Hotlink Cornbread Skillet It’s football season! Patti and friends love the game; Ken and friends love the snacks. We all root for Dallas. In their honor we fixed a southwestern cornbread skillet starting with a simple cornbread mix, adding lots of spicy goodies and smoked/grilled it in a large Lodge cast iron skillet on our Louisiana Wood Pellet Grill/Smoker. It was delicious and long gone…

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Saucy Sausage Spaghetti Squash

Saucy Sausage Spaghetti Squash Patti and I have set one night a week just for us. It’s our date night. We usually put something special on our Pacific Living Outdoor Oven, but sometimes we cook inside. We always eat outside on our patio where it is very comfortable with a rainforest theme. Wood burning stove, little lights, candles, lanterns and surround sound. We enjoy a…

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