#hotsummereats

#HotSummerEats: Herby Chicken Burgers

~ lk529 ~ 8 Comments

HotSummerEats#HotSummerEats hosted by Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla continues through the weekend! While it’s technically still spring, the weather is warm (or well, it’s supposed to be – Ohio needs to get its act together!) and the pull to get grilling is strong. I couldn’t go through this entire event without heading outside and throwing some burgers on the grill.

I decided to use the blank canvas of chicken to form my patties so I could fill them with lots of flavor thanks to #HotSummerEats sponsor Gourmet Garden. 07f54-gourmet2bgardensI love using their stir-in-pastes and am also falling in love with their lightly dried herb selection. Gourmet Garden herbs are a perfect way to add fresh herbs to dishes – I don’t have an herb garden as I have a thumb as black as it gets and I don’t like spending the money on fresh herbs unless I know I’ll go through the whole bunch because otherwise it ends up being a waste and weeks later I find green mush hiding in my fridge.

Next time you have people over for burgers and dogs offer up this moist and flavorful chicken burger.

An Original Recipe

Herby Chicken Burgers

Ingredients:

Steps:

  1. In a bowl mix chicken, panko, milk, Italian herbs paste, parsley paste, garlic paste, salt, pepper, and chili flakes. When burger mixture is combined divide into four equal sized patties.
  2. Grill over medium heat 7 minutes per side, or until an internal temperature of 165 degrees F is reached.

Herby Chicken Burgers for #HotSummerEats from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Don’t forget to enter our giveaway and be sure to check out the other bloggers who posted more summertime recipes today:

Thank you to #HotSummerEats sponsors BenBella Vegan, Caribeque, Casabella, Gourmet Garden, Intensity Academy, Not Ketchup, Out of the Weeds, Pirate Jonny’s, Quirk Books, Spicely Organics, T.Lish , and Voodoo Chef for providing the prizes free of charge. These companies also provided the bloggers with samples and product to use for#HotSummerEats without additional compensation. All opinions are my own.

#HotSummerEats: Cherry Chipotle Baked Beans

~ lk529 ~ 15 Comments

HotSummerEatsWe’ve just crossed the halfway point of #HotSummerEats hosted by Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla. My menu continues with my husband’s favorite recipe of not only the week but of any that I’ve created to date.

I was happy to see that Not Ketchup was sponsoring this event. 64b31-not2bketchupThey generously provided bottles of their dipping sauce during last year’s #10DaysofTailgate during which I made Maize and Blue Chicken Salad. This time I requested a bottle of their Cherry Chipotle dipping sauce with the plan to make baked beans.

I had so much fun creating my Whiskey Bacon Baked Beans that I knew I wanted to try making more flavors. During that first batch of beans I realized just how much 1 lb of beans really is so I decreased the amount but feel free to double my recipe if you’re feeding a crowd. I actually made these beans twice – each time bringing them to a small potluck, and each time getting compliments. I kept this recipe vegetarian for some of my guests but feel free to substitute chicken stock or even add bacon!

An Original Recipe

Cherry Chipotle Baked Beans

Ingredients:

  • 1 C dry great northern beans (soaked and drained according to package directions)
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 Vidalia onion, diced
  • 1/4 C Cherry Chipotle Not Ketchup
  • 2 tbsp molasses
  • 1 tsp Kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground mustard
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • pinch cayenne (optional and to taste)
  • 1 1/2 C vegetable broth

Steps:

  1. Place all ingredients in slow cooker. Stir. Cook on LOW 6 – 7 hours until beans are tender and sauce thickened.

Cherry Chipotle Baked Beans for #HotSummerEats from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Don’t forget to enter our giveaway and be sure to check out the other bloggers who posted more summertime recipes today:

 Thank you to #HotSummerEats sponsors BenBella Vegan, Caribeque, Casabella, Gourmet Garden, Intensity Academy, Not Ketchup, Out of the Weeds, Pirate Jonny’s, Quirk Books, Spicely Organics, T.Lish , and Voodoo Chef for providing the prizes free of charge. These companies also provided the bloggers with samples and product to use for#HotSummerEats without additional compensation. All opinions are my own.

#HotSummerEats: Frozen Cherry Lemonade

~ lk529 ~ 9 Comments

Every summer I make lemonade. I enjoy juicing the lemons as it always reminds me of juicing limes with my dad from the tree in the backyard. HotSummerEatsLet me tell you, I would love to have citrus trees when we finally settle in somewhere – limes are expensive!

But this post isn’t about limes. It’s about lemons! And cherries. And #HotSummerEats – the awesome blogging event going on right now headed up by Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla.

While one of our sponsors, Casabella, offered a citrus reamer to participating bloggers, I opted for their cherry pitter as I already have a reamer in my cabinet. It’s not as awesome as theirs though – I love how the juice flows into a see-through canister with measurements on it! The cherry pitter is equally useful. pitting cherriesI was never sure if they were a helpful kitchen gadget or a gimmick. The answer: helpful! My least favorite part about cherries is the pits and that’s part of why I simply never eat them. Now, I can pit some cherries and have an easy to grab snack. It also makes quick work when cherries are needed for a recipe. I did learn two tricks as I worked with this product for the first time: (1) place the cherry in the pitter so it is on it’s short side and (2) don’t be gentle.

I’ve had my cherry pitter in my drawer for months semi-patiently waiting for cherries to be in season. I don’t think I’d ever been so happy to see cherries in the grocery store before! It’s definitely that time of year to start making homemade lemonade and this frozen cherry version is a beautifully, tart way to start your summer off right.

Before I get to the recipe I have a couple of notes: separation is normal and it is recommended to blend the lemonade right before serving. If you don’t use all of the lemonade immediately keep the leftovers in the fridge and re-blend before enjoying. Even after the ice has melted this lemonade is refreshing, you could always add a little more ice if you wanted.

making cherry lemonade

Frozen Cherry Lemonade

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 C sugar
  • 1 C water
  • 36 cherries, pitted
  • 7 lemons, juice (approx 1 C of juice)
  • 5 C ice

Steps:

  1. In a small saucepan over medium heat dissolve sugar in water. Remove from heat and let cool.
  2. In a blender combine cherries, lemon juice, simple syrup from step 1, and ice.

*This recipe is adapted from Tina at http://www.justputzing.com/2014/06/thirsty-thursdays-frozen-cherry-lemonade.html*

Frozen Cherry Lemonade for #HotSummerEats from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Don’t forget to enter our giveaway and be sure to check out the other bloggers who posted more summertime recipes today:

Thank you to #HotSummerEats sponsors BenBella Vegan, Caribeque, Casabella, Gourmet Garden, Intensity Academy, Not Ketchup, Out of the Weeds, Pirate Jonny’s, Quirk Books, Spicely Organics, T.Lish , and Voodoo Chef for providing the prizes free of charge. These companies also provided the bloggers with samples and product to use for#HotSummerEats without additional compensation. All opinions are my own.

#HotSummerEats: The Giveaway

~ lk529 ~ 5 Comments
HotSummerEats
Hot Summer Eats is here. Rallied by Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla, a talented group of 18 food bloggers will be posting recipes for a week. From June 1st through June 8th, we hope to inspire you for your summer grill dates and cookouts, provide you with ideas for your beach bonfires, and get you planning those ice cream socials and cocktail hours. Not only will you find over a hundred summer-y recipe posts, but you can enter to win our awesome giveaway, courtesy of some amazingly generous donations from sponsoring companies. See details below.
The Sponsors

The Prizes

BenBella Vegan will provide one winner with one print copy of each of their Spring 2015 releases: Love Fed, by Christina Ross (March 2015); PlantPure Nation Cookbook, by Kim Campbell (March 2015); Plant-Powered Families, by Dreena Burton (May 2015); Happy Herbivore Guide to Plant-Based Living, by Lindsay S. Nixon (May 2015); and China Study Quick & Easy Cookbook, by Del Sroufe (May 2015).
Casabella will provide one winner with a trio of kitchen gadgets that are perfect for summer entertaining: a set of two large ice cube trays; a citrus juicer and reamer; and a cherry pitter.
Gourmet Garden will provide one winner with each of their stir-in pastes (basil, chili pepper, cilantro, dill, Italian herbs, garlic, chunky garlic, ginger, lemongrass, oregano, parsley, and Thai seasonings), each of their lightly dried herbs (basil, chili pepper, cilantro, ginger, and parsley), and two Gourmet Garden logo coolers.
Not Ketchup will provide one winner with a prize pack of four fruit ketchups – Blueberry White Pepper, Cherry Chipotle, Spiced Fig, and Smoky Date.
Quirk Books will send one winner a copy of their cookbook Summer Cocktails by Maria Del Mar Sacasa, photography by Tara Striano.
Spicely Organics will send one winner their Backyard Barbeque Gift Box.
T.Lish will provide one winner with each of the three current flavors: Sweet Garlic, Asian Sesame, and Chipotle.
Members of the Sauceology Group have donated a summery prize pack that includes six delicious products. You will receive either the Calypso Kick or Island Thyme Spice Rub from Caribeque, Garlic Goodness Hot Sauce and Chai Curry Chup from Intensity Academy, Roasted Tomato Vinaigrette from Out of the Weeds, Guava Girl Gourmet Grilling Sauce from Pirate Jonny’s, and Southern Gold Barbeque Gold Sauce from Voodoo Chef.
The #HotSummerEats Bloggers
The Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: The #HotSummerEats giveaway is open to U.S. residents, age 18 & up only. All entries for the winner will be checked and verified. By entering you give the right to use your name and likeness. The number of entries received determines the odds of winning. The prize packages will be sent directly from the giveaway sponsors. The #HotSummerEats Bloggers are not responsible for the fulfillment or delivery of the prize packages. Bloggers hosting this giveaway and their immediate family members in their household cannot enter or win the giveaway. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited by law.

Thank you to #HotSummerEats sponsors BenBella Vegan, Caribeque, Casabella, Gourmet Garden, Intensity Academy, Not Ketchup, Out of the Weeds, Pirate Jonny’s, Quirk Books, Spicely Organics, T.Lish , and Voodoo Chef for providing the prizes free of charge. These companies also provided the bloggers with samples and product to use for#HotSummerEats without additional compensation. All opinions are my own.