Pulled Pork Sliders with Pulled Pork, BBQ Sauce, Pineapple-Honey Mustard Coleslaw, Pickles, + Red Onion-Poppy Seed Buttered Slider Buns

Pulled Pork Sliders with Pulled Pork, BBQ Sauce, Pineapple-Honey Mustard 

Coleslaw, Pickles, & Red Onion-Poppy Seed Buttered Slider Buns

Last night's Super Bowl party cam and went, and I'm definitely feeling the effects of it. You know you had a blast when you wake up with a semi-broken rib! Ha, probably not the best idea, but I'm unfortunately a little clumsy. We had a shit-ton of tailgatin' food last night... it was certainly unhealthy! Here's some of the food we had: pulled pork sliders, caramelized onion dip, spicy bacon-peanut caramel corn, mexican seven layer dip, hot corn dip, candied bacon wrapped sausages, and homemade beergarita's.

Here's the feast. 

Our favorite appetizer of the night were these Pulled Pork Sliders. I kind of based them off those ham & cheese sliders that everyone always raves about. So I put my little twist on it by turning them into scrumptious pulled pork sliders. I layered homemade pulled pork, tangy BBQ sauce, our favorite pineapple coleslaw, and some pickle chips all on some sweet Hawaiian dinner rolls that have been doused with a mustard-butter sauce and garnished with minced red onion and poppy seeds. These sliders were perfectly toasty and had all the essential elements that we all love and cherish from classic BBQ sandwiches. These suckers were gone in 15 minutes, no lie. I will see that they aren't the prettiest and easiest sliders to assemble, you kind of have to work with them a little and just move fast, making sure to compress them in a little to keep all the components inside. We also found it extremely helpful to stick a toothpick in the center the hole them all together. How were your Super Bowl parties? Did y'all make any yummy food like us? I would love to hear about it!! Enjoy :)

For the Dry Rubbed-Pulled Pork:

2T Salt

4T Brown Sugar

4t Garlic Powder

4t Onion Powder

2t Ground Cumin

2t Chili Powder

2t Black Pepper

1 5lb Boston Butt

For the Pineapple-Poppy Seed-Honey Mustard Coleslaw:

1 16oz Bag of Coleslaw Mix

3 Green Onions, Thinly Sliced

8oz Crushed Pineapple (squeezed of all excess juice)

3T Mayo

2T Dijon Mustard

1T Grainy Mustard

3T Honey

1t Creamy Horseradish

Salt & Pepper, To Taste 

For the Red Onion-Poppy Seed Butter Sauce:

8T Unsalted Butter, Melted

1T Yellow Mustard

2T Brown Sugar

½t Worcestershire Sauce

2-4T Red Onion, Minced

Poppy Seeds, For Sprinkling

For the Sandwiches:

24 Hawaiian Dinner Rolls, Split in Half

Mayo, For Spreading

Warmed Pulled Pork

Your Favorite BBQ Sauce

Prepared Pineapple-Honey Mustard Coleslaw

Pickles, For Garnishing

Directions:

1. To Make the Oven-Roasted Pulled Pork: Mix together all of the seasonings and rub the spice blend all over the pork and marinate the pork overnight, covered, in the refrigerator. The next day, preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Put the pork in a roasting pan and bake for 6 hours, or until an instant-read thermometer registers to 170 degrees. Remove the pork from the oven and transfer to a large platter and allow the meat to rest for about 10 minutes. While still warm, take 2 forks and pull the meat to form shreds.

2. To Make the Pineapple Coleslaw: In a medium-mixing bowl, whisk together the mayo, drained pineapple, Dijon mustard, grainy mustard, honey, and horseradish. Toss this mixture with the coleslaw and green onions until completely coated. Set it aside until ready to assemble the sandwiches.

3. Baking the Sliders: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Split the dinner rolls in half and spread one of the sides with a thin layer of mayo. Place some pulled pork on top of the bun with mayo (making sure to press it in, so it’s compacted). Close the rolls with the top bun. Place them into a large baking dish or a cookie sheet that has been lined with a Silpat (make sure that they are very close together). Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, whisk together the melted butter, yellow mustard, maple syrup, minced red onion, and Worcestershire sauce. Season it with a little salt and pepper if needed. Using a spoon, drizzle the sauce over the sliders evenly, using just enough to cover the tops of the buns. Try to spoon the minced red onions on top for pretty presentation. Sprinkle the tops with poppy seeds. Let the butter sauce sit until it sets slightly. Bake the sandwiches for 10-15 minutes or until the tops are slightly brown and beginning to crisp up.

4. Assembling the Sliders: Once they have baked, remove them from the oven. Open the sliders back up, and then drizzle the pulled pork with some of your favorite BBQ sauce. Next, top the sauced pork with a pickle chip and a scoop of slaw. Close them back up with the top bun. For easier serving, stick a long toothpick into the middle of the slider to hold them together. These sliders can be a little messy to assemble, but you just have to keep stacking and pressing! Enjoy them while they are still slightly warm!

source: ham + cheese sliders

Mammoth Meatball Sub Sliders with Fried Mozzarella Sticks, Pepperoni Sauce, Pesto Mayo, & Smoked Provolone

Obviously by the title, the word mammoth means... MAMMOTH, like huge. It's actually an oxymoron. I mean "mammoth" & "slider" should not go in the same sentence. They completely contradict each other. But these are truly ridiculous. I placed a huge meatball onto a mini roll, and then stacked them with a slather of pesto mayo, fried mozzarella stick, homemade pepperoni sauce, and a slice of smoked provolone cheese. That was probably too much at one time, so lemme break it down for ya. The meatballs are classic and made with beef, pork, and veal, which is the perfect combination for a tender & juicy texture. Then I bought some mozzarella and cut them into blocks, breaded them in Italian Panko breadcrumbs, and fried them until golden brown & delicious. Now for the best component, the pepperoni sauce. Why would I put a classic tomato sauce, when I can put on a pepperoni sauce? Exactly... discussion ended. It's practically pureed pepperoni with a hint of tomato flavor, but it adds so much more meatier dimensions. This sauce would be good on a sandwich, pizza, or maybe chicken parmesan... so many options. And to finish it all off, I added a yummy pesto mayo and delicious smoked provolone (just in case there wasn't enough cheese for you already). These meatball sub sliders were awesome, and I'm so glad we made them for our Super Bowl party tonight. Some other recipes that I made were Candied Bacon Wrapped Smoked Sausages in a Blanket with Apricot-Mustard & Pomegranate-Ketchup, Buffalo Bleu Cheese Fritters, Beer Battered Fried Oreos with Creme Anglaise, and Gourmet Chocolate Chunk Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches. Sounds unreal right? Well it was. And who cares if we gained about a million pounds... it was totally worth it. So check back the rest of this week for those other recipes. I hope everyone is having an awesome Super Bowl Party!! Enjoy :)

Three Mammoth Meatball Sub Sliders

Dont'cha Wanna Take A Bite?!?

Up Close & Personal of Our Sliders

Mammoth Meatball Sub Sliders with Fried Mozzarella Sticks,  Pepperoni Sauce, Pesto Mayo, & Smoked Provolone

For the Meatballs:

1lb Ground Beef

½lb Ground Veal

½lb Ground Pork

4 Slices of White Bread, Crusts Removed & Made into Breadcrumbs

¼C Italian Bread Crumbs

2T Fresh Parsley, Chopped

½C Fresh Parmesan, Grated

¼t Nutmeg

Salt & Pepper, To Taste

1 Extra-Large Egg, Beaten

¾C Warm Water

Oil, For Frying

For the Fried Mozzarella:

1 8oz Package of Mozzarella Cheese, Cut into Blocks

½C AP Flour

¼C Cornstarch

2 Eggs, Beaten

¼C Milk

1 ½C Italian Panko Breadcrumbs

Oil, For Frying

Salt & Pepper, For Sprinkling

   

For the Pepperoni Sauce:

3T Olive Oil

1 Small Sweet Onion, Finely Chopped

5 Cloves of Garlic, Minced

1t Red Pepper Flakes & Fennel Seeds

1lb Pepperoni, Finely Chopped or Sliced

8oz of San Marzano Plum Tomatoes, Chopped

1 ½C Chicken Stock

1 Fresh Bay Leaf

For the Pesto Mayo:

2T Pesto

2T Mayo

1t Fresh Basil, Minced

Salt & Pepper, To Taste

For the Sandwiches:

Small Hawaiian Bread Rolls, Buttered & Toasted

Fried Meatballs, Whole or Sliced in Half

Prepared Pepperoni Sauce

Prepared Pesto Mayo

Fried Mozzarella

Slices of Smoked Provolone

Directions:

1. To Make the Pepperoni Sauce: Heat olive oil in a pot over medium heat. Once hot, sauté the onions until tender, about 2 minutes, and then add the garlic, red pepper flakes, and fennel seeds, and cook for 2 minutes. Add in the chopped pepperoni and let it sweat for 2-3 minutes on low. Add in the tomatoes and chicken stock, and cook the mixture for 45 minutes or until the pepperoni gets soft and moist. After softening, puree the mixture until a smooth sauce is formed. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Set it aside until ready to use on the sandwich.
2. To Make the Pesto Mayo: In a small bowl, combine all of the ingredients until incorporated. Refrigerate until ready to use.
3. To Make the Meatballs: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the ground meats, both bread crumbs, parsley, Parmesan, seasonings, egg, and warm water into a bowl. Combine very lightly with a fork. Using your hands, lightly form the mixture into 10-12 large meatballs. In a deep skillet, heat your oil to medium heat. In batches, cool the meatballs and brown them well on all sides, roughly 10 minutes. Remove the cooked meatballs to a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes or until cooked through. Set them aside until ready to stack on the sandwich.
4. To Make the Fried Mozzarella: In a deep fryer, heat the oil to 365 degrees. Meanwhile, set up a battering station. I use 3 pie tins. For the first station, I mix the flour and cornstarch. For the second station, I whisk together the eggs and milk. For the third station, pour the contents of one box of Panko breadcrumbs. Now, place the blocks of mozzarella into the flour mixture, then into the egg wash, and finally the panko (making sure they are completely covered). Put the breaded slices on a tin foil-lined baking sheet with a cooling rack on top, and then put the pan into the refrigerator and let the cheese rest for about 15-30 minutes. In a medium sauté pan, heat about 2 inches of olive oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil has heated, fry the breaded mozzarella for about 1-2 minutes on each side, or until they are golden brown and crispy. Remove the fried cheese to a paper towel-lined plate to drain and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Immediately layer them onto the sandwich.
5. To Assemble the Sandwiches: Spread the toasted slider buns with the pesto mayo. On top of the pesto mayo, lay down the fried mozzarella medallions in an even layer. Spoon on a layer of the pepperoni sauce and top that with the meatball halves. Add more pepperoni sauce on top, so that there is a thick layer. Lay slices of smoked provolone cheese on top of the sauced meatballs and place onto a baking sheet. Broil the sandwich until the provolone is just melted & slightly toasted.
6. Enjoy while the sliders are still hot!

source: pepperoni sauce. classic meatballs.

Breakfast Sliders with Spicy Syrup

So, I've been studying away... barely any cooking at all unfortunately. But this morning, we decided to whip a simple breakfast that is really just a little cooking and more assembling. You can really make it as easy as you want. These Breakfast Sliders taste almost exactly like a sausage, egg, & cheese McGriddle from McDonald's... but better and with a nice kick. It really doesn't take any time at all, so if you're in a rush, this recipe makes a lot of food in a short period of time. Enjoy :)

Breakfast Sliders with Spicy Syrup

Sweet Pancakes with Salty Sausage Patties, Melty Cheese, Fluffy Eggs, & Spicy Syrup

For the Pancake Buns:

1 ½C AP Flour

3 ½t Baking Powder

1t Salt

1T Sugar

1 ¼C Milk

1 Egg

1t Vanilla

3T Butter, Melted

For the Spicy Syrup:

½C Maple Syrup

¼C Honey

1T Chili Powder

For the Breakfast Sliders:

20 Pancake Buns, Silver Dollar-Sized

10 Sausage Patties, Cooked

5 Scrambled Eggs, Cooked & Formed into 10 Small Patties

5 Slices of Cheese (Each slice cut into quarters/fourths)

Prepared Spicy Syrup

Directions: 

1. To Make the Pancake Buns: In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg, vanilla, and melted butter. Mix until smooth. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium heat. Pour or scoop a scant ¼C of the batter onto the griddle. Brown each pancake on both sides, about 2-3 minutes.

2. To Make the Spicy Syrup: Whisk together the maple syrup, honey, and chili powder until completely incorporated and smooth.

3. Assemble the Breakfast Sliders: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and spray a baking dish with Pam. Stack 1 sausage patty, 1 scrambled egg patty, and 2 quarters of cheese on top of one pancake bun.  Once all of the sliders have been assembled (leaving the top pancake bun off), put the baking dish in the oven to heat the slider and melt the cheese, about 5 minutes. Once the cheese has melted, place the heated sliders on to a plate and drizzle the spicy syrup all over them (do this to taste). Finally top with the other pancake buns. 

4. Serve warm and enjoy!

source: ancho honey. classic pancake batter.