Goat Cheese Queso Fundido with Crumbled Smokehouse Sausage + Pepper Jelly Drizzle

Goat Cheese Queso Fundido with Crumbled Smokehouse Sausage + Pepper Jelly Drizzle

I am so mad at myself... why didn't I think of making this recipe a week ago for the Super Bowl? It's a shame because it's damn good and I'm sad I didn't have it for a party. Boo hiss. Oh well, you don't need a special occasion to enjoy this dip because it's great ANY time. Like  yesterday for instance, the weather finally turned a corner this weekend and the sun came out. Holy crap. It was 65 degrees and as sunny as it could be. And what could be more delightful than yummy chips + dip with an ice cold beer or fancy margarita... well, nothing probably. I have made Queso Fundido in the past, but nothing quite like this. With the simple addition of creamy goat cheese, the flavor profile is brought to a different dimension. The melty monterey jack cheese compliments it perfectly and has that always-lovable stringy quality to it. I don't know, it has a certain "je ne sais quoi" about it all. Ya know? The tang of the goat cheese balances in complete harmony with the crumbled smokehouse sausage. Tangy + Smoky... who doesn't love that? Nobodyyyy. I put my southern twist on the dish with the sausage and the drizzle of homemade pepper jelly. Pepper jelly and creamy cheese are like the South's peanut butter + jelly. No lie, I will spread some cream cheese and this spicy condiment on two pieces of toasted bread and devour it in seconds. Just like how this dip was hoovered in .57 seconds. Yep, it was quite the task, but we did not even struggle. The recipe has it all... salty, sweet, smoky, spicy, creamy, crunchy. I mean really, if it was a person, I would hate it for being an overachieving perfectionist. But c'est la vie, this is (thank god) just an easy queso fundido that only took about 15 minutes to prep & cook. There's nothin' to hate about that. So, call all y'all's galpals and/or bro's and whip up this dip-- everyone is gonna love it!! Enjoy :)

it starts with a layer of crumbled smokehouse sausage.

then you pour over the queso, crumble some goat cheese, and sprinkle with spices

and toast it to perfection.

garnish it with a drizzle of pepper jelly + some diced, roasted red peppers

just dig in + go for it...

because when something this cheesy + gooey is in front of you...

you won't be able to control yourself. word. 

For the Goat Cheese Queso Fundido:

16oz Ground Smokehouse Sausage (or any southern sausage/chorizo/ground meat)

1T Unsalted Butter + 1T AP Flour

1C Whole Milk

12oz Monterey Jack Cheese, Shredded

¼t Salt + Pepper

Chili Powder, Cayenne, & Dried Oregano (for sprinkling)

8oz Goat Cheese, Crumbled into Big Pieces

Homemade Southern Pepper Jelly, For Drizzling

Diced Roasted Red Peppers, Pico de Gallo, or Corn Salsa (for garnishing)

Fresh Cilantro, Minced (for garnishing)

Warmed Tortilla Chips, For Dipping

Directions:

1. Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat and cook the ground sausage until the meat is crispy on the outsides, but cooked through (make sure to break it up in the small bite-size pieces). Drain out all of the fat that has been rendered, so that your dip will not be oily.

2. Meanwhile, preheat the oven broiler. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in milk and cook until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the grated Monterey Jack cheese and season with the salt and pepper. Scrape the mixture into the 8-inch cast iron skillet that is filled with the cooked sausage. Sprinkle the top of the queso with some chili powder, cayenne, & dried oregano. Top it with the crumbled goat cheese evenly throughout the pan. Place the pan under the broiler and broil until the goat cheese is golden brown on top.

3. Remove from the oven and drizzle with homemade pepper jelly and finish with some diced roasted red peppers and a sprinkle of minced cilantro. Serve with warmed chips and a cold beer.

Eggplant Parmesan Pizza with Roasted Eggplant Chips, Ricotta, Sun Dried Red Peppers, Toasted Tomato Sauce, Fresh Basil, + Crispy Garlic Bread Crust

Eggplant Parmesan Pizza with Roasted Eggplant Chips, Ricotta, Sun Dried Red Peppers, Toasted
 Tomato Sauce, Fresh Basil, + Crispy Garlic Bread Crust

Everybody loves raymond pizza. Amirite? Yep. We make it weekly, most of y'all order it weekly... it's an oldie, but goodie. I'm kinda sorta really over delivery pizza. I think I had my fill of it over the years of middle school slumber parties and drunk binge eating in college. Now I want it fancy. And what's more Italian than pizza? Well, I always think of either chicken parmesan or eggplant parmesan. Which means, I just had to concoct a Eggplant Parmesan-inspired Pizza. Let's start with the sauce... it sorta reminds me of a sun dried tomato paste sauce. It's toasty, herby, and really enhances the tomato to a'whole'nother level. This condiment really would be great on pasta, chicken, or even on a piece of toasted bread. So, it's quite versatile. Now onto the toppings. I roasted some thinly cut eggplant to make some "chips". That's easy-peasy, so don't skip this step and just put raw eggplant on the pizza, we didn't like it that way at all. Oh buddy, it's time for the best part... the sweet + tangy sun dried red peppers. I found these little red jewels at our grocery store and I was immediately drawn to them. I don't know how they make them or what they flavor them with, but they are straight-up gangsta. And that's impressive since this girl right here is not a fan of roasted red peppers. At all. But these Delallo Peppers, I could eat straight out of the jar. I think I purchased a whole basket of them because we love them that much. I made a killer sun dried red pepper dressing and I plan on making a hummus this weekend featuring them as well. They make everything so much better. Okay, now enough of my love affair with a vegetable. The rest of the pizza is topped with mozzarella, parmesan, ricotta cheese, and fresh basil. However, there was just one more component I needed to address. I needed a way to mimic the crispy breadcrumb coating of eggplant parmesan. Eventually, we landed on the idea of making a crispy garlic bread pizza crust. The outer rim of your pizza dough is brushed with a butter-garlic-herb mixture that is chock full of herbed Panko breadcrumbs. When you bake it in the oven, the breadcrumbs toast & crisp up and give you the most amazing crispy exterior. It was the perfect way to finish this over-the-top pizza, mark my words. So ditch the delivery crap and give this a go, I really think everyone who loves this classic Italian dish will love the pizza even more!! Enjoy :)

Y'all have to try these Delallo Sun Dried Peppers!!

Eggplant Parmesan-inspired Pizza :)

Don't forget the fresh basil, it's super important.

sliced up + already eaten. 

For the Crispy Garlic Bread Crust:

5T Unsalted Butter, Melted

2 Garlic Cloves + Sea Salt (mashed into a garlic paste)

2T Parmesan Cheese

1t Dried Basil + Dried Oregano

3T Toasted Panko Breadcrumbs (plain or Italian flavors will work)

For the Toasted Tomato Sauce:

1/3C Olive Oil

1 Clove of Garlic, Minced

½t Dried Oregano, Basil, Thyme, & Rosemary

A Generous Pinch of Red Pepper Flakes

½t Fresh Cracked Pepper & Sea Salt

3oz Tomato Paste

½t Honey

For the Eggplant Chips:

1 Small Eggplant, Thinly Sliced into Rounds

Olive Oil, For Drizzling

Salt, Pepper, & Dried Oregano, For Sprinkling

For the Eggplant Parmesan Pizza:

Homemade Extra-Crusty Pizza Dough

Prepared Crispy Garlic Bread Crust Butter

Prepared Toasted Tomato Sauce

8oz Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, Cut into Thin Slices

Baked Eggplant Chips

4oz Ricotta Cheese (for dollops)

Sweet + Tangy Sun Dried Red Peppers (I love the Delallo brand)

Fresh Basil, Chiffonade

Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese

Directions:

1. For the Crispy Garlic Bread Pizza Crust: Using a roll pin or your hands, form the dough into your desired shape (sometimes I use baking sheets and do rectangles or free form pizzas). Melt 5 tablespoons of butter and mix it with the minced garlic, dried herbs, and 1 tablespoon of Parmesan cheese. In a small sauté pan, toast the panko breadcrumbs over medium heat until they smell nutty and they are lightly golden brown in color. Set them aside once you are done toasting them. Using a spoon or pastry brush, douse the outside edges with the herbed garlic butter mixture. You can spread the butter all over; just make sure to focus on the edges. Although make sure to save about one half of the butter, to spread on the pizza once it comes out of the oven. Continue to make your pizza with your desired toppings.

2. For the Toasted Tomato Sauce: Add the olive oil, garlic, basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, crushed red pepper, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper to a small skillet. Stir and heat the mixture over low heat for about 3-5 minutes. It’s okay if it sizzles slightly, but you don’t want it to get hot enough that the herbs burn. Add the tomato paste and honey. Allow it to heat through as you stir. It will not form a smooth sauce. Continue to stir and heat over low for about 5 minutes or until you notice the tomato paste has darkened slightly. Either use immediately or refrigerate until ready to use.

3. For the Eggplant Chips:Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with a silpat. Thinly slice the eggplant into rounds or chips. Spread them out onto the baking sheet and drizzle them with some olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and dried oregano. Bake them for 25-30 minutes or until they are golden brown and slightly crisp.

4. Prepping the Dough:During the last hour of the dough’s resting, preheat the oven to its hottest setting, around 500-550 degrees, and arrange a rack in the middle of the oven. Now it’s time to add on the toppings.

5. Assembling the Pizza:Spread the dough with some of the herbed-garlic butter and toasted tomato sauce, and then scatter the mozzarella cheese over the dough in an even layer, and drop on dollops of ricotta cheese. Then top it the eggplant chips, sun dried peppers, and freshly grated Parmesan Cheese. Place the pizza into the hot oven and bake for roughly 10-12 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the crust has begun to brown. Bump the oven heat up to broil.

6. Serving the Pizza:Remove from the oven and brush the pizza with garlic-parmesan butter, using it all up. Sprinkle a bit of Parmesan over top if desired. Generously top it with some fresh basil, and a sprinkle of salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cut into slices and enjoy it while it is still hot!

Blood Orange Mulled Red Wine with Spiced Brown Butter

Blood Orange Mulled Red Wine

HI GUYS. I am terrible. I left y'all high + dry. But but but but, I can explain. See last week the world ended. What? You guys didn't hear? That's shocking, I know, but so true. Well, if you didn't hear, I'll give you the quick rundown of how it snowed two inches in Atlanta and the whole city shut down. I'm not making this up. Luckily for me, I work from home, so I really didn't experience anything too badly. Actually, we were quite excited at first...

the beginning of snow fall

yep, it snows in the south

starting to cover the ground

shots at 5AM in honor of the "state of emergency" 

snow day with my little pup.

See? We welcomed the snow, with open arms. I was tooooo excited, I hadn't seen snow since probably my middle school days. It started innocently enough, but then I got a phone call from my Mountain Man around noon, saying that he got released from work early due to the possible inclement weather. I was TOTES excited. However, I just waited and waited and waited... I watched the news. EVERY major highway, intersection, and street was practically shut down. Black ice was everywhere. Children were stuck at school, or worse, in school buses. Finally 9PM had rolled around I had yet to see my Mountain Man because he had been stranded for over eight hours. In the same spot. I mean it couldn't get any worse. I was stranded at home and couldn't possibly rescue him. It got so crazy, he and one of his friends, abandoned their cars and walked about 7 miles in the sleeting snow back to our house. I can't even tell you how crazy it all was, and it was all over a pathetic two inches of snow. People had to sleep in grocery stores, hospitals, gas stations, and even their frozen cars. It was just straight up ridiculous. By 10 o'clock, the Governor officially called a "State of Emergency" and cancelled all non-essential work/travel for two days. If you guys watch The Walking Dead, this is really how Atlanta looked. No joke. We had no food, or barely any at all, so we ate a lot of potatoes and leftover roasted chicken. Not fun. We did, however, have a lot of red wine... and blood oranges. So, I decided that I would try my hand at making mulled red wine. This classic winter cocktail never really gets enjoyed here because well it's always so-dang-hot and DEFINITELY not snowing. It was the perfect occasion. The flavor was boosted with those gorgeous red citrus fruit, fresh ginger, mulling spices, apple, a-whole-lotta-booze, simple syrup, and a homemade spiced brown butter. The brown butter/compound butter is perfect for any fall drink, but especially anything mulled or it would be fab in a hot buttered rum too! This was the bomb to drink while the snow kept collecting on the ground... and it warmed my Mountain Man up real fast. So all of y'all that are still cold up in the Northern states can enjoy it as well!! Enjoy :)

juicing the blood oranges.

winter citrus art.

gorgeous blood orange slices in mulled wine

a generous slice of homemade spiced brown butter

ready to drink!

For the Spiced Brown Butter:

2 Sticks of Unsalted Butter, Browned & Softened

2C Homemade Dark Brown Sugar (or store-bought can be used)

1 ½t Cinnamon

1t Fleur de Sel

½t Freshly Grated Nutmeg, Bourbon Smoked Paprika, & Ground Ginger

¼t Cardamom, Cayenne, & Black Pepper

For the Mulled Red Wine:

2 Bottles of Red Wine

4 Blood Oranges, Zests Peeled & Sliced

1 Apple, Sliced

1 Inch Knob of Fresh Ginger (peeled)

2 Cinnamon Sticks

¼C Mulling Spices

2 Star Anise Pods

1C Homemade Mulled Simple Syrup

1 Vanilla Bean Pod, Split & Scraped for Seeds

½C Brandy, Bourbon, & Apple Jack

Nutmeg, For Grating

Homemade Spiced Brown Butter, For Serving

Directions:

1. For the Spiced Brown Butter: Cream together the butter, spices and sugar. At this point you can roll up the mixture with parchment into a log. Cover well and refrigerate or freeze for later use. In the fridge the mixture will keep for two weeks, in the freezer a couple of months.

2. For the Mulled Red Wine:Peel the zests off the blood oranges, and then cut up one of the oranges into slices and juice the remaining three. Throw them into the pot, along with the sliced apple, cinnamon sticks, mulling spices, star anise pods, mulled simple syrup, vanilla bean pod, and fresh ginger. Let this mixture simmer for 5 minutes. Add in the wine and bring back to a simmer, about another 5-10 minutes. Turn the heat off the burner and toss in the brandy, bourbon, and Apple Jack. Stir to combine.

3. For Serving:In a mug, add a tablespoon of the spiced brown butter. Top with a few ladles of blood orange mulled red wine. Grate some fresh nutmeg over the top and serve with a cinnamon stick for stirring. The ratio of the ingredients is really preference.

"One Pot Wonder" Pasta with Rainbow Linguine, Baby Heirloom Tomatoes, Sun Dried Red Peppers, Fresh Basil, Artichokes, + Creamy Goat Cheese

"One Pot Wonder" with Rainbow Linguine, Baby Heirloom Tomatoes, Sun Dried Red Peppers,
Fresh Basil, Artichokes, + Creamy Goat Cheese

I liked to call myself a "snooty foodie". And by no means, do I mean that positively. All the time, I get requests from my mountain man, family members, and friends asking for something that I just completely turn my nose up too. Casseroles, pot roast, pasta, & slow cooker meals to name a few. I don't know, I guess I'm a complicated girl, who likes complicated food. However, there is a certain recipe that has been floating around the internet and has taken the world by store. And it's all because of Martha. Martha, martha, marthaaaaaaaa. I was certainly skeptical of course, it seemed too easy, too simple, and down right impossible. It literally requires you to throw pasta, vegetables, aromatics, liquid, and herbs into one pot and boil it all together to form one luscious, creamy dish... without the fuss of dirtying up a million pas & utensils. I stored this recipe away for a day that I was scrambling to find something quick to cook for dinner. And well, tonight was the night that I would pull it out for examination. Her original recipe isn't as "fully loaded" as mine, but I'm sure they are equally tasty. I started off with a tomato basil theme, but it kinda grew + expanded from there when I added artichokes, white wine, chicken stock, sun dried red peppers, roasted garlic paste, pesto, and goat cheese. Hands down, our favorite component was the sun dried red peppers. We swear by the brand, DeLallo. So if you can get your hands on those, you won't regret it! They are sweet, slightly smokey, and plump beautifully during the cooking process. And lemme tell y'all, these peppers are amazing on a homemade pizza! As for the pasta, any kind will do, but we loved the idea of using gourmet rainbow linguine because, well, it's gorgeous and tasty. Once everything has cooked through and the pasta has soaked up all of the liquid and achieved the perfect al dente texture, toss in some softened goat cheese (or even some brie would be a great substitute as well) and stir until an extra creamy sauce is formed. For this dish, it calls for two bunches of fresh basil... one is added in at the beginning to "perfume" all of the components and the other is thinly shaved and lightly folded in just a minute before serving. I think that it's a really important step because it creates a wonderful balance between the rich sauce and herby basil. But you know what's best about this recipe? It would be great all year long, no matter what season it is! I can't even imagine how much better the pasta would be with fresh summery basil and juicy heirloom tomatoes... it's practically what my dreams are made of here, people. So give this recipe a try because it literally will become your "one pot wonder" and a weekly go-to!! Enjoy :)

ingredients: fresh basil, baby heirloom tomatoes, fresh garlic, roasted garlic paste,
artichokes, rainbow linguine, sun dried red peppers, onion, + creamy goat cheese

is that food for the eyes or what??

toss it all in and call it a day!

luscious, creamy, hearty, but fresh. it literally as it all. 

For the One Pot Wonder Pasta:

16oz Gourmet Rainbow Linguine Pasta

1 Sweet Vidalia Onion, Sliced

16oz Baby Rainbow Heirloom Tomatoes, Sliced in Half

14oz Artichokes, Drained + Quartered

½C Sun Dried Roasted Red Peppers, Julienned (we love the brand, Delallo)

4 Cloves of Fresh Garlic, Thinly Sliced

2T Roasted Garlic Paste + 2T Homemade Pesto

2 Bunches of Fresh Basil (one for the cooking process & one for finshing)

4C Chicken Stock + 1C White Wine

2t Dried Oregano

½t Red Pepper Flakes

Fleur de Sel, Fresh Cracked Pepper, & Olive Oil (to your preference)

4oz Creamy Goat Cheese, Room Temperature (although brie could be substituted here)

Directions:

1. For the Pasta: Combine the linguine, baby tomato halves, sliced onion, quartered artichokes, sun dried red peppers, garlic, roasted garlic paste, pesto, 1 bunch of basil, red-pepper flakes, olive oil (I used about two big glugs), fleur de sel, and fresh cracked pepper in a pot. Pour the chicken stock and white wine all over the pasta components in the pot. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil mixture, stirring and turning pasta frequently with tongs, until pasta is al dente and water has nearly evaporated, about 15-20 minutes.

2. Finishing the Pasta: Once the liquid has reduced and thickened, add in the softened goat cheese and stir to melt and form a creamy sauce. Season the dish with more salt and pepper if needed (we actually added a touch of honey to round out all of the flavors). If the pasta has an al dente texture, then it is ready to serve! Chiffonade the remaining bunch of basil and toss that in just before serving. This will give the pasta a wonderful, aromatic taste and balance the creaminess with its’ herbed flavor.

How To : Homemade Dark Brown Sugar (with vanilla beans)...

How To: Homemade Dark Brown Sugar (with vanilla beans)...

Hi everyone! Today I'm going to be posting a new series called "How To", which simply is gonna be "how to" make things that I use on a daily basis and in all my recipes (shocker, I know). So today I got a real hankering to make my own nifty version of a hot buttered rum. Well actually, I'm going to make Hot Brown Buttered Bourbon's-- yum in my tum. Anyway, I go to the pantry to find some dark brown sugar, for the compound butter component, and to no such luck, we're out of it. SHOOT. I can't muster up the energy, or courage, to venture out into the cold, cold world to get some. Lucky for me, there is a quick solution to this common problem... just make it yourself! Simple dark brown sugar just calls for granulated sugar and robust molasses, and in the case of my recipe, I like to throw in a vanilla bean (but that's completely optional). The process is super easy peasy, just toss everything into a food processor and pulse away... here's a step-by-step pictorial of the homemade dark brown sugar.

step one: put everything into the food processor

step two: pulse until everything is combined (a rubber spatula is helpful)

step three: dump out your brown sugar into a bowl and mash up any small clumps
with a fork to make it a little smoother 

step four: it's ready to be measured & used!

See, it's as easy as that!! No lie, so if you are ever like me and you find yourself in a bind, keep those few ingredients in the pantry and you'll be baking in no time!! Enjoy your first "How To" post :)

For the Homemade Dark Brown Sugar:

2 ½C Granulated Sugar

½C Robust Molasses

1 Vanilla Bean, Split & Scraped for Seeds

Directions:

1. In the bowl of a food processer, add the granulated sugar, robust molasses, and vanilla bean seeds.

2. Pulse the ingredients until the mixture begins to turn brown and becomes the texture of wet sand.

3. Dump the brown sugar into a bowl and mash up any clumps of molasses with a fork until everything is incorporated.

4. Spoon into a measuring cup and continue baking!