How many times have your ran out of chili powder, or wanted to make chili but then had to go to the market and choose from 100+ types... Boo I say, make your own, it's super simple.

Mild/Medium Chili Powder

• 3 tbsp paprika
• 2 tbsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper

When I made my chili, I again took the simple approach;

• 1 can of V8
• .5 can of Tomato juice
• 1 medium yellow sweet onion (chop half of it fine, chop the other have a little bigger or whatever you like)
• 1 can of chili beans (do not strain beans, pour everything in the can into the pot)
• 2 lbs of hamburger (deer sausage works well here too)
  • (when using hamburger in your chili, go for the 92% lean, and just toss the hamburger in the pot with the tomato juice to cook it, the hamburger fat will cook out and float to the top, strain some off, or keep it in, your choice)
• 4 stalks of celery (chop large or small your choice, this can also be substituted with celery seeds in the spice mix, about 1 tsp in the mix)
• 1/4 of a large green bell pepper (chop into small cube shapes)
• (whatever else you like in your chili) 
  

I cook mine in a crock pot on high for about 5 hours, removing the lid to let the steam escape to control thickness of chili.

Enjoy, and my kids love it too.

I cook allot... I mean almost every night. But when I come across a winner, I stick with it. Below is the recipe for a favorite year round diner my family has. Although a simple chicken dish, it takes about 45 minutes to cook, start to finish. It also can be accelerated with some precook time. In fact, it just may be better to marinade the chicken in the sauce overnight. I will try it and and add a comment with my findings.

Mild/Smooth Cajun Chicken

3lb of mixed skin on chicken wings (I toss in a few legs for the daughter)
8oz of real salted sweet cream butter
1/4 cup of franks red hot hot sauce
My secret Blackening Powder to taste (I don't measure, but would estimate about 2 tablespoons)

Prep:

Chicken
Boil chicken in water in pot until just under fully cooked, I break one open to see if there is any redness or pink in the middle. It's very important not to overcook the chicken here or the rest will not turn out right. It should be very juicy and plump. It's best to error on the undercooked side here as you can always finish up the cooking on the grill later.

Sauce:
This is the easy part. Drop butter in small sauce pan and slowly melt. When the butter is melted, stir in the Franks Hot Sauces. Until you get the hang of it, pour in smaller portions until you get a nice pumpkin orange color. Add a pinch of salt, pepper and a pinch of a chili powder for a nice presentation. Stir until fully blended, I find that getting the temperature just right will help in keeping the sauce ready for cooking. 

Never, never, never boil this mixture, it will change the taste.


Cooking:

Preheat grill to 400-500 degrees
Preheat oven to 375
Start by shaking My secret Blackening Powder onto the prepped chicken.
Put ceramic serving platter into oven to heat up
Then basting the chicken with a brush with the sauce mixture.
Quickly add chicken to grilling surface and baste a second time.
Cook chicken as you see fit while turning and basting occasionally, but be careful not to overcook the chicken or it will be dry.

Place fully cooked chicken on seasoned serving platter, carry to table and place on creative table placement piece. Serve with slightly under room temperature ranch or blue cheese dressing.

Hope you find this recipe as enjoyable as my family does. As you are making it, it may seem as if this is way to hot and spicy for kids, but I have found this to be the opposite.

Enjoy,

Chris

I found the recipe on http://www.cdkitchen.com and its pretty simple, and is great.

Ingredients

2 cups heavy cream
5 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup or so of light brown sugar

How to put it together

Preheat oven to 275 degrees.
Whisk the cream, egg yolks, sugar, and vanilla extract together in a bowl. Mix it all up until it gets nice and creamy.
Pour this mixture into ramekins (those little ceramic dishes). I got it evenly distributed between 4 7-ouncers.
Place the ramekins in a baking pan Fill the baking pan with hot water, about halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
Place the pan with the ramekins in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour or so.
After 45 minutes or so check them every ten minutes. You'll know they're done when you can stick a knife in one and it comes out clean.
Remove the ramekins from the baking pan, set them on the counter, and let them cool for 15 minutes or so.
Then put them in the refrigerator and let them chill overnight.
Sprinkle a thin layer of the light brown sugar on the top of each. Make sure it's a THIN layer, but also make sure it completely covers the custard.
Now torch it! Or, if you don't have a torch, you can supposedly put them under the broiler for a minute or so. The point is, you need to caramelize (melt and let harden) the sugar.

Credit: http://www.cdkitchen.com

Enjoy

(From my old blog)

While playing around with different ingredients, I came up with this alcoholic mix.

3/4oz Gin
3/4oz Vodka
1oz Simple Syrup
1oz Roses Sweetened Lime Juice
2oz Pineapple Juice

I am not sure if this drink has a name, but if not I will take suggestions if you have any.

Enjoy,

In my area, these great tasting peppers are no longer on the menu. :( So this is posted for everyone else that misses this menu item.

Ingredients:

26 oz Can Sliced Jalepeno Peppers (not pickled, those used for nachos)

2 2/3 C. Crackers Crumbs

2 C. Flour

2 Eggs

1/2 C. Water

Vegetable Oil ( for your favorite deep frying system )

Preparation:

Drain jalapeno peppers and set aside. Mix cracker crumbs and flour together, blend well. In separate bowl beat eggs and add water blend well. Heat oil in fry pan, deep fryer, or fry cooker until temperature is the same degree's that you would fry French fries at. Dip slices of peppers in egg wash and then the flour and cracker crumb mixture, dust off excess dry ingredients and carefully place in hot oil.

Place enough of the peppers in your deep frying system so they are not over crowded. Take care, the peppers like to pop a little. Fry until golden brown. Remove peppers and dry on a paper towel.

Peppers are served with your favorite Con Queso Dip on the side

2 tablespoons salt

1 ½ teaspoon garlic powder

1 ½ teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon white pepper

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin (optional)

½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

½ teaspoon paprika

put in sandwich and shake bag to mix well (30 secs)

Put this on chicken, beef or fish.

I am highly addicted to the yeast rolls at the local Texas Road House restaurant. This is a chain restaurant, but their yeast rolls are some of the best I have ever tasted and well worth a trip alone.

I have been wanting the recipe ever since I had them. After some searching I have found the recipe. Posted below for anyone else NEEDING it.

TEXAS ROAD HOUSE SWEET YEAST ROLLS

From the trainer for all the bakers of the Texas Roadhouse chain

1/2 sol. oz. cake of yeast or 1 pkg. active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
2 cups milk
3 tablespoons of melted butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 quart all purpose flour
2 whole eggs
2 tsp. salt

Soften yeast in warm water with a teaspoon of sugar. Scald milk; cool to lukewarm.

Add yeast, sugar and enough flour to make a medium batter. Beat thoroughly. Let stand until light and foamy.

Add melted butter (which has been cooled), eggs and salt. Beat well. Add enough flour to form soft dough. Sprinkle small amount of flour on counter and let dough rest.

Meanwhile, clean and dry bowl; grease clean surface of bow. Knead dough until smooth and satiny. Put in greased bowl; turn over to grease top. Cover; let rise in warm place until double in bulk.

Punch down. Turn out on floured board. Divide into portions for shaping; let rest 10 minutes.

Shape dough into desired forms. Place on greased baking sheets. Let rise until doubled.

Bake at 375 degrees F for 10 minutes; reduce temperature to 350 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes more. Cool on rack.

Yield: 5 to 6 dozen

Here is a recipe that I worked on, and finally got perfect. Its much better than most restaurants and is super simple to make.

Servings: 4-6

1/2 cup real butter
1 pint heavy whipping cream
2/3 cup Parmesan/Romano cheese, freshly grated
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt (to taste)
Freshly ground black pepper
Dash cayenne pepper
1 lb. fettuccini
Fresh parsley, chopped
1/4lb smoked ham
1 bag of Hormel pepperoni
4 large fresh mushrooms
1/4 cup chopped onions
1/4 cup chopped green peppers
15 or so fresh crispy snow peas
1 tablespoon cinnamon

Prepare fettuccini pasta as directed on box. Drain; melt a pat of butter on still-hot pasta or stir in several drops of olive oil to keep pasta from sticking. Stir to coat evenly.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan over low to medium heat,
Melt the butter (DO NOT Boil YET).
Add cream, garlic, salt, pepper, cinnamon and cayenne.

Tip: stir in powdered ingredients to prevent clumping

Simmer 20-30 minutes over low heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens. THIS IS THE KEY STEP!!!! You will know when its done, it will darken in color and thicken nicely.

In a frying pan saute the fresh ingredients by add them to the pan in this order;
cook onions for 5 minutes then add green peppers and mushrooms, cook for another 5, then add rest of the meats and peas until hot.

Tip: Do not use oil, use 50/50 mix of olive oil and real butter.

Remove saucepan from stove and stir in cheese.

Serve over hot pasta. Sprinkle on freshly ground black pepper.
Ground Peppercorn Medley - red, green and white adds a splash of color and flavor.
Garnish with parsley.