Cheddar Sage Thumbprints with Pepper Jelly, AND a Giveaway!

Today’s post honors The Lives and Loves of Grumpy’s HoneyBunch by Shelby, who is celebrating her four year blog anniversary. Shelby is a very sweet and generous person that I have known since before she started blogging, and I am so honored to be included in her celebration. Shelby’s blog reflects her love of family, food, and life. At the heart of her adventures is her husband, “Grumpy”, whose name hides a warm soul and a love and pride for his wife that shines through the grumpiness. My favorite posts are those that describe how Shelby has won Grumpy over with a recipe that he didn’t think he would like!

Shelby has inspired me many times - to keep blogging when I thought I wanted to quit, to focus on what I love instead of what I think others might love, to have fun, and to let kindness guide my thoughts when blogging. She is giving away a $50 Gift card to celebrate her four years in the blogging world! Here are the details on how to enter the giveaway, which is open to US & Canadian residents only:

1. Leave a comment on this blog post about the person who is your inspiration in life and what special part that person plays in your life.
2. Visit the additional blog links and leave a comment on their post. Each comment will count as one entry.
3. Giveaway will end on January 7th at 5 PM EST.
4. Winner will be announced on January 8th via blog post on The Life & Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch.
5. Winner will be chosen via random drawing - drawing to be done by none other than Grumpy himself.
6. Value of giftcard will be $50 and can be ONE of the choices listed below:
* Sears
* Kohls
* Amazon
* Target
* Wal-mart
* Chili's
* Uno's
* Marshalls/TJMax
* Bed, Bath & Beyond
* Macaroni Grill
* Olive Garden
* Starbucks
* Barnes & Noble

Shelby’s recipe archives are full of dishes that reflect her affinity for healthful and delicious food. She is very creative and recently became enamored with small bites, small plates, and appetizers, and her post today is for Brie Popover Bites. My offering for Shelby's cyber-party, flaky thumbprint "cookies" complemented by sweet, hot pepper jelly, may not be the healthiest snack around, but they are delicious. They are also very good "plain", pressed into disks, and sprinkled with a few grains of kosher salt, which is how my hubby loves them.

Cheddar Sage Thumbprints with Pepper Jelly
adapted from Thanksgiving 101

2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
6 tbs salted butter, softened
1 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon ground sage
1/3 cup pepper jelly

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare baking sheet with parchment paper.

Thoroughly mix cheese, butter, flour, and sage to form cohesive dough. Pinching off dough, form into one inch balls and place on prepared pan, 2 inches apart. Bake 5 minutes. Remove from oven and press indentation into dough, using end of wooden spoon. Fill with 1/4 teaspoon jelly and return to oven; bake additional 10 minutes, or until tops are lightly browned. Remove to wire rack and cool completely. May be stored in airtight containers up to 2 days.

I got about 30 "cookies" out of this recipe.

Click on the links below to see what others made for Shelby's party!

Caramel S'Mores Cookie Cups

I made these yesterday for the youth group at my church. The youth help me serve every year at our annual church Thanksgiving dinner, and they are invaluable to me with their willing attitudes and sweet smiles. I was looking for a dessert that might appeal to them and happened across this recipe on the Betty Crocker website. I normally don't use packaged mixes for cookies, but they are so wonderfully convenient, so why not? I have recently begun to adopt less labor-intensive methods in my kitchen, and I am enjoying the benefits of non-scratch cooking.

Bacon Mac and Cheese

One of my very favorite blogs is Plain Chicken. Steph posts the most delicious looking recipes, many involving chicken or tailgating recipes. She refers to her husband as Chicken Legs, a title which never fails to make me laugh. Each Monday is a "wordless" post featuring photos of her three adorable cats. She unabashedly features recipes with convenience foods as ingredients as well as from-scratch recipes. I have bookmarked more recipes from her blog than from any other. I.Love.Her.Blog.

Sweet and Salty Popcorn Mixes

I have recently become a fan of Tastefully Simple products. Sold by independent consultants such as Kourtney Aller, the young mother in my church who introduced me to their awesomeness, these direct-sale foods were developed by Jill Blashack Strahan and have a reputation for exceptional flavor. I considered joining their sales force, but I really have no interest in selling; I just want to buy and enjoy their products. Their Pomegranate Chipotle Sauce is my preferred condiment, and I use it on everything, from nachos (yes, really!) to sandwiches.

These popcorn mixes are a result of recipes from Tastefully Simple's website and my favorite go-to recipe spot, Allrecipes.com. The beauty of snack mix recipes is that you can be creative and incorporate items from your pantry. The Zesty Popcorn Mix is just that - it is spicy and crunchy and very addictive. The caramel corn recipe is my favorite, crispy and buttery, and I always add molasses which gives the caramel glaze a dark allure. Twisty Grahams, pretzel-shaped graham crackers, added a toffee-like crunch, and the addition of Goldfish and toasted, salted pecans was a nice contrast to the sweetness.

Zesty Popcorn Mix
adapted from Tastefully Simple Recipes

1-2 tablespoons Tastefully Simple Fiesta Party Dip Mix or spicy seasoning salt
1/2 cup melted butter
1 tablespoon Pomegranate Chipotle Sauce or a sweet, smoky barbecue sauce
12 oz box baked cheese crackers such as Cheez-Its
5 cups popped popcorn

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Mix crackers and popcorn on a large baking pan. Combine first 3 ingredients and slowly pour over mixture in pan; toss gently. Bake at 300° for 20-30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Cool and place in storage container or plastic Ziplocs.

Caramel Corn Snack Mix
adapted from Allrecipes.com

1 cup salted butter
2 cups brown sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
1/4 cup molasses
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 quarts popped popcorn
1 cup Twisty Grahams or bite-sized graham crackers
1 cup toasted salted pecans
1 cup Goldfish or bite-sized cheese crackers such as Cheez-Its

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (95 degrees C). Place popcorn, pecans, graham crackers, and Goldfish in a very large bowl or 2 large shallow baking pans. In medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter; stir in brown sugar, corn syrup, molasses, and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil without stirring 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in soda and vanilla. Pour in thin stream over popcorn mixture, stirring to coat. Place in two large shallow baking dishes and bake in preheated oven, stirring every 15 minutes, for about an hour. Remove from oven and let cool completely before breaking into pieces. Place in storage container or plastic Ziplocs.

Earthquakes In Oklahoma!

Sometimes weather takes precedence over food. We had an earthquake here yesterday! Read about it on my blog about Oklahoma, Oklahoma Peach Fuzz.

Baked Chicken Penne with Lawhorn's Signature Seasoning

It isn't often I see the name "Lawhorn", and never associated with a commercial product. Lawhorn is a very special name to me, as it was my maiden name. As proud as I was (and still am) of being a Lawhorn, it was a name I had to spell for every person that I met, and it was a relief to marry a man with a simple four-letter last name and not have to spell my name anymore. (I never understood why everyone wanted to pronounce and spell it L-o-n-g-h-o-r-n! Ugh!)

When I saw this seasoning mentioned on Steph's awesome blog, Plain Chicken, I was dumbstruck. "Lawhorn"? You've got to be kidding! I immediately researched and found their website and emailed the link to my relatives with "you won't believe this" in the subject line.

9/11/2001 8:46 am

Peanut Butter Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips

I seem to be stuck on banana bread (see Marbled Nutella Banana Bread and Boozy Banana Bread, but I do have ripening bananas in my kitchen on a weekly basis, and there are so many recipes for so many variations.

Getting to Know Me and You

I've recently become a fan of Kim at My Inner Chick, and her hilarious, poignant, and important voice in the blogging world. Her responses to some "Foodie Questions" that she found on the blog of Mandy at The Complete Cook Book prompted me to accept her invitation to share and get to know one other with the questions below. And be sure and check out Mandy's original post at The Complete Cookbook!

(Apologizing in advance for the fact that some of my responses have two answers - I'm a Gemini and can't help it.)

Light Brioche Revisited

In June I discovered a wonderful bread recipe on the blog of Lucie Madeleine and made these hamburger buns. I have made the recipe several times since, to the delight of my family, and most recently for a luncheon for church. This time I made petite rolls, and I was very pleased with the results.

Between rubbing butter and flour together with your fingers and being careful not to add too much flour, this dough is not the easiest to handle; but the reward of following the instructions is a deliciously light and tender roll.

Lesley's German Chocolate Chip Cookies

I found the recipe for these delicious German Chocolate Chip Cookies on the blog of Lesley's Eats. The story she wrote about having lunch with her Mom and sharing one of these cookies, then recreating the recipe with her made me lonesome for my daughter, who moved away to Dallas last summer, and my Mom, who shared many restaurant desserts with me.

I decided on the spot to make them, and needing a chocolate fix to cheer me up, off to the kitchen I went to soften the butter. About an hour later I was eating my first cookie.

Marbled Nutella Banana Bread

I have been a follower of Emily, aka Sugar Plum, since she made a comment on my blog about Oklahoma in 2008. Emily creates original recipes, and she is Food Network-famous. She is cute and funny, her blog is a fun read with gorgeous photos, and she is gifted in the kitchen - I just love her to pieces!

I had never tried Nutella and didn't quite "get" what all the fuss was about. When Emily posted a recipe for Marbled Nutella Banana Bread, I finally decided to buy a jar and try it out. I'm glad I did - it's delicious! Her recipe makes a perfectly moist, not-too-sweet bread, and the addition of Nutella to half of the batter adds just the right amount of chocolate to enhance the banana flavor and not overwhelm it. I could have eaten the entire loaf, but fortunately I was giving it away.

Brown Sugar Pecan Cookies

Last week my son and DIL went out of town for a much-needed break, and while they were gone I was lucky enough to be invited to stay with my grand-kids, aged 12, 10, and 8. In between trips to Hobby Lobby and the grocery store, swimming, belly-laughing, and generally having a great time, I made them Brown Sugar Cookies from the blog of Baking Bites. These were a big hit - we all loved them! When my son and DIL came home starving after their 3-hour flight, they couldn't stop eating them.

Red, White, and Chocolate

Here is my offering for a Fourth of July dessert - an all-American chocolate cake with cherries, whipped cream, and chocolate buttercream. The cake alone would be perfect with just a dusting of powdered sugar, but dressed up for the holiday it is a perfect collaboration of moist cake, sweet chocolate, tart cherries, and fluffy whipped cream.

Lemon Herb Rice

For a side dish for my husband's birthday dinner, I served him Lemon Dill Rice from Mennonite Girls Can Cook. My version included Minute Rice, fresh-from-my-garden oregano, and both lemon zest and lemon juice. It was so good! Next time I'll add even more herbs and lemon.

Fruit Shake

In the 1980s I purchased a book called Fit for Life and followed the nutrition plan outlined in it, which was eating healthful food in proper combinations. Although I no longer adhere to the plan (and I really should - I felt fantastic while on it), I still use some of the recipes from the book. One of the recipes is for a fruit smoothie, and I love it because it is a frequent quick and healthy lunch for me and does not contain the yogurt found in most smoothie recipes. Although I love yogurt, I do not want it in my smoothie.

Boozy Banana Bread

I recently purchased Eva's Kitchen by Eva Longoria, and I've read it cover to cover. Usually when I get a cookbook I mainly look at the pictures, read the recipes that look appealing to me, bookmark a few to try, and give a cursory glance at the others. This cookbook captured my attention, because I like the way Eva writes, and I want to try nearly every recipe. She includes the stories and traditional recipes of her family, what is was like growing up on a Texas ranch, and some of the recipes she has developed from her travels as well as from her restaurant, Beso. Her cookbook is not pretentious in any way and is written as you might imagine she is talking to you while you watch her cook. Her recipes are simple with uncomplicated directions, emphasizing fresh, local, and in-season ingredients.

Light Brioche Buns

After a cooking friend supplied a link to Lucie Madeleine's blog, I found a recipe for these homemade brioche buns and tried them for our turkey burgers this past weekend. They were deliciously light with just enough sweet to complement the burgers. I will be making more of these for a family get-together this coming weekend!

Sweet Success

For years I have baked sugar cookies that tasted good but did have the visual effect I wanted to achieve: an even, consistent height and straight sides. I would like to thank Paula at Salad in a Jar for showing me the light. Her method is based on tips from Baking: From My Home to Yours. Although I have that cookbook, I had not tried the method prior to seeing Valentine's cookies on Paula's blog.

Valentine Red Velvet Cake Truffles

I made red velvet cupcakes for a church dinner (a future post!) and decided to make cake truffles with some of them. I've never had much luck dipping chocolate, but I read tips from several blogs then purchased some decent chocolate and followed the package directions for melting it. I was pleased with the results, and these truffles will go to my husband's staff for Valentine's Day.

Red Velvet Cake Truffles
3 cups red velvet cake crumbs
1/2 cup cream cheese frosting
Baker’s Premium White Chocolate Baking squares

Make crumbs with food processor. Mix thoroughly with frosting till crumbs are completely moist and hold together well. Form as many 1 inch balls as possible – I got about three dozen. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm – I did mine overnight.

Melt chocolate according to package directions; dip balls into melted chocolate, gently shake off excess, and carefully place on waxed paper. Let set until firm. I garnished with alternating drizzles of melted dark and white chocolate. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.

Carrot Cake Whoopie Pies

I like to think of these cookies as good for me because of the amount of carrots they contain. . They are delicious on their own with no filling, but these were going to church with me, so they got the whoopie pie treatment. They are crispy on the edges and soft and moist inside, and the flavor is certainly carrot cake-like.

Flour's Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

For those of us who grew up on pineapple upside-down cake made with Duncan Hines cake mix and canned pineapple rings with a maraschino cherry in the middle, Joanne Chang's Flour Bakery version represents everything good about adapting a 1960s recipe to today's trends. The combination of fresh pineapple and "real" caramel with a rustic butter cake simply changed my mind forever about pineapple upside-down cake.

This was my first attempt at caramel, and the richness and flavor it imparted to the cake was amazing. The cake baked into the caramel/pineapple mixture, creating wonderful caramelized bites of buttery goodness--I know that sounds hokey, but it's the best description I have.

Warm and Creamy Bacon Dip

While looking for appetizer recipes for my Appetizers and Desserts Buffet Christmas Party, I happened upon this recipe on the Daisy Brand sour cream website and loved the name of it! What is not to love about a dip with bacon and the words "warm and creamy"? Although I used other recipes for my party, I decided to try this one on New Year's Eve.