Sticky Wings

We love wings at our house. I actually am glad there is not a Buffalo Wild Wings in my town or we would be eating there every week I'm sure. I came across this recipe while googling sweet and sticky wings. This is the best wing recipe I have been able to pull off at home and I think it is the method  that is so awesome. I can honestly say I read the recipe through a few times just to be sure I was reading "spray the chicken with Pam" correctly. The sweet sauce is amazing, don't get me wrong, but I can't wait to try this recipe with other sauces and see if they come out just as great. 

Sticky Wings

1/2 c soy sauce

1/2 c honey

1/4 c brown sugar

2 crushed garlic cloves

1 Tbls Louisiana hot sauce

2 Tbls grated fresh ginger

2-3 lbs chicken wings

3/4 c all-purpose flour

Pam canola oil spray

 

Mix soy sauce, honey, brown sugar, garlic, hot sauce, and ginger in a bowl until combined. Put the wings in a large bowl and pour 1/2 of the sauce over the chicken. Toss and refrigerate for 2 hours. Drain the wings well and pat dry with paper towels. Put the flour in a large ziplock bag. Add the wings, close bag and shake. The chicken wings should just be lightly dusted with flour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cover half-sheet pan with foil, and spray well with Pam cooking spray. Place chicken wings evenly on the pan and spray the wings with Pam. Bake for 20 minutes, turn the chicken wings over, and bake for another 15 minutes. Brush remaining sauce over the wings and continue cooking another 20 minutes.

 

Recipe adapted from John Mitzewich

Beef & Bok Choy Lettuce Wraps

I am sure I had never heard of a lettuce wrap, let alone try one, until I moved to the twin cities area as a young adult. When I first saw people eating them as an appetizer at a restaurant I was so confused. Eating meat-filled lettuce with your hands? You have to admit, it would seem a bit odd to a "meat and potatoes" raised, farm girl. Well fast forward 10 years and here I a am feeding lettuce wraps to my family. We love them! Crisp lettuce, flavorful meat and nutrient packed vegetables all rolled up in one meal. We served this as a meal but it could be an appetizer or a side dish. If you don't have bok choy at your grocery store, you can substitute green or red cabbage. Really, any vegetables your family likes can be added to the filling.

Beef & Bok Choy Lettuce Wraps

1 lb ground beef
salt & pepper
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 baby bok choy, cut in thin strips
2 c carrots, peeled into thin strips or shredded
8 oz water chestnuts, cut into strips
1 c green onion, chopped
4 white mushrooms, cut into strips
1/3 c soy sauce
2 Tbls hoisin sauce, stir fry sauce OR sweet & sour sauce
iceberg lettuce

Start by preparing all vegetables. Clean and cut the bok choy, carrots, water chestnuts, onion, garlic and mushroom and set aside.
In a large saute pan, brown beef with salt, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes. Drain excess grease Add vegetables and cook over medium-high heat for about 5 mintutes. Add soy sauce and stir fry sauce and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Serve in lettuce wraps with additional soy or sweet & sour sauce for dipping.

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I love the lettuce wraps at P.F.Chang's and after several failed attempts to eat there in the past couple of weeks I decided to make my own version at home. I am so glad I did! Lettuce cups are the perfect house for the slightly sweet, garlic, ginger chicken. The chicken filling is packed full of great flavors. About a year ago, I had never purchased real ginger root from the grocery store. Now I try to think of more meals that I can make with ginger. These chicken lettuce wraps could be a great appetizer, but they also make a light and delicious mid-week dinner.
Note: I added stir fry rice noodles to this dish but we didn't love the texture in the lettuce wrap so I am leaving them out of the recipe below.
Chicken Lettuce Wraps
2 chicken breasts, chopped
1 Tbs. olive oil
salt/pepper
1 bunch green onions, sliced
2 Tbs. fresh ginger, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 c. mushrooms, chopped
8 oz can water chestnuts, chopped
4 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. sweet and sour sauce
2 Tbs. rice wine vinegar
1 Tbs. lemon juice
2 Tbs. brown sugar
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2 Tbs. ketchup
1 Tbs. dijon mustard
Crisp lettuce
Heat oil in a wok or large skillet, add chicken and season with salt and pepper. Stir occasionally until chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken from pan and set aside. Add onions, ginger, garlic, mushrooms and water chestnuts and saute for 2-3 minutes over medium-high heat. In a separate bowl, whisk together: soy sauce, sweet and sour sauce, rice wine vinegar, lemon juice, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, ketchup and mustard. Pour sauce in pan with the sauted vegetables and add chicken. Simmer for 5 minutes and then scoop into large pieces of lettuce.
Printable Recipe

Potstickers

This was our first adventure in potstickers. A package of round potsticker dough caught my eye in the produce section and I bought it not knowing what it would lead to. I read a lot of recipes and found that pretty much anything goes when it comes to the filling of these delicious dumplings. All of the recipes seemed to have cabbage, onion and ginger in common and the rest is for your imagination. I used every item in my house that seemed asian inspired. (Well everything that is, besides the Italian sausage!) They were a little time consuming to assemble but once we got the hang of it, it was easy. Next time I make these I am going to double the batch and freeze the potstickers right after sealing them closed. That way, we can quickly add these tasty treats to any meal.
Potstickers
2 Italian sausage links, casings removed
1/4 head of cabbage, thinly sliced
1 carrot, shredded
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
2 Tbs. fresh ginger, minced
2 Tbs. sweet and sour sauce
1 Tbs. honey mustard
2 Tbs. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. sesame seed
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 egg
1 pkg. round potsticker skins
vegetable oil for pan
1 c. chicken broth
Break up sausage into small pieces by stirring while browning over medium heat until cooked through. Drain sausage and set aside. In a medium bowl combine cabbage, carrots, onions, garlic, ginger, sweet and sour sauce, mustard, soy sauce, pepper, sesame seed, red pepper flakes, egg and cooked sausage. Take potsticker rounds and brush edge with water. Take a tablespoon of filling and place in the center of the dough. Fold dough over to create a half-moon shape and seal your potsticker by pressing dough together with your fingers. Make up all of your dumplings. You may have to place a damp paper towel over your dough to keep it pliable. (My recipe made about 30 potstickers.) Heat a large skillet pan to medium-high heat and lightly coat with vegetable oil. Working in batches, place potstickers in pan with the sealed side up (you may have to lightly press down to form a flat bottom so they don't tip over). Cook for 2-3 minutes or until lightly browned. Turn dumplings to the side and brown for a minute more. Add about 1/3 c. of chicken broth or enough to cover the bottom of the pan and place a lid over the pan. Steam cook for an additional 2 minutes and serve with your favorite dipping sauce. I like to mix soy sauce with a little bit of honey mustard and crushed red pepper flakes.
Printable Recipe

Spiral Stromboli

So by now, I feel like I've shared most of the Vossen classics with all of you. If I wasn't blogging we would begin to rotate my past recipes through again as I'm sure many of you do in your kitchens. Since my goal is to inspire new kitchen ideas I am forced to go back to my lovely cookbook collection and pick out new material. Since I love looking at new recipes this is a fun chore for me. Tonight I had a short window of time to cook in so this Spiral Stromboli was a perfect recipe to try. It is part sandwich - part pizza and completely delicious. I loved the roasted red pepper and I think onion and olives would also be good in this. We dipped our stromboli in a heated marinara - yum!

Spiral Stromboli
(Adapted from Taste of Home, The Busy Family Cookbook)
1 tube refrigerated crusty French bread
3/4 c. mozzarella
3/4 c. cheddar cheese
1/4 lb. thinly sliced deli turkey
1/4 lb. thinly sliced deli ham
1/4 c. sliced roasted red peppers
1/4 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. parsley
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tbs. olive oil
Carefully unroll bread dough on an ungreased baking sheet making a large rectangle. Leaving a 1/2" border around the sides of the dough, fill the dough with the cheese, topped with the meat and then the pepper and seasoning. Starting with a long side of the dough, roll up into a loaf and tuck the sides in as you go and pinch any seams together to seal the toppings in. Place the seam side down on your baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with a little parmesan cheese (optional). Bake at 375 F for 30-35 minutes. Slice and serve with marinara sauce.
Printable Recipe

Mini Reuben's

Is anyone else finding it hard to watch the Super Bowl?? Obviously, I am if I'm blogging while it is on. Sure the commercials are entertaining but for our house, the food may be the highlight of the night. My mother-in-law brought her famous mini reubens which are so cute and a perfect dish to bring to any party. There were a couple of people at our Super Bowl party who had never had sour kraut before and they bravely tried these reuben's and really liked them. Any petite bread with meat and melted swiss cheese has to be good.

Here's to next year's football season!
Mini Reuben Sandwich
1/4 lb. sliced corn beef
Cocktail pumpernickel bread
1 small can sour kraut
1/4 c. Thousand Island dressing
1/4 lb. swiss cheese slices, quartered
Preheat oven to 375 F. Place 16-20 slices of pumpernickel bread on a baking sheet and spread with a teaspoon of Thousand Island dressing. Place sliced corn beef on each bread; top with a tablespoon of sour kraut and then swiss cheese. Bake for 8-10 minutes.
Printable Recipe

Game Day Potato Skins

Last week I made these bacon-cheddar potato skins for the Vikings game. Since I know almost all of Minnesota will be hosting or attending some sort of football party Sunday night I thought I would pass this recipe on for others to enjoy. Thanks to some bacon grease (sorry - but it works so well) the skins come out nice and crisp. I topped mine with bacon, cheddar cheese and green onions but you can do various toppings.  I should tell you that they are kind of a process to make with three different baking steps, but I did most of the work on Saturday so that on Sunday all I had to do was bake them a final time and cheer for Brett Favre - Skol Vikings!
Crispy Potato Skins
8 small - medium sized russet potatoes
8-10 strips bacon, diced
4 green onions, diced (green stem included)
3 Tbs. butter
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
salt/pepper
seasoned salt
1/2 c. sour cream (optional)

Wash potatoes and pierce 4 times with a fork. Bake at 375 for an hour or until soft. Meanwhile, cook bacon and then drain grease. Keep a small amount of grease for later. When potatoes are cooked and cooled slightly, cut in half, lengthwise and scoop out center of potato, leaving about a 1/4" of potato with the skin. Discard center or use for mashed potatoes. Brush the bottom, skin side of the potato with bacon grease and place on baking sheet. Now brush the center part of the potato with melted butter and season with salt, pepper and any other favorite seasonings. Bake at 425 F for 8-10 minutes. Fill potato boats with bacon, cheese and green onion. (If making in advance, you can now refrigerate filled potato skins and bake the next day). Place filled potato skins on baking sheet and bake at 425 for 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and skins are crisp. Top with sour cream if using.
Printable Recipe

Cowboy Caviar

There are many variations of this homemade salsa, commonly referred to as hobo caviar, Texas caviar, cowboy caviar, etc. I myself have a couple different recipes for it. We had our first Christmas party on Saturday and I brought a big bowl of this dip - it was a crowd-pleaser. (It makes a very large batch.) I love the sweet peppers and refreshing cilantro along with the different types of beans. The best part of this dip is that it is so tasty and you get a full serving of vegetables while enjoying it!

Texas caviar

1 green pepper, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

1 orange pepper, chopped
1 cup chopped green onion ( about 2 bunches)

1 cup celery

1 11-oz can of shoe peg corn, drained

1 small jar jalapenos, or 4-5 fresh jalapenos, seeded and chopped ( i used fresh)

1 can black eyed peas drained and rinsed

1 can black beans drained and rinsed

1 can pinto beans drained and rinsed

Cilantro to taste (approx. 1/2 of a bunch ) - I only added the cilantro shortly before serving!! It doesn't need to sit over night like the rest of the items.

Dressing

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar or rice vinegar

3/4 cup vegetable oil

Mix dressing ingredients in saucepan, bring to a boil and cool. Mix remaining ingredients. Pour dressing over mixture. Refrigerate over night. Drain dressing off before serving. Serve with your favorite chips.