It’s almost time to set off those fireworks! The 4th is by far one of my favorite holidays – there’ nothing like the smell of the grill, warm sunshine on my skin and being surrounded by family and friends. I’ll be bopping around this weekend – cooking (of course) and hoping to get in a little beach time as well.
With BBQ’s and parties right around the corner, I’ve put together a tasty compilation of celebratory treats. What are you up to for the holiday? Any special dishes you’re planning to make?
I’m skiing in the White Mountains this weekend, but my buddy Mike from Beardy Lollipop has been kind enough to guest post – he’s a hilarious guy and has a great recipe for a delicious last minute Super Bowl crowd pleaser! Enjoy!
Seeing that this blog has the name “Beantown” in it, I’m guessing a lot of local readers are underwhelmed or disappointed in this year’s Super Bowl.
Perhaps you’ll even gamble in an attempt to enjoy the game. Bodog has a number of fantastic props you can wager on including:
Will Christina Aguilera wear a cowboy hat while singing the National Anthem?
What Color will the Gatorade be that is dumped on the Head Coach of the Winning Super Bowl Team?
Who will the Super Bowl MVP of the Game thank first?
Will Fergie be dressed as a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader at any point during the Halftime show?
What will the TV Rating be for the Super Bowl?
Which Super Bowl commercial will have a higher rating on USA Today’s annual Ad Meter?
Speaking of adverts, others will turn to the commercials for entertainment. Unfortunately, Super Bowl ads have gone downhill since they stopped the Bud Bowl. For every Robert Goulet, you have a dozen Sales Genies. Here’s evidence that the TV spots are a crapshoot at best:
You can take entertainment chances with coin or commercials, but never gamble with food. If you want a Super Bowl snack that takes less than a halftime show to make and is lead pipe lock to please palates, look no further than Buffalo Chicken.
What you’ll need:
Two pounds chicken breast tenders
Ground cayenne pepper
One 23oz bottle of your favorite hot sauce
One stick of butter
Directions:
Buffalo sauce:
Empty the entire hot sauce bottle into a medium size saucepan.
Add the stick up butter to the saucepan.
Place the saucepan on the stovetop over medium heat and melt the butter while occasionally stirring the butter/hot sauce mix.
After the butter melts, cover and set aside the Buffalo sauce mixture in a large mixing bowl.
Chicken:
Rub cayenne pepper on the chicken tenders (Note: For a mild taste, use the pepper sparingly. For a more intense heat, sprinkle a liberal amount of pepper).
Cover the chicken, place it in the refrigerator and let the rub set for approximately 20 minutes.
Preheat the grill to medium heat.
Lightly oil the grill grate. Grill chicken tenders 5 minutes per side, or until juices run clear. They cook quickly, so watch them closely.
Transfer the cooked chicken to the large mixing bowl and thoroughly coat the chicken with the Buffalo sauce.
Place the chicken on a platter with carrots, celery, blue cheese and ranch dressing.
Devour!
Clearly, Buffalo Chicken is the only thing from western New York that succeeds in the big game. Make sure this one is in your game day playbook and maybe pickup some Genesee Cream Ale to cool off. Enjoy the game!
LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE!!!! With T-minus 2 days ’till kick-off, it’s time to plan your Super Bowl food line-up. If high school cheering taught me anything, it’s to B-E aggressive, push ‘em back and W-I-N! So be so aggressive with your food that you have to push ‘em back from the table to watch the game and everyone will W-I-N . Too much of a stretch? Well, it’s Friday – throw me a bone .
If you’re looking for some game day classics and you’re stuck at chips and dip, I’ve compiled a few favorites that are sure to be a TOUCHDOWN at any Superbowl party.
De-fense is the best offense, so plan early and hit up the supermarket for your ingredients before Sunday – it’s sure to be a mob scene. Best of luck to the readers with playing teams this year and cheers to beers & good for for the rest of us! Remember, “winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.”
T-minus 13 hours until 2011 – can you believe it? 2010 flew by but it was filled with many wonderful trips, experiences and a heck of a lotta good food . In 2010 I started this blog , celebratedafewfunholidays, weekended in ME, had a blast at my family reunion in Canada, entered a Salsa Showdown and a Cookie Bake-off, hiked & stayed in the White Mountains, N.H., learned about organics and sustainable food at the Boston Local Food Fest, saw Bobby Flay cook live in Washington, D.C. and thoroughly enjoyed cooking & baking for family and friends…what a year!
Of those that I’ve posted (yes, some just don’t make it on here for one reason or another), here are my top five favorite recipes for 2010…in no particular order:
I had a great time celebrating with my own family in CT and MA, and am back home on vacation for the week . Santa was very good to this girl and I’m so excited to try out some of my new gifts. For the kitchen, I received a cheese grater, pretty trivets and pot holders, funcookbooks, an apron, a subscription to Cooking Light and a garlic peeler/grater, amongst other things .
One of the neatest gifts I received was this platter and mug set:
So fun!!!
For my family in CT, Christmas Eve is the big holiday to celebrate together. There’s 21 of us and we all dine around one awesomely large, square table:
It’s the perfect shape for everyone to see each other, talk (make toasts, sing carols (Kelly ) and enjoy each other’s company. Oh, and to eat! There was so much delicious food! From cranberry stuffed pork to persimmon salad, chocolate cake to crema (flan) we all left will full stomachs. I of course wanted to contribute a little something, so I made chocolate and cinnamon dipped pretzels – perfect for holiday snacking .
The whole holiday (3 days of family & friends) was wonderful, spent with some of my favorite people in the world.
With only a few days left until the New Year, I’m spending this week relaxing, reacquainting myself with the gym, cooking and reflecting on the wonderful people and experiences in my life.
T-minus 3.5 days until Christmas! Wait, wasn’t it just Thanksgiving? The season has certainly flown by, but I feel good knowing I’ve indulged in a few of my favorite holiday festivities: a few Christmas parties, decorating the tree with the fam and a lovely ugly sweater pub crawl (legen – wait for it – dary).
I even made sure to bake up some yummy Gingerbread Cookies to decorate with the bf . I nabbed this recipe from Paula Dean on FoodNetwork.com. The whole process is quite easy, but you do need to refrigerate the dough for about an hour and then let it rest table-side for another 15 minutes – definitely something to keep in mind if you’re planning to make these at the last minute (which I was, obviously).
Another thing to keep in mind is to stick to the ¼ inch rolling (too thin and you’ll burn them…… which I learned after two trays) and skimp on the flour in the recipe. After reading the comments, which you should always do before getting started, it sounded like most people ended up with dough that was too dry and later paired down the amount of flour. The recipe below reflects that change.
Decorating is of course the best part . I made stockings, stars, snow men, candy canes and gingerbread men. Two favorites:
These cookies are perfect for curling up next to a fire (or Yankee candle) and watching an old school Christmas movie (or the Patriots game ).
Enjoy!
Ingredients:
For the cookies:
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 stick salted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1/4 cup molasses
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting work surface
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
For the icing:
1 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1 to 2 tablespoons milk
Food coloring
Assorted Christmas sprinkles
Directions:
Using a hand mixer, cream the brown sugar and butter in a large bowl until thoroughly combined.
Mix in the eggs and molasses.
Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a separate large bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix with a spoon.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator until firm, about 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Let the dough sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes, until pliable.
Line 3 cookies sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat. Take about 1/2 cup dough at a time and roll on a floured surface until – to 1/4-inch thick.
Cut out shapes with cookie cutters. Re-roll the scraps and roll out more dough; repeat.
Using a spatula, transfer the cookies to the prepared cookie sheets, leaving space between them.
Refrigerate the cookies for 20 minutes, then bake until they just begin to brown at the edges, 11 to 15 minutes.
Cool slightly, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
Meanwhile, you can begin the icing . Combine the confectioners’ sugar and milk in a bowl.
Leave white or divide among bowls and add food coloring.
Decorate the cooled cookies with icing – you can use a pastry bag for precise features or lining or use a knife yo spread. Top with sprinkle and enjoy!
4 days until Halloween! I guess it’s time I get on the ‘treat’ part of this trick or treat train . I’m not big into Halloween festive foods that look like bloody fingers, eye balls or bat wings – even the titles make me squirmish. No, I much prefer my Halloween treats as just that, treats….with lots of sugar . I’ve been trying to up my baking game and figured real buttercream frosting would be the next step. In persusing Google reader, I found a short and easy recipe from Brown Eyes Baker that would be a perfect topping for cupcakes. I was obviously in a rush when I made these babies, so I went with a white cake box mix and dyed it orange. The buttercream would have to take my time and focus . The end result was perfect – sooo buttery and delicious (thanks to two whole sticks of butter). Man, that Paula Dean sure has something right . A last minute topping of candy corn added the final touch to these Halloween treats. Warning: Buttercream is apparently addictive, so pass these out or risk eating them all! (personal experience :/ ). Enjoy!
Ingredients:
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
2½ cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
Directions:
Prepare cupcakes according to package directions, dye orange and bake. Let the cupcakes cool for a good 15 minutes before frosting.
Using the wire whisk attachment of your stand mixer, whip the butter on medium-high speed for 5 minutes, stopping to scrape the bowl once or twice.
Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the powdered sugar.
Once all of the powdered sugar is incorporated, increase the speed to medium-high and add the vanilla, mixing until incorporated.
In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the semi-sweet chocolate; stirring to prevent burning and let cool.
Add the melted chocolate and whip at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed to incorporate all of the chocolate.
Spoon the buttercream into a pastry bag or Ziploc bag with a snipped tip. Decorate and top with candy corn.
Aaaannndd we’re back! What an awesome weekend (and two extra days!) I had. BBQ in Ct, beach in Maine, food, friends, sun, surf…and did I mention food?? . It was a much needed mini vaca and I’m back feeling refreshed and full! I remembered to bring my camera, so instead of giving you a wordy post, I’ve included a sampling of great pics below.
Enjoy!
Red, White & Blue 4th of July Cupcakes (full recap to come!)
Whelp, kiddos – the 4th is almost here! I have a fun-packed weekend (and a little extra vaca time woohoo!) to be spent in Ct and Maine – can.not.wait! Per usual, I’ll want to bring a little something special (read: sweet treat) along for the occasion. Are you in the same boat? Well, I’ve been perusing some my favorite foodie blogs for inspiration and have rounded up a few great options for ya as well.
. Too much of a stretch? Well, it’s Friday – throw me a bone 
.
