Beer Brat Chili

This caught my eye in Taste of Home too.  Nice way to combine summer and fall.  I may add a beer to the recipe for some extra flavor.  It certainly couldn't hurt.

1 15oz. can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 15oz. can Southwestern black beans, undrained
1 15oz. can white kidney beans or cannellini beans
1 14.5oz. can Italian diced tomatoes, undrained
1 10oz. can diced tomatoes and green chiles, undrained
1 14oz. pkg. fully cooked bratwurst, sliced
1 1/2 C. frozen corn
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped
1/4 C. chili seasoning
1 garlic clove, minced

Combine all ingredients in your slow cooker.  Cook, covered, on low 5-6 hours.

Makes 8 servings: Per serving--383 calories, 16g. fat, 34mg. cholesterol, 1256mg. sodium, 42g. carbs, 10g. fiber, 17g. protein.

Texas Tabbouleh

I have been trying to eat better, getting away from a sandwich and/or salad at lunch and while I love some soup...sometimes there's not enough protein and fiber to keep me going till my afternoon snack.  I know, I have big problems!  LOL  I saw this recipe in the Sept/Oct Taste of Home.  I've never tried bulgur...we'll see how it goes. ;-)

1 C. bulgur
2 c. boiling water
3 medium tomatoes
1 C. finely chopped red onion
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 C. chopped sweet red pepper
1/2 C. chopped green pepper
2 jalepeno peppers, seeded and chopped
1/2 C. fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
1/4 C. lime juice
3 tbsp. canola oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper
1 15oz. can black beans,
rinsed and drained
1 C. crumbled queso fresco or feta cheese

Place bulgur in a large bowl; stir in boiling water.  Let stand, covered, 30 minutes, or until bulgur is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.  Drain well, pressing out excess water.  Cool completely.

Stir in tomatoes, onions, peppers, cilantro, lime juice, oil and seasonings.  Add beans, toss to combine.  Refrigerate, covered, at least 30 minutes.  Serve with cheese.

This recipe makes 10 servings: Per serving--139 calories, 4g. fat, 4mg. cholesterol, 161mg. sodium, 21g. carbs, 5g. fiber, 6g. protein.

Sweet Potato Hash

OK, Chris had a sweet potato hash when we were out last night at a local restaurant with andouille sausage.  I am making this for my mother in law and didn't want to go that spicy so I got some mild chorizo.  It may need some tweaking but here is what I have so far.

7 large sweet potatoes cut into something between a match stick and a dice
1 large green pepper, diced
1 large red pepper, diced
1 large purple pepper, diced (if you cannot find purple toss in an orange or yellow)
1 large onion, diced
14oz. mild chorizo
Salt and pepper to taste
Juice of 1 lime

Saute sweet potatoes.  I used garlic infused grapeseed oil.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Also, brown chorizo.  Once chorizo is browned use paper towels to drain grease.  Once the sweets start to soften, I removed them from the heat and sauteed the peppers and onions until the onions are translucent. Toss potatoes, other veggies and chorizo until well blended.  Pour into a covered baking dish and bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.  When you pull it from the oven, squeeze the lime over the top.

I am kicking myself for not taking a photo because the colors were beautiful.  Guess I'll have to make it again.

Pasta Fagioli

OK, I realize it's been cooler than normal lately and I can eat soup any day...this looks tasty.  I am currently restricted to things I can eat on a fork or spoon in small bites due to some minor surgery...I might have to whip this up.

• Pasta Fagioli slow cooker crock pot version... just like Olive Garden
  
  
  2 lbs ground beef
  1 onion, chopped...
  3 carrots, chopped
  4 stalks celery, chopped
  2 (28 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
  1 (16 ounce) can red kidney beans, drained
  1 (16 ounce) can white kidney beans, drained
  3 (10 ounce) cans beef stock
  3 teaspoons oregano
  2 teaspoons pepper
  5 teaspoons parsley
  1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce (optional)
  1 (20 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
  8 ounces pasta
  Directions:
  
  1
  Brown beef in a skillet.
  2
  Drain fat from beef and add to crock pot with everything except pasta.
  3
  Cook on low 7-8 hours or high 4-5 hours.
  4
  During the last hour, add pasta, turn to high if not there already, cook until pasta is al dente.

Mediterranean Tortellini Salad

OK, the prepared pesto in this recipe is going to be the stuff I made and froze a couple of weeks ago.  The recipe for it is here in the blog.  I may have enough basil to do one more batch this season...or maybe I can scam some of my Mom's.  This is another recipe from Simple and Delicious August/September 2013.  I could see this being a delicious end of summer lunch.

1 19oz. pkg. frozen tortellini
1 14oz. pkg. smoke turkey sausage, sliced
3/4 C. prepared pesto
2 C. fresh baby spinach, chopped
2 C. sliced baby portobello mushrooms
1 15oz. can white kidney or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 C. roasted sweet red peppers, chopped
1 C. crumbled feta cheese
1/4 C. pitted Greek olives, sliced

Cook tortellini according to package directions.

Meanwhile in a large nonstick skillet, coated with cooking spray, cook and stir sausage over medium heat 6-7 minutes or until lightly browned.  Place in a large bowl.

Drain tortellini; add to the sausage.  Stir in pesto.  Add spinach, mushrooms, beans, peppers, cheese and olives; toss to combine.  Serve warm or refrigerate until cold.  (I will serve this cold for sure!)

Butterfinger Cookie Bars

OK, I am not really planning for holiday baking 2013 just yet but I may have to try these little lovelies very very soon.  This is in the August/September issue of Simple and Delicious.  Butterfinger bars are among my favorite candy bars.  This won't be a WW friendly cookie but sometimes you just need to live a little...or work out a little so you can eat a couple of these guilt free!

1 pkg. dark chocolate cake mix
1 C. all purpose flour
1 pkg. instant chocolate pudding mix
1 tbsp. baking cocoa
1/2 C. 2% milk
1/3 C. canola oil
1/3 C. butter, melted
2 eggs
6 Butterfinger candy bars (2.1oz. each), divided
1 1/2 C. chunky peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 C. semisweet chocolate chips, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, flour, pudding mix, and cocoa.  In another bowl, whisk milk, oil, butter and 1 egg until blended.  Add to dry ingredients; stir until just moistened.  Press half of mixture into a greased 15x10x1inch baking pan.  Bake 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, chop 2 candy bars.  Stir peanut butter, vanilla and remaining egg into remaining cake mix mixture.  Fold in chopped bars and 1 C. chocolate chips.

Chop 3 additional candy bars; sprinkle over warm crust and press down gently.  Cover with cake mix mixture; press down firmly with a metal spatula.  Crush remaining candy bar; sprinkle the crushed bar and remaining chips over the top.

Bake 25-30 minutes longer or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool completely on a wire rack.  Cut into bars.  Store in an airtight container.

Blueberry BBQ Sauce

Yes, that's right...blueberry BBQ sauce.  I have the best neighbors.  We pass fruits, veggies, baked goods and meats over the fence on a regular basis.  Yesterday the doorbell rang and it was one of my neighbors with about 6 quarts of Michigan blueberries.  I may have mentioned Michigan blueberries here in the blog once or twice...they are little blue spheres of heaven.  I used to eat them when we would pick them until I had a tummy ache.  There is nothing like a Michigan blueberry...but I digress from the point of this post...BBQ sauce.

I made a BBQ sauce yesterday which I will get to eventually but I wanted to try making one with blueberries.  In my mind, you need a couple of flavors in a BBQ sauce...sweet (blueberries), sour (vinegar), and heat (hmmm, need to figure this one out).

I started with an existing recipe and then made it my own.

2 C. fresh blueberries (sweet)
1/2 C. balsamic vinegar (sour)
3 tbsp. sugar (sweet)
3 tbsp. ketchup
2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp. salt

Those are the ingredients in the original recipe.  I added:

2 tsp. lemon juice (sour)
1/2 tsp. liquid smoke
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (heat)
1/4 tsp. dried chipotle (heat)

Place all ingredients in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer and simmer for 15-25 minutes or until mixture starts to thicken; stirring occasionally.  Let it cool slightly.  Run mixture through a blender.