Hot Wing Macaroni and Cheese

I saw a similar dish at Publix for close to $6 for a tiny half pint container - pshaw! I thought to myself, " I can make this for about $6 for a full-size casserole pan"! And indeed I did!

Mr. Right declared that it is life-changing mac and cheese, and was quickly seconded by some of our sweet friends. My boss paid over $20 for a bowl of hot wing mac and cheese at a fancy-schmancy restaurant in Chicago (granted, it had truffle oil, but should mac & cheese really be that fancy? I think not.). Ok, so here's your new favorite recipe:

Hot Wing Mac & Cheese

1 large can white meat chicken, drained
1/2 cup EACH: Frank's hot sauce and ranch dressing
1 8 oz. block cream cheese, softened
2 c. Kraft shredded cheddar cheese with a Touch of Philadelphia
       (plus more for sprinkling on top, if desired)
8 oz. (1/2 a box) of macaroni noodles

First thing's first: preheat your oven to 350, and start boiling those noodles! While the noodles are heating up, mix the hot sauce and chicken in a small skillet over medium, breaking up chunks, until heated through. While your chicken/hot sauce are cooking, put the softened cream cheese and ranch dressing in a big bowl. When the chicken's ready, dump it in the cream cheese bowl, add the shredded cheddar cheese, and mix thoroughly to combine. Your noodles should be ready right about now (I cook mine 8 min. after it first begins to boil), so dump them in with the chicken/cheese mixture. Stir to combine the yummy goodness, then turn into a greased casserole pan (9 x 13 should do just fine) and bake for about 30 minutes. You may want to sprinkle some extra cheese on top to make it pretty, but that's up to you :-)

"The Jam" Lima Beans

1 pkg frozen baby lima beans
1 small onion, chopped
1 can chicken broth,
1 chicken broth can of water
1 heapin' spoonful bacon grease
salt/pepper to taste

Boil all together for 12-15 minutes until beans are soft. No kidding, these are just like Mammaw used to make!

Easiest Fudge in the History of EVER

2-Minute Chocolate Fudge

1 12 oz. bag of semi-sweet chocolate morsels

1 can Eagle brand milk

Microwave at 50% power for 2 minutes and stir to combine. Pour into a greased 8x8 square pan, cool in the refrigerator to harden, then cut into pieces and enjoy! Makes 20 pieces

This is a great base recipe so feel free to add Heath bar chips, finely chopped candied cherries, chopped nuts or whatever else sounds good to you!

Peanut Butter Fudge

2 c. sugar

1/2 c. milk

1 1/3 c. peanut butter

1 jar marshmallow creme

Mix sugar and milk in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil 3 minutes (stirring down the sides), then combine with the peanut butter and marshmallow creme. Carefully turn into a greased 8x8 square pan, cool in refrigerator to harden, and cut into pieces. Makes 20 pieces.

Incredibly rich and luscious - this didn't last but for a few hours at my office!

Semi-Homemade Thin Mint Pie

One of my father in law's favorites! Tastes just like a thin mint, can be made ahead, and is perfect after a heavy holiday meal!

1 box jello no-bake oreo dessert

peppermint extract (about 1 tsp)

green food coloring

chocolate pie shell

crushed peppermint candies or oreo cookies(optional)

1. Open the box and throw out the packet of chocolate crumbs that you're supposed to make a crust with. Use a store-bought chocolate pie crust instead - it'll cut prettier!

2. Mix up the filling following the instructions on the box. Before you stir in the oreo pieces, add a good splash of peppermint extract (about 1 tsp or more) and 6 drops green food coloring. Stir in oreo pieces like it says to on the box.

3. Spoon filling into the chocolate pie shell and top with crushed peppermint candies or oreos, if desired, and refrigerate/freeze as directed.

* Remember to thaw a little before serving to make cutting easier!

Girlie Food

This weekend, my sweet friend Allegra came to stay with us while her boyfriend and TJ went dirt bike riding. Girlie weekend - woo hoo!

Anyway, here's what was on the menu - meals that were delicious and easy to prepare ahead of time. Try them the next time your friends come in town!

Cold Pea Salad

1 pkg. steam in bag peas, cooked and drained

3/4 c. light sour cream

1 T. dill

3 ribs celery, finely chopped

1/4 c. finely chopped onion or a couple dashes of onion powder

salt and pepper to taste

Mix ingredients together and refrigerate overnight for best flavor. Serve with chicken salad (below) on a lettuce leaf.

Chicken Salad

1 16 oz. pkg. canned white meat chicken, drained

1/4 c. sweet pickle relish

2 ribs celery, finely chopped

1/4 c. chopped onion or dash of onion powder

1/2 c. mayonnaise

salt and pepper to taste

Mix and refrigerate overnight for best flavor. Be sure to use lots of pepper!

Swiss and Onion Quiche

1 9" frozen pie crust

1 large onion, sliced and cooked in butter until sweet and golden

2 c. shredded swiss cheese

3 eggs, beaten

1 c. half and half cream

salt and pepper to taste (I just used pepper, as the cheese is rather salty on its own)

Bake at 425 for 10-12 minutes, then lower heat to 325 and bake an additional 30-35 minutes. Test with a knife or toothpick for doneness.

Chicken Divan

1 pkg. fresh chicken tenders, cut into bite size pieces

1 pkg. steam in bag broccoli florets

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 - 1 c. mayonnaise

2 c. shredded cheddar cheese

pepper to taste

Boil chicken bites until cooked through. While chicken is boiling, cook the broccoli and form a broccoli layer in a 9 x 11 casserole pan. After chicken has cooked, drain it and distribute evenly over the broccoli. Mix the soup, mayo and cheese together in a bowl, season with pepper, and spoon evenly on top of the casserole. Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes until cooked through and bubbly around the edges. (I made mine the night before so all I had to do was put it in the oven.)

She'd brought 2 bottles of red wine and chocolate truffles, and m'dears, it was a FABULOUS weekend!

Deep South Scotch Eggs

Thanks so much for stopping by for Gollum's Foodie Friday!

I hope you'll come back and look forward to reading your recipes this week!

Some of you will remember that my parents took us to Nashville's Gaylord Opryland Hotel for Christmastime this year. While there, my husband, brother in law and I ventured over to Findley's Irish Pub - and TJ discovered Scotch eggs! The three of us were hungry for a late dinner and ordered "snicky snacks" from the menu: Matt got potato soup, TJ got a bucket of assorted "bangers" (sausages), and I ordered Scotch eggs. Mine was the best, HANDS DOWN, and after eating the one teensy-weensy little bit I shared with him, TJ couldn't keep away from my little fried treats!

I realize that none of that has anything to do with Foodie Friday's recipe, but I thought I'd give you some context. Please forgive me, I do have a tendency to "go on" sometimes!

At any rate, I saw that Rainey from The Project Table posted a recipe for Scotch eggs at last week's Foodie Friday and KNEW I had to try it. After reading through her excellent instructions, the eggs didn't look too hard to make so I thought I'd give it a go, adding a Southern twist. You see, TJ's cut his carb count to almost nil so the breadcrumbs on the outside of these little jewels would have to go - OR WOULD THEY!?

(oh no she didn't!)

(oh YES I DID!)

I substituted crushed "hot" pork cracklings for the breadcrumbs and they turned out wonderfully!

TJ was impressed, I was proud of myself, and even the Bodacious Bean ate a few bites. I made a sauce to go with them: 1.5 T. mayonnaise, 1T. lite sour cream, 1 tsp. yellow mustard (cause that's what we had!), 1 tsp. dried dill and 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper.

The fast version of Rainey's Recipe is below. Honestly though, click over to her blog and check it out for yourself. Her step-by-step pictures are so much easier to understand!

1. Boil 6 eggs until they are hard-cooked (about 8-10 min. after the water has come to a boil), and peel them. *Did you know that putting your eggs in when the water is still cold will prevent that unattractive green ring around the outside of the yolk? My husband didn't, and thought that was a neat trick!
2. Wrap each peeled hard-boiled egg with enough bulk pork sausage to completely cover it. I used a small palmful, and found that 1 lb. sausage will cover approximately 6 eggs.
3. Coat the sausage-covered eggs in crushed pork cracklings or breadcrumbs, and place on a greased baking sheet.
4. Bake at 425 for 25 min. or until done. (Time will depend on how thick your sausage layer is) Voila!

Crazy Sherry's Mac and Cheese

Thanks for stopping by for Gollum's Foodie Friday! I'm honored that you clicked over, and hope you'll check out the rest of the blog for interesting family-friendly recipes we love! Some were successes, some are waiting to be improved upon, but I try to always leave my own personal story or comments so you have some context when reading through the recipes.

This week, I'd like to share Crazy Sherry's Mac and Cheese. See, I have this friend (Sherry) who is a NUT! She is fun-loving, spontaneous, and wheels her SUV all over our fair city with all the verve and passion of a NASCAR driver. She has two kids, a fiery redheaded and a new little dude whose flowing curly hair is approaching Fabio proportions! Sherry is an avid consignment seller/shopper and always knows what's going on with upcoming sales, bargains, and childrens events. It's amazing that she even has time to cook, but graciously shared her mac and cheese recipe which, I have to admit, is outstanding. It's easy (yay!) and much creamier than my great-aunt's more "homestyle" traditional mac and cheese. I like to stir in a handful of frozen peas (for color) and usually don't add the cracker topping because I have a "thing" about toppings on mac and cheese. On occasion, I have contemplated adding a small pouch of tuna but am afraid I'll mess it up; and seriously, this stuff is so good you'll be afraid to mess around with it too! Now, without further adieu, here's Crazy Sherry's Mac and Cheese:

8 oz. macaroni noodles

1 c. mayonnaise (any kind)

3 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1/4 finely chopped onion (can sub. dried minced onion)

1 can cream of mushroom (we use cream of chicken) soup

1 sleeve Ritz crackers, crushed

1 T. melted butter

Boil noodles until almost al dente and drain. While noodles are going, lightly spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick spray or grease with butter/margarine. Mix noodles, mayo, cheese, onion and soup and turn into the baking dish. Mix crushed crackers with butter and sprinkle evenly over noodles. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until bubbly. Thanks Sherry!