CARAMELIZED FRENCH ONION DIP

One of my family members gave me this recipe, and I don't know if it's better to have warm when its just done or after a few days of sitting. I love it both ways, after it's been in the fridge(if it makes it there) let it warm up a bit before you eat it, This dip is addicting you will love it and it's worth the time to really cook the onions.

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) salted butter

1 medium sweet onion, cut into 1/2-inch-thick rings

Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon honey

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/4 cup dry vermouth or dry white wine

3/4 cup sour cream

1/4 cup (2 ounces) cream cheese, at room temperature

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh chives, plus more for garnish

Dash of cayenne pepper

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Add the butter to a larger heavy skillet.

Heat the skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions, 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Fry the onions, flipping them now and then, until they're dark on the edges, even black and crispy in spots, about 10 minutes. Add the honey and garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the vermouth, bring to a simmer and cook until the liquid thickens, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool.
Put the sour cream and cream cheese in a mixing bowl and mix with a rubber spatula until smooth. Finely chop the fried onions on a cutting board and add them, along with their pan juices, to the cream cheese mixture. Stir in the chives. Add the cayenne and season with salt.
Transfer to a small bowl and garnish with more chives. (This can be made ahead of time and refrigerated.)

ENJOY!
Allison

BEST BAKED BEANS EVER!!!

Do you think you can't improve on your best baked bean recipe? Well think again my friends. We have been making this bean recipe for years and it is a HIT at any gathering. Your family will Love this. This can be a meal by itself with a nice crusty bread, or a fantastic side dish. Super duper easy, just put every thing in the crock pot and let er go.

Oh by the way I could not find a butter bean at the grocery store to save my soul. So just improvise if you have to I used northern beans instead.

HERE IS WHAT YOU NEED
1/2 lb ground beef and 1/2 cup chopped onion browned and drained
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 cup BBQ sauce
  2 Tbsp. mustard
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 16oz can kidney beans, drained
1 16oz can pork and beans, drained
1 16oz can butter beans, drained
Save sum of the juice from the beans in a small cup for later
Mix and but into the crock pot on low for about 2-3 hours till hot and bubbly. or if your in a real hurry mix and bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees
Use some of the liquid from the beans to add during cooking if you would like it a little more soupy. but don't add it right away till they cook for a while and you see the consistency. that's it they are done.
Enjoy!
Allison

BAT WINGS

I saw this recipe on BHG and I made it last year These were a huge hit at the party! My picture did not turn out so this is the one BHG had on there site. I may make these again for the grand kids this week when they come over but I not sure yet.
Ingredients
20 chicken wings (3-1/2 pounds)
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon five spice powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 recipe Swamp Dip
Directions
1. Place wings in a plastic bag set in a shallow dish. In a small bowl stir together soy sauce, ginger, crushed red pepper, five spice powder and garlic. Pour over wings. Close bag and toss to coat. Chill in refrigerator several hours or overnight, turning bag occasionally. Remove wings from bag, reserving marinade.

2. Place wings on a foil-lined 15x10x1-inch baking pan. Bake, uncovered, in a 450 degree F oven for 10 minutes. Brush with reserved marinade (discard remaining marinade). Bake 15 to 20 minutes longer or until chicken is tender and no longer pink. Serve with Swamp Dip. Makes 20 appetizers.



Swamp Dip: In a small bowl stir together a 8-ounce container of dairy sour cream and 3 tablespoons coarse ground mustard. Garnish with fresh whole chives. Serve with bat wings.

Enjoy!
Allison
Allisonskitchen.blogspot.com

DO YOU LIKE CANDY CORN?

Okay Tell me what you think. Do you like candy corn or not? I can take it or leave it, but I won't go out of my way to buy any, Here are some facts on this sweet treat.

For those of us over the age of 25, when you think of Halloween candy you think of candy corn, those sugary little spikes of Halloween cheer. They've been around for as long as I remember and even as long as my grandparents remember but did you know that they were invented in the 1880's? Who the first person to make these tasty treats was is unknown but the Wunderle Candy Company of Philadelphia was the first to go into commercial production. However, the company most closely associated with this wonderful confection is the Goelitz Confectionery Company. Founder Gustav Goelitz, a German immigrant, began commercial production of the treat in 1898 in Cincinnati and is today the oldest manufacturer of the Halloween icon.

Candy corn was originally sold in bulk containers like most foods products of the time. They were packed in wooden buckets, tubs, and cartons to be delivered by wagon and train over relatively short distances. Perishability prevented widespread distribution.

During WWI, Herman Goelitz, son of Gustav, moved to Fairfield, California to start his own company, the Herman Goelitz Candy Company. Their product? Candy Corn! The fortune of the Halloween treat would rise and fall many times as recession and boom, war and peace, affected the humble confection. Throughout the hard times it was the sale of candy corn that kept the companies afloat. In the sugar crisis of the mid 1970's when the price of raw sugar skyrocketed the company had to borrow heavily to buy sugar to keep production up. After the crisis the market plummeted. Many companies went out of business. It was demand for the candy corn that kept Goelitz from bankruptcy.

according to the National Confectioners Association, in 2001 candy manufacturers sold more than 20 million pounds of candy corn. Roughly 8.3 billion kernels! Very impressive for a product that has remained virtually unchanged for well over 100 years.

Perhaps best of all, everyone can feel comfortable about enjoying tasty kernel or two. According to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, candy is no different than a slice of bread, bowl of cereal or a cracker when it comes to causing tooth decay. Any food that contains sugar or starch can cause tooth decay – especially if one doesn’t brush and floss daily. So grab a bag of candy corn and enjoy. Just remember to brush your teeth after.

Candy corn has 3.57 calories per kernel
Halloween accounts for 75% of the annual candy corn production
Candy corn isn't just for Halloween there is also:
Reindeer corn for Christmas (red, green, and white)
Indian corn (it's chocolate and vanilla flavored)
Cupid corn for Valentine's Day (red, pink, and white)
Bunny corn for Easter (pastel-colored)
That's all for now.
Enjoy!
Allison
allisonskitchen.blogspot.com

BUBBLING CAULDRON

Well I was going to move on from Halloween but it's soooo much fun.
and I have soooo many Halloween recipes.


1package (16 ounces) processed cheese
2cans (15 ounces each) black beans, well drained
1cup medium or hot salsa
1can (4 ounces) diced jalapenõ peppers, drained (optional)
2loaves (18 ounces each) round marble rye bread, unsliced
Pretzel rods
Cocktail rye or pumpernickel bread slices

Preparation:
1.Melt cheese in medium saucepan over low heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir in beans, salsa and jalapeño peppers, if desired. Carefully cut center out of bread, leaving 1-1/2-inch shell. Cut bread center into pieces for dipping.

2.Reserve 1 pretzel rod. Arrange remaining pretzel rods on serving plate to resemble campfire logs. Place bread cauldron on pretzels; fill with cheese dip, allowing some to spill over top of bread cauldron. Arrange bread pieces and cocktail bread around cauldron. Place reserved pretzel rod in cheese dip; serve immediately.

Tip: Use your favorite Halloween cookie cutters to cut scary shapes from the cocktail bread.
enjoy
allison
allisonskitchen.blogspot.com

PUMPKIN SOUP

A friend of mine was on a trip to Aruba and she ate at Boonoonoonoos and she had the best ever Pumpkin Soup! The restaurant was kind enough to share the recipe. I have not tried this yet but now is the time.

BOONOONOONOOS CARIBBEAN BISTRO,ARUBA
Pumpkin
Gouda Cheese
Heavy Cream
Salt & Pepper

Cut the pumpkin and take out the seeds. Peel the pumpkin and cut it into cubes. Boil the cubes until they are soft. Separate the boiling water and boiled pumpkin, and blend the pumpkin-meat. Put the blended pumpkin in a pan and add heavy cream, black pepper and salt (to taste). Finish the blended pumpkin with boiled water to get a creamy soup. Top with shredded Gouda cheese and add the Caribbean touch by adding sugar to taste.

To really show off this dish, empty the inside of a pumpkin and pour the soup into the shell. This makes a beautiful dinner center piece.
Enjoy
Allison

HALLOWEEN IS COMING

Okay folks, dust off your brooms Halloween is on its way!!!
So here is some Halloween trivia for you.

Jack o’ lanterns originated in Ireland where people placed candles in hollowed-out turnips to keep away spirits and ghosts on the Samhain holiday.

Halloween was brought to North America by immigrants from Europe who would celebrate the harvest around a bonfire, share ghost stories, sing, dance and tell fortunes.

Tootsie Rolls were the first wrapped penny candy in America

The ancient Celts thought that spirits and ghosts roamed the countryside on Halloween night. They began wearing masks and costumes to avoid being recognized as human.

Halloween candy sales average about 2 billion dollars annually in the United States

If you see a spider on Halloween, it is the spirit of a loved on watching over you.

Halloween is on October 31st, the last day of the Celtic calendar. It was originally a pagan holiday, honoring the dead. Halloween was referred to as All Hallows Eve and dates back to over 2000 years ago.
Well that's all for now more later as I get into the "Spirit" of things.