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Name: Spicy Lemon Honey Hot Chicken Pasta
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 4 pieces of BHHY's Hot Chicken; 1 bell pepper, sliced; 1 cup snap peas; 1 cup of sweet corn kernels; 1 tablespoon minced garlic; 2 tablespoon olive oil; 1 slices lemon, cut into; 12 oz of GF pasta; 3 tablespoon butter; 2 tablespoon fresh honey; 1 teaspoon garlic powder; parsley for garnish

Spicy Lemon Honey Hot Chicken Pasta

Mar 14, 2016 · Leave a Comment

This spicy lemon honey hot chicken pasta dish is an amazing light, sweet and spicy pasta dish, topped with juicy, crispy gluten-free hot chicken, for one delicious meal!

Happy monday friends! It's back to the monday grind. After taking a few weeks off to be with my family after my father unexpectedly passed away, it feels good to get back in the kitchen. Cooking is stress relieving to me. It's healing. Maybe I am weird. Very very likely.

It also feels weird to be back in the kitchen because in the middle of the chaos the last week shoveled out to us, we also moved from our townhouse to our dream southern horse farm (in disguise - it needs some work!). So my awesome MIL thoughtfully unpacked my new big, bright kitchen for me while I was away. And I LOVE it (an understatement) but I am still getting used to where the cups are, how the oven cooks, and figuring out if I had combined both paprika shakers together before I left town (seriously, where did that second shaker go?). I should really do a post on new house kitchen cooking fails (starting with burnt cookies).

Right now comfort foods are all the rage with my frazzled mind. And carbs. Carbs are my friend ~~right now~~ always. And that's okay. Especially when the carbs are part of this spicy lemon honey hot chicken pasta dish! The pasta is coated in a sweet and spicy lemon honey sauce with chili pepper, butter, and garlic tagging along for the ride. Then it is topped with my most favorite Gluten-Free Baked Hot Chicken, which is the best breaded chicken I have ever had with it's spicy and crunchy outer goodness and inner juiciness. It's truly the best combination for a light and fresh Spring pasta dish that compliments the temps as they start to warm up!

Spicy Lemon Honey Hot Chicken Pasta

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

4 pieces of BHHY's Hot Chicken
1 bell pepper, sliced
1 cup snap peas
1 cup of sweet corn kernels
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 slices lemon, cut into
12 oz of GF pasta
3 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoon fresh honey
1 teaspoon garlic powder
parsley for garnish

Instructions

Follow instructions for the Hot Chicken. While the Hot Chicken is baking, cook the pasta according to package instructions.
While the pasta is cooking, add the olive oil and minced garlic to a skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the bell pepper, snap peas, and corn. Cook until the veggies start to become tender. Once the veggies become tender, squeeze ⅓ of the lemon over the skillet and drop the rest of the lemon into the skillet as thin slices and allow to continue cooking with the rest of the veggies.
Once the noodles are done, drain them, add the butter and honey and stir until the butter is melted and mixed. Add the garlic power to the noodles, stir, and then add the noodles to the warm veggies.
Place your hot chicken over your pasta a nd veggies and garnish with fresh parsley.

Gluten-Free Baked Nashville Hot Chicken

Feb 26, 2016 · Leave a Comment

This gluten-free baked Nashville hot chicken recipe combines sweet and spicy flavors that are crispy on the outside and oh so juicy on the inside. Now, no matter if you are in Nashville or not, if you are gluten-free or not, you can have this healthier baked version of this southern treat at home!

Living here in Atlanta and only being a few hours away from Nashville where my brother lives, I try to make it up to Nashvegas as often as I can. One, to see my brother, and two to eat all of Nashville's food. Nashville is known for its music, it's a party atmosphere, and it's food. Most notably recently it's deep fried Nashville hot chicken has been getting a lot of press. So that got me wondering, why not baked Nashville hot chicken instead of deep fried? And why not make it gluten-free so we can all get in on this glorious trend? So many questions!

Now being on a gluten-free diet has hindered me from trying this Nashville hot chicken in Nashville but not from me trying to make my own version of gluten-free baked Nashville hot chicken at home!

Not only was I trying to capture the essence (yes I said essence!) of one of Nashville's most trendy foods, but I was trying to make it a healthier version that I could eat even when I wasn't in Nashville.

So I practiced and practiced this one. I made this recipe just right. It took some time, but I did it! This is the best breaded chicken I have ever had. Hands-down the best! It's spicy hot, it's sweet, it's crispy crunchy, and it's juicy as sin!

Doesn't a marinade that consists of buttermilk and hot sauce sound delicious? I then dipped the chicken breasts in egg and sweet honey, before using my Gluten-Free Bisquick Mix for the coating along with some yummy spices that included cayenne pepper and cinnamon, yes cinnamon!

I then quickly crisped the outsides of each chicken piece in a skillet with a little bit of coconut oil for a little extra bit of sweetness. You don't have to do this part at all (Step 6), but if you want that crispy outer coating instead of more of a paste or glaze, I would recommend spending the one or two minutes on Step 6.

If you want to skip Step 6, I would recommend spritzing your chicken with a gluten-free cooking spray before placing them in the oven. I would also say if you are skipping Step 6, that you should cook your chicken breasts a few minutes longer to ensure that they are cooked thoroughly. Ain't nobody got time for food poisoning!

Gluten-Free Baked Nashville Hot Chicken

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 pounds chicken skinless breasts
½ cup buttermilk
¼ cup GF hot sauce
1 tablespoon GF yellow mustard
2 eggs, beaten
¼ cup fresh honey
½ cup BHHY's Bisquick Mix
2 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 tablespoon BHHY Cajun Seasoning
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoon garlic powder
2 tablespoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground mustard, optional
2 tablespoon coconut oil

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine the buttermilk, hot sauce and yellow mustard thoroughly. Coat the skin in the liquid and place the bowl covered in plastic wrap in the refrigerator to marinate for 30-60 minutes.
While marinating, combine the GF Bisquick Mix, cayenne pepper, chili powder, cajun seasoning, brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, cinnamon, salt and pepper, and ground mustard together in a large mixing bowl and mix well. Set aside.
In a small mixing bowl combine the beaten egg and honey together.
Preheat your oven to 400*F. Line a four-sided baking sheet with tin foil and place a baking rack on top of it if available. Set aside. Heat a large skillet with the coconut oil over medium heat.
Take the chicken out of the refrigerator and drop each piece in the egg mixture and allow the excess to run off. Place each piece directly into flour mixture and coat all sides thoroughly.
Place each piece into the hot skillet and allow the outside of each piece to cook, brown, and crisp on both sides, about 1-2 minutes. Remove each piece and place on the baking sheet.
Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked through. For my oven, it is 25 minutes. Allow to cool before devouring!

I guess I have to state the obvious as well because I will hear about it if I don't. Ahem, I call this a "baked" chicken recipe even though the chicken is fried momentarily. For one, it is baked in the oven for the majority of the cooking process. For two, the coconut oil skillet step (Step 6) is optional. And three, we are talking about a mere 1 to 2 minutes on the skillet and then placed directly in the oven, so when compared to "deep fried" fried chicken, this is not what I would consider "fried". There, said and done. Now it's time to do the happy dance because I am now off to devour all this chicken that I made for this post!

Gluten-Free Waffle Skewers

Feb 23, 2016 · 3 Comments

These gluten-free waffle skewers make breakfast fun and tasty. The sweet brown sugar waffles go great with fresh berries and creamy whipped cream. And the best part? Breakfast is on a stick!

Food on sticks, like these gluten-free waffle skewers, are always fun to eat. After living across the street from the Minnesota State Fair Grounds during vet school, I grew pretty accustomed to foods on sticks. With millions of visitors in just two weeks out of the summer, the Minnesota State Fair is basically a staple for everyone living in Minnesota. And Minnesotans have a obsession with foods on sticks. Everything from corn dogs and candy bars on sticks, to more uncommon spaghetti and meatballs and mashed potatoes on sticks, Minnesotans love eating off of sticks!

Having celiac disease and having to adhere to a gluten-free diet meant that going to the state fair was a little bit trickier for this previous Minnesotan. I had to pass up on a lot of those fun food sticks. But nowadays, I have something else that completely makes up for lost time!

These gluten-free waffle skewers are really simple and quick to put together. The brown sugar waffles take 5 minutes to bake, and the strawberries can be washed and halved in even less time. To keep it completely gluten-free, find a whipped cream that is gluten-free or use BHHY's easy (and freaking delicious!) whipped coconut cream recipe.

If you want to make these fun treats one step fancier, I like to drizzle them with fresh honey or sprinkle with a little confectioners sugar. I have even added banana slices for a yummy little twist.

These brunch-worthy sticks will be popular with everyone, especially the little ones. BUT... please be careful with the skewers and the little fingers! I'd hate to hear of serious injuries while snacking!

Gluten-Free Waffle Skewers

Yield: 12

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

3 BHHY's brown sugar waffles, cut into smaller shapes
1 ½ cups whipped cream or whipped coconut cream
1 small carton of strawberries, washed and halved
skewers

Instructions

Place the waffle pieces and strawberry halves carefully on the skewers (please don't poke yourself) and place flat on a platter.
Place tablespoons full of whipped cream between the waffle and strawberry pieces.
Enjoy!

Gluten-Free Brown Sugar Waffles

Feb 19, 2016 · Leave a Comment

These gluten-free brown sugar waffles are fluffy, soft, with a hint of brown sugar. A gluten-free 5-minute breakfast never tasted so good!

After sharing the DIY gluten-free Bisquick Mix a while back, and it taking off like crazy, it's pretty much a daily occurrence that I get questioned about different ways to use the mix. I've shared ways to coat chicken in it, make dumplings, and even yummy fluffy pancakes (Hubby's fav!). It took me waaay too long to get this gluten-free brown sugar waffles recipe out and I apologize. I promised and promised to get a waffle recipe out and it is FINALLY here!

These gluten-free waffles aren't crumbly and crunchy like the gluten-free waffles I have tried numerous times before (why I even tried prepackaged GF waffles? I do not know.). These are fluffy and soft. They have a hint of brown sugar for a slight twist of sweet. They are delicious.

I didn't style these pictures for a few reasons. One, these waffles pictured were going straight into my hungry belly the morning I was taking pictures. I was hangry to be honest. And two, I am hypercritical of gluten-free textures and figured that some of my readers are as well. There is a huge difference between tasting like the real deal and feeling like the real deal. So if I bite into a gluten-free waffle and it tastes legit, I am only going to be happy if it also has the texture of a truly legit waffle. And I can happily say that these waffles are legit. So I wanted to capture their texture in these photos and not get wrapped up in anything else. I promise I'll get back to pretty pictures on my next post. Promise!

So here's the super simple rundown on these gluten-free brown sugar waffles:

Gluten-Free Brown Sugar Waffles

Yield: 3

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

These gluten-free brown sugar waffles are fluffy, soft, with a hint of brown sugar. A gluten-free 5-minute breakfast never tasted so good!

Ingredients

6 eggs
4 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoon coconut flour
⅓ cup BHHY's Bisquick Mix
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Instructions

Heat your waffle maker (I set mine to medium heat)
In a medium mixing bowl combine the eggs and butter until thoroughly mixed.
Add in the Bisquick mix, brown sugar, and the coconut flour. With a hand mixer, mix well.
Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes.
Add the waffle batter to the heated waffle maker in the amount specified by the the waffle maker instructions (I fill mine with ½ cup batter to make 3 large waffles out of the batter)
Cook until no more steam is escaping the waffle maker and the edges of the waffle are turning golden brown. Enjoy!

Here's the less-than-20-dollar waffle maker (affiliate link) that I use. It's stick-resistant and easy to wipe clean, cooks very consistently, has an easy settings dial, and is small so it fits in our small kitchen cabinets perfectly. Great little waffle maker if you are in the market for one!

Southern Seaside Crab Dip

Feb 16, 2016 · 3 Comments

This southern seaside crab dip combines gluten-free heart-healthy crab with melty cheese, diced tomatoes and peppers, and sweet corn kernels for a delicious and easy dip that everyone loves!

I know that there are quite a few readers that don't like seafood.

I hear ya.

I am not known for loving seafood either y'all.

In fact, I just started eating small amounts (we are talking a bite here, a bite there....) of very light seafoods that aren't "too fishy".

The one way (and only way) that I do scarf down seafood is in cheesy dips however!

Then the story changes from one picky bite to stopping me from eating the whole dish in 2 minutes flat.

So I guess I should now introduce you to my fav cheater seafood dish of mine, the Southern Seaside Crab Dip!

This cheesy, savoury, crabby dip is not only delicious, but is soooooo easy to put together (especially after you hear about my magic ingredient!) and makes your house smell like a master chef lives nearby!

So just how simple is it to make this seaside favorite?

Glad ya asked....

Grab a large mixing bowl, toss in your greek yogurt, cream cheese, corn, tomatoes, and if spice is what you are looking for, peppers too!

Then add your cheese and spices: your garlic and onion powders and your paprika.

Then sprinkle with gluten-free crumbles that you have on hand (think croutons, chips, even cereal crumbles) mixed with a bit of butter and parsley.

Bake it for a mere 13-15 minutes and then dig in! It's that simple!

Of course you can substitute many of the ingredients with other things.

I sometimes sub my cream cheese spread with a yummy greek yogurt cream cheese spread for "waistline management" (who am I kidding? Just eat the delicious cheesy dip that's sitting in front of me. Okay!).

When I don't have diced peppers on hand, I use a can of Rotel-like veggies or dice up a bell pepper for the same yummy effect.

Of course this southern seaside crab dip is amazing with crunchy chips but it's also stellar with veggie slices. Try it!

And then there is my magic ingredient that I mentioned earlier! I have to give a shout out to my new gluten-free fav, Crab Classic.

Yes, it's imitation crab... but before you start to make assumptions, here me out.

Not only is it gluten-free, but it's also fat-free and certified by the American Heart Association as heart-healthy!

Crab Classic is also certified as a sustainably sourced seafood made from wild Alaskan Pollock and King Crab meat. AND, it's also super easy to use in this recipe.

The convenient price and convenient packaging make it too easy to just tear open the top of the package and quickly drop in the meat.

So as the warmer months get closer and seafood is all the rage, definitely consider this southern seaside crab dip for seafood lovers and seafood skeptics alike, and definitely pick up a bag or two of Crab Classic for your tasty convenience!

This post was compensated by Crab Classic #KeepingItClassic for an honest opinion on their product. The compensation keeps this site up and running, and all comments, reviews, and quirks in this post are 100% my own opinion. I do not share products with my lovely readers that I do not love myself 🙂

Southern Seaside Crab Dip

Yield: 8

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 13 minutes

Total Time: 18 minutes

This southern seaside crab dip combines gluten-free heart-healthy crab with melty cheese, diced tomatoes and peppers, and sweet corn kernels for a delicious and easy dip that everyone loves!

Ingredients

4 oz of GF cream cheese spread
2 cups of sweet corn kernels
8 oz swiss cheese, shredded
1 cup diced tomatoes + jalapenos
½ cup GF plain greek yogurt
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ - 1 cup Crab Classic meat, depending on how much crab you like!
4 tablespoon GF crumbles (crushed croutons, bread crumbs, crackers, etc)
¼ tablespoon butter, melted
¼ teaspoon parsley, chopped

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 375*F and grease a 9 inch baking dish. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, thoroughly mix the cream cheese, corn, swiss cheese, tomatoes, greek yogurt, garlic powder, onion powder, and Crab Classic together. Place this mixture evenly into the greased baking dish.
Sprinkle the top with paprika, extra shredded cheese, and GF crumbles (combine the GF crushed crumbles with the melted butter and parsley!).
Bake for 13-15 minutes or until the crab dip is bubbly and turning golden brown along the sides.
Allow to cool for a few minutes before digging in!

Coconut Sesame Chicken and Green Beans

Feb 15, 2016 · 1 Comment

This 30 minute one-pot coconut sesame chicken and green beans skillet is a tasty and fresh dish that combines coconut oil, fresh honey, chili flakes, and garlic and then drizzled over fresh chicken and green beans and baked to tender perfection!

I know I talk about easy and quick weeknight meals all the time, but this one-pot coconut sesame chicken and green beans meal has got to be one of the easiest and one of my most favorite weeknight meals to throw together and I can't believe that it has taken me this long to share it with you!

I usually dust my chicken breasts in my DIY Gluten-Free Bisquick Mix, which is basically a combo of rice flour, coconut flour, and a bit of sugar, but if you don't want to mix up a quick batch of the mix, you can just substitute coconut flour for the Bisquick mix in this recipe. Seriously, don't stress about it, this recipe is so simple!

After browning the chicken in a bit of coconut oil (or sesame oil, your choice!), I combine the veggies I have on hand in the same skillet, and pour my mixture of honey, chili flakes, garlic, and soy sauce over the skillet, slide it in the oven for 20 minutes, and boom! You're done. Except for sprinkling the sesame seeds over the final colorful dish! They add a touch of texture (and also make the dish look so pretty and "fancy" as the Hubster tells me!).

I love to serve my coconut sesame chicken and green beans over a bed of rice or lately, over fluffy quinoa for an extra healthy protein punch. I'm still working on my New Year's Resolutions. Anyone else?

Coconut Sesame Chicken and Green Beans

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

This 30 minute one-pot coconut sesame chicken and green beans skillet is a tasty and fresh dish that combines coconut oil, fresh honey, chili flakes, and garlic and then drizzled over fresh chicken and green beans and baked to tender perfection!

Ingredients

4 chicken breasts, cubed
3 tablespoon BBHY's DIY Bisquick mix
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2-3 tablespoon coconut oil
3 cups fresh green beans
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 ½ tablespoon GF chili paste
2 tablespoon fresh honey
1 tablespoon brown sugar
½ tablespoon GF soy sauce
½ tablespoon white vinegar
½ tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
⅓ cup GF chicken stock
sesame seeds for garnish

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400*F.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the GF Bisquick mix and black pepper together. Add the chicken and coat evenly.
Add the oil to a large oven-safe skillet and allow to heat over medium heat. Add the chicken to the skillet and allow the chicken to slightly brown on all sides. While browning the chicken, combine the minced garlic, chili paste, honey, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, pepper flakes, and chicken stock in a small mixing bowl. Set aside.
Add the vegetables to the skillet and drizzle the sauce over the meat and veggies.
Bake for 20 minutes, or until chicken is fully cooked. Remove from the oven, sprinkle sesame seeds, toss, and enjoy over rice or quinoa.

Snacks You Need At Game Day Kickoff

Feb 1, 2016 · Leave a Comment

Happy February! Now that it's Super Bowl month, we need to talk snacks! I have compiled a bunch of savory snacks you need at Game Day Kickoff. From tasty wings, to more scrumptious wings, to sliders, to cheesy bites, these snacks need to be on your party spread when that kickoff goes down!

Hold on to your taste buds because this Super Bowl weekend is going to be epic! Not because of the game itself (ahem.... go Broncos!). Not because of the commercials (oh hey Budweiser Clydesdales!). But because of the snack spread that I know any one of us can pull off and make happen! Whether you are hosting a low-key bro-fest in front of a large screen, or you are a guest wanting to bring a snack to someone else's viewing party, I have the scoop on the most savory of snacks that are guaranteed to make the party more epic!

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 9.21.48 AM — BLT Dip Bites from Dinner Then Dessert

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 8.44.47 AM — Spicy Grilled Chicken Thighs from Ciao Florentina

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 9.07.01 AM — Baked Cuban Pork Slider from Dinner Then Dessert

Chicken Taco Avocado Boats from Bless Her Heart Y'all

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 9.24.50 AM — Mini Reuben Sandwich Appetizer from The Busy Baker

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 10.08.05 AM — Tuna Salad Cucumber Bites from 2 Cats And Chloe

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 8.54.14 AM — Sweet Potato Sliders from Ciao Florentina

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 9.09.06 AM — Crispy Oven Baked Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings from Dishing Delish

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 9.30.17 AM — Garlic Basil Parmesan Crisps from Bless Her Heart Y'all

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 9.19.39 AM — Honey Mustard BBQ Chicken Wings from Dinner Then Dessert

These bacon wrapped pineapple with sriracha lime glaze bites are an easy to-put-together appetizer for any party! Juicy pineapple is wrapped up in thick-cut applewood smoked bacon and then drizzled with a sriracha lime glaze before being baked in the oven to sweet and savory perfection! Yum! www.BlessHerHeartYall.com — Bacon Wrapped Pineapple with Sriracha Lime Glaze from Bless Her Heart Y'all

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 9.01.42 AM — Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes from Dishing Delish

Screen Shot 2016-02-01 at 9.16.17 AM — Sangria Sticky Red Wine Glazed Wings from Peas and Peonies

I know a few of these recipes are not gluten-free. I hear ya! All of these recipes can have those gluten-full ingredients substituted with gluten-free alternatives. If you can't find the substitutes yourself, send me a message and I will be happy to help you out! Other than that, I hope that you have an awesome superbowl weekend full of touchdowns and sticky fingers!

Chicken Taco Avocado Boats

Jan 21, 2016 · 18 Comments

Chicken taco avocado boats are a quick and tasty healthy alternative for your party or appetizer table. It's all the flavor of tacos with all the healthy benefits of avocados!

With the big game getting closer and closer, I am trying to decide on final finger foods for my game day party.

There are so many options that I could go with.

But, going along with my healthier/lightened up menu for the month of January, I decided to try out a taco bar and put an interesting twist in the mix!

No more tortillas or hard taco shells (don't worry, this dish has already been "bro-approved" so your party won't be ruined by snobby health foods) here.

Today I am working with avocado boats, with diced taco-seasoned chicken breast meat, chopped tomato, onion, and jalapeno, shredded cheese and of course a dollop of sour cream (or plain greek yogurt)!

I start with halving avocados, taking out the avocado pit, spooning out a bit of the flesh, and filling each boat with taco meat and fixings.

And to make matters even better, I use the extra avocado flesh from the boats to make the best guacamole to dollop on top of these beasts!

Chicken Taco Avocado Boats

Yield: 8 people

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Chicken taco avocado boats are a quick and tasty healthy alternative for your party or appetizer table. It's all the flavor of tacos with all the healthy benefits of avocados!

Ingredients

4 chicken breasts, cubed
2 tablespoon olive oil
½ tablespoon BHHY's taco seasoning
½ tablespoon lime juice
4 Hass Avocados, halved with pits taken out
1 medium tomato, diced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
shredded cheese, sour cream, and red pepper flakes for garnish

Instructions

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the oil and then cook the chicken until golden brown and cooked thoroughly. The last 2 minutes of cooking the chicken, lower the temperature to medium-low and sprinkle the lime juice and taco seasoning on the chicken.
While the chicken is cooking, scoop out about ½ of the flesh inside each avocado half using a spoon. (I use these "extras" for guacamole!)
Once the chicken is finished cooking, place the chicken meat inside the avocado boat, quickly sprinkling with cheese to allow it to melt. Sprinkle with tomato, onion, and red pepper flakes, and dollop with sour cream. Enjoy it messy!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 8 Serving Size: 8 people
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 259Saturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 36mgSodium: 86mgCarbohydrates: 9gFiber: 6gSugar: 1gProtein: 14g

Bacon Walnut Brussel Sprouts

Jan 15, 2016 · 6 Comments

These roasted bacon walnut brussel sprouts are an easy side dish full of sweet hearty flavors! The sprouts are roasted in lemon juice and olive oil before being drizzled with a bacon walnut reduction and then quickly roasted again!

You can't go wrong with this tempting side, even brussel sprout haters will love this dish!

Table of Contents

I love brussel sprouts ... now.

I have to admit that I am not a fan of brussel sprouts at all.

I was so turned off by them that it took me 30 years before I even tried them for the first time.

My best friend got me to try her brussel sprouts one night at her place (she just happens to be an amazing cook!) and I loved them.

That opened the door to me trying a few other brussel sprouts here and there, but nothing compared to the besties dish (actually, they all tasted just awful!).

Then one night, my better half asked if I could make brussel sprouts with dinner and I blank-stared at the phone that I was talking to him on for a long while.

How the heck am I going to make brussel sprouts taste remotely okay?

Well, start with the brussel sprouts that you know ya like, bestie's brussel sprout recipe, and then roll from there.

Best Walnut Bacon Brussel Sprouts:

The end result comes out amazing every time.

Roasted brussel sprouts that are warm and crisp (and not slimy!), with a smooth sweet reduction that is mellowed out with the hints of the bacon and walnut.

Yum! And the best part?

They're so dang easy to make!

Bacon Walnut Brussel Sprout Ingredient List:

3 cups brussel sprouts, cleaned, trimmed, and halved
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh honey
⅛ cup bacon, finely processed in food processor
⅛ cup walnut, finely processed in food processor
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

How to make Walnut Bacon Brussel Sprouts:

Preheat your oven to 400*F. Set out a 4-sided baking sheet and line with tin foil.
Place the brussel sprouts in the baking sheet and evenly coat with the olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Bake for 15 minutes.
While the sprouts are cooking, combine the vinegar, honey, bacon, and walnut in a small saucepan over medium heat. Allow to simmer and continue simmering until the liquid is about half of the original volume. Remove from heat.
Take the brussel sprouts out of the oven and stir to rearrange the sprouts. Drizzle the reduction on top of the brussel sprouts and cook for another 10-15 minutes.
Place in a serving bowl and top with extra bacon and walnut crumbles!

Roasted Brussel Sprout Reduction Sauce:

I always love a balsamic reduction drizzled on roasted veggies, so I thought, why the heck not on these little weird green balls?

So I made up my famous balsamic reduction with finely ground walnut and bacon cooked into it for savoury nutty hints, and drizzled the crap out of the brussel sprouts while they were roasting!

How to store leftover roasted brussel sprouts:

You can store your leftover cooked and cooled brussel sprouts in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4-5 days.

How to reheat leftover brussel sprouts:

To reheat your leftovers, simply place the brussel sprouts in a microwave-safe dish with a cover fitted loosely on top so that heat can escape, can microwave on high power for 30-90 seconds depending on how hot you want your reheated brussel sprouts.

Bacon Walnut Brussel Sprouts

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

3 cups brussel sprouts, cleaned, trimmed, and halved
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh honey
⅛ cup bacon, finely processed in food processor
⅛ cup walnut, finely processed in food processor
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400*F. Set out a 4-sided baking sheet and line with tin foil.
Place the brussel sprouts in the baking sheet and evenly coat with the olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Bake for 15 minutes.
While the sprouts are cooking, combine the vinegar, honey, bacon, and walnut in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Allow to simmer and continue simmering until the liquid is about half of the original volume. Remove from heat.
Take the brussel sprouts out of the oven and stir to rearrange the sprouts. Drizzle the reduction on top of the brussel sprouts and cook for another 10-15 minutes.
Place in a serving bowl and top with extra bacon and walnut crumbles!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 4 Servings
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 184Total Fat: 12gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 7mgSodium: 217mgCarbohydrates: 16gFiber: 3gSugar: 9gProtein: 6g

Gluten-Free Ham and Cheese Hot Pockets

Dec 24, 2015 · 6 Comments

These gluten-free ham and cheese hot pockets are the real deal! Perfectly crispy pockets of smooth soft dough are stuffed with leftover Christmas ham and melty cheese, closed up, and brushed with an olive oil, honey, brown sugar, and garlic sauce. It's the perfect tasty meal on-the-go and a great way to finish off those Christmas ham leftovers!

I can NOT believe that Christmas is tomorrow! I am so excited for the festivities to begin! But what happens when the festivities end? On December 26th, what do you do with all those holiday leftovers? You eat them of course!

What do you do with all that leftover holiday ham that's sitting in your fridge? More specifically, what do you do with all that leftover Christmas ham when you are sick of ham sandwich after ham sandwich, after ham soup, after ham casserole? Well, you can make hammy hot pockets! But not just any hot pocket (or calzone-y thing, or hand pie, or.... whatever, you know what I mean!), but Gluten-Free Ham and Cheese Hot Pockets! Yum!

These gluten-free ham and cheese hot pockets are something to get excited about! You know how many years it's been since I have had anything like this? Years my friends, years! Once you bite into these doughy on the inside and crispy on the outside, cheesy-and-melty, garlicky-and-sweet pockets of goodness, you will find that your fridge has a lot less of that holiday ham left in it!

Gluten-Free Ham and Cheese Hot Pockets

Yield: 6

Prep Time: 2 hours

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes

Ingredients

2 cups brown or white rice flour
2 cups tapioca flour
1 cup coconut flour
2 cups milk, warmed
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoon GF active dry yeast powder
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoon olive oil, divided
2 cups ham, cubed
2 cups cheddar cheese, cubed
1 tablespoon fresh honey
pinch of coarse sea salt
pinch of garlic salt
chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, combine all three flours and mix well. Set aside.
In another large mixing bowl, combine the warm milk, sugar, and yeast. Mix well and allow to sit for about 5 minutes. Slowly add in the flour mixture and your 1 teaspoon salt, mixing until dough forms. Add in 2 tablespoon olive oil and knead dough until fully combined.
Lightly coat one more bowl with olive oil and place the dough inside. Cover with a warm damp cloth and allow to rise to double it's original size (1-2 hours).
Preheat your oven to 375*F. Line your counter top with parchment paper.
Divide the dough into 4 equal parts. Roll out each quarter into ¼ inch thick sections. Using a pizza cutter or knife, cut this thinned-out dough into 3 equal sections (see pictures below for reference).
Place Equal amounts of ham and cheese into each "bottom" piece of dough. Place the "top" piece of dough on top of the ham and cheese mixture and close the two pieces together by pinching the dough between your fingers. The third piece of dough can be used as a "top" or "bottom" piece for the next quarter of dough that you roll out flat.
Once the hot pockets are made, place all 6 on a ungreased baking sheet.
In a small mixing bowl, combine 2 tablespoon olive oil and honey together. Using a basting brush, brush the mixture on top of the hot pockets. Sprinkle with the coarse sea salt, garlic salt, and parsley before placing in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the edges start to turn golden brown. Enjoy them messy!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday weekend and fully enjoys family, friends, and good grub! I will be off of the blog for a few days enjoying my family time, creating some new recipes, and catching up on sleep! I will be back in a few days with some new recipes and my goals for BHHY in the coming year.

Wishing you the happiest of holidays!

xoxo,

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Mousse Pie

Nov 16, 2015 · 14 Comments

A smooth, sweet, pumpkin dessert that has a mousse-like texture with all the flavor of sweet pumpkin and cream. This gluten-free pumpkin mousse pie is an easy gluten-free option for all those pumpkin pie lovers this holiday season!

Table of Contents

Best Gluten Free Pumpkin Mousse Pie:

You can't go wrong with a crunchy layer, topped my a mousse-like layer, topped with a creamy layer! Heck Yes!

I'm gonna get right to it today.

Thanksgiving is coming and it's time to start thinking of what's important here.

The pumpkin pies!

Over the last week or so, I have been shoveling out some yummy Thanksgiving-themed dishes to make a gluten-free Thanksgiving a little more exciting.

I'd received a few messages asking about those pumpkin pies and I realized that I had not covered the sweets!

What was I thinking?!? (I wasn't)

So thank you to those who asked about this important part of the feast!

I am not going to show you a pumpkin pie recipe. I've got something a little bit different for those of you who are looking for a gluten-free Thanksgiving dessert.

Insert the gluten-free pumpkin mousse pie!

This pie has all the yummy qualities of a pumpkin pie, but it has a smooth almost mousse-like texture (hence it's name!), with layers of creaminess, pumpkin-ness, and whipped-ness.

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Mousse Ingredients:

gluten-free coconut flour
softened butter
pecans, chopped
pecans, halved
gluten-free greek yogurt/cream cheese spread, softened (can use GF cream cheese spread too)
confectioners (powdered) sugar
Gluten-free vanilla pudding, I use 4 GF pudding cups!
gluten-free whipped topping, divided
gluten-free pumpkin puree
pumpkin pie spice

How to Make Gluten Free Pumpkin Mousse:

Preheat oven to 350*F. Lightly grease a pie baking dish. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, butter, and chopped pecans and mix well. Place in the bottom of the baking dish and press firmly to make a crust. Bake for 15 minutes and set aside to cool completely.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese spread, confectioners sugar, and 1 cup whipped cream together until completely combined. Pour over the cooled crust and spread evenly.
In the large mixing bowl, combine the pudding, pumpkin puree, and pumpkin spice together until completely combined. pour over the cream cheese layer, and spread evenly on top.
Top the pie with 1 cup of whipped cream and sprinkle with pecan halves and chill in the fridge for 3-4 hours and serve chilled! Enjoy!

It's so easy to put together. The base crust layer is 3 ingredients and 15 minutes in the oven.

The top layers are quickly mixed together and then placed in the refrigerator to chill.

I decided to make the pecan halves on top of this dessert a little decadent and turned them into candied pecans.

I brushed the pecan halves with a bit of melted butter and brown sugar and threw them in the oven for a few minutes, until the brown sugar melted. Then I quickly threw these hot bits on the pie and you can even see them melting into the layers and sliding around into all this sweetness. Yum!

Then it's ready for serving. It's that easy!

How to store leftover pumpkin mousse pie:

You can store your leftover gluten-free pumpkin mousse in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4-5 days.

You can enjoy this pie over and over again!

I hope everyone has such a good Thanksgiving with friends and family and good good food!

Thank you to those of you who sent me messages about pumpkin pies! Keep those messages coming in! Hit me up at: blessherheartyall@gmail (dot) com!

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Mousse Pie

Yield: 10

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 3 hours

Total Time: 3 hours 30 minutes

A smooth, sweet, pumpkin dessert that has a mousse-like texture with all the flavor of sweet pumpkin and cream. This gluten-free pumpkin mousse pie is an easy gluten-free option for all those pumpkin pie lovers this holiday season!

Ingredients

1 cup GF coconut flour
½ cup softened butter
½ cup pecans, chopped
¼ cup pecans, halved
8 oz . GF greek yogurt/cream cheese spread, softened (can use GF cream cheese spread too)
1 cup confectioners sugar
13 oz . GF vanilla pudding, I use 4 GF pudding cups!
2 cups GF whipped topping, divided
1 15 oz . can GF pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350*F. Lightly grease a pie baking dish. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, butter, and chopped pecans and mix well. Place in the bottom of the baking dish and press firmly to make a crust. Bake for 15 minutes and set aside to cool completely.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese spread, confectioners sugar, and 1 cup whipped cream together until completely combined. Pour over the cooled crust and spread evenly.
In the large mixing bowl, combine the pudding, pumpkin puree, and pumpkin spice together until completely combined. pour over the cream cheese layer, and spread evenly on top.
Top the pie with 1 cup of whipped cream and sprinkle with pecan halves and chill in the fridge for 3-4 hours and serve chilled! Enjoy!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 10 Serving Size: 10 Servings
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 460Total Fat: 28gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 36mgSodium: 279mgCarbohydrates: 46gFiber: 3gSugar: 33gProtein: 9g

Spicy Sage Slow Cooker Turkey

Nov 10, 2015 · 10 Comments

This spicy sage slow cooker turkey combines sage and garlic deliciously with a little heat {only if you want it!} in a slow cooker for the most juicy and moist turkey you will ever eat! Five minutes of prep work gives you a Thanksgiving Day main course that is falling-off-the-bone {literally!}!

Does this turkey situation sound too good to be true? Well, it's not! The morning of "turkey day", I prep my turkey by washing the turkey {and taking out those "baggies" that are hiding!}, line my crockpot, rub a little butter on the bird, and sprinkle a few spices on top.

Then I let it sit and cook in the slow cooker for 8 hours on low {if I have the opportunity, I will drizzle some of the liquids that are in the bottom of the slow cooker onto the top of the turkey with a baster a few times, but it's not necessary}.

If I want some mashed potatoes to go with my turkey {um...yes! Always yes!} I will cut up a few potatoes into slices and add them to the bottom of the slow cooker and cook on low for another 2 hours {with the turkey hanging out on top of the taters}.

After those two last hours, I will mash up those potato slices and serve up the turkey. I don't even use a knife to cut the turkey up with. It just falls apart on it's own.

Spicy Sage Slow Cooker Turkey

Yield: 6 -8

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 8 hours

Total Time: 8 hours 5 minutes

Ingredients

1 pounds frozen GF turkey breast {5-7 }, thawed, cleaned, and baggies taken out
½ cup GF chicken broth
4 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon garlic powder
4-6 leaves chopped sage
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon chopped dried onion

Instructions

Place your turkey in the bottom of the slow cooker {line your slow cooker with a crock pot liner for even easier clean up and turkey day!}.
Rub your turkey with the butter on all sides.
Drizzle the chicken broth over the turkey as well as sprinkle the spices liberally on top of the bird.
Cook on low for 8-10 hours, drizzling some of the liquids on the bottom of the slow cooker, over the turkey a few times throughout the cooking process with a baster.
Remove from the slow cooker and let sit 5-10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Why the slow cooker? Well, for me, it's very hard to mess up. The meal in the slow cooker is very transferable {in case you are bringing food over to your auntie's house!} and the main reason here in the south for me is that there is no oven on for hours to warm your house up to 'hot as heck' with all those extra hungry guests warming things up in the house too.

Spicy Caramel Apple Dip

Nov 3, 2015 · 2 Comments

This Spicy Caramel Apple Dip is a 2-minute recipe that is both simple to make and easy to scarf down. Included in this recipe are healthier ingredients like greek yogurt and honey as well as a touch of spicy pepper, caramel drizzle, and gluten-free ginger snap crumbles, for a sweet and spicy, creamy and crunchy dip that's the perfect fall appetizer or treat for you and your hungry friends!

If your fall has been anything like my fall.... then you have been crazy busy and you also may have had last minute house guests.

I love hosting people over, but it is tricky getting the house ready and food prepped when things happen last minute.

So I have an arsenal {even though a small arsenal!} of go-to appetizers and party foods that take just minutes to put together.

They get me through this busy fall season.

The first time I had this treat was at a baby shower {except they didn't spice it up and they had butterscotch chips instead of ginger snaps... oh snap!} ....and I haven't stopped making it since that introduction!

Spicy Caramel Apple Dip

Yield: 12

Prep Time: 2 minutes

Total Time: 2 minutes

Ingredients

1 8 oz . greek yogurt/cream cheese spread
fresh honey
GF caramel sauce
leave red pepper flakes, out if you are scared of spice
GF ginger snap crumbles
slices fresh apple

Instructions

Place the greek yogurt/cream cheese on a plate that can get messy.
Drizzle with honey and caramel sauce.
Sprinkle with pepper flakes and GF ginger snap crumbles.
Serve it with apple slices. Enjoy it messy!

I use honey straight from the hills of Tennessee that a friend hooked me up with!

I use these gluten-free ginger snap cookies {affiliate link}.

Spicy Caramel Apple Dip

Yield: 12

Prep Time: 2 minutes

Total Time: 2 minutes

Ingredients

1 8 oz . greek yogurt/cream cheese spread
fresh honey
GF caramel sauce
leave red pepper flakes, out if you are scared of spice
GF ginger snap crumbles
slices fresh apple

Instructions

Place the greek yogurt/cream cheese on a plate that can get messy.
Drizzle with honey and caramel sauce.
Sprinkle with pepper flakes and GF ginger snap crumbles.
Serve it with apple slices. Enjoy it messy!

10 Tips To Hosting Your Best Pasta Bar

Nov 2, 2015 · 13 Comments

With the holidays quickly approaching, I like the approach of planning out my upcoming parties as much as possible.

So with the everyone stuffing their faces with Turkey, pumpkin, and stuffing the whole entire month of November, my upcoming hosting gig will consist of something different to mix things up. I'm thinking of throwing together my easy pasta bar.

My pasta bar parties are a breeze to put together once you get the hang of a few things and tend to impress the palates of my turkey-overloaded guests. Here's the lowdown....

10 tips to hosting your best pasta bar:

With the holidays quickly approaching, I like the approach of planning out my upcoming parties as much as possible. So with the everyone stuffing their faces with Turkey, pumpkin, and stuffing the whole entire month of November, my upcoming hosting gig will consist of something different to mix things up. I'm thinking of throwing together my easy pasta bar. My pasta bar parties are a breeze to put together once you get the hang of a few things and tend to impress the palates of my turkey-overloaded guests. www.blessherheartyall.com

Candles are a cheap and easy way to set a dinner time mood. Just make sure that if your candles are scented, that they do not clash with the Italian-like smells of your pasta bar. No one wants to smell a vanilla bean, rose, and sandalwood meatball. No one.
Label label label! Make sure to label all pastas, sauces, food allergy-friendly options. That way, you don't have to stand right next to the pasta bar and answer questions the whole time. Think chalkboard, name cards....

Don't serve your pasta dishes with the sauce and pasta mix together. Let your guests pick and choose which pastas and which sauces they would like. It helps you as a host out as well, by not worrying if the sauce is becoming cold/chunky/gunky/too much/ not enough.

Be mindful of the plates that you serve to your guests. Paper plates, while easy to just toss afterward, soak up sauces easily, and may leave a big mess on your table or on your guests. Best to stay away from your basic paper plate and move on to something a little more structured and less soggy.

Keep napkins and assorted cleaning products readily available for you guests and for yourself in case of spills and casualties. No matter how hard you try not to spill, it's pasta, and pasta makes messes.

Learn from the pros, those large pasta chain restaurants got something right. Keep extra pasta that is cooked on the ready, by rinsing noodles in cold water {slows down the cooking process of the noodles even after they have been removed from the stove!} and mixed with a bit of olive oil. Then you can store cooked noodles in the fridge and warm them up in the microwave quickly when you need more carbs!

Have options for those with food allergies, like gluten, dairy, and nuts.

Make it easy on yourself, and serve premade sauces {like my fav spicy gluten-free one from Ragu! Oh they make it so so easy!} that you can trust and that your guest will love. Try your favorite jar of marinara, or maybe make an easy spicy cream pepper sauce or maybe a garlic avocado sauce.

Be prepared for what's to come after the pasta bar. Don't forget about after dinner mints. Damn you garlic! I ~~hate~~ love you so much!

If you think this is a fun remix on your typical holiday party. I am right there with ya! Have any other traditions {especially those Italian ones!} that you'd like to share with others? Ragu wants to hear them! I encourage you to visit Ragu, visit the “Meet our Founders” section on the Ragu homepage and share your own stories socially! There is a sweeps contest running on Food.com too! The contest is titled Ready. Set. Cook! and it challenges home cooks to create new and unique recipes featuring Ragu sauce plus a set list of other ingredients! Go get 'em!

Thanks for stopping in friends!

Honey Bear Cocktail

Oct 26, 2015 · 8 Comments

This honey bear cocktail is the perfect cocktail to sip on during those chilly fall evenings with friends on your porch or for entertaining those guests as they walk in the front door of your Thanksgiving day and holiday season festivities!

Made with a simple syrup of honey, sage, and orange, then combined with southern bourbon over ice, you will be sipping on a fresh, mellow, slightly sweet cocktail that everyone will find perfect all fall long.

Table of Contents

Best Honey Bear Cocktail:

Oh man! I have a boozy doozy for ya today! This honey bear cocktail is a simple and refreshing cocktail that's perfect for fall evenings {I mean....sage and honey....and bourbon. Now that's what I call fall flavors!}.

You need to be careful with this one.

I know I mentioned that it's refreshing...{cuz it is} but you need to make sure that these sips aren't going down too easy and fast {I am sitting here typing this post with one of these in my paws and I just wrote "hiney bear cocktail". I am pretty sure you don't want to make or drink one of those....whatever it is}.

So if there is anything in this post that you don't understand... it's not me.... it's the cocktail. #SorryNotSorry

What to snack on while sipping Honey Bear Cocktails:

Ever had a deliicously crunchy and addicting cheese crisp? I have 3 different versions for you to try: Garlic Basil Parmesan Crisps, Pepperoni Pizza Mozzarella Crisps, Bacon Cheddar Crisps, and Taco Cheese Crisps!

Looking for a cocktail hour snack for those with a sweet tooth???

Try Drunk Bacon Caramel Pralines, White Chocolate Pumpkin Fudge with Bourbon-Candied Pecans, 4-Ingredient Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookies, Dark Chocolate Pomegranate Bites, Peach Snickerdoodle Cookies, or Pumpkin Pecan Truffles!

Honey Bear Cocktail Ingredients:

1 cup water
⅓ cup honey
3 tablespoon granulated sugar
8 leaves sage, plus more for garnish
1 orange, cut into 8 halves
bourbon
apple cider

What type of glasses should I use to serve honey bear cocktails?

Any glass that you want.

A Honey Bear Cocktail looks exceptionally delicious in a mason jar, moscow mule mug, or even a martini glass.

I've seen readers send me pictures of them sipping on this amazing cocktail when it was in everything from a red solo cup, to a champagne flute.

I'd say do with a glass that fill fit the vibe of the occassion, always a safe way to go.

And if in doubt, serve the cocktail in glass, not plastic.

How to make Honey Bear Cocktails:

Heat up ingredients. On high heat, combine the water, honey, sugar, 8 sage leaves, and 2 orange slices in a medium skillet. Allow to boil and then simmer for 2 -3 minutes (or until the honey and sugar have dissolved).
Cool Ingredients. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
Grab your ice. Fill glasses (or mason jars!) with ice, a shot of your favorite bourbon, and then evenly pour the simple syrup you just made equally into 4 glasses.
Garnish and enjoy. Top each of the glasses off with more sage leaves, an orange slice, and a splash of apple cider. Enjoy!

More festive drink recipes:

This list is here to help keep you refreshed!

Please drink responsibly. Bless Her Heart Y'all does not condone underage drinking.

Honey Bear Cocktail

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

This honey bear cocktail is made with a simple syrup of honey, sage, and orange, then combined with southern bourbon over ice, you will be sipping on a fresh, mellow, slightly sweet cocktail that everyone will find perfect all fall long.

Ingredients

1 cup water
⅓ cup honey
3 tablespoon granulated sugar
8 leaves sage, plus more for garnish
1 orange, cut into 8 halves
bourbon
apple cider

Instructions

On high heat, combine the water, honey, sugar, 8 sage leaves, and 2 orange slices in a medium skillet. Allow to boil and then simmer for 2 -3 minutes (or until the honey and sugar have dissolved).
Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
Fill glasses (or mason jars!) with ice, a shot of your favorite bourbon, and then evenly pour the simple syrup you just made equally into 4 glasses.
Top the glasses off with more sage leaves, an orange slice, and a splash of apple cider. Enjoy!

Notes

Please drink responsibly. Bless Her Heart Y'all does not condone underage drinking.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 4 Servings
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 136Sodium: 4mgCarbohydrates: 36gSugar: 35g

Garlic Avocado Pasta

Oct 20, 2015 · 12 Comments

This garlic avocado pasta is a quick 15 minute recipe that is both healthy and tasty. The lightness of the olive oil and garlic combine well with the creaminess of the avocado. Add in some fresh tomatoes, chopped parsley, and your favorite protein, and you have yourself a fast gluten-free meal that's perfect for those creamy pasta cravings on those busy weeknights!

garlic avocado pasta easy 20 minute gluten-free meal for those busy weeknights! www.blessherheartyall.com

Monday nights can be the hardest nights to cook for. Monday is already crazy and chaotic with trying to catch up with the work that ended on Friday. It's nice to come home and have an easy, warm, healthy meal in minutes.

I can easily throw this meal together in 15 minutes. When I know on the weekend that my monday is going to be crazy, I will prep {wha? meeeeee prep?} and make my protein for this meal ahead of time. That makes this dish even easier to throw together. Yes please. And go away monday.

Garlic Avocado Pasta

Yield: 2

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

12 oz . gluten-free noodles
2 medium ripe avocados, pits and skin removed
⅓ cup olive oil
¼ cup parsley, finely chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Sea salt to taste

Instructions

Cook the noodles according to package instructions.
While the noodles are cooking, place the avocados in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Set aside.
In a medium skillet, heat the oil, garlic, and parsley over medium heat until the garlic starts to sizzle and immediately remove from heat. Combine the avocado into the skillet and mix thoroughly (will separate a bit).
Mix the garlic avocado sauce with the noodles immediately after draining the noodles. Serve with fresh slices of tomato and a sprinkle of sea salt and your favorite protein!

I like to use Avocados from Mexico. They always make my recipes taste fresh and they have never disappointed. Most people think of a tasty guac when avocados are mentioned, but don't let that deter you from this recipe! It's a little different from your taco tuesday situation, but trust me, you should have this in your life! Plus, you can still have game day with a big bowl of pasta instead of tacos right?

If you are craving avocados for your next game day, head over and check out some other tasty recipes and coupons.

Try this dish along with Caesar Salad Parmesan Cups!

Garlic Basil Parmesan Crisps

Oct 19, 2015 · 35 Comments

Garlic basil parmesan crisps are an easy 3 ingredient baked recipe! These crispy cheesy dippers are the perfect appetizer or snack for any gluten-free or low carb eaters and are huge hits at parties! All you need is parmesan, basil, garlic powder and 5 minutes beside your oven!

Table of Contents

Best Garlic Basil Parmesan Crisps!

Garlic basil parmesan crisps is one recipe that's pretty much a no-brainer for me at this point.

I was introduced to parmesan crisps when the Atkins diet craze first started years ago.

I was in high school.

Yes, that makes me old.

My parents were doing the whole Atkins thing and my mom would make parmesan crisps (or the pepperoni pizza mozzarella crisps, the Taco Cheese Crisps or the Loaded Bacon Cheddar Crisps!) as a snack.

So I would snack along beside her because who can say no to crispy cheesy dippable bites?

Fun fact: I can not say no to crispy cheesy dippable bites.

It's science.

I started playing around with different flavors and came up with my fav pretty quick and they have stayed my favorite flavor for the past 10+ years.

What to pair with these parmesan crisps:

You should pair your cheese crisps with the most delicious Italian recipes, like goat cheese spaghetti and meatballs or even as part of your next party pasta bar!

Let me introduce you to my little friend....

And why are these garlic basil parmesan crisps so perfect?

Well they take out the carbs and artificial ingredients in many bags of chips.
You can make them as soft or as crispy as you want. My preference... crispy on the outside, barely chewy on the inside.
They are perfect for dipping pretty much anything. In the summer dip them in cool marinara sauce, in the fall dip them in your favorite spiced hummus.
There are too many hearty cheesy dips during the winter holidays to name, but use these parmesan crisps in them all.
Umm they are addictive. SO addictive.

Most popular parmesan chips out there:

These parmesan crisps also just happen to be the most popular recipe on this site.

Y'all really like quick and easy snacks and I don't blame ya.

I'm right there with ya.

Well... what if you don't have parmesan? All cheeses bake differently. How about making one of these other cheese varieties instead!

The Short Parmesan Crisp Ingredient List:

parmesan cheese, shredded
garlic powder
basil, finely chopped

How to make parmesan crisps:

Preheat your oven to 350*F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place tablespoons of the parmesan cheese on the baking sheet, spreading each heap out into a thinner circle. Sprinkle with garlic powder and basil.
Bake in the oven for 5 minutes or until the outside edges become golden brown. Enjoy them crispy!

How to eat parmesan crisps:

The consensus around these parts is that everyone should be dipping their garlic basil parmesan crisps in to Bertolli's fresh Riserva Porcini Mushroom & White Truffle Oil sauce {duh, that's not surprising. Sounds like heaven in a jar doesn't it?}.

How to store leftover garlic basil parmesan chips:

If you even have any cheese crisps left, you can store them in an airtight container or plastic storage baggie and remove all the air in it before sealing up the parmesan crisps.

Store these leftover crisps at room temperature for up to 4-5 days.

Garlic Basil Parmesan Crisps

Yield: 16 people

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Garlic basil parmesan crisps are an easy 3 ingredient baked recipe! These crispy cheesy dippers are the perfect appetizer or snack for any gluten-free or low carb eaters and are huge hits at parties! All you need is parmesan, basil, garlic powder and 5 minutes beside your oven!

Ingredients

parmesan cheese, shredded
garlic powder
basil, finely chopped

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350*F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place tablespoons of the parmesan cheese on the baking sheet, spreading each heap out into a thinner circle. Sprinkle with garlic powder and basil.
Bake in the oven for 5 minutes or until the outside edges become golden brown. Enjoy them crispy!

Pumpkin Pecan Truffles

Oct 16, 2015 · 4 Comments

These pumpkin pecan truffles have smooth creamy pumpkin centers with pecan pieces hidden inside. The white chocolate coating is drizzled overtop and more pecan pieces sprinkled for the finale. Perfect fancy-looking no-bake party treats that can be quickly made!

It wasn't until I was well considered an adult before I had my first truffle. It makes me sad to think I went all those years missing out one one of life's best treats. Since my first experience truffle-tasting, you could say that I have been obsessed. And now, I make them from fall until well past New Years. This time of year, there is always a reason to make a truffle. Halloween, leaves changing colors, Thanksgiving, I just want a truffle, Christmas.......

When I first became a truffle-eater, I thought that they looked fancy so they must be hard to make....better not try {better to just keep stuffing my face with them and let someone else in a fancy faraway bakery make them}. Then about 7 or 8 years ago, I tried making my first oreo truffle and it turned out amazing {I am pretty sure I ate all of them that same afternoon} and were so easy to make! Now I can throw them together with my eyes closed {no I can't. Tried that, and that makes a big ol' mess! Don't close your eyes. Don't}.

These little pumpkin pecan truffles are no-bake, so extra points already, and I put these little buggers together in one afternoon between working and getting the house ready for hosting 12 people on a busy weeknight. Phew! These were so easy to make and definitely the crowd pleaser {I did keep an extra little stash hidden away so that I could indulge in a couple of truffles myself after the party. Glad I planned ahead!}.

Fall is the perfect ~~time~~ excuse to make pumpkin truffles. But not any pumpkin truffles but throw in some pecans for a bit of crunch to break up all that creaminess. Creamy and crunchy, the best of both worlds!

Pumpkin Pecan Truffles

Yield: 24

Ingredients

1 cup white chocolate chips
¾ cup finely ground gluten-free gingersnaps*
¾ cup finely ground gluten-free graham crackers**
½ cup pumpkin puree
⅓ cup pecans, chopped (plus extra for garnish)
2 ½ tablespoon confectioners sugar
4 oz . cream cheese, softened
¼ teaspoon cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice would work too, plus more for garnish
16 oz . package of white candy melts, or more white chocolate chips

Instructions

Melt 1 cup of white chocolate chips in the microwave until melted smooth (follow package directions).
In a large mixing bowl, combine the melted chocolate, pumpkin puree, cream cheese, graham cracker, ginger snaps, pecans, and sugar together. Place in the fridge or freezer for 30-45 minutes, or until the mixture is hard enough to form into balls.
Roll the chilled mixture into 1 inch balls and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Place in the freezer until frozen (about 2-3 hours).
Heat the candy melts according to package instructions. Carefully dip each ball into the melted liquid using a toothpick to poke and pick up the ball. Coat the entire ball with the coating and allow excess to drip off by holding the ball up with the tooth pick and placing a fork underneath for support. Place on the parchment paper and sprinkle with pecans or cinnamon for garnish.
They will harden very quickly into truffles. If they need a little extra help hardening completely, stick the pan of truffles in the fridge for a few minutes to set the coating. Enjoy them messy!

*I used these gluten-free gingersnaps and these gluten-free graham crackers (affiliate links) and the pumpkin pecan truffles turned out delicious! I highly recommend these products for this recipe if you need your truffles to be gluten-free!

Gluten-Free Cheese Stuffed Meatballs

Oct 1, 2015 · 20 Comments

These gluten-free cheese stuffed meatballs are made with warm and juicy pieces of beef, with ooey gooey cheesy centers. These meatballs take your next spaghetti-and-meatball night up a notch. These gluten-free bombs are so easy to make with only 5 ingredients and take only minutes to make!

I know that there are a ton of meatballs out in the world {and I'm not talking about the kind who pull out in front of you in rush hour traffic!}. BUT... not many of them are gluten-free. So... what does one do on a spaghetti-and-meatball night with no meatballs? Well, you quickly make them. And you don't make just any meatball. Hell no. You make 'em cheese filled.

Gluten-Free Cheese Stuffed Meatballs

Yield: 18

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
¼ cup gluten-free italian-style bread crumbs*
1 egg, beaten
inch mozzarella cheese sticks, cut into 1 sections
2 tablespoon oil for frying, we used olive oil

Instructions

Place the oil in a large skillet and warm over a medium heat.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the beef, breadcrumbs, and egg together thoroughly.
Form into 18 evenly-sized balls and insert one mozzarella section into the middle of each ball and close the ball back up around the cheese.
Place all meatballs in the heated oil and fry for 8-12 minutes, until the meatballs are thoroughly cooked and browned (some of the cheese may start to seep out of the meatballs).
Place on paper towels or another flat absorptive surface to cool before serving.
Serve with noodles and spaghetti sauce and enjoy it messy!

I use these gluten-free breadcrumbs for this recipe (affiliate link).

Spicy Peanut Spaghetti Squash

Sep 25, 2015 · 7 Comments

A creamy (and gluten-free) sweet and spicy peanut sauce is drizzled over crispy and tender roasted broccoli and spaghetti squash. Add in your favorite protein, like grilled chicken breasts if you’d like. It’s the perfect easy 30-minute meal combination of Asian meets healthy!

So the Hubster gets hankerin’s every once in a while {even though it seems like I get them all. the. time.}. Hubby asked me to make him the Cashew Chicken recipe that went over so big in our fam a while back. Sure thing!

But… I didn’t have all the ingredients. So, I concocted a similar-vibed {did I just make up a new word?} meal. Instead of cashews, I had peanuts. And instead of a skillet, I needed to roast this spaghetti squash that had been screaming at me on our kitchen counter. So basically it’s nothing like that recipe that he had in mind. But it tasted just as good!

A little of this spicy peanut drizzle goes a long way with the spaghetti squash. It's not overly spicy, so adding a few extra crushed red pepper flakes to the very top of the dish is what we usually do, along with peanut crumbles and sesame seeds. Oh hey taste buds!

Spicy Peanut Spaghetti Squash

Yield: 2

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

1 spaghetti squash, halved long-way (hot dog-style) and de-seeded
4 cups broccoli florets
¼ cup sweet onion, diced
½ tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoon GF peanut butter, we do the "all-natural" thang
3 tablespoon GF soy sauce
2 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoon honey
½ teaspoon fresh grated ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
sesame seeds and peanut crumbles for garnish

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 425*F. Place the spaghetti squash halves cut-side down, on a baking sheet.
In a bowl, combine the broccoli, onion, and oil until coated. Place the broccoli mix on the baking sheet with the squash. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the veggies start to become brown around the edges (and the squash becomes slightly tender).
While the veggies are cooking, combine the peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice, honey, ginger, garlic, and crushed red pepper flakes and mix until smooth and creamy.
Once the veggies have cooked, fluff the spaghetti squash with a fork until the insides have produced spaghetti-like strands.
Plate the veggies and drizzle the sauce, peanut crumbles, and sesame seeds on top. Serve with your favorite protein and enjoy it messy!

Spicy Pumpkin Bacon Dip

Sep 18, 2015 · 4 Comments

This gluten-free spicy pumpkin bacon dip is the perfect party snack to bring to your next fall party, housewarming party, tailgate get-together, or couch scenario. This spicy dip combines the healthy creaminess of greek yogurt cream cheese and pumpkin, with the heartiness of the bacon and cheese, and the spice of garlic, green onion, and cayenne pepper.

Put this lightened up dip out with your favorite dippers and it will be gone in seconds.

This gluten-free spicy pumpkin bacon dip is the perfect party snack to bring to your next fall party, tailgate, or couch snack. This spicy dip combines the healthy creaminess of greek yogurt cream cheese and pumpkin, with the heartiness of the cheese and bacon, and the spice of garlic, green onion, and cayenne pepper. Put this lightened up dip out with your favorite dippers and it will be gone in seconds. www.ahotsouthernmess.com

Pumpkin pumpkin pumpkin! {or as we call it...punkin punkin punkin!}

I love this time of year because it's completely legit to make too many pumpkin recipes and I'm not sick, overwhelmed, or tired of seeing pumpkin plastered everywhere.

Pumpkin is still a fresh idea.

Ask me again in a couple of weeks and I may have a different opinion.

But right now... pumpkin is exciting and what my dreams are full of.

This spicy pumpkin bacon dip is creamy thanks to the pumpkin and greek yogurt cream cheese, is hearty {for all those bros who need a "manly snack" while bro-ing out watch football} with the cheddar cheese and bacon, and flavorful with the garlic, cayenne pepper, and fresh green onion.

Oh my!

Crack open those beer cans... this recipe has everything else covered.

Spicy Pumpkin Bacon Dip

Yield: 6

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

½ can pumpkin puree
pieces bacon crumbles, 6 regular bacon or 4 pieces of thick-cut bacon
¾ cup cheese, shredded (cheddar or colby jack)
8 oz . greek yogurt cream cheese spread
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ chipotle chili powder
½ cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions

In a food processor, combine all ingredients until desired consistency. Serve immediately or chill (covered) in the fridge until ready to eat. Enjoy it messy!

Baked Spicy Chili Lime Tortilla Chips (Gluten-Free)

Sep 11, 2015 · Leave a Comment

Think coconut, meets lime, meets spice! Fresh gluten-free corn tortillas are lightly brushed with a mixture of coconut oil, fresh squeezed lime juice, chili and garlic powders, and a dusting of cayenne, before sprinkled with coarse sea salt and baked until crispy perfection; a tropical fiesta in your mouth.

Lawdy lawdy! Today's recipe takes me back to Mexico, lying in my cabana, soaking up some sweet sweet sun rays, a delicious frosty marg in my hands, and what the Hubster calls "real Mexican chips" in a basket right next to the freshest and darn tastiest pico de gallo a girl on that side of the water could find.

Coming back from Mexico lead to a very quick reality of.... We don't have "real Mexican chips" here in Atlanta. Well that's all about to change. I've got a wicked good recipe for some thick-cut tortilla chips {yes Hubby, just like the ones south of the border} that combine lime, coconut, salt, and spice. It's like a whole mess of Chipotle's chips went on a tropical vacation and never returned kind of situation. All that is left is finding a sunny spot {and my sombrero} and digging into a bowl of these bad boys.

Baked Spicy Chili Lime Tortilla Chips (Gluten-Free)

Yield: 6

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

15-20 small gluten-free corn tortillas
2 tablespoon coconut oil, heated until liquid
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
¾ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
coarse sea salt for garnish

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 325*F. Combine the oil, lime juice, garlic and chili powders, and cayenne together in a medium bowl and mix well.
With a basting brush (or go the messy route by using your fingers), lightly apply the oil mixture onto both sides of each tortilla.
Cut each tortilla into 6 triangles and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with sea salt and cook for 20-25 minutes, or until the chips become crispy, lightly browned on the edges, and the corners start to curl up.

Notes

*Makes enough for 4-6 people to snack on with your favorite dipper.

*Carefully watch your chips the last 5 minutes. They can sometimes burn quickly at the end of the baking session if not watched.

*You may need to bake on two baking sheets (or have two different baking rounds) depending on how big your baking sheet is (and how many chips you have to bake)

Add your favorite guac, salsa, or dip to accompany these chips and hang on for a wild ride. We recently had Betty Crocker's Suddenly Grain Salad in Southwest flavor in the pantry and Hubby used it as a dip for these chips... what a major win. I can imagine how well this tasty {and oh so easy} combo would go over as an appetizer while hosting our next get together at our place.

Suddenly Grain Salad Southwest {and his brother Harvest and Tuscan flavors} have these added benefits {on top of tasting delicious!}:

• 4 Servings per container (Buy 2 or more to increase the batch size)
• Served Cold (Tuscan & Southwest taste just as good warm or cold)
• 4g Protein
• Stir-In Ideas and One Recipe included on pack

Want to try your own Suddenly Grain Salad? Here's a coupon to help ya out!

Join me in partying with these lovelies!

Spicy Cajun Chicken Pasta (Gluten Free)

Sep 7, 2015 · 6 Comments

This (gluten-free) spicy cajun chicken pasta combines heat, tender protein, and a creamy cajun pasta sauce into one dish. It's a spicy, creamy, and oh so delicious one-pot meal in under 30 minutes!

Happy Labor Day! We spent a good amount of time last night outside, enjoying our Labor Day on the deck. What else are long hot holiday weekends for? Sun-searchin, grub-grabbing, and house projects.

After an afternoon of picking out floor tile {"they all look the same" as she gives out a wide-eyed blank stare}, going to too many stores with all the other holiday sale shoppers {it sounded like a great idea on paper}, and not eating any lunch {plus the fact that I had one too many long island iced teas the night before... urg... how did I survive my twenties? #MyBrainHurts}, the Hubster and I were ready to sit back, carb-up, and have our own little date night while a cool breeze came in to town. Oh how I love late summer!

The creamy pasta sauce in this spicy cajun chicken pasta will perk up anyone with a headache. Add in some sauteed cajun chicken breasts, zesty Rotel tomatoes, gluten-free elbow noodles, and you have yourself a hangover cure! It's creamy, it's hardy, and it's a less than 30 minute one-pot meal! Score!

Spicy Cajun Chicken Pasta

Yield: 6

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

4 tablespoon cajun seasoning, read "notes"
4 chicken breasts, cubed
½ medium sweet onion, diced
2 tablespoon coconut oil, or other oil you have on hand that you like to saute with
16 ounce package of GF elbow noodles
1 can Rotel tomatoes, we get the "hot" variety
½ cup parmesan cheese, shredded
2 cups milk, we do the skim thang
2 cups heavy whipping cream, oh but it's worth it!

Instructions

In a large pot, cook the noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
In the same pot that you cooked the noodles in, saute the chicken and onion in the 2 tablespoon oil and 2 tablespoon of the cajun seasoning until fully cooked. Add this to the noodles that were set aside.
In the same pot that everything else has been cooked in, add the milk, heavy cream, and 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning together and bring to a boil and allow to simmer until it starts to thicken.
Add the noodle-chicken mixture back to the pot with the simmering milk, add half the cheese and the Rotel tomatoes, and allow all to cook together until desired sauce thickness (I cook mine for about 10 minutes here) occurs.
Serve while still warm, and sprinkle with remaining cheese and 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning. Enjoy it messy!

Notes

Cajun Seasoning:
Combine 2 tablespoon garlic powder, 2 tablespoon paprika, 1 tablespoon salt, 1 tablespoon black pepper, ! tablespoon cayenne pepper, 1 tablespoon oregano, 1 tablespoon onion powder, and ½ tablespoon dried thyme together. You will have left over spice mix after using this concoction in the Spicy Cajun Chicken Pasta recipe.

And if you are wondering... no I am not a bada$$ and drinking through a hangover... no that is not wine in that wine glass of mine...it's plain iced tea. Last night was way too recent to be sipping on alcohol for this girl {plus I gave up Long Island Teas a long time ago.... like at least 12 hours ago}.

Happy Labor Day! And be safe!

Join me in partying with these lovelies!

Gluten-Free Mozzarella Sticks in Air Fryer or Oven

Sep 4, 2015 · 2 Comments

Gluten-free mozzarella sticks are breaded in a garlicky gluten-free breadcrumb mixture and then baked instead of fried, either in the oven or air fryer, creating a delicious healthy baked gluten-free version of an old snack favorite. We call this recipe a game-changer friends!

Table of Contents

Easy Gluten-Free Cheese Sticks:

Oh lawdy lawdy do I have a game changer for you today! I can't even. I just can't. I can't even talk about anything else except this recipe, so here goes....

So once upon a time, there lived a girl who had one big craving for mozzarella sticks.

Prob was, was that she couldn't eat restaurant or grocery store types (#GlutenFreeProblems).

Whomp whomp. That is, until she tried making them herself!

So she tried making her own... she was moving right along.... until that ingredient called 'bread crumbs' became an issue.

The texture and consistency just wasn't right.

So she changed the recipe over and over again, and good mighty... the final recipe was delicious.

She loved that garlicky hint that the seasoned breadcrumbs gave off in every bite...but she longed for more.

So she added some marinara sauce as a finish.... and her work was complete... a complete game-changer was made.

The end. Story complete.

Mozzarella Ingredient List:

6 mozzarella sticks, cut in half and frozen
2 large eggs, beaten
¾ cup gluten-free flour
¾ cup gluten-free breadcrumbs
2 Tablespoons Italian Seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon salt
gluten-free marinara sauce for dipping (optional)

Ingredient Suggestions:

This post may contain affiliate links.

My biggest suggestion here is for the breadcrumbs. Not all gluten-free breadcrumbs are created equal. I repeat - NOT equal!

I would HIGHLY recommend either making a batch of your own homemade (I will add, very easy to make) breadcrumbs that will give you way more bang for your buck and taste waaaaay better, OR.... purchase store-bought gluten-free breadcrumbs with the Italian Seasoning option.

No matter if you go with the first homemade or the second store-purchased option, you will still benefit from adding in the addition Italian seasoning that the recipe calls for.

You won't regret it!

Easy Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400*F or preheat your air fryer to 360*F. Place the beaten eggs in one mixing bowl, the breadcrumbs in a second mixing bowl, and the flour, italian seasoning, garlic powder, and salt, mixed well, into another.
Remove the cheese sticks from the freezer. One at a time, dip each mozzarella stick into the bowl with the flour, then into the bowl with the egg, then back for a second round in the flour bowl, and then the egg bowl, making sure to coat all sides with each dip. Lastly, dip the mozzarella stick into the bowl with the breadcrumbs, pressing the breadcrumbs gently into the sides of the stick to make the crumbs stick.
Place each breaded cheese stick back into the freezer for 30 minutes. To cook in the oven: Spread the re-frozen mozzarella sticks out evenly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 4-6 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and browning around the edges. You may want to flip your sticks halfway through the baking process. To cook in the Air Fryer: Spread the re-frozen mozzarella sticks out evenly in the bottom of the air fryer basket and fry for 4-5 minutes, flipping once in the middle of cooking.
Allow ample time to cool down before inhaling them all. Enjoy them with dipped in marinara sauce!

Recipe Pairings:

I mean - besides the marinara sauce to dip these treasures in???

Yeah, okay - try one of these suggestions:

Air Fryer Asparagus

Roasted Sriracha Cream Broccoli

Summer Tomato + Zucchini Bake

Recipe Pro Tips:

It is best that you cook or air fry these mozzarella sticks when they are extremely cold and frozen so that when they are in the hot oven or air fryer, they don't turn into a puddle of warm delicious cheese, but instead retaining that awesome cheese stick form!

What Air Fryer To Use?

This post may contain affiliate links to items I use in my recipes. Please read my disclosure.

I absolutely love my air fryer. No, I’m not getting paid to say this. I highly recommend you check out OMORC’s selection of air fryers.

I have the OMORC 6 Quart Air Fryer. You will find now a newer version of this Air Fryer.

It’s big enough to definitely feed a family of 4+. Some air fryers are so small that you can barely make enough of something to fill a coffee cup up with.

I love that the parts that need to be washed are dishwasher safe, so clean up is so incredibly easy! It’s a HUGE perk of this thing.

It’s got a pretty simple yet convenient touchscreen that allows you to not only easily set your temperature and time, but there are other functions like the “keep warm” button that can come in really handy

I also have the Ninja Foodi Grill.

It indoor grills, roasts, bakes, dehydrates, and AIR FRIES!

Before you ask - but can it really do all those things well - let me tell you the honest truth... it sure does!

I have tried all of its functions besides dehydrate (but can't wait to play around with the dehydrator function!) and they all work extremely well.

This small appliance combo is great for smaller kitchens with not alot of counter space that needs the ability to have multiple small appliances all in one machine!

Other Popular Gluten-Free Appetizers:

Air Fryer Chicken Wings

Gluten-Free Fried Green Tomatoes

Simple Air Fryer Fish Sticks

Gluten-Free Pigs in a Blanket

Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks

Sweet and Spicy Onion Rings

Gluten-Free Mozzarella Sticks

Yield: 12

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

6 mozzarella sticks, cut in half and frozen
2 large eggs, beaten
¾ cup gluten-free flour
2 Tablespoons Italian Seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup gluten-free breadcrumbs
gluten-free marinara sauce for dipping (optional)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400*F or preheat your air fryer to 360*F. Place the beaten eggs in one mixing bowl, the breadcrumbs in a second mixing bowl, and the flour, italian seasoning, garlic powder, and salt, mixed well, into another.
Remove the cheese sticks from the freezer. One at a time, dip each mozzarella stick into the bowl with the flour, then into the bowl with the egg, then back for a second round in the flour bowl, and then the egg bowl, making sure to coat all sides with each dip. Lastly, dip the mozzarella stick into the bowl with the breadcrumbs, pressing the breadcrumbs gently into the sides of the stick to make the crumbs stick.
Place each breaded cheese stick back into the freezer for 30 minutes. To cook in the oven: Spread the mozzarella sticks out evenly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 4-6 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and browning around the edges. You may want to flip your sticks halfway through the baking process. To cook in the Air Fryer: Spread the mozzarella sticks out evenly in the bottom of the air fryer basket and fry for 4-5 minutes, flipping once in the middle of cooking.
Allow ample time to cool down before inhaling them all. Enjoy them with dipped in marinara sauce!

Notes

If you make my Gluten-Free Mozzarella Sticks, let me know in the comments! Enjoy enjoy enjoy!

Also- be sure to follow me on Instagram and hashtag #BlessHerHeartYall or tag @BlessHerHeartYall – I love seeing and hearing the delicious things you make!

If you love this Gluten-Free Mozzarella Stick recipe, be sure to follow me on social media so you never miss a mouth-watering post:

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This post was first published on September 4, 2015 and last updated on June 5, 2020.

"Slap Yo Mamma" Sticky Asian Ribs

Sep 2, 2015 · 11 Comments

Sticky asian ribs are drizzled in a sweet and spicy glaze, kissed to a slight outer crunch from the grill and melt-in-your-mouth, incredibly tender cooked inside. These easy, gluten-free pork ribs are finger-lickin' and slap yo mama silly kind of 'good'.

Spicy sticky asian ribs are drizzled in sweet and spicy glaze, kissed to a slight crunch on the grill, and melt-in-your-mouth, incredibly tender on the inside. These pork ribs are finger-lickin' and slap yo mama silly kind of 'good'. www.ahotsouthernmess.com

Table of Contents

Why Sticky Asian Ribs?

Ever think you were putting one thing in to your shopping cart, only to realize that you had put something completely different into that slightly-sticky faded-black shopping basket {#GroceryStoreFail} once you were home from the grocery store?

Well, that definitely happened to me the other day.

I thought I had dropped pork loin steaks into my grocery cart, when in fact, I had put country style pork ribs in that squeaky wheely cart {What can I say, I was a distracted driver....at least I wasn't texting while shopping cart-driving!}.

What the heck Jess?

What am I supposed to do with this now?

As much as it hurt to think that far back, I remembered that I used to make a yummy spicy sticky asian ribs in college {it's so long ago, it hurt my brain so much!}.

All I needed to do was remember that dang recipe, hope that I had all the ingredients, and pray that my memory was right and that it was 'slap yo mama silly' kind of "good".

Turns out... Momma did a good thing. These ribs are so incredibly juicy and delicious!

What does the Sticky Asian Sauce taste like?

The sticky Asian rib sauce is sweet and savory, with hints of asian soy sauce, ginger, and of course, barbecue flavors!

This recipe is also slightly spicy, but you can tone it down or spice it up to your family's needs.

You just need to adjust the amount of sriracha sauce. Easy peasy.

For the spicy sticky asian ribs marinade, I used this gluten-free soy sauce, this gluten-free ketchup.

You will likely have a little bit of the marinade reduction left over that you can use for any leftovers {but really, will there be any?}.

What to pair with these Asian ribs?

This fluffy GF quinoa that was the base to this Asian style pork ribs dinner bowl.

Let me recommend the Parmesan Quinoa, Easy Teriyaki Green Beans, and the Sriracha Mayo Cream Broccoli as good places to start!

Sticky Asian Rib Ingredients:

2-3 pounds bone-in country-style pork ribs, bone and fat cut away
¼ cup white wine or apple cider vinegar
1 ½ teaspoon salt
½ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup GF soy sauce*
½ cup GF ketchup
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoon honey, we used fresh Star Thistle honey!
2 tablespoon sriracha sauce
1 tablespoon minced garlic
¼ teaspoon ground ginger

How to make sticky asian ribs:

Boil the ribs. In a large pot filled halfway with water, add the vinegar and salt, and then boil. Add the ribs and boil for 25 minutes.
Marinate. In a large bowl, combine all other ingredients and mix thoroughly. Add the ribs and let marinate in the fridge for 4-6 hours, occasionally stirring the concoction.
Grill. Place the ribs on a grill preheated to medium heat and crisp the outsides a bit, approx. 2-3 minutes on each side (until the meat is cooked thoroughly...it's pork so make sure you do this!).
Simmer. While the ribs are on the grill, place the rest of the marinade in a small sauce pan and bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer until thickened, approx. 5-7 minutes.
Drizzle the reduction. Drizzle the reduction over the ribs. Sprinkle with green onion and sesame seeds if desired. Serve with quinoa and broccoli for an amazing meal! Then enjoy!

"After boiling the ribs for 25 minutes, I made a simple, yet very tasty marinade and let these beasts sit and think for 5 hours by themselves."

"I kissed them on the grill until there was a slight crispity to their outsides, and then we topped 'em with a marinade reduction, sesame seeds, and fresh green onion straight out of our garden."

How to make sure pork ribs are safe to eat:

The USDA lowered the recommended safe internal temperature in 2011 from 160°F to 145 °F with a 3 minutes rest time. That means pork can be served a little pink and don’t need to be sooooooo hot in the center.

Just be sure to check the internal temperature with your meat thermometer. As long as your meat thermometer shows that the pork ribs are cooked above 145°F, you’re good to go!

If you are looking to purchase a meat thermometer, we like using this Thermapen meat thermometer in our kitchen.

How to make sticky Asian ribs look fancy:

Here's a few ideas!

Sprinkle with white or black sesame seeds
Top with fresh chopped green onion slices
Drizzle with a fine zigzag of bright fiery sriracha sauce

Other ways to cook these sticky ribs?

Debbie from Michigan gave them five stars and said: "I just made these ribs for the first time and they are delicious! I did bake them for 20 minutes at 350*F instead of using a grill and they turned out wonderful."

So if you don't want to grill these amazing ribs then follow Debbie's advice and bake them until they are fully cooked!

How to store leftover ribs:

Great question! I mean.... if you even have any leftovers!

If you do happen to have some leftover sticky ribs simply place them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days.

These ribs taste great reheated in the microwave or even warmed up in the oven for a few minutes at 275*F.

More Asian-inspired recipes:

Asian Honey Chicken

One-Pan Baked Gluten-Free Sticky Honey Garlic Chicken

One-Pan Baked Gluten-Free Sweet and Sour Chicken

One-Pan Baked Gluten-Free General Tso’s chicken

Sriracha Lime Chicken

"Slap Yo Mamma" Spicy Sticky Asian Ribs

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

2-3 pounds bone-in country-style pork ribs, bone and fat cut away
¼ cup white wine or apple cider vinegar
1 ½ teaspoon salt
½ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup GF soy sauce*
½ cup GF ketchup
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoon honey, we used fresh Star Thistle honey!
2 tablespoon sriracha sauce
1 tablespoon minced garlic
¼ teaspoon ground ginger

Instructions

In a large pot filled halfway with water, add the vinegar and salt, and then boil. Add the ribs and boil for 25 minutes.
In a large bowl, combine all other ingredients and mix thoroughly. Add the ribs and let marinate in the fridge for 4-6 hours, occasionally stirring the concoction.
Place the ribs on a grill preheated to medium heat and crisp the outsides a bit, approx. 2-3 minutes on each side until the meat is cooked thoroughly.
While the ribs are on the grill, place the rest of the marinade in a small sauce pan and bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer until thickened, approx. 5-7 minutes.
Drizzle the reduction over the ribs. Sprinkle with green onion and sesame seeds if desired. Serve with quinoa and broccoli for an amazing meal! Enjoy!

Easy Cheesy Campfire Taters

Aug 31, 2015 · 31 Comments

Ooey gooey melty cheesy with no strings attached {as in no dirty dishes to clean!}. What else do I gotta say {she drops her mic, brushes her hands off, turns around and walks away}. These simple and tasty potato slices are tossed in a layer of cheeses and sweet onion, sprinkled in paprika, parsley, and some “heat”, loaded onto some tin foil and kissed on the grill till tender; crispy on the outside, and melty everywhere else. If stringy melty cheese gets to your heart, you will easily fall in love with these easy sizzlin’ campfire taters.

Whoa yo! This past weekend went by waaaay too fast. The Hubster and I went on another road trip to visit my best friend at her summer cottage and had a weekend of boating, fishing, sunset-watching, and a lot of really really good eating. Our last night there, we had some amazing grilled meats and some delicious cheesy potatoes that reminded Hubby and I of our previous camping road trip just weeks before, where we grilled up these amazing campfire taters.

These look and taste fancy and all, but they aren't. A few simple ingredients were packed in our camping gear like potatoes and a sweet onion, cheeses and some delicious spices, and with a few quick minutes of easy prep work, the grill did the rest! {easy peasy nice and cheesy} The hard part is letting it cook and having to sit and smell it {#torture #TheStruggleIsReal}.

Campfire Taters

Yield: 6

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

1 ½ tablespoon olive oil
3 medium potatoes, thinly sliced
1 medium sweet onion, sliced
¾ cup of shredded cheese, sharp cheddar or colby-jack is perfect!
1 teaspoon Paprika
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional, for spiciness)
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
tin foil

Instructions

Preheat your grill over med-high heat.
Place a large piece (about the size of a baking sheet) of tin foil on a flat surface. Drizzle the foil in the olive oil.
Combine all other ingredients on the middle of the tin foil and mix thoroughly.
Place a second piece of tin foil (same size) on top of the potatoes and pinch the upper and lower foil pieces together with your fingers.
Tear a small hole in the very top of the foil to use as a steam vent.
Grill the foil packet for 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and cheesy. Enjoy it mesy!

Join me in partying with these lovelies!

Bourbon Cider Sours

Aug 28, 2015 · 45 Comments

Bourbon Cider Sours gently blend apple cider and orange juice over a mug of ice and raw sugars. Sweet enough to guzzle, stiff enough to sip. A chilled fall drink that’s the perfect blend of sweet and manly, fantastic as a swift Fall drink in the warm southern states.

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Best Tasting Fall Cocktail:

Boy do I have a boozy doozy for ya today {I’m mean…it’s Friday…and five o’clock comes right after four o’clock…so…..}! I am so excited that it’s the weekend, with another road trip happening as we speak! And what fun-filled weekend is had without fun-lovin’ spirits?

Our last road trip just two weeks ago, included this Bourbon Cider Sour and we have been talking about it’s existence ever since first sip. The combination of the bourbon and apple, and the orange juice and sugars…it’s definitely very sippable {and by that I mean it’s damn delicious}.

Fall in the South is still very warm, so sometimes you get the craving for a fall beverage but don't want the heat that comes with it. This Bourbon Cider Sour is the perfect fit for a cool refreshing fall drink for those hot southern fall rendezvous.

If you haven't checked out how to make a Honey Bear Cocktail, now's the perfect time to drink up even more fall feels!

Bourbon Cider Sour ingredients:

3 ounces of bourbon, 2 shots
1 cup apple cider
½ cup orange juice
¼ cup sugar
Crushed or cubed ice
1 gala or honeycrisp apple, sliced for garnish

How to make Bourbon Cider Sours:

Mix. Mix the bourbon, apple cider, orange juice, and sugar together.
Pour. Place the ice in the serving cups and pour the liquid over the ice.
Serve. Garnish with apple slices and say a big "cheers!" before drinking.

How to serve Bourbon Cider Sours:

Here are a few ideas!

Place the cider sours in moscow mule copper mugs
Add a few floating apple slices or place them hanging off the rim of each glass.
Place a sugar or cinnamon sugar rim on each mug.

More delicious cocktail recipes:

Over 21:

We do not condone the use of underage drinking. If you are underage, please don't make this....k-thanks.

Bourbon Cider Sours

Yield: 2

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

3 ounces of bourbon, 2 shots
1 cup apple cider
½ cup orange juice
¼ cup sugar
Crushed or cubed ice
1 gala or honeycrisp apple, sliced for garnish

Instructions

Mix the bourbon, apple cider, orange juice, and sugar together.
Place the ice in the serving cups and pour the liquid over the ice.
Garnish with apple slices and say a big "cheers!" before drinking.

BBQ Chicken + Pineapple Foil Packet Dinners

Aug 26, 2015 · Leave a Comment

Juicy grilled chicken and bacon are paired with fresh pineapple, lemon, sweet onion, and potatoes, drizzled with sweet bbq sauce and some extra spice, and then slipped into some tin foil and kissed on the grill. There's no mess to clean up with this all-in-one meal, no dish that gets dirty, and likely no leftovers because frankly, it is just that dang good.

Juicy grilled chicken is paired with fresh pineapple, lemon, sweet onion, and potatoes, drizzled with sweet bbq sauce and some extra spice, and then slipped into some tin foil and kissed on the grill. There's no mess to clean up with this all-in-one meal, no dish that got dirty, and likely no leftovers because frankly, it is just that damn good. www.ahotsouthernmess.com

When I said that this juicy meal is no mess, no fuss kinda deal.... I meant it. Just use yourself a ~~bit~~ good bit of tin foil, grill this masterpiece inside it, and then just toss the crispy foil once you're done.

We even mix our meat and veggies in our BBQ sauce and spices in the foil itself. It saves us dirtying up a mixing bowl.

The only real mess we have when eating these BBQ chicken and pineapple foil packet dinners is the BBQ sauce smeared against our faces. We completely ignore it until well after we are done eating because it is seen as wasting valuable time that could be spent bringing more good bites to our mouths. There's no time to wipe that deliciousness away {overused Sweet Brown quote coming atcha.... because "ain't nobody got time for that!"}.

This easy foil packet recipe is at the top of my "I don't want to clean a single dang dish tonight" list {anyone else have this list? Bueller?}. It's perfect for those busy week nights {or those plain 'ol lazy bum nights...guilty!}.

BBQ Chicken + Pineapple Foil Packet Dinner

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

4 chicken breasts, cubed
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
6 pieces of thick-cut bacon, chopped into 1" sections
2 medium bell peppers, chopped
1 medium pineapple, cubed into 1" squares
3 slices medium potatoes, sliced into thin ⅛"
gluten-free BBQ sauce*
2 tablespoon coconut oil, any cooking oil will do!
1-2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, depending on your spice preference
1 slices lemon, cut into thin
4 pieces of tin foil, about the size of a cookie sheet

Instructions

Preheat your grill over medium heat.
Place one piece of foil on a flat surface. Place half of the chicken, bacon, onion, bell pepper, pineapple, lemon, and potatoes in the middle of the foil.
Drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil, a decent amount of BBQ sauce and ½ of the red pepper flakes. Mix it all together.
Use a second piece of tin foil and place on top of the meal, forming it into a "tent" shape and at the very top of the "tent" making a small slit for steam to exit. Press all four sides of the bottom and top pieces of tin foil together.
Using the other two pieces of tin foil and the other ½ of the ingredients, make a second foil packet the same way as the first (we use two foil packets so that the meat cooks thoroughly and evenly and doesn't take 2 hours to cook).
Grill both foil packets for 15-30 minutes, or until the chicken and bacon have cooked thoroughly.
Drizzle with extra BBQ sauce and enjoy it messy!

*We use this gluten-free BBQ sauce for this recipe (affiliate link).

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Fiery Campfire Veggies

Aug 17, 2015 · 11 Comments

Fresh sweet veggies are placed on the grill in a cast iron skillet, drizzled with olive oil and sriracha, and then sprinkled with more fire with crushed red pepper flakes, before being toasted to perfection. The end result is sweet and spicy tender veggies with a hint of the grill and a bit of crispity crunch.

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Easy Campfire Veggies!

We had such a fun camping trip up in the north Georgia mountains this past weekend. We hiked, explored, and ate amazingly gourmet-like foods for “roughing it” out in the woods.

We made these fiery campfire veggies every night of our trip.

We also drank way too many delicious Bourbon Cider Sours in moscow mule mugs and snacked on the perfect amount of Cheesy Campfire Taters!

These campfire-approved vegetables are ridiculously easy to make and even strangers will come over and ask what that delicious smell is coming from your campfire. We may have made a few new friends because of these campfire veggies!

What an easy and healthy recipe! These fresh sweet veggies are placed on the grill in a cast iron skillet, drizzled with olive oil and sriracha, and then sprinkled with more fire with crushed red pepper flakes, before being toasted to perfection. The end result is sweet and spicy tender veggies with a hint of the grill and a bit of crispity crunch. www.ahotsouthernmess.com

You can season them just the way you want to. They are super customizable and another perk is that you don't have to pack and trapes around a ton of ingredients on your camping trip to make this recipe come to fruition. I'll show you the simple ingredients you'll need to pack to get you on your way.

Why these Fiery Campfire Veggies?

Our first night in the great outdoors, we had these amazing and spicy Fiery Campfire Veggies. After chopping up our zucchini, corn on the cob, and bell pepper slices, we topped them off with a bit of olive oil, sriracha drizzle, red pepper flakes, and paprika, before turning the skillet over to the grill to let it do it’s thing.bles

And oh my goodness were these veggies fantastic! We took them off the grill right when the vegetables were starting to get bright in color and becoming tender.

*For a more detailed description of ingredients and directions, please scroll down to the recipe card.

What campfire veggie ingredients to pack:

1 medium zucchini, sliced
3 medium corn on the cob, sliced into thirds
2 medium bell peppers, deseeded and chopped
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes, or less depending on spice preference
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
½ tablespoon paprika

How do you make these Fiery Campfire Veggies?

Heat your grill over medium-high heat.
Place all veggies into a large skillet. Drizzle with olive oil.
Sprinkle with spices and stir to coat well.
Place on the grill for 10-15 minutes (stirring occasionally) or until your veggies start to brightened in color and become tender.
The last thing we did before devouring the entire skillet (before the rest of our food was even ready), was check and see if the corn on the cob was sufficiently cooked (you can test it by pressing on a corn kernel and seeing if it easily pops with juices. If it does, it’s done!).

What plays well with Fiery Campfire Veggies?

The fiery campfire veggies would be great with almost anything else you’d want to kiss on the grill. We had ours fill our plates alongside some ribeyes with grilled bacon and bleu cheese crumbles.

We have also paired these veggies with:

Want other corn recipes?

Well of course you do! Here are a few other reader favorites:

Fiery Campfire Veggies

Yield: 6

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

1 medium zucchini, sliced
3 medium corn on the cob, sliced into thirds
2 medium bell peppers, deseeded and chopped
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes, or less depending on spice preference
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
½ tablespoon paprika

Instructions

Heat your grill over medium-high heat.
Place all veggies into a large skillet. Drizzle with olive oil.
Sprinkle with spices and stir to coat well.
Place on the grill for 10-15 minutes (stirring occasionally) or until your veggies start to brightened in color and become tender.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 6 Serving Size: 6 Servings
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 108Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 138mgCarbohydrates: 19gFiber: 3gSugar: 7gProtein: 3g

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Jacked Jalapeno Burger

Aug 7, 2015 · 28 Comments

Ooey gooey pepper jack cheese is stuffed inside juicy ground beef patties along with fresh bites of crisp spicy jalapeños. The burgers are kissed on the grill long enough to cook to your liking and then stacked on top of a fluffy bun, and then loaded with fresh crisp slices of lettuce and tomato, BBQ bacon, and homemade buttermilk onion rings.

Oh my gosh, this burger looks so good! I have got to try it! Ooey gooey pepper jack cheese is stuffed inside juicy ground beef patties along with fresh bites of crisp spicy jalapeños. The burgers are kissed on the grill long enough to cook to your liking and then stacked on top of a fluffy bun, and then loaded with fresh crisp slices of lettuce and tomato, BBQ bacon, and homemade buttermilk onion rings. www.ahotsouthernmess.com

Do I have a doozy for y'all today! There's no time to talk about anything else today except for this burger.

The Jalapeño Jack Burger is my favorite burger of all time. Once you have one, there's really no going back, so you've been warned.

We stack these jalapeño jack burgers high with fresh veggie slices, BBQ Bacon, and my homemade Buttermilk Onion Rings. But don't feel like you have to have all of these toppings in order to make this burger great y'all. This jalapeño jack burger is hella good all on its own.

The Jalapeño Jack Burger has chunks of melty Pepper Jack cheese and fresh diced jalapeños inside of it, just waiting for ya. And each bite is more amazing than the next {in fact, when my burger is gone, I get sad feelings inside}.

And on a final note, this meal is not recommended for those on a diet plan {but of course recommended for cheat day! Boosh!} You might as well wait for your next cheat day to come around before you knock out this one {reenacts patting her food baby}.

The Jacked Jalapeno Burger

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
2 fresh jalapeños, diced (and deseeded if your not feeling adventurous)
1 cup cubed pepper jack cheese, plus slices for on top of your burgers!
Hamburger buns, onion rings, lettuce tomatoes, pickles, and all the other fixin's you may want on your burgers.

Instructions

Preheat your grill over medium heat.
In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, jalapeño, and pepper jack cheese and mix well (hands work well for his part). Form the mixture into four patties.
Place the patties on the grill and cook both sides until thoroughly cooked to your preference.
While still hot, place any remaining cheese on the patties so that they melt sufficiently.
Allow the patties to sit for 4-5 minutes after removing from the grill to allow the juices to settle. Top your burger with goodies and enjoy it messy!

Even if you are working with very lean beef, these burgers will turn out extremely juicy because of all the juicy jalapeños bits and cheesy pieces stuffed inside!

Strawberry Mango Ice Cream

Aug 5, 2015 · 13 Comments

Fresh creamy strawberry mango ice cream with hand picked strawberry pieces and puréed mango folded in. Ten minutes of prep work and a hand mixer is all that you need to prepare this light, sweet, refreshing treat for those long dog days of summer!

We are now entering the dog days of summer. It's hot out. It's sticky. It's humid. What could be more dang refreshing on a hot summer day than a bowl full of cold sweet ice cream full of freshly picked fruit?!?

What if I told ya that the fruit combo I was referring to was strawberry and mango? Heck yes. Now THAT sounds damn refreshing!

So here's the scoop: ya pick out the freshest strawberries you can find and chop 'em up. Then you find the best ripe mango you can and ya purée the crap out of it. Then ya prepare your ice cream base and mix in your fruit. How easy is that y'all? {puts her hands up in the air and then doesn't know what to do from there}

Strawberry Mango Ice Cream

Yield: 6

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

1 ¾ cup heavy whipping cream
1 14 oz . can sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 in ripe mango, pureed smooth a food processor
¾ cup fresh strawberries, chopped

Instructions

With a hand mixer, whip the heavy whipping cream until it thickens and fluffy peaks appear, approximately 5 minutes.
Carefully fold in all the other ingredients. Place in a freezer-safe dish and freeze for 4-6 hours or until the ice cream is completely frozen through.
Enjoy it messy!

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Bacon on the grill recipe: just 2 ingredients & 5 minutes!

Aug 4, 2015 · 2 Comments

Bacon on the grill uses sweet and savory barbecue sauce smothered on top of thick-cut applewood bacon. While dripping with BBQ sauce, it's placed on the grill and kissed on both sides with a bit of char before being devoured.

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The best grilled barbecue bacon!

It's sweet, it's smokey, it's juicy and delicious all on its own or over a piece of juicy chicken, on top of a grilled burger, or beside a thick tender steak. So good, you'll wanna it for breakfast too!

What does grilled BBQ bacon taste like?

Y'all, this grilled bacon recipe IS the definition of meat candy!

Its sweet, it's crunchy, it's salty and savory, it's even the size and shape of a freaking candy bar. It's literally meat candy!

The sweet and tangy barbecue sauce melts into the bacon slices once the heat of the grill flames touch it, which leaves a sticky sweet outer coating. The sugar in the BBQ sauce almost crystallizes in the heat and adds a bit of crunch allow with the char from the grill marks.

It's savory and meaty, yet slightly sweet, tender with crisp edges!

What to pair with grilled bacon?

Whenever we are grilling, we find it the most opportune time to grill up some BBQ bacon to go along with our meal. Grilled pork chops? Sure! Filet mignon? Absolutely! Jalapeño Jack Burgers? Every time! Grilled Salad? Why is this even still a question?

Yes! yes! yes!

How to cook bacon on the grill?

It's ridiculously easy to make!

Take your bacon slices and brush on your favorite BBQ sauce on both sides.

Then, while the strips are dripping with sauce, they are placed on the grill and kissed on both sides with a bit of char from the heat of the grill before cooling and then devoured.

So silly simple.

Types of bacon:

Thick cut bacon. Typically seen behind the butcher counter at the grocery store. This is the type of bacon that we prefer to use for this grilled bacon recipe.
Turkey Bacon. “Bacon” made from turkey instead of pork.
American-Style Bacon. The thinner strips of bacon served at many restaurants during breakfast.
Low sodium bacon. The same American-style bacon, just with some of the sodium taken out.
Canadian bacon. This bacon has fewer calories and less fat than American-style bacon listed above and tastes more like ham than other types of bacon.
Smoked bacon. The bacon is cured by being smoked over burning wood chips, such as hickory, mesquite, or applewood flavors, for hours.
Seasoned Bacon. Peppered bacon is one of the most common seasoned bacon options out there. Peppered bacon is also a GREAT option to smother with barbecue sauce and grill for this recipe!
Pancetta. An Italian-style bacon cured with salt, peppercorns, and cloves, and other spices.

Difference Between Cured and Uncured Bacon:

The difference between uncured and cured bacon is that the solution used in uncured bacon doesn't contain artificial nitrates, the nitrates in uncured bacon coming from natural items, like sea salt or celery juice.

What type of grill to use for BBQ Bacon?

Well I've made this BBQ bacon on a charcoal grill as well as gas and it's turned out deliciously perfect every time.

These days our family has upgraded to a bright red Kamado Joe that we absolutely LOVE!

It produces the most tender, moist meat I have ever had.

Hands down the BEST grilled foods on the planet come from a Kamado Joe!

What barbecue sauce to use for grilled bacon?

*We use this gluten-free barbecue sauce and love it!

BUT... you can use whatever barbecue sauce that you love. If you use a spicy BBQ sauce beware that it might seem spicer once the bacon is grilled.

I highly recommend that no matter which barbecue sauce you end up with that it has sweet flavor associated with it.

How to make Grilled Barbecue Bacon:

Heat your grill over medium heat.
Smother both sides of the bacon strips in BBQ sauce on a baking sheet or a plate.
Place the strips on the grill over even heat, flipping at least once so to not burn the bacon strips.
After bacon is sufficiently cooked, remove from the grill and allow to cool for 1-2 minutes (allows the juices to settle) on a paper towel-lined plate or baking sheet. Then devour!

Grilled BBQ Bacon notes:

I know y'all are looking at this recipe and thinkin'.... "dude...is this actually a recipe? It's got 2 ingredients."

And my answer is yes, it's a pretty idiot-proof ingredient list. But the key to getting this recipe right is in the instructions. You need keep the bacon over an even flame and be on the lookout for a good time to flip the strips so that they don;t burn. So pay attention to your grill's temperature and where the flame is in relation to these meaty strips and you will have yourself a 2-ingredient party in your mouth. You're welcome 😉

Another thing to take note of is grill flare ups. You are dealing with an open flame and grease dripping off of the bacon strips so be aware that a flare up from the fire in the grill may occur. It will settle back down after the grease stops dripping after a moment or two.

Grills vary in many ways, but they definitely vary in temperature regulation and evenness of flame. Keep this in mind when placing your bacon strips on the grill!

How to store leftover bacon:

You will likely not have any leftovers....

But if you do, you can store cooked Grilled BBQ Bacon in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Want more bacon recipes?

Grilled BBQ Bacon

Yield: 12

Prep Time: 2 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 7 minutes

Grilled BBQ Bacon uses sweet and savory BBQ sauce is smothered on top of thick-cut applewood bacon. While dripping with sauce, it's placed on the grill and kissed on both sides with a bit of char before being devoured. It's sweet, it's smokey, it's juicy and delicious all on its own or over a piece of juicy chicken, on top of a grilled burger, or beside a thick tender steak. You'll wanna it for breakfast too.

Ingredients

Thick-cut bacon slices
barbecue sauce *

Instructions

Heat your grill (medium heat).
Smother both sides of the bacon strips in BBQ sauce on a baking sheet.
Place the strips on the grill over even heat, constantly flipping as to not burn the bacon strips.
After bacon is sufficiently cooked, remove from the grill and allow to cool for 1-2 minutes (allows the juices to settle) on a paper towel-lined plate or baking sheet. Enjoy it messy!

Recommended Products

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Sweet Baby Ray's Barbecue Sauce

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1 Servings
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 10Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 1mgSodium: 46mgCarbohydrates: 1gFiber: 0gSugar: 1gProtein: 0g

Summer Tomato + Zucchini Bake

Aug 3, 2015 · 3 Comments

A light and fresh baked vegetable dish that's the perfect accompaniment to any weeknight summer meal. In less than 30 minutes, you can have a garlicky, cheesy, and satisfying dish that's actually very healthy (vegetarian and gluten-free), your family won't even know what happened!

Wow! When did Monday get here? I spent the weekend getting a long list of do-to's down to a smaller long list of to-do's. It kinda took up the whole weekend and then Monday decided to show up.

With a major cheat ~~meal~~ day that happened this weekend, I needed to level my foodie playing field with a meal with a ~~little~~ lot more on the healthier side.

I went with some yummy chicken breasts and this Summer Tomato + Zucchini Bake. It was perfect for a cheesy, garlicky side that was satisfying to the bellies but also hella healthy for those counting their 'man carbs' {ahem...Hubby}.

Summer Tomato + Zucchini Bake

Yield: 8

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 zucchinis, chopped
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
½ red or sweet onion, chopped or sliced
¼ cup shredded radishes, optional for a little extra crunch!
½ cup fresh parmesan cheese, shredded
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon salt
3 Tablespoons chopped or shredded basil leaves, plus more for optional garnish
5 Tablespoons olive oil for drizzling

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350*F.
In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients together until all vegetables are evenly coated in the dressing.
Place the veggie mix in a 9 x 13 baking dish and bake uncovered for 25 minutes for crunchier veggies and 30 minutes for more tender vegetables. Enjoy!

Corn + Tomato Picnic Salad

Jul 29, 2015 · 4 Comments

A light summer dish, perfect for those last-minute outdoor parties and get-togethers. In less than 5 minutes, you can have a bowl of this refreshing side with its sweet corn kernels and grape tomatoes, and the garlic basil lime sauce that's robust with a bit of sweetness!

This may sound a bit corny, but it's corn time around these parts.

Some of the yummiest corn here in the south is coming home from the stores late July and August and that makes my palate very happy.

One of my favorite summer corn dishes is the Skinny Mexican Grilled Corn, where lime and yummy spices are drizzled over top the creation.

So I said to myself, "self, go make yourself another tasty corn side that also has fresh lime juice in it."

After talking to myself and thinking of what spice combos I was craving at the moment, I came up with a garlic basil lime sauce to drizzle over some sweet veggies and toss.

Voila, a light and refreshing side dish!

This corn salad recipe takes only minutes to prepare and will be one of the dishes at your next shindig that will be gone the quickest.

Not only is it delicious, but it's pretty and eye catching.

All those plastic party utensils will be swinging for this one y'all!

Corn + Tomato Picnic Salad

Yield: 10 people

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

3 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lime juice
¼ cup fresh basil, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
4 in ears worth of corn kernels, or two large cans of canned corn a crunch!
1 cup grape tomatoes, chopped

Instructions

Place the corn and tomatoes in a large bowl. Set aside.
In a smaller bowl, combine all other ingredients and whisk well.
Pour the garlic basil lime drizzle over the veggies and refrigerate until serving. Enjoy it messy!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 10 Serving Size: 10 people
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 180

Thanks for stopping in friends!

Cucumber Salad Pizza

Jul 27, 2015 · 10 Comments

Cucumber pizza is a delicious gluten-free spin on a summer veggie pizza! This Cucumber Salad Pizza is piled high with fresh crisp cucumbers, sweet sliced cherry tomatoes, brisk bites of jalapeño, slices of red onion, and sprinkled with fresh feta cheese crumbles. Everything you'd find in a cucumber salad, now tops your pizza!

Table of Contents

Cucumber on Pizza:

Well well well, welcome back Monday.

Weekends are just too short, especially in the summer.

Agreed? Agreed.

With summer halfway gone and no real solution on how to slow it down {wouldn't year-long summer be great?} I am gobbling up {pun intended} any and every summer recipe I can find time to make.

This here Cucumber Salad Pizza is one of those well-intentioned recipes. By well-intentioned, I mean one night I meant to put zucchini slices on my pizza and realized I had put cucumber slices on it only after ~~taking my first huge bite~~ snarfing down an entire slice.

The intention was zucchini, the end product was something fresh and crisp, light and almost sweet.

This cucumber was amazing on pizza!

Then I started brainstorming....

How could I make my normal pizza, with this new mistaken addition even better?

Shoot... I might as well add the rest of a dang cucumber salad on it and see how she goes!

Sure enough, it was fantastic y'all!

Cucumber pizza pairings:

We like to pair this cucumber pizza with a helping of Air Fryer Asparagus or Sriracha Mayo Broccoli greens.

Oh yeah, and a delicious glass of wine!

Cucumber Pizza Ingredients:

one 10-oz. gluten-free pizza dough, prepared according to the recipe's instructions*
½ cup pizza sauce**
1-2 cups freshly shredded mozzarella cheese, depends on how cheesy ya like your pies
½ medium cucumber, diced
¾ cup grape tomatoes, halved
1 jalapeno, deseeded and diced
¼ cup red onion, diced
¼ cup fresh feta crumbles
1 teaspoon of equal parts: oregano, basil, garlic powder, onion powder, and cracked pepper.

*If you are in a time-crunch (or ya don't feel like making your own crust), I highly recommend this gluten-free pizza crust (affiliate link).

If you are looking for a good make-from-scratch recipe, I'd go with this pizza crust recipe until I can get my recipe up on this slice of the interwebs.

**My go-to gluten-free pre-made pizza sauce (affiliate link) just happens to be a popular grocery store find!

How to make pizza with cucumber:

Preheat your oven according to your pizza dough instructions.
Prepare your pizza by adding the pizza sauce, then the mozzarella cheese, then the veggies and feta cheese, and lastly, the seasoning.
Bake according to pizza dough instructions. Serve it hot and enjoy!

How to store leftover cucumber pizza:

You can place your cooked and cooled-to-room-temperature pizza in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

How to reheat leftover cucumber pizza:

To reheat your pizza, simply put your pizza on a baking sheet and place in a heat oven at 300*F for 5-10 minutes or until the pizza is warmed to your liking.

Cucumber Salad Pizza

Yield: 8 people

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

A delicious gluten-free spin on a summer veggie pizza. This Cucumber Pizza is piled high with fresh crisp cucumbers, sweet sliced cherry tomatoes, brisk bites of jalapeño, slices of red onion, and sprinkled with fresh feta cheese crumbles. Everything you'd find in a cucumber salad, now tops your pizza!

Ingredients

one 10-oz. gluten-free pizza dough, prepared according to the recipe's instructions*
½ cup pizza sauce**
1-2 cups freshly shredded mozzarella cheese, depends on how cheesy ya like your pies
½ medium cucumber, diced
¾ cup grape tomatoes, halved
1 jalapeno, deseeded and diced
¼ cup red onion, diced
¼ cup fresh feta crumbles
1 teaspoon of equal parts: oregano, basil, garlic powder, onion powder, and cracked pepper.

Instructions

Preheat your oven according to your pizza dough instructions.
Prepare your pizza by adding the pizza sauce, then the mozzarella cheese, then the veggies and feta cheese, and lastly, the seasoning.
Bake according to pizza dough instructions. Serve it hot and enjoy!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 8 Serving Size: 8 people
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 41Cholesterol: 6mgSodium: 238mgCarbohydrates: 2gSugar: 1gProtein: 5g

Grilled Shrimp + Chicken Caesar Salad

Jul 22, 2015 · Leave a Comment

Okay, so there's a lot going on here. There's heads of grilled romaine lettuce, there's grilled chicken and shrimp skewers, and there's homemade Caesar dressing.

What if I told you that this complete meal can be made in under 20 minutes... AND is a super cheap recipe...... and is healthy for ya? Would you try it?

Okay y'all, so let focus on this "healthy" part for a sec y'all. The reason why I consider this meal a healthy meal is that one, it's a salad {deeeer}, and secondly, I swapped out the heavy creamy base of the Caesar salad dressing with a low-fat Greek yogurt with some added lemon juice. Much much healthier for all us eaters out there {throws her hands up in the air and tries for a 'whoop whoop'}.

Then there's this thing called anchovy that may throw a lot of people off. Me too y'all! I'm not a seafood lover and these little fish creep me out. But, nowadays they make this less-stinky thing called anchovy paste that cost less than $2 that you add into the Caesar dressing to make it legit (because legit Caesar dressing calls for the creepy fish).

Where do you find this paste you ask? From doing some research, it sounds like most large grocers stock the little tube of creepiness. I found mine with the canned tuna (with the french wording facing out so the first 3 times I went down the aisle looking for the paste, I skipped right by it). Others have found it with the prepackaged crab meat in a tub, some in the frozen seafood section (weird since it shouldn't be frozen), some in the refrigerated milk area, and strangely by the canned tomatoes. What? I finally came to find the anchovy paste by asking Helda the Russian butcher {I kid you not. I can't make this stuff up} working behind the meat counter at my local Kroger. Helda rocks.

Be sure to wash, halve, and fully dry your lettuce before attempting to grill. Let my mistake be advice to ya... wet grilled lettuce turns into burnt willed lettuce. Boo. Just dry the lettuce heads before attempting this y'all, trust me.

Top your grilled Caesar salad with your fav croutons, shredded parm cheese, and bacon crumbles {our crumbles were left over from the previous meal- gasp! Left over bacon rarely is a thing in our house}.

Grilled Shrimp + Chicken Caesar Salad

Yield: 2

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

1 head of romaine lettuce, or the lettuce of your choosing
2-4 skewers of meat of your choosing, we wanted shrimp and chicken kabobs
½ cup non-fat greek yogurt
⅓ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
2 tablespoon olive oil + a splash extra to drizzle over the lettuce for grilling)
1 ½ tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon anchovy paste
2 cloves garlic
⅛ teaspoon cracked pepper
cracked pepper, croutons, extra cheese, and bacon crumbles for sprinkling on top of your salads.

Instructions

Split the lettuce in half, hot dog-style. Wash the lettuce and allow to dry completely before starting the cooking process.
Grill your meat kabobs. While your meat is grilling, you can prepare your caesar dressing*.
Gently brush the inside of each lettuce half with olive oil. Kiss the lettuce heads (insides down) on the grill, for about 30 seconds over high heat. There will be grill marks and browning starting to form around the edges.
Pile your meat kabobs, your croutons, cheese, cracked pepper, bacon crumbles (any extra lemon juice), and your homemade caesar dressing (below) onto your delicious grilled lettuce.
*Caesar Dressing Instructions: Combine the greek yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, parmesan, anchovy paste, cracked pepper, and mustard together in a food processor. Blend the ingredients until smooth.
Enjoy it messy!

Join me in partying with these lovelies!

Gluten-Free Cherry Pie

Jun 30, 2015 · Leave a Comment

Whoo hoo! This is my favorite time of year, between all of the summer parties and the Fourth of July, everyone seems to be in great spirits. I am in-between a weekend getting back from a blogging conference and the Forth of July weekend, so there's a lot of excitement getting thrown around in these parts y'all. Part of that excitement is getting ready for the Fourth. What all-american things will I make for food? Which fireworks do I pick up? Do I have enough red, white, and blue to splatter around the house?

Well, at least in the food department, what's more all-american than a sweet cherry pie? And the topper?.... it's got stars and stripes! What? Girl's on her A-game y'all. This particular pie recipe also includes another all-american pastime, moonshine. The splash of moonshine (and lemon) helps to add a bit of crispness to the already sweet cherries.

This all-american classic is perfect all summer long, from Memorial Day to the Forth of July to Labor Day, this easy, fresh, gluten-free moonshine cherry pie will be a hit at any summer party! Find the easy recipe at www.ahotsouthernmess.com

The first time I made this recipe, I couldn't believe at how easy it was and how few ingredients were really in it. I also had no clue that the filling would be so great without gelatin in it and only ½ cup sugar. I always assumed that the pies that taste the best (ahem...Grandma's pie) were loaded with cups of sugar and unflavored gelatin packets. Nope, not here, not now!

Of course I made this Uncle Sam-approved (I am just assuming he would approve) betty with gluten-free ingredients.

Taking the pits out of the cherries took the longest, about 15 minutes. I did this step the day before I baked my pie. You can use packaged cherries in a pinch, but lets be real y'all, there's nothin' like a fresh cherry pie.

I coated the stars and stripes in a little bit of milk and then a sprinkling of sugar to add a little bit of sweet crunch on top.

Gluten-Free Cherry Pie

Yield: 8

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

2 unbaked GF pie crusts *, or 2 gluten-free pie crusts
a sprinkling of GF flour, for rolling purposes
5 cups sweet red cherries, pitted
½ cup granulated sugar + some for garnish
¼ cup corn starch
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon moonshine **, we used legal South Carolina moonshine
juice of ½ lemon
1 tablespoon cold butter, diced
1 tablespoon milk

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425*F.
Roll out one of your pie crusts with a bit of GF flour and a rolling pen. With a knife, cut out your stars and stripes. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the cherries, sugar, corn starch, lemon juice, vanilla and almond extracts, and moonshine together. Place this mixture over top of the second pie crust.
Place the diced butter sporadically over the top of the pie. Then place your stars and stripes on top of the butter.
With a basting brush or your fingers, gently coat the top of your stars and stripe with the milk and then sprinkle with sugar.
Place the pie on a baking sheet to help support the pie and then place the entire setup in the fridge for 20 minutes.
Bake for 15 minutes on the middle rack and then decrease the temperature to 350*F and bake for another 30-40 minutes, or until your gluten-free crust is golden brown***.
Serve warm and with your fav vanilla ice cream and as always, enjoy it messy!

*I really like this premade GF crust in a pinch. When making my own GF crust, I use Gluten-Free on a Shoestring's recipe.

***Do not let your GF crust over cook, as it will likely crumble apart. Yuck!

Grilled Spicy Steak Pinwheels

Jun 18, 2015 · 3 Comments

These grilled spicy steak pinwheels use a mixture of cotija cheese, grape tomatoes, pepper flakes, and arugula leaves all wrapped up in some yummy thinly-sliced steak. The drooling starts now...

Ever go out to dinner and have a tasty meal and drinks, only to sit back, throw your napkin on the table, and realize that you could probably make what you just ate at home for ¼ of the price you just signed that tab for, AND you could probably make it better?

Yeah, Hubby and I have those ~~moments~~ epiphanies quite a bit. In fact, we have almost stopped going out to eat all together.

We have realized that in most instances, we can prepare the same dishes that we enjoy while eating out, but for a lot less dinero and we can make it even healthier (gluten-free!) and tastier.

For instance, this grilled spicy steak pinwheels recipe that we grilled up this past weekend...

I threw together a mixture of cotija cheese (a Mexican cheese that easily crumbles and that you can find in your chain grocery stores in the international section for just a couple of bucks), grape tomatoes, and arugula leaves (baby spinach leaves would be another tasty and healthy alternative) and wrapped some yummy thinly-sliced steak slices around it.

Then the drooling started...

We kissed the pinwheels on the grill and topped it off with a smoky chimichurri sauce.

Hubby actually said word for word “This is better than any restaurant could ever do. ANDDDDD….can we have this everyday?”.

There ya have it folks. If you want a delicious and fancy-looking date night entree for under $20 for a table of four, and have just 30 minutes to spare, you can have yourself an awesome steak night - date night too.

This quick mix of cotija and feta cheeses, arugula, and grape tomatoes is the "stuffing" to the pinwheels.

You don't want to fill the meat too full because you won't be able to roll them up. #SteakFail

We like to place two or three pinwheels on each skewer to keep the grill nice and tidy.

And speaking of nice and tidy, you may want to toothpick-close the ends of each steak pinwheel. The filling may tend to fall out of the sides until the cheeses have melted enough on the grill.

Don't forget to soak the toothpicks in water for a few minutes beforehand!

Spicy Steak Pinwheels

Yield: 10

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds top round, cut into ¼ thin slices (approx. 10 slices)
¼ cup feta cheese crumbles
1 cup cotija cheese, grated
1 cup grape tomatoes, finely diced
½ cup arugula
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1-2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, depending on spice preference
3-5 grill secures
10-20 in toothpicks, soaked water for 10 minutes
olive oil to drizzle
cracked pepper for garnish

Instructions

Heat the grill on medium heat.
Mix all the ingredients (except the steak, olive oil, pepper, secures, and tooth picks) in a large bowl.
Place an even layer of the mixture over each piece of steak. Gently roll the steak up and secure with a grill secure.
Use the tooth picks to secure any ends of the steak from becoming too loose and loosing ingredients. drizzle the steak pinwheels with olive oil and garnish with pepper.
Grill for 4-5 minutes on each side. Take off the grill and allow to sit for 5 minutes. You can cut the pinwheels into small swirls if preferred. Enjoy the pinwheels with your favorite sauce, like this smoky chimichurri sauce!
Remove the toothpicks and skewers and as always, enjoy it messy!

Depending on your preference for steak doneness (is that a word?), you may want to slice the pinwheels in half (hamburger-style) and allow the inside sides to cook as well. We like our steak less-done versus more-done, so we don't do this step. (Please remember the implications of consuming undercooked meats. K- thanks!)

These spicy steak pinwheels are so freaking good by themselves, but when we have the chance, we like to drizzle Smoky Chimichurri Hot Sauce and extra cotija cheese crumbles on the top of each pinwheel before inhaling them.

Gluten Free Spicy Stuffed Bell Peppers Recipe

Jun 16, 2015 · Leave a Comment

Do you have a favorite recipe that someone makes for you every once in a while, maybe your mom's homemade spaghetti and meatballs, or grandma's dinner rolls, and it just brings you to a happy place? These same recipes are usually sacred and heavily asked for. No one knows their ingredients, and no one ever will.

These spicy stuffed bell peppers are that ‘food’ for me. Up until now, I had no idea how to make them, what the special magical tricks and ingredients were. They would sort of just show up in front of me every blue moon or so.

Until now… Now I got the secret shared as to how to make the best stuffed bell peppers in the world. Not only do I have them written down as my fav meal, now my parents ask for them too. Once you get your paws on these bad boys, you’ll be asking for more too!

EThe best spicy stuffed bell peppers are so easy to make! They are so easy to make that my hubby even makes them! www.ahotsouthernmess.com

So without further ado, I give you this Spicy Stuffed Bell Peppers recipe….

After preparing the bell peppers, Hubby slipped them in a metal baking dish with a pool of water on the bottom and let bake.

Meanwhile, we prepared “the stuffing” which consisted of cooking the rice and spicy sausage and adding the spices all together.

After taking the bell peppers out of the oven, we stuffed each pepper to the brim with all the stuffing and then baked it a second time, but this time there is cheese involved….and it’s on top and turns golden brown. It is seriously that easy and it is seriously that good.

Gluten Free Stuffed Bell Peppers Recipe

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

4 medium bell peppers
1 pound spicy ground pork sausage (spicy chicken or turkey sausage works great too!)
1½ cups chopped yellow onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
1½ cups cooked rice
¼ teaspoon cracked pepper
¼ cup green onion, chopped
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
½ teaspoon gluten-free creole seasoning
3 tablespoon parmesan cheese, grated

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400*F.

Cut off the top of each bel pepper and chop enough of the top up into pieces to make up ½ cup. Set aside the diced peppers.
In a square baking dish, add ½ inch of water to the bottom and then add the bell peppers. Place this in the oven to bake (this helps turn the peppers into a tender crispy pepper versus and crispy-crispy pepper!) while you are preparing the sausage/rice mix.
Brown the sausage in a large skillet until cooked thoroughly. Add the onions and diced bell pepper just before the sausage is fully cooked and allow to cook until the veggies start to soften.
Add in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute. Mix in the rice well and then add in the pepper and creole seasoning.
Remove from heat and add the green onion and mix. Place the rice mixture evenly into the four bell peppers. Top with the cheese and garnish with a bit of extra creole seasoning. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cheesy tops turn golden brown. Enjoy it messy!

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 535Total Fat: 33gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 20gCholesterol: 101mgSodium: 1133mgCarbohydrates: 36gFiber: 3gSugar: 8gProtein: 26g

BBQ Bacon Pineapple Chicken Kabobs

Jun 16, 2015 · 9 Comments

BBQ Bacon Pineapple Chicken Kabobs are a simple and easy dinner option for those who love to grill! Tender chicken pieces are strung together with juicy pineapple chunks, and crisp bell peppers, zucchini pieces, and sweet onion, brushed with BBQ sauce, and then kissed on the grill to add warm smokiness!

Table of Contents

Best Barbecue Pineapple Chicken Kabobs!

Y'all! Do I have a good one for ya!

The family and I had a craving for chicken kabobs this past weekend.

Okay, so confession time: we wanted to grill something with adult beverages in hand and I specifically wanted to have something easy and quick to prepare and something that wouldn't heat the house up since it was 98,588,348 degrees outside.

We also wanted some bacon. So we combined the bacon, pineapple chunks, kabob vegetables, and some barbecue sauce.

I am pretty sure that these Spicy Barbecue Bacon Chicken Kabobs were gone within 60 seconds.

I mean, we were hungry, but, these dang kabobs are the bomb! Oh my goodness!

It's always a good day when the family decides it's a day that there is going to be grilled BBQ bacon in the house, so of course we had to try it in our kabobs too.

Ingredient List:

4 strips of thick-cut bacon
4 chicken breasts, cubed
2 bell peppers, sliced into 2-inch squares
1 sweet onion, sliced into 2-inch squares
1 cup Gluten-free barbecue sauce*
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

We added a little spice to the mix with a quick shake of the crushed red pepper flakes bottle, and some crispiness with some fresh bell peppers and sweet onion.

I love using this BBQ glaze for the barbecue sauce, but in a time crunch, I like to use this BBQ sauce which you can find at most chain grocery stores.

Simple Directions:

Cook the bacon until it is halfway to fully cooked (We bake in the oven at 350*F for about 10 minutes).
Place the chicken, bell pepper, pineapple, and onion pieces onto kabob sticks, interweaving one bacon slice in between the other pieces on each kabob stick.
Using a basting brush, brush on the barbecue sauce and place on the grill over medium heat. Continuously turn the kabobs until the chicken and bacon is cooked thoroughly, about 15-20 minutes, depending on your grill.
Sprinkle the cooked kabobs with the crushed red pepper flakes or fun crunchy sesame seeds and enjoy while still warm!

The key is to cook the bacon until it is halfway done (that way the strips are still pliable enough to ribbon through the kabobs, AND that the grease from the bacon is limited, decreasing the chance of grill flare-ups and burnt kabobs) before putting the kabobs together!

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Recipe Pro Tips:

The crushed red pepper flakes and crunchy white or black sesame seeds as a garnish are optional.

If you like a little extra added spice or crunch, consider one or both of these toppings.

Grills vary widely.

Our Kamado Joe Grill is AMAZING and perfectly cooks these pieces of chicken and vegetables to tender, juicy bites of heaven in roughly 15-18 minutes, flipping every 5 minutes or so.

But your grill may vary from ours, so just make sure that you flip (and rebrush the kabobs with BBQ sauce) every once in a while and that the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165*F for you think about taking it off the grill.

I really really LOVE the flexible, reusable stainless steel kabob skewers you see in these pictures.

I have had these babies for years and they have held up amazingly well.

Did I mention that they are dishwasher safe too!

They are perfect to curve around the edge of a plate, or twist to shape on a smaller grill.

What to Pair with These Skewers:

Well, since this dish is meat and veggies all rolled into one, we like to pair our chicken pineapple skewers with a nice carb side, like our Pressure Cooker Quinoa, Fluffy Brown Rice, or Easy Instant Pot Jasmine Rice!

How to Store Leftover BBQ Pineapple Chicken:

You can store your leftover BBQ Chicken Skewers in a food-safe air-tight container in the fridge for up to 2 days.

Make sure that your leftovers have fully cooled down to room temperature before placing them in the container to cool.

It may be easier to store your leftover kabobs with the meat and vegetables taken off their respective sticks.

Reheating Leftovers:

To reheat these leftovers, remove the chicken and vegetables from their sticks and set the stick aside of you have not yet removed the dish from their skewers.

Place the leftovers in a microwave-safe dish or plate and cover the dish so that the hot air can still easily escape.

This top or cover will help prevent splatter in your microwave.

Microwave on high power for 45-90 seconds depending on how hot you like your leftovers and how much you are reheating at one time.

More Amazing Skewer Recipes:

Spicy BBQ Bacon Chicken Kabobs

Grilled Rosemary Veggie Skewers

Fruit and Waffle Skewers

Bacon Wrapped Pineapple Skewers

If you make my Pineapple Chicken Kabob Skewer recipe, let me know in the comments! Enjoy enjoy enjoy!

Also- be sure to follow me on Instagram and hashtag #BlessHerHeartYall or tag @BlessHerHeartYall – I love seeing and hearing the delicious things you make!

If you love this Barbecue Pineapple Chicken Kabob recipe, be sure to follow me on social media so you never miss a mouth-watering post:

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This post was first published on June 16, 2016 and last updated on May 21, 2020.

Spicy BBQ Bacon Chicken Kabobs

Yield: 6-8

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

4 strips of thick-cut bacon
4 chicken breasts, cubed
2 bell peppers, sliced into 2-inch squares
1 sweet onion, sliced into 2-inch squares
1 cup Gluten-free barbecue sauce*
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Instructions

Cook the bacon until it is halfway to fully cooked (We bake in the oven at 350*F for about 10 minutes).
Place the chicken, bell pepper, pineapple, and onion pieces onto kabob sticks, interweaving one bacon slice in between the other pieces on each kabob stick.
Using a basting brush, brush on the barbecue sauce and place on the grill over medium heat.
Continuously turn the kabobs until the chicken and bacon is cooked thoroughly, about 15-20 minutes, depending on your grill.
Sprinkle the cooked kabobs with the crushed red pepper flakes and enjoy while still warm!