pimento cheeseburger w/ tomato-balsamic reduction

Let's have a cheeseburger shall we? No no, I mean a real cheeseburger filled with lots of good stuff and layers of FLAVOR. You with me? Good. Because you're going to have to try this. I've never given you homework, and wouldn't think of giving you homework during the summer, but this is mandatory--you must make these. OK? They will not let you down.
I've never tried a pimento cheeseburger. I know, dumb.
Recently on the Food Network I saw bobby flay make pimento burgers, then literally a couple days later paula deen, and then I got curious and hungry, and figured it was a sign for me to make them already.  Bobby nor Paula didn't use a balsamic dressing, I just had to--the burgers, the cheese just went so well with the balsamic reduction.
Are pimento burgers a southern thing? I think so right?
Well they should be a northern thing too. Normally the pimento cheeseburger doesn't have this balsamic reduction, but I just wanted to add an extra layer of flavor, and I'm really glad I did--they blended perfectly. Let me share with you a couple of my cook notes.


Cook notes: I was going to add tomatoes to these but they would have made everything too watery. The pimento sauce isn't that thick and runs a bit when heated up.
Make sure to use a good sharp cheddar cheese.
I think adding a layer of crispy bacon would work well on this, but add it to the bottom of the burger not next to the sauce so the sauce still stands out. Use sweet onions on this not red onions; red onions are a bit overwhelming and the pimento sauce gets lost. Always toast your buns!
You know this already.


pimento cheeseburgers w/ tomato-balsamic reduction
print recipe

5 ounces good quality sharp yellow cheddar cheese, chopped fine
3 TB hellmans mayo
1 & 1/2 TB pimentos, chopped
1 & 1/2 TB grated sweet onion
1 TB worcestershire sauce
salt & pepper for the burgers only
(this should be enough sauce for 3-4 burgers)

In a bowl, combine cheese, mayonnaise, pimentos, grated onion, and worcestershire. Cover place in fridge till ready to use.
Season patties with salt and pepper. I like to use an 85% lean ground beef or chuck. Cook burgers the way you like them and when done top with the pimento cheese cover with a bowl and let cheese melt a bit. Serve on toasted onion rolls or ciabatta rolls, top with thinly sliced sweet onions, lettuce and some of the balsamic reduction.

tomato-balsamic reduction

1/4 cup of high quality balsamic vinegar
3- 4 TB ketchup

place in a sauce pan and reduce down over medium to low heat. you know its done when you have a nice thick syrup. this should take about 15 minutes or so.

reuben dip

Did you just ask if I happen to have a really good reuben dip for your summer parties and/or entertaining? Oh ok, I thought you had. Good, I have just the dip for you then. What a wild coincidence!
So you know I've told you I love my homemade ice creams with lots of stuff in them? And you know I love my cookies with tons of junk in them too. Well, I love my dips the same way--tons of stuff, and tons of flavors going on: A party in a dip.
So I'm proud to say I have this dip down to a science, a mere perfection of taste sensation. The flavor is spot on.
Cook notes: I found that using fried pastrami worked best; you could use fried corned beef as well. If you don't like using meat you can use just the cheese chunks and maybe some finely chopped veggies (red peppers, green peppers, cooked corn, etc.. would go very well). If you can, use round dark russian bread as it states in the recipe below. It really melds well with the flavor of the dip. On my first batch I used the dark bread, but on the second batch they had no more russian bread so I used sourdough. I highly recommend using the russian dark and/or marble breads for dipping as sourdough just doesn't quite cut it. Dig it.

reuben dip
print recipe

¾ lb. pastrami (fairly lean), finely chopped ½ inch pieces
Less than ¾ lb swiss cheese, finely chopped ½ inch pieces
Almost a ½ cup of yellow or sweet onion, diced finely
¼ cup ketchup
3 TB yellow mustard
¼ cup plus 2 TB sweet pepper relish (not dill)
4 TB hellmans mayo
2 TB creamy horseradish sauce
1 cup sour cream
8 ounces of cream cheese, room temp
A couple dashes of salt & pepper

1 12-inch round dark Russian bread, hollowed out and made into bread chunks
1 large rye bread, cut into chunks for dipping

I like to pan fry the chopped pastrami before adding it into the dip. Just gives it more flavor—this is of course optional but wonderful.
Place everything but the bread in a glass dish, mix well, taste and see if all is good; may have to add more sour cream or mayo. Recipe by dawn finicane. It’s best when the cream cheese is nice and soft, easier to mix.
Let this chill in the fridge at least a couple hours before serving.
When ready to serve place the dip inside the hollowed out Russian bread bowl, serve with the bread chunks on the side on a giant platter, then garnish with chopped fresh parsley or chives.

summer salad days

As I sit down to write this post I remember that the oven hasn't been on in over four days. Wow. Is that a new record for me? I think so. The heat and the humidity have taken over very early this summer and the last thing I want to do is add more heat. So I've been eating a lot of salads, subs, tomato & mozzarella, etc.. and of course ice cream.
I asked on twitter what ya'll wanted me to post next and almost everyone said salad. OK. To be honest I never thought to share salads, but maybe someone out there will dig it as much as I do. My salads are a little out of this world, but that's because I love my salads kicked up too, just like my desserts and meals. But I think you might like this salad as it has a lot of flavor and textures going on in it. Not to mention protein. It's pretty easy to guess what's on this one: avocado's, tortilla strips, black olives, feta, red kidney beans. The dressing is catalina. Yeah big gourmet surprise. But have ya'll tried Catalina? Man that stuff is goooood. I've just tried it in the last two years. That stuff goes with everything. Amazing in taco salads too. What's not in the photo are banana peppers; I saw those in the fridge last minute and had to have them.
What's your favorite way to kick up a salad? Do you eat more salads in the summer?

pb, chocolate chunk and bacon cookies

Nothing fancy this time around, just good old comfort food. I love the cookbook Baked, inside there is a recipe for chocolate-peanut butter cookies. Of course they are wonderful on their own, but you know me I had to add something to it. What came to mind? Bacon of course!
Needless to say these are insanely good, very addicting and will satisfy that craving you get for something sweet and then something salty. These cookies never ever left the house; they were devoured in less than a day. I ate too many and of course gained 500 pounds, but that's ok, it was worth it. Ha! I know bad writings for a blog post. But hot damn these cookies were fabulous! And you know what's even better? Any leftover cookies (LOL like that'll happen, are really good in ice cream). I'm just saying....

peanut butter cookies with chocolate chunks & bacon
adapted from Baked
print recipe

1 3/4 cup of all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons of baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) of unsalted butter, softened, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup creamy peanut butter
6 ounces good milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of cooked, chopped bacon chunks

Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars together until fluffy.
Scrape down the bowl and add the eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated.
The mixture will look light and fluffy.
Add the vanilla and peanut butter and beat until just incorporated.
Add half of the flour mixture and mix for 15 seconds. Add the remaining flour mixture and mix until just incorporated.
Using a spatula or wooden spoon, fold in the chocolate and bacon chunks. Cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate for at least 3 hours. (I left mine overnight, it was fine).
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Drop the dough by rounded tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheets, at least 2 inches apart. With the palm of your hand, very gently press each cookie down so it forms a very tall disk shape. Do not press too hard and do not press it flat.
Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with granulated sugar and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, until the tops of the cookies just begin to brown. (I did not do this, but feel free).
Should make about 30 cookies.

apricot cheesecake w/ salty vanilla cookie crust

Who doesn't love a good cheesecake. I know I do. But what really makes me a happy camper is a mighty fine, tasty, thick crust. The filling of the cheesecake is so thick and so rich, there just has to be the equivalent in a crust. It just bothers me to see these lame ass cheesecakes with the thinnest of crusts. Why? I can't eat all that cheesecake without some balance of salty, crispy crust. Can you? I would tire, I would bore.... Oh the humanity! And there are those people that 'leave' cheesecake crust on their plate! They should be fined.
The crust, if done right is the best part. I have solved such a problem, I have made a superb duper crust; it's almost double crust, but not quite--perfect. Instead of using graham crackers (which can get boring at times) I used those vanilla cookie wafers from Oreo (called 'golden'), a bit of salt, and some butter. I know this is not big NEW news, but I've never used those cookies before.

apricot cheesecake w/ salty vanilla-cookie crust
print recipe (by dawn finicane)

1 lb. bag of vanilla oreo’s: center fillings removed; cookies crushed up fine
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
¾ TB salt
5 packs (8 oz) cream cheese, room temp
1 cup white sugar
3 TB flour
½ TB pure vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream
4 eggs

apricot topping:
About 7 – 8 apricots skin removed, chopped into ½ inch pieces
1 – 2 TB white sugar
The juice of 1 lemon
A dash or two of pure vanilla extract or pure almond extract

Make the apricot topping by mixing all in a glass/ceramic bowl, cover and refrigerate for a couple hours or overnight. See notes below.
Heat oven to 325 degrees, spray a springform pan heavily with non stick spray.
Mix crushed up vanilla cookies with melted butter and salt in a bowl. Then press into cake pan. Take a smooth round glass and firmly press crust into all edges. Bake this for only 10 minutes.
Beat cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, flour and vanilla in large bowl with mixer. Add sour cream, then add in eggs, one at time. Pour over crust. Bake for about 30 minutes, gently turn pan around and bake another 30 minutes (unless you have a confection then you really don’t need to turn cake unless you have hot spots in oven). Recipe by Dawn Finicane. You’ll know when it’s done when the center is almost set. Turn off oven, open door and leave it alone. Then cool, then refrigerate for 5 hours or more.
When ready to serve top with the apricot topping.

Notes: there will be leftover cheesecake batter, you can use it for something--I didn’t. It might freeze ok though. I highly recommend using a hint of rum in the apricot marinade. It clearly begs for it when I tasted this. Or even an almond liqueur.