Avocado Deviled Eggs

My lovely daughter-in-law has been requesting these, so I had to share!

Ingredients

• 12 hard-boiled eggs
• 2-3 medium ripe avocados
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 TBS lime juice
• 1/4 tsp salt (we like Himalayan salt)
• 1/4 tsp pepper

Directions
1. Prepare the hard-boiled eggs:

Start by boiling your eggs. Once boiling, reduce the heat and let them simmer for about 10 minutes. After that, remove the eggs from the water and let them cool. You can also place them in a bowl of ice water to speed up the cooling process. (you can also make these in an Instapot with the 3-3-3 method!)

Once the eggs are cool enough to handle, carefully peel off the shells. Then, cut each egg in half lengthwise using a sharp knife. Gently scoop out the yolks and place them into a food processor. Set aside the egg whites for later.

2. Prepare the avocado and mix with yolks:

Cut each avocado in half, remove the pit, and scoop out the green flesh with a spoon. Add the avocado pieces into the food processor with the egg yolks.

Add ½ teaspoon of garlic powder, a pinch of salt, and some black pepper to taste. You can start with a little and adjust the seasoning later, depending on your taste.

Blend everything until it becomes a smooth, creamy mixture. If you don’t have a food processor, you can mash everything by hand using a fork for a chunkier texture. Mix until the ingredients are well combined.

3. Adjust the flavors and fill the eggs:

Taste the mixture and, if needed, add a little more salt, pepper, or garlic powder to get the flavor just right.

Now, you’re ready to fill the eggs. Place the creamy mixture into a piping bag. If you don’t have a piping bag, you can use a plastic sandwich bag instead. Cut off one of the corners of the sandwich bag to create a small hole. This will act like a piping bag.

Pipe the avocado and egg yolk mixture into the hollowed-out egg whites. Fill each half generously, but don’t overfill to avoid spilling.

4. Garnish and serve:

Once the eggs are filled, sprinkle a little paprika on top for a bit of color. You can also add some freshly chopped cilantro for a burst of freshness.

Your deviled eggs are ready! You can serve them right away or, if you're not serving immediately, cover the eggs with plastic wrap and refrigerate them until you're ready to eat. They should stay fresh in the fridge for up to a few hours.

Tip: If you want to get creative, you can try adding other seasonings or ingredients, like a squeeze of lemon juice, chopped green onions, or a small dollop of hot sauce, to give your deviled eggs a unique twist!

Asian Wings

First, full credit for this recipe goes to Pioneer Woman!!  I snagged this recipe from Food Network who hosts her show.  I hope you enjoy these as much as we do.

Ingredients

• Canola oil, for frying
• 24 chicken wings
• 3/4 c plum jelly
• 1/4 c soy sauce
• 1/4 c rice wine vinegar
• 1/4 c brown sugar
• 2 TBS minced fresh ginger
• 2 TBS minced red onion
• 1 TBS minced garlic
• 1 TBS red pepper flakes (less of you'd like less heat!)
• 3 to 4 assorted hot peppers (serranos, jalapenos, and so on), minced fine
• Thinly sliced (julienne) carrots and cucumber, for serving

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Heat 3 inches of canola oil in a heavy pot to 375 degrees F.
2. Add half the chicken wing parts to the oil and fry them until they're golden brown and fully cooked, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove and drain on paper towels. Repeat with the other half of the wing parts.
3. Add the plum jelly to a bowl. Then stir in the soy sauce and rice wine vinegar. Add the brown sugar, ginger, red onions, garlic, red pepper flakes and hot peppers. Stir to combine, and then pour it into a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook the sauce until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. Then turn off the heat.
4. Place the wings in an ovenproof dish and pour the sauce over the top, reserving some sauce for serving. Toss to coat, and then bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
5. Place the wings in dishes, and then spoon extra sauce over the top. Serve with cool vegetables to go with that delicious heat.

Sweet Mustard Chicken Wings

So it's football season, and we've been testing some wing recipes for variety.  My youngest is NOT a chicken lover.  As soon as he finds out we're having chicken, he announces how tired he is and that he just wants to go to bed (where did this kid come from?!).  However, he LOVED these wings tonight!  I guarantee, you can't eat just one....

Ingredients:

• 4 lb chicken wings, separated at joints, tips discarded
• salt to taste
• 3 TBS Dijon mustard
• 3 TBS prepared yellow mustard
• 1/4 c honey
• 1 TBS cider vinegar
• salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 2 tsp hot pepper sauce

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil; coat the aluminum foil with cooking spray.
2. Arrange the wings on the prepared baking sheet so they do not touch; season with salt.
3. Bake in the preheated oven until browned and crispy on top, about 20 minutes. Flip the wings with tongs and cook until no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, about 20 minutes more.
4. Stir together the Dijon mustard, yellow mustard, honey, cider vinegar, salt, pepper, and hot sauce in large mixing bowl. Add the wings to the bowl and toss with a spatula to coat evenly. Allow to sit for about five minutes and toss again to re-coat. Transfer to a plate to serve.

Grilled Stuffed Jalapenos

Ahem.  I am ashamed to admit I have not posted since October.  How did that happen?!?!  But I'm back, and with an amazingly awesome appetizer!  My kids (yes, the picky ones!) could not get enough of these!!  I already plan to go back to the market tomorrow for more jalapenos.  Enjoy!!

Ingredients

• 2 slices bacon
• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 c. shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/4 c. minced green onions
• 1 tsp fresh lime juice
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 14 jalapeno peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded
• cooking spray
• 2 TBS chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 small tomato, chopped and seeded

Directions

1. Preheat grill to medium-high heat
2. Cook the bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crisp.  Remove bacon from pan and drain on paper towels.  Crumble bacon.  Combine crumbled bacon, cheeses, green onions, lime juice, kosher salt and garlic in a bowl.  Stir to combine.
3. Divide cheese evenly and fill the pepper halves.
4. Place peppers, cheese side up, on grill rack or grill grate coated with cooking spray.  Cover and grill peppers for 8 minutes or until bottoms of peppers are charred and cheese mixture is lightly browned.  Place the peppers on a serving platter
5. Sprinkle with cilantro and tomato.

Fried Ravioli

Two years ago this coming January, my friend Miranda convinced me to try Fried Ravioli's at TGIFriday's.  It was an appetizer and she swore it was *the best*.  And it was pretty darn good!!!  Except we went back the following year (this was a yearly birthday celebration) only to discover that they were off the menu.  It probably had something to do with the fact that they now list the caloric value of all their food on the menu.  I'm quite sure it wasn't pretty!  

But forget calories!!  What really counts is the taste because these were only a once a year treat!

Ingredients

• 1 large egg
• 2 TBS milk
• 2/3 c Panko bread crumbs (the only ones I use now!)
• 24 refrigerated raviolis (cheese or a filling of your choice)
• 1/4 c grated parmesan cheese
• vegetable oil for frying

Directions

1. Pour enough vegetable oil into a large, deep pot so that it reaches a depth of 1 inch. Warm oil over medium heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 325°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or foil, and line a plate with paper towel.  
   
   
   While vegetable oil is heating, whisk together egg and milk in a shallow bowl. Place bread crumbs in a separate shallow bowl. Working in batches, dip ravioli into egg mixture, allowing excess to drip back into bowl, then coat with bread crumbs. Place coated ravioli on baking sheet. Discard remaining bread crumbs.
   
   
   Fry ravioli in batches, turning occasionally, until golden brown, about 3 minutes total. Be careful not to crowd ravioli in pan, and make sure oil comes back to 325°F before adding another batch of ravioli. Transfer fried ravioli to lined plate to drain. Sprinkle fried ravioli with grated Parmesan.Warm marinara sauce in a pan over medium-low heat or in a microwave. Spoon sauce into 4 small bowls. Serve fried ravioli with warmed marinara on the side.
   
   ++Blogger is not formatting nicely today!  Sorry about that...

Onion Ring Dipping Sauce

This one is amazingly like one you'll find at your local Down Under Steak House. We love it on our onion rings !

Ingredients

• 1/2 c mayonnaise
• 1 TBS ketchup
• 2 TBS cream style horseradish sauce
• 1/3 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp dried salt
• 1/8 tsp oregano
• 1 pinch ground black pepper
• 1/3 tsp cayenne pepper

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, combine mayonnaise, ketchup, horseradish, 1/3 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp oregano, a dash pepper, and cayenne pepper; mix well. Keep sauce covered in refrigerator until needed.

Old Fashioned Onion Rings

My family finds these onion rings to be particularly delicious!

Ingredients

• 1 large onion, cut into 1/4 inch slices
• 1 1/4 c flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 1 c milk
• 3/4 c dry bread crumbs
• seasoned salt to taste
• 1 qt. vegetable or canola oil

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a deep fryer to 365 degrees
2. Separate the oil into rings and set aside. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt.
3. Dip the onion into the flour mixture until the are all coated; set aside. Whisk the egg and milk into the flour mixture using a fork. Dip the floured rings into the batter to coat, then place on a wire rack to drain until the batter stops dripping. The wire rack may be placed over a cookie sheet covered with aluminum foil for easier clean up. Spread the bread crumbs out on a plate or shallow pan. Place the rings, one at a time, into the crumbs, and scoop the crumbs up over the ring to coat. The coating should cling. Coat all rings.
4. Deep fry the rings a few at a time for 2-3 minutes, or until golden. Remove and drain on paper towels. Season with seasoning salt and serve.

Soy Sauce Glazed Mushrooms

These are really good as a topper for grilled steaks, with the Asian Wraps I posted earlier, or just as a yummy side if you enjoy mushrooms as much as my family does!

Ingredients

• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 (8 oz.) package sliced white mushrooms
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. fresh ginger, minced - optional
• 1 TBS soy sauce
• ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Heat the sesame oil in skillet over medium low heat; add the mushrooms; cook and stir until the mushrooms have softened and released their liquid, about 5 minutes.
2. Stir in the garlic and ginger; continue to cook and stir for 1 minute.
3. Pour in the soy sauce; cook the mushrooms in the soy sauce until the liquid has evaporated, about 4 minutes.

Serves 2

Asian Chicken Wings

So the holidays are coming up and you want an easy but yummy appetizer to serve to your guests. This is something you will love!

Ingredients:

• 2 lb. chicken wings (about 12), split, tips removed
• 1/4 cup orange marmalade
• 1/4 cup Good Seasons Asian Sesame with Ginger Dressing
• 1 tsp. garlic powder

Directions:

1. PREHEAT oven to 450ºF. Place chicken wings in single layer in shallow foil-lined baking pan. Bake 15 min. or until browned.
2. While chicken is browning, combine marmalade, dressing and garlic powder.
3. Brush marmalade mixture generously over both sides of wings. Continue baking 15 min. or until chicken is cooked through.

Mango Salsa

I made this today because I was craving salty and sweet. I forgot how good this really is!

1 ripe mango, peeled, pitted, and diced (about 1 1/2 cup)
1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped1 Jalapeño chile, minced
1 small cucumber, peeled and diced
3 Tbsp fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
3 Tbsp fresh lime juiceSalt and pepper to taste

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. If the salsa ends up being a little too hot for your taste, you can temper it by adding some diced avocado.