Our second recipe submission comes from Debra Keil of Eliot’s Eats. These little chicken meatballs are so cute and are perfect for a party appetizer (I’m thinking potentially for this weekend’s tailgate party!). Check out the recipe below, and make sure to visit Debra’s blog for a chance to win some Saucy Mama products!

Stuffed Hot Wing Chicken Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 3)
1 c. Granny Smith apple, peeled and grated
1/4  c. loose flat Italian parsley leaves
1/4  c. Italian seasoned bread crumbs
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 t. sea salt
1/4  t.  pepper
1/4  c. crumbled blue cheese
1/8 c. Saucy Mama Hot Wing Sauce
For garnish:
2 stalks celery, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 yellow or orange bell pepper, cut into 1 inch ieces
1/8 c. Saucy Mama Hot wing Sauce
1 T. crumbled blue cheese

Directions:

Cut chicken breasts into large chunks and pulse in food processor with blade until you have a very coarse ground.  Place chicken in a large mixing bowl.  Add apple, parsley, bread crumbs, garlic, egg, salt and pepper.  Mix with hands until incorporated.

Using a 1 inch ice cream or cookie scoop, form each meatball around a crumble of blue cheese, sealing the cheese inside.  Each meatball should be about 1 inch.  Place on a foil lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and glaze with 1/8 c. Saucy Mama hot wing sauce.  Garnish with celery and bell pepper as an appetizer.  Serve with remaining 1/8 c. hot wing sauce topped with crumbled blue cheese on the side for dipping.

Makes about 42 meatball appetizers (enough for at least 12 people).

Mozzarella, Basil, & Grilled Cherry Tomatoes

Jan and I got a “come on over for dinner” call from our good friends Mary Alice and Bob. We had been working in the yard, and it was the perfect thing to look forward to for the evening. I love spur of the moment get togethers. There is no pressure to put on the perfect party; it is just good friends having a great time together.
 
I picked basil and cherry tomatoes out of my garden for the appetizer I decided to bring. I had purchased a baguette to go with our dinner I had planned for that night, but I still had to send Jan to the store to pick up some fresh mozzarella. I made crostini by slicing the baguette and brushing both sides of the slices with olive oil and sprinkled them with garlic salt. I placed them in a single layer on a cookie sheet and put them into a 425 degree preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes until they were crisp and golden brown. Meanwhile, I put the cherry tomatoes into a grilling basket in a single layer. If you are doing a lot of tomatoes, do more than one batch you because you want them to carmelize, not steam. Grill them over a hot fire until they burst and are blackened on the outside. Don’t worry about the juices leaking onto the fire- what remains of the tomato will be delicious! Slice the mozzarella and place on a platter with tomatoes and whole basil leaves.  Serve with a basket of crostini. 
 
Mary Alice served perfect martinis and made a wonderful pork tenderloin dinner. After dinner, we discussed what were our biggest “nigglies”. Nigglies are, you know, those things that are really of no importance, but still really bug you. Just be careful that your niggly isn’t something that the person sitting next to you does all the time! Or worse yet, that their niggly is something you do all the time. Oh well, when it comes to friends, the nigglies just aren’t nigglies anymore. We had such a great time!

As I was searching through our recipes from our Saucy Mama Extraordinary Condiment Contest last year, this one stole my attention. First of all, the photo is absolutely gorgeous (and it’s making me hungry)! Second of all, this is like the king of  the BLT sandwich. Submitted by Candy from SoupBelly, this delicious all-time favorite sandwich includes not only the traditional bacon, lettuce, and tomato, but also avocado and shrimp. And that is why it is called the BLAST. Talk about “yum”! It’s the perfect combination of ingredients and is definitely satisfying! Check out Candy’s full recipe on her blog…there are tons of beautiful pictures to gawk at also!

Ingredients:

4 sandwich rolls of any kind (I used Ciabatta rolls)
16-20 shrimp, thawed and deveined
2 Tbsp. Saucy Mama Lime Chipotle Marinade
6 slices of bacon, cut in half (12 small strips)
1 avocado, sliced
1 tomato, sliced
4 large leaves of lettuce

Lime Infused Mayo:

4 tbsp. mayonnaise
1/4 lime, juiced
salt & pepper

Directions:

 1) Marinate shrimp with 2 Tbsp. of Saucy Mama Lime Chipotle Marinade. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.

 2) As shrimp are marinating in the fridge, slice and toast rolls. Cook bacon in skillet until crispy. Place on plate lined with paper towel to drain excess grease.

 3) In a small bowl, squeeze lime juice into 4 tbsp. of mayo. Mix thoroughly. Salt and pepper to taste.

 4) In a skillet on medium high, cook shrimp until they turn opaque (approx. 2-3 minutes). Place cooked shrimp in bowl.

 5) Slather mayo onto toasted rolls, assemble sandwiches with avocado slices, lettuce, 3 slices of bacon, 4-5 shrimp, and a slice of tomato. Serve and enjoy!

Some cute grandkids!

What a great time Jan and I had at the Oregon Coast with the familly!  Our first stop when we reached Lincoln City was the grocery store where we picked up deli meats and cheeses, made a trip through the olive bar and found some really good bread.  Of course we came supplied with our own Saucy Mama Mustards.
 
For our family, the coast is all about playing on the beach with the kids during the day and trying to beat each other at cards during the night.  We are one very competitive family!  I certainly don’t want to spend any more time than necessary cooking and doing dishes, but I do want delicious food.
 
On Highway 101 just south of Lincoln City is a little retail shop called “The Crab Pot”, and it was the very best place to buy really fresh seafood for our planned dungeness crab and clam chowder feed.  It is not a trip to the central Oregon Coast without a stop there.  If you are not planning on preparing a meal, just pick up a crab or shrimp cocktail, or some of their fabulous house smoked fish. It makes great road food.
 
The crab was wonderful with some of our NEW Saucy Mama Cocktail Sauce (gluten-free!).  The whole thing was so good!

It’s a warm summer evening here in Oregon, and there is nothing better for dinner on these nights than some fresh grilled vegetables! Here’s another recipe submission from last year’s food blogger contest from Laura at Real Mom Kitchen. It’s simple, yet delicious. And it’s what I will be munching on tonight for dinner…along with some grilled chicken! You can see Laura’s original recipe on her own blog as well…check it out! 

Ingredients:

2 medium sized zucchini
1/4 cup Saucy Mama Parmesan Garlic Marinade
Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Wash zucchini. Then cut in half lengthwise and crosswise. Marinade zucchini in Saucy Mama Parmesan Garlic Marinade for 2 hours. You can do it for less if desired, but the longer the better. Grill on outdoor grill approximately 5 minutes on each side until browned. Serve sprinkled with parmesan cheese.

As some of you may know, I just love Mexican food. It’s one of my favorite types of food, and I never get tired of it. In fact, if you follow me on Twitter, you will notice that I am always replying and reposting anything about Mexican recipes…it’s a habit. So today, when I came across this recipe for chicken quesadillas from Deborah at TasteandTell, I just had to post it. Deborah submitted this recipe to us for last year’s food blogger contest, and it is delicious. My favorite part is the chipotle dipping sauce made with Saucy Mama’s Chipotle Mustard. Yum! I’m making this for dinner tonight. Check out Deborah’s blog where you can see her original recipe also!

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts (12-14 oz. total)
1/2 cup Saucy Mama’s Lime Chipotle Marinade
1 red onion, sliced thinly
olive oil
2 tablespoons roughly chopped cilantro
2 oz. Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
2 oz. Cheddar cheese, shredded
1 avocado, thinly sliced
4 soft taco sized flour tortillas

Dipping Sauce

2 tablespoons Saucy Mama’s Chipotle Mustard
4 tablespoons sour cream

Directions:

Quesadillas

Place the chicken breasts in a slow cooker and pour the Lime Chipotle Marinade over the top. Cook on low until chicken is cooked through to 165F, 3 to 4 hours. When done, removed from slow cooker and cut into thin strips.

Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook slowly, stirring often, until caramelized, about 20 minutes.

Heat a few teaspoons of olive oil in a pan. Place 1 tortilla down in the pan, and top with 1/4 of the cheese. Sprinkle 1/2 of the cilantro on top, followed by 1/2 of the chicken and 1/2 of the avocado. Top with 1/2 of the caramelized onions and then another 1/4 of the cheese. Top with another tortilla. Cook until the bottom cheese is melted and the tortilla is browned. Flip over to cook the second side and cook until the cheese is melted and the tortilla is browned.

Repeat with the remaining ingredients. Slice the quesadillas into wedges and serve with the Chipotle Mustard Dipping Sauce.

Dipping Sauce

Combine the mustard and the sour cream; mix well.

The other day while I was roaming about the wonderful world of Twitter, I came across a post asking what my favorite green salad was. I thought it would be an easy question to answer, but not so much, because I realized I love all salads! If I had to narrow it down though, I really do enjoy salads with an Asian twist. Lately I have been using Saucy Mama’s Sesame Ginger Dressing on everything- chicken, pork, and yes, even salads (imagine that!). That dressing can spice up any simple salad; last week I just drizzled some over sliced baby cucumbers and sweet grape tomatoes…delicious!

Anyways, I looked through our recipe submissions from last year’s food blogger contest to see if there were some other recipes using the Sesame Ginger Dressing, and voila! I found another simple, easy, and healthy recipe from Em at Kitchen M. Check it out below, and make sure to visit Em’s site also!

Ingredients:

1 lb pork loin, sliced paper thin
1/2 medium onion, sliced paper thin*
1 bag spring mix salad lettuce
Saucy Mama’s ® Sesame Ginger Dressing
Cracked pepper to taste

Directions:

Fill a small bowl with cold water, soak sliced onions and set a side.

In a medium sized pot, bring water to boil, and quickly cook the sliced pork (it will only take a minute). Turn off the heat, drain water and rinse it with cold water.

Drain water from the onion bowl.

Assemble salad lettuce, onions and pork on serving plate(s). Drizzle dressing and sprinkle cracked pepper on top to finish. 

*You can substitute the yellow onion with red onion.

Lately I have been noticing many interesting ways to use fruit for cooking. I have seen watermelon and feta cheese salads and fruits soaked in alcohol for a yummy, adult summer-time snack. This recipe, which came from last year’s food blogger cooking contest, is from Candy at Soupbelly.  Candy uses our Lime Chipotle Marinade for her pork chops and then creates her own nectarine salsa…just looking at the picture makes me hungry!

Here’s her recipe for this easy meal. She also has this posted on her own blog, which has LOTS of amazing photos of the prep and the meal. Make sure to check that out also.

Ingredients:

• 4 pork chops (1” thick)
• 1/2 cup Saucy Mama Lime Chipotle Marinade

Nectarine Salsa:

• 2 ripe nectarines, cut into cubes
• 1/4 onion, minced
• 1 Serrano pepper, minced with seeds
• 1/4 lemon (or lime), juiced
• 2 Tbsp. cilantro, chopped

Directions:

1) Place 4 pork chops in a zip-lock bag, pour marinade into bag. Seal and marinate for 4+ hours in the refrigerator.

2) To make salsa, mix nectarines, onion, pepper, lemon and cilantro together in a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use.

3) Grill pork chops, approx. 3 minutes per side. Top with salsa. Serve.

The 4^th of July just kind of snuck up on me. I got back from New York and the Fancy Food show on the 1^st and had not planned a thing. Mike and Chris had gone camping with their families at the coast, so Jan and I were on our own. We quickly found others that had no family around for the holiday, and all of a sudden, there was a party at our house!

Anyways, this salad is perfect and light for summer. Sometimes, we even eat it as a main dish. Plus, it’s easy. If you are really pressed for time, you can simply substitute the bread with large croutons. To fill up the menu, our other guests brought some delicious stuff, and we were definitely well fed.

My perfect cherry tomatoes

Bread Salad with grilled Cherry Tomatoes

 Ingredients:

• 8 oz loaf Italian bread, cubed
• 2 lbs cherry tomatoes
• 1 lb fresh mozzarella, cubed
• ¾ cup Basil, roughly chopped
• ½ bottle Food and Wine Balsamic Basil Vinaigrette

 Directions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Place bread cubes on a rimmed baking sheet and spread into a single layer.  Bake until lightly toasted, about 20 to 25 minutes.  Allow to cool.

Place the cherry tomatoes in a large grilling basket that has been sprayed with non stick spray, and grill over hot coals or a gas grill on high until slightly blackened on the outside. Shake the basket to make sure the tomatoes char evenly.  Toss all ingredients together and serve. Quick, easy, and delicious!

I had such a full fridge in my test kitchen a couple days ago and had to get it cleaned out before today when we all left for New York (for the Fancy Food Show).  I decided just to cook everything up and give lunch to our crew.　

I marinated skinless, boneless chicken thighs in Teriyaki Tailgate Wing Sauce, Saucy Mama Hot Wing Sauce, and Saucy Mama Lime Chipotle Marinade. I also had boneless, skinless chicken breasts that were marinated in Saucy Mama Sweet Onion Dressing. Now, the salad dressing as the marinade was not my idea; that came from Chris and Irene’s house.  They said that Cole, (9 years old) and Macy (7), love chicken cooked that way. Well, it was as good as time as any to give it a try.  I just marinated everything for about an hour, put in seperate baking pans, and placed in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes. All the different chickens disapeared pretty quickly, but the Sweet Onion went the fastest. It turned golden in the oven and had a rich almost buttery flavor. You have to learn to trust those grand kids
　
The other new thing I tried today involved all my extra broccoli. I took broccoli flowerettes and tossed them with enough Noho’s Sweet Chili-yaki to coat, along with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. I then placed them on a rimmed baking　sheet, spread them out into a single layer and baked them in a 425 degree oven for 20 minutes. This broccoli turned out to be delicious! And now we are in New York and ready for the Fancy Food Show! It should be a wonderful weekend.

I hope you all have a great weekend also! Don’t forget to leave us comments on our blog and Facebook and re-tweet our Twitter posts for our giveaway contest! All the details on ways to enter are below. Thanks!