Bacon Stuffed Tomatoes (air fryer)

I modified a jalapeño popper recipe to create this delicious and easy appetizer.

Ingredients

• 12 large cherry tomatoes
• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 6 slices bacon
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat the air fryer to 370 degrees.
2. Slice the tops off the cherry tomatoes. 
3. Core tomatoes with a melon baller, hollowing them out completely. 
4. Slice bacon in half lengthwise, then cut into 3 inch pieces.
5. Mix together cream cheese and shredded cheese. 
6. Spoon cheese mixture into hollowed cherry tomatoes. 
7. Place a piece of bacon on each tomato. 
8. Place the stuffed tomatoes in a single layerin the air fryer.
9. Air fry for 12 minutes at 370 degrees.
10. Let cool slightly before eating so you don’t scorch your mouth. Enjoy! 

Hearty Potato Soup

I found our favorite potato soup recipe!!! It's been missing for months and I wasn't quite able to duplicate it without the recipe. But what was lost is now found!!

Wow. I think I just likened soup to the biblical prodigal son. ouch.

Anywho, here is the World Famous Hearty Potato Soup Recipe

6 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced
2 carrots, diced
6 celery ribs, diced
2 quarts water
1 onion, chopped
6 Tablespoons butter or margarine
6 Tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 cups milk

1. Cook potatoes, carrots, and celery in water until tender, about 20 minutes.
2. Reserving the liquid, drain the vegetables and set them aside. (I set my strainer on top of my Pampered Chef super-sized measuring cup to catch the liquid.)
3. In the same pot, saute onions in butter until soft.
4. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper.
5. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly until thickened.
6. Gently stir in cooked vegetables.
7. Add reserved cooking liquid, 1 cup at a time, until soup is the desired consistency.
8. Serve as is, or make it a loaded hearty potato soup by sprinkling crisp bacon and shredded cheese on top.

Waffle cones

Sometimes the circumstances that drive me to try a new recipe are beyone strange. For example, today Jay treated three of the girls to Call Hall for ice cream, Maggie snuck sugar multiple times today (tomorrow's going to U.G.L.Y.) and I'm hungry for a snack and too broke to go out for ice cream.

Thus, waffle cones. Because I don't have to share (they are full from the sweet snack) and it doesn't have to be sugar/cinnamon free (because Maggie is in trouble) and I have all the ingredients (so no run to town.)

And if you're going to do waffle cones, who better to mimic than Miss Butter Herself, Paula Deen.

1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 stick butter, melted (see, Paula Deen at her best!)
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch salt
Nonstick cooking spray

1. Beat sugar, vanilla, and eggs until cream.
2. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, cinnamon, and salt.
3. Whisk the dry ingredients into the sugar/egg mixture.
4. Spray waffle iron (or even better, a pizzelle iron, but since I don't have one of those, a waffle iron)
5. Pour 3/4 Tablespoons batter onto iron and cook until baked and brown.
6. While still hot, I pushed them into a cupcake pan to make little waffle bowls. They'll come out squishy but will harden to a crisp as they sit.
7. Once cooled, serve with a scoop of ice cream.

Consolidation

I hate not finishing anything, and that includes not posting regularly. So, to make 2011 a less failing year, I'm consolidating my blogs. Recipes, including a 2011 menu, will be posted over at shadowmama.blogspot.com. This blog will be eliminated in January.

Roberta's Sloppy Joes

Since I got to do homage to my Grandma Pete in the last post, I thought I'd honor someone else's mom in this one. No, it's not my grandmother-in-law, Roberta, although she's sent me some fabulous recipes. This recipe comes from my August-Mom friend Sue, straight from her mom's recipe cards. And every time I make it, someone asks for the recipe. Super easy, super yummy, super sloppy. :)

Roberta's Sloppy Joes

1 1/2 pound ground beef
3/4 cup ketchup
4 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup water
4 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons dry yellow mustard
1 bag frozen corn (that's my mom's addition...gotta have corn in sloppy joes)
Hamburger buns

Brown the beef and drain off any grease.
Add all other ingredients and bring to a simmer.
Simmer for 20 minutes and serve -- OR -- spoon the meat mixture into a crockpot and cook on low for 2-4 hours.
Serve on hamburger buns.

Broccoli Soup

Well, after that last post, there was a fight in our fridge. Seems that broccoli felt a bit bent out of shape and cauliflower getting all the attention. And so, to make peace within the cruciferous family, here is my absolutely favorite broccoli recipe, via my never-forgotten Grandma Pete:

Grandma Pete's Broccoli Cheese Soup 
(makes enough for 8-10 people)

• 3 Tablespoons butter
• 3 Tablespoons onion, chopped
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 12-oz package frozen broccoli OR 1 head fresh broccoli, chopped and steamed (I use the Ziploc steam bags)
• 8-oz package wavy wide egg noodles
• 6 cup milk
• pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 pound Velveeta, chopped

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan.
2. Add onions and saute until translucent.
3. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.
4. Add the noodles and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
5. Add the broccoli:
• If using frozen broccoli, add it and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. 
• If using fresh broccoli, steam it in the microwave.  Add it to the saucepan and immediately go to the next step.
6. Add the milk, pepper, and garlic powder. Reduce heat to low.
7. Add the Velveeta and cook until cheese is melted, stirring occasionally.

Cauliflower Soup

I'm borrowing this from Pioneer Woman. I haven't tried many of her recipes, but if all are as good as this one, then I'm game!

FYI, if you want some fresh, locally grown cauliflower, carrots and bok choy, you can order it through our CSA at http://www.rvp.locallygrown.net/

Cauliflower Soup

• 1-2 heads cauliflower, chunked
• 1 large carrot, peeled and diced
• 2 stalks bok choy or celery, diced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 4 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 2 tablepoons dried or fresh parsley
• 2 quarts chicken broth
• 4 (more) tablespoons butter
• 2 cups whole milk
• 6 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup half-and-half

1. In a large saucepan, melt the butter or margarine.
2. Add the onion and stir until translucent.
3. Add the carrots and bok choy. Stir for 2-3 minutes, until they start to soften.
4. Add the cauliflower and stir together.
5. Add the parsley and (again) stir.
6. Cover, reduce heat to low, and let simmer for 15 minutes.
7. Add 2 quarts of chicken broth. Increase heat to medium and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat to simmer.
8. In a separate saucepan, melt 4 tablespoons butter.
9. While that is melting, in a separate bowl, whisk together milk and flour. (I used my salad dressing mixer and it worked great! Just don't forget to relieve the pressure after mixing it; otherwise the lid pops off the top and across the room. It was pretty cool, but... back to the recipe)
10. Add the milk/flour mixture to the melted butter, making a white sauce. Stir constantly while it thickens.
11. Add half-and-half to the white sauce.
12. Pour the white sauce into the cauliflower pan and stir until well combined.
13. Let simmer for 15-20 minutes and enjoy!