Cowboy Candy - aka Candied Jalapenos

4 pounds jalapenos (about 80) sliced into rings.

6 cups of sugar

2 cups of cider vinegar

6 Tablespoons of mustard seeds

3 Tablespoons garlic powder

3/4 teaspoon turmeric

3/4 teaspoon celery seed

3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

In a large pot add all ingredients EXCEPT jalapenos. Bring the sauce to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for at least 5 minutes.

Add the jalapeno rings toss to coat, simmer for at least 5 minutes.

Scoop the jalapenos into the jars with a slotted spoon. Should fill 6-8 pint jars depending on the size of your jalapenos. Top off with the sauce leaving 1/4 inch headspace, wipe the rim with vinegar, put on the lid and band finger tight.

Place the jar in the water bath pot, when all the jars are in the pot, cover the jars with at least 2 inches of water.

Bring water to a boil and boil for 20 minutes for sea level.

Sweet Pork

If you have ever eaten at a Costa Vida or a Cafe Rio, you know what sweet pork is.
Stuff it in a Burrito, enchiladas, quesadilla, tacos or make a salad with it. I even eat it as a pulled pork sandwich too on a buttery toasted bun. I make more than a dozen of these a year. I buy the roast when they are half off.


MARINADE:
4-6 pound pork shoulder roast
1 cup enchilada sauce (red)
1 can of Dr. Pepper ( don't use that Diet crap either), if you don't have Dr pepper you can use Root beer or Coke, but go buy the Dr. Pepper, it is worth it. Trust me I have used all 3.
1/3 C olive oil
1 tsp chili powder
3-4 cloves minced garlic
1/2 C light brown sugar

SEASONING SAUCE:
1 can Dr Pepper
1 C enchilada sauce (red)
4 oz can green chilies (chopped)
1 jalapeno (chopped without seeds)
1 C light brown sugar

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Combine all MARINADE ingredients to cover pork roast.
2. Marinate overnight if possible.
3. Put in a crockpot or large dutch oven, depending on how you are cooking it.
4. Crockpot cook on high for 4-5 hours or low 8 hours. In the oven at 200 degrees, I cook mine in the oven overnight, 8-12 hours. Cook till roast is fall-apart tender.
5. Removing it from the liquid it just cooked in. Remove fat (and bone) and shred.
6. Mix together SEASONING SAUCE.
7. Put shredded roast and seasoning sauce back into the cleaned out crockpot or dutch oven.
8. Simmer in a crockpot for at least 2 hours, or in a dutch oven back in the oven for at least 2 hours at 200 degrees.
9, Enjoy!

PS. The sauce you cooked the roast in, you can throw in some chopped chicken breast and cook till tender and serve that over rice as a bonus dish too!

Sweet N Spicy Wing Sauce

Sweet N Spicy Wing Sauce

Oh this is sooo good!!!  It will be enough for huge flat of wings. I also use this sauce to marinate thin cut chicken strips in and then dehydrate for chicken jerky too.

2 full sticks of butter
1/2 Cup dark brown sugar
1 8 oz can of tomato sauce
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/2 t chili powder
1/2 t white pepper
1/2 t cayenne pepper
1/2 t salt
2 t oregeno
1/2 cup Franks Red Hot sauce.  Use Franks, it does make a difference!

Put everything in a saucepan and stir till butter is melted and it is boiling. Pour over cooked wings, dip chicken into it, marinate for chicken jerky. The sky is the limit and this stuff is addicting! Enjoy!!

PS The butter will float to the top when done if not mixed enough, just use a whisk or immersion blender and it will al blend together.

Apple Crisp

When a group goes camping, and someone comes out with an entire case of apples, and says help yourself, what do you do?? You make a HUGE dutch oven full of apple crisp. It was such a hit, the others in the group restocked some of the supplies and we made another HUGE batch the next day camping, and topped it with vanilla ice cream.  Here is that recipe, so all can find it when they are camping with other friends and family.
As written will make a 1 1/2 quart casserole or 8 inch dutch oven. The bigger the dutch oven the more you will need, multiply the recipe as needed.


5-6 tart apples, peeled, cored and sliced
2 Tablespoons white sugar
2 Tablespoons lightly packed brown sugar
1.5 teaspoons cinnamon
2 Tablespoons butter, melted

Topping
3/4 C rounded flour
1/3 C rounded oatmeal
1/2 C white sugar
1/2 C lightly packed brown sugar
1/4 C butter cut into small pieces


Mix apples, both sugars, and cinnamon, ( in the dish you will cook it in 1 1/2 quart casserole or dutch oven) let sit till juices start to flow about 20 minutes.. Pour melted butter over apples.  Next mix your dry ingredients for the topping, cut in butter till crumbly, sprinkle over apple mixture.

If doing the casserole in the oven bake at 350 for about 30-40 minutes.

If doing the dutch oven, if your using the big 12 quart like I did, multiply all the ingredients by about 5 or 6.  To bake at 350, you will need 24 briquettes of charcoal, 16 on top and 8 below, go for about an hour or so, till the apples are tender.  Enjoy!!!

Pasta Fagioli Soup

This is just like the one they serve at Olive Garden.

1 lb ground beef
1 C diced onions
1 C julienned carrot
1 C chopped celery (about 3 stalks)
2 cloves minced garlic
2  14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes ( I use different flavored ones)
1  15oz can red kidney beans WITH liquid
1  15oz can great northern beans WITH liquid
1  12 oz can V-8 juice or tomato juice ( I use the spicy V-8)
1  15oz can beef broth (when I double batch it, I use one can of tomato puree)
1 T white vinegar
1 1/2 t salt
2 t oregano
2 t basil
1/2 t pepper
1/2 t thyme
1/2 t red pepper flakes (optional)
1/4 lb ditali pasta

Brown ground beef with onions, carrots, celery, and garlic.
Drain off fat.
Add the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT the pasta.
Simmer for 1 hour. ( I usually cook mine in a slow cooker on low for half the day)
If it is too thick add more beef broth or water. The pasta will soak up a LOT of the liquid.
Before serving cook up the pasta till it is al dente and drain.
You can either mix the pasta with the soup base, or add the noodles to each bowl with the soup base.
I mix all mine and then freeze half of it. Some say don't freeze it with the pasta, I haven't had any issues freezing it with the pasta. Most of the time when I make this I double batch it because it only takes a few extra minutes now, and saves a LOT of time later when I am in the mood for some good soup. ENJOY!!!

Spicy Chicken Corn Chowder

This recipe serves 4 adults.

Shopping List

1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, uncooked (if you're using frozen, it might need to cook a little longer)

1 (10 oz) can of Rotel tomatoes, do not drain

1 (4 oz) can of chopped green chiles, do not drain

1 (14 oz) can of creamed corn

1 (10 oz) can of cream of chicken soup

1 cup of chicken stock or water

1 tablespoon chili powder

2 cups frozen corn kernels

Shredded cheese and/or chopped green onions to garnish

In your slow cooker, layer the first 7 ingredients.

Cover and cook on low 6 to 8 hours or on high 3 to 4 hours.  About 30 minutes before you're ready to eat, remove the lid and shred the chicken up right inside your slow cooker using two forks.  Stir in your frozen corn, return the lid and continue to cook another 20 or 30 minutes on the low setting.

Ladle your soup into bowls and garnish with a little cheese and/or green onions.  Sour cream or tortilla chips would be delicious in this soup too!

Enjoy your warm and cozy soup tonight!

Apple Dumpling's

1 1/2 Cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 C butter
2 1/4 C flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
2/3 C shortening
1/2 C milk
6-8 small granny smith apples peeled and cored
1/3 C sugar

For the syrup: in a saucepan combine 1 1/2 C sugar, 1/4 t cinnamon and 1/4 t nutmeg and 2 C water. Bring to boiling, reduce heat. Cook 5 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in butter. Set aside.

Combine flour, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cut in shortening till mixture resembles crumbs. Add milk all at once. Stir just till moistened and form dough into ball. On a floured surface roll out dough till about 1/8th inch thin, cut into sections just big enough to wrap around a whole apple. Place half of the apple on the dough, sprinkle generously with a mixture of sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and dot with butter, add other half of apple and cover with dough. Put into a large baking dish. After all the apples are done (6-8 depending on size of apples, and how thick the dough is) Pour syrup over dumplings. Bake at 375F for 45 minutes. Best if syrup is taken from bottom of pan 2 or 3 times during baking and poured over top of dumplings. I love mine warm with cold milk poured over top, dinner or breakfast. Dessert is good too.