Bakin’ With The King and Turkey Leftovers!

Turkey Leftovers?  Yeah – why not?  

 

What to do with all that turkey? Well here’s a really NICE (and different) way to use some of it!   I found this recipe and we tried it here in the Castle and it had a FIVE out of FIVE STAR RATING!   I think if WE liked it, maybe YOU would too??????    Nice and cool and refreshing and a great combination of the tastes some of us experienced with our Thanksgiving dinners but in a whole different way than the usual casserole most of us come up with.

 

Apple Cranberry Turkey Salad

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 cups cooked shredded turkey
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup diced apple chunks
• 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
   
• 1/2 cup fresh finely diced parsley
• salt and pepper to taste
• Dinner rolls

****I know this recipe has no bacon in it – but quite honestly – it just might be an interesting little ZIP to crumble up a few slices of cooked bacon in the mix!

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine everything together in a large bowl. Stir until mixed thoroughly.
2. Refrigerate for a few hours so the flavors have time to blend.
3. Serve the salad on the dinner rolls. Keep refrigerated.

No doubt about it!

In the coming weeks as we approach Christmas – I’ll be sharing some Christmas recipes most of which will have bacon in them – after all, the King of Bacon should try and feature bacon – am I right?

See you next week Loyal Subjects!   

Your King

Bakin’ With Bacon and the King for Thanksgiving!

Howdy Fellow Chefs!   I have a yummy side dish for you!

I’ve got another good one for you today. My Mom is a nutcase when it comes to insisting we have Green Bean Casserole for Thanksgiving – and just about any other time she can make it as well. So how about a recipe for the casserole WITH BACON????

Not a recipe you’ve never heard of I’m sure but maybe one you sort of forgot about – I don’t think most people put cheddar cheese OR bacon it it but it sure adds a lot!

Bacon Cheddar Green Bean Casserole

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cans (10 1/2 ounces) Campbell’s® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup or 98% Fat Free Cream of Mushroom Soup
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• 6 slices bacon, cooked and chopped (about 6 tablespoons)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 8 cups cooked green beans or 4 cans (14.5 ounces each) any style Del Monte® Green Beans, drained
• 2 2/3 cups French’s® French Fried Onions

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Step 1

  Stir the soup, milk, half the cheese, 5 tablespoons bacon, black pepper, beans and 1 1/3 cups onions in a 3-quart baking dish.

• Step 2

  Bake at 350°F. for 25 minutes or until the bean mixture is hot and bubbling and the beans are tender (for softer beans bake a little longer).  Stir the bean mixture.  Sprinkle with the remaining cheese, onions and bacon.

• Step 3

  Bake for 5 minutes or until the onions are golden brown.

 

Oh boy – I want a big old bowl of this now.    Well, Mom wouldn’t give me a big bowl of it ANY TIME but maybe for Turkey Day this year since they will be home making their own meal for a change they could let me have a LITTLE TASTE????????????????????

Since we won’t see you before Thanksgiving has come and gone – we hope all of you who celebrate Thanksgiving have a wonderful time – even if it’s just your family at home instead of with big groups – you can be THANKFUL that you’re healthy and have delicious food to eat………………so many don’t.   

Hugs, King Teddy !!

Bakin’ With Bacon for Thanksgiving and King Teddy

Hello Bacon Fans!

Ready for another recipe with bacon that you can introduce to your Thanksgiving table????    Thanksgiving isn’t that far away and this year being different and probably downsized for most of us as far as “other than immediate family” thanks to the virus – I want to try and give you some new things to try OR some thing that are simply too yummy not to add to your “usual” !!

Not everyone likes pumpkin (what??? I thought everyone did!!!!) – but it’s not REQUIRED that you have a pumpkin pie for dessert at Thanksgiving.   SO, how about apple?   How about apple with bacon?   How about apple with bacon and a DAB of “spirits”?    Of course spirits are optional but it’s just a bit of extra kick and flavor after all.    You won’t be weaving down the hallway to the living room after dinner – I promise.

Bacon Apple Bourbon Pie

 

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp. ground cinnamon 

3/4 cup flour, divided 

6 Tbsp. cold butter, divided 

5 slices cooked Bacon, crumbled 

1 ready-to-use refrigerated pie crust (1/2 of 14.1-oz. pkg.) 

6 cups sliced peeled Golden Delicious apples (about 6 apples) 

3/4 cup granulated sugar 

2 Tbsp. bourbon 

1 tsp. vanilla

 

DIRECTIONS

 

Heat oven to 400ºF.

 

Mix brown sugar, cinnamon and 1/2 cup flour in medium bowl. Cut in 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp.) butter with pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in bacon.

 

Place crust in 9-inch pie plate as directed on package for one-crust filled pie. Place apples in large bowl. Add granulated sugar, remaining flour, bourbon and vanilla; mix lightly Spoon into crust. Cut remaining butter into small pieces; place evenly over apples. Cover with crumb topping. Place on baking sheet.

 

Bake 30 min. Reduce oven temperature to 350ºF; bake 30 min. or until apples are tender. Cool.

 

Garfield knows what he’s talkin’ about!

This is one delicious pie – it wouldn’t be King-approved if it was anything other than that! 

 King Teddy

Bakin’ With Bacon And Teddy

 

Halloween is gone and out of the way and our next FOOD EXTRAVAGANZA will be here before you know it – Thanksgiving! There are plenty of yummy things involving bacon you can make for Thanksgiving. Today I’m sharing one that THE ROYAL MOM says she is thinking about making for this year’s turkey dinner.   Sounds just too good NOT to try it don’t you think?

Loaded Scalloped Sweet Potato Casserole

Note:  Bacon is only a garnish in this recipe as you will see but who’s to say you couldn’t have some crumbled bacon IN the casserole too??????

What You Need:

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

4 Sweet Potatoes (sliced 1/4 inch or less)

Olive Oil

Garlic Salt

Pepper

Smoked Paprika

Casserole

4 tablespoons Butter

3 tablespoons flour

2 1/2 cups Fat Free Milk

3 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1 cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Cooking Spray

Toppings

10 ounces Perfectly Baked Bacon, crumbled  (or as much as you want really – can there be too much bacon?????  NO!)

2 Ripe Avocados, sliced & dipped in lemon juice

1/2 cup sliced Green Onion

Salsa

Sour Cream

DIRECTIONS:

1 Pre heat oven to 400 degrees F with the rack in the middle. Prepare a baking sheet with tin foil. Toss sweet potato slices in olive oil, garlic salt, pepper & smoked paprika. Arrange sweet potatoes on the sheet pan in a single layer. Bake about 20 minutes until potatoes are soft & slightly browned. Remove from oven & let cool a bit.

 

2 Melt butter in a sauce pan, whisk in flour. Stir in milk & bring to a simmer. Set aside.

 

3 Spray a 3 quart baking dish with cooking spray. Layer potatoes & 1 cup of the cheddar cheese, repeat this for 2nd layer. Add 3rd layer of sweet potatoes, pour milk mixture over the top. Top with 3rd cup of cheddar cheese & mozzarella.

 

4 Cover casserole dish with tin foil. Bake for 60 minutes. Carefully remove the foil & broil for 5 -10 minutes. Cheese should be slightly browned & bubbling. Be sure it does not burn. Remove from oven & let sit a few minutes. Sauce will thicken as the casserole cools.

 

5 Top with avocado, green onions & crumbled bacon. Serve with salsa & sour cream.

 

I have a feeling all of us would agree with Garfield???   I know I would!!!!!

This recipe just sounds so wonderful Mom says she simply has to try it.  We always have sweet potatoes AND mashed yukon gold potatoes with turkey on Thanksgiving – this casserole might be so delicious we’ll skip the Yukons this year!     

Turkey Day is Coming!   Are You Ready?   

Hugs, The King

 

Bakin’ With Bacon and King Teddy

Boo !!!!

Tonight is HALLOWEEN night…………….for us, it’s different than any other Halloween we’ve had because there will be either NO trick or treaters or very few.    A few people in our neighborhood here at the castle have decorated outside but not many.     Most Halloween celebrations are inside and no candy will be given out so lots of people are just having some good old family fun for the evening.    So I propose we give you a recipe this week for a Halloween treat that’s incredibly decadent and probably scary from the calories point of view but hey – it’s HALLOWEEN!    

Grilled Chocolate Chip Cookie Bacon S’Mores

INGREDIENTS Yields 12

12 thick-cut slices bacon (hickory smoked, Applewood smoked or maple)

12 large marshmallows

12 2-inch squares chocolate good quality

12 skewers

12 tablespoons butter, softened

3⁄4 cup brown sugar

1⁄4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 egg plus 1 egg yolk

2 cups flour

1 3.4-ounce box instant French vanilla pudding mix, dry, not prepared

1 teaspoon baking soda

1⁄2 teaspoon salt

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS (this calls for grilling…..I bet you clever people can figure out a way to do this without firing up the grill!)

Make the cookies: In a bowl, cream together butter, sugar and brown sugar for 1 to 2 minutes until light and very fluffy. Add vanilla, egg and egg yolk, and mix well. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, pudding mix, baking soda, and salt.

Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until incorporated and dough comes together. Stir in chocolate chips. Cover very tightly and chill for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Roll dough into balls (about 11⁄2 inch) and space 2 to 3 inches apart on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until lightly browned on top. Allow to cool 5 to 10 minutes on baking sheet before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.

To grill the bacon: Heat a grill to medium-high heat. Thread bacon onto skewers in an S-shape. Place skewers directly on grill and cook 8 to 12 minutes, rotating as needed to ensure even cooking. Transfer to a plate, let cool and then remove bacon from skewers. Set aside.

Meanwhile, roast the marshmallows: Roast marshmallows directly over the grill using skewers or roasting sticks until cooked to your preference.

Assemble s’mores: Flip one cookie over so it’s upside down. Place a square of chocolate on top of the upside-down cookie, then top with grilled marshmallow, bacon and a right side-up second cookie. Serve immediately.

Oh I think this is DEFINITELY a TREAT!

Have a SAFE Halloween everyone!    King Teddy