Pulled Pork

Pulled Pork

This is such a wonderful & easy meal.  You can do Pulled Pork Sammies on either big soft Kaiser buns or even on tiny sweet King's Hawaiin rolls - OR even just the pulled pork by itself is delicious!

You can top with BBQ sauce (my homemade Chipolte Honey BBQ sauce is a GREAT one to try) or you can top with marinated onions (I have a recipe for those as well) or even coleslaw.  However you top it, or not top it it is Super Easy & SO tasty!!  You can also choose which way you'd like to cook it - I have done both slow roasting in my oven as well as in my crockpot when the weather is too hot to have my oven on...either way works beautifully!!

Hope you Enjoy!



Ingredients:

Pork Butt

Bottle of Mojo Marinade (any brand you prefer) 16oz bottle

8-10 garlic cloves (some smashed)

Kosher Salt

Course Ground Pepper

Pre-heat oven to 275degrees (or turn crockpot setting to same if you have no temperature control on crockpot then put it on low)

There will be  a large piece of fat on one side of the pork butt, you will want to score the fat.  All this means is that you will take a knife and make a large criss-cross design over the fat, this will help the fat distribute when it's slow cooking as well as make it easier to remove the fat after the cooking process.

Place the pork butt in a large heavy pan if cooking in the oven or in the crockpot with the fat side up.  Pour the Mojo marinade over the entire pork butt.  As far as the garlic cloves are concerned, I like to slit the pork butt in various different spots and slip some garlic cloves right inside the meat - that way when it cooks the garlic flavor will really penetrate the meat (you don't have to do this though - I just really LIKE GARLIC!).  As for the rest of the garlic, smash it by placing the side of your knife on top of the garlic clove and using a fist and a quick motion, bang on the top side of your blade and it will smash the garlic clove nicely and then just toss it into the pan.

If cooking in the oven cover the entire pan with heavy duty foil and place in oven on middle rack and slow cook (overnight is easiest) at 275 degrees for approximately 7-8 hours. 

If cooking in the crockpot put lid on & cook on low (again overnight is easiest) for same amount of time. 

When you wake up to the smell of this pork whiffting throughout your house - it is a true thing of Wonderfullness!!

The only thing left to do is shred it.  Using 2 forks is by far the easiest.  The bone will just very easily pull out as well as the fat very easily comes right off.  The best way to be able to serve this is by using the crockpot & keeping it on low, that way it stays warm throughout your gathering (you will want to occaissionally give it a toss or two to ensure the meat doesn't dry out - I like to reserve some of the cooking liquid and put it back into the meat to make sure it stays juicy).

Some people like to pour their BBQ sauce over the entire amount of pork but I like to leave it plain that way people can add as much or as little sauce as they like.  Plus leftovers are easier to make if the pork isn't seasoned with the BBQ sauce (you can toss with taco seasoning & make pork tacos with leftovers - just one of many ideas!).

*You can in fact use a pork shoulder if you'd like for this recipe but keep in mind there is a much bigger bone in a pork shoulder and therefore you will be paying for the bone.

Hashbrown Casserole

Hashbrown Casserole

Ingredients:

1 bag of frozen shredded hashbrowns

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup chopped onions

1 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 cup corn flakes

2 Tbls melted butter

What to do:

1.  Set oven to 350 degrees and coat a 13x9 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

2.  In a large bowl, whisk together soup, sour cream and salt. Stir in Hash Browns, Onions and cheese until well mixed. Spoon evenly into baking dish.

3.  In a medium bowl, mix together breadcrumbs and butter. Sprinkle evenly on top of Hash Brown mixture.

4. Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes, or until hot and bubbly. Allow to rest for at least 5 minutes before serving.  Can garish with sliced green onions if you like!

Buckeyes

One of my Besties,  DD and I have been making these tasty little treats for close to a decade now. 
We make them to put into our Holiday Cookie Treat Tins that we give out at Christmas and they
are ALWAYS one of people Favs!! 
Super easy & no baking make these treats a great addition to your recipe box!



Ingredients:
2 c Peanut Butter (can use either smooth or crunchy - I always use creamy)
1/4 c (1/2stick) Butter -softened
3 3/4 c Powdered Sugar (sifted)

Coating:
2 c SemiSweet Chocolate Chips (or Chocolate Almond Bark)
2 Tbls Vegitable Shortening (if necessary)

How To:
-Beat Peanut Butter and butter together in a large bowl until creamy.
-Mix in Powdered Sugar until mix holds together - I did all of this in my food processor & it worked out very well with minimal effort.
-Shape into 1/2 to 1 inch balls and place on wax paper lined cookie sheet.
-Place in freezer for at least 10 minutes if you will be coating the same day - Otherwise can refrigerate overnight.

Coating:
-Melt the chocolate chips (or almond bark) over low heat until smooth.
-If chocolate mixture tends to be a bit thick or tries to seize up then stire in the vegitable shortening and it will smooth out the mixture.
-Use a toothpick to pick up the peanut butter ball and dip into choclate mixture swirling around making sure to leave the top uncovered (this is why it's called a Buckeye - it resembles the Buckeye nut!)
-Place back onto wax covered cookie sheet and after all are dipped then place back into freezer to set.

*This recipe rendered close to about 120 Buckeyes at 1/2" round!!

My Bestie Tara's Totally Delicious Pumpkin Cheesecake

Bestie Tara's Pumpkin Cheesecake

I got this recipe from one of my Besties, Tara.  She swore that this would be the most delicious cheesecake I've ever had....and she was SO correct!!  Really super easy - a bit time consuming due to the baking & cooling time but so well worth it!! 

Ingredients:

Crust:

2 c Graham Cracker Crumbs

6 Tbls Butter

Cheesecake:

4 - 8oz packages of Cream Cheese - softened - best if left out overnight

1 3/4 c Sugar

1 can (15oz) Pumpkin Puree

5 Eggs

1 1/2 tsp Cinnamin

1/4 tsp grated Nutmeg (freshly grated is best)

1/4 tsp Cloves

1/2 tsp Salt

1 Tbls Vanilla Extract

2 Tbls All Purpose Flour





How To:

Crust:
-Melt the butter and mix with the graham cracker crumbs and press into the bottom of a well buttered Spring Form pan.
-Bake @ 350 degrees for approx. 8-10 minutes until lightly golden brown - set aside to cool.

Filling:
-Mix Cream Cheese and Sugar with electric mixer until light & fluffy (2-3 minutes).
-Add in pumpkin puree & blend well.
-Add Eggs - one @ a time is best and mix until well blended.
-Add Spices and Flour - mix until incorporated.

Pan Prep:
-Wrap the outside of Spring Form pan with foil and place in a large deep roasting pan.
-Add 1 1/2" of Hot H2O to large roasting pan - should come up to about half way up the spring form pan.
-Pour Cheesecake filling into spring form pan.

Bake @ 350 degrees for approximately 1 hour & 20 minutes.
When Cheesecake is set - turn oven off and crack oven door for at least 15-20 minutes before removing from oven - This will prevent the Cheesecake from cracking ontop.

After 20 minutes, remove from oven, take Spring form pan out of roaster and remove foil and place cake on wire rack to continue to cool.

Chill at least 4 hours or overnight before serving.
Can be served with Coolwhip or Whipped Cream.

Homemade Garlic Pickles

These homemade garlic pickles are SO super easy & really very addictive!!   My husband & son cannot get enough - They are ready in as few as 5 days and will last refrigerated for several months...if they last that long!!



Ingredients:

6 c H2O
1/4 c Kosher Salt
2 Tbls White Vinegar
2 lbs Kirby Cukes - scrubbed clean & cut lengthwise
1/2 - 3/4 c chopped Fresh Dill
8 Large Fresh Garlic Cloves - chopped or sliced
8 whole Black Peppercorns


How To:
-Bring H2O, salt and vinegar to a boil over medium heat, remove and let cool (can add ice to cool quicker if you'd like).
-Pack Cukes and remaining ingredients into a glass jar.
-Pour brine over to cover and let completely cool on counter.
-Store in refigerator - ready in as few as 5 days and will last for several months (if they make it that long!)

Enjoy!