Tag: cheese

Instant Pot Egg Bites


Many parents are looking for quick and easy breakfast ideas for the school year. I know this year will look a bit different for some of you. However, no matter how they are attending school, they need a good breakfast.

We love these egg bites! They are delicious and velvety smooth when cooked in the Instant Pot. No Instant Pot, no problem. Pour the mixture into muffin tins, sprayed with nonstick cooking spray, and bake in the oven.

I like to make them up on Sunday afternoon and have them in the refrigerator to heat and go. Make a variety by adding the ingredients that you and your kiddos enjoy.

You can find the Instant Pot silicone egg mold online or at Walmart. Oh, and while you have your Instant Pot out, try making boiled eggs. The Instant Pot is the easiest and ONLY way I boil eggs these days. Add 1 cup of water to the Instant Pot, place the trivet that came with your Instant Pot inside. Gently place 6 to 12 raw eggs on the trivet. Place the lid on the Instant Pot and be sure the vent is set to seal. Select the manual setting; adjust the pressure to high, and set time for 5 to 7 minutes. When cooking has finished, quick-release the pressure, according to the manufacturer’s directions. Place the eggs in a bowl of ice water to cool—drain, dry, and peel.

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Instant Pot Egg Bites

Course Breakfast
Author Amye Melton

Equipment

  • Instant Pot

Ingredients

  • 4 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup shredded Pepperjack cheese (or your favorite cheese)
  • 1/2 cup cottage cheese
  • 1/4 cup cooked sausage chopped
  • 1/4 cup chopped green chiles

Instructions

  • Add 1 cup water to the 6-quart Instant Pot. Place trivet inside.
  • Add eggs, shredded cheese, and cottage cheese to a blender or food processor. Pulse to combine about 30 seconds.
  • Add meat and green chiles and give it a quick pulse.
  • Divide the mixture evenly in the silicone mold. Cover tightly with aluminum foil.
  • Gently place the silicone mold into the Instant Pot.
  • Place the lid on the Instant Pot. Make sure the vent it closed to seal. Press the steam button and set the timer for 10 minutes.
  • Once the cooking is complete, allow the pressre to relase naturally for 10 minutes, then release any remaining pressure.
  • Remove the silicone mold from the Instant Pot and cool for five minutes.
  • Serve or refrigerate.

Notes

Suggestions:  Shredded cheddar, shredded Swiss, shredded Gruyere, or crumbled feta.  Bacon, spinach, roasted red peppers, mushrooms, green onions.  

Beef Tamale Pie

While living this new normal life, my thoughts of cooking are changing. My once passion for cooking is turning into a thing I dread daily. I am getting tired of making a mess, I am over cleaning the kitchen constantly, and quite honestly, I am sick of my own cooking! On top of that, when I place my weekly grocery order, I find out that the store is out of many of the items I requested.

And while it is so easy to be petty, there is much to be thankful for, though. We have food in our freezer and plenty in the pantry. We have not lacked for food on the table and in our bellies. My family is still healthy. We do not battle the loneliness of isolation because we have each other. No matter how much I complain about being in the kitchen, I am oh so thankful!

I found a handwritten recipe from my Aunt Janis last week. I knew, without a doubt, it would be delicious coming from my aunt. This recipe for Beef Tamale Pie seemed simple enough, and I almost had all the ingredients. Since I had no chili mix in the house, I substituted taco seasoning, and it was terrific! I cooked everything in one skillet, so I had minimal cleanup, which is always a plus.

*Note:  My cousin, Regina, told me that she often puts chopped jalapeños in the corn meal mixture for a little extra zip!  Sounds great to me!  

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Beef Tamale Pie

Course Main Course
Author Amye Melton

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • 1 medium green bell pepper chopped
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 envelope chili mix
  • 1 (14.5-ounce can) petite diced tomatoes drained
  • 1 (15.25-ounce can) whole kernel corn drained
  • 1 cup self-rising yellow corn meal
  • 1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
  • water

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400℉.
  • In a large skillet brown the beef, drain.
  • Add onions, bell pepper, salt, chili mix and tomatoes. Simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Stir in corn.
  • In a bowl mix corn meal, shredded cheese and enough water for spreading consistency.
  • Drop mixture by spoonfuls over beef mixture and slightly spread out.
  • Bake 20 minutes or until the cornmeal mixture has browned.
  • Serve warm with desired toppings.

Easy Frittata

spinach-and-goat-cheese-frittata

In these uncertain times, how have you prepared to eat? Since moving to the country, we generally eat at home most of the time. Had this happened ten years ago, with two kids at home and relying on pizza delivery, drive-thru, and going to the Mexican restaurant at least once or twice a week, I would have been scrambling.

Even now, we live in a small house; I can not stockpile loads of supplies. I suppose we will be thankful and enjoying our freezer full of deer meat if this COVID-19 scare continues.

Fritta is a fancy word for a crustless quiche. You can use a wide array of ingredients, and it is an excellent way to use up any leftovers—a perfect dish when you want something delicious and easy.

The general rule is for every six eggs, use 1/4 cup heavy cream, 1 cup cheese, and 2 cups total of vegetables. For variety, you can add fresh thyme, garlic, or other seasonings you like. Cook in a nonstick or cast-iron skillet, and you are good to go.

 

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Easy Frittata

Course Breakfast, Main Course
Author Amye Melton

Ingredients

  • 6 large eggs
  • 1 cup cheese of choice
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • 2 cups vegetables and/or meat of choice

Instructions

  • Suggested ingredients: cooked bacon, cooked sausage, ham, potatoes, spinach, kale, sauteed mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, steamed broccoli, feta, cheddar, Swiss, Monterey Jack.
  • Basically any cheese, meat or vegetables that you like.

Cheesy French Bread

Cheesy-French-Bread

 

I think it is apparent that I enjoy cooking. I love reading recipes, and I like trying them out even more. Recently, it seems that every new recipe I have tried has been terrible though! Do you ever experience that?  I suppose you could say I have been in a slump.  

Over the past month, I have been helping with a church cookbook. Reading the recipes that have been handed down through the years has been fun. While looking through a few of my own old recipes, I ran across this.  Cheesy French Bread is something that I frequently made when we lived in Florida.  The kids were younger then, and it seems I cooked spaghetti more than ever. Spaghetti and this bread pair wonderfully. However, don’t let that keep you from serving it with other meals. Cheesy French bread can make a light meal more satisfying, or serve it alongside meat or poultry. This delicious cheesy bread is simple to make and it is sure to be a hit at your next meal!

Cheesy French Bread
 
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Ingredients
  • 1 (8-oz.) pkg. shredded Mexican cheese blend
  • ¾ c. mayonnaise
  • 1½ tsp. dried parsley flakes
  • ½ - 1 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1 (16-oz.) loaf French bread, cut in half horizontally
Instructions
  1. Combine cheese, mayonnaise, parsley and garlic powder. Spread evenly on cut sides of bread; place on baking sheet. Bake at 350℉ for 10 to 20 minutes or until melted and lightly browned. Slice and serve.

 

Smoky Barbecue Chicken Sandwiches

smoky-barbecue-chicken-sandwich-33

Like most southerners, we enjoy us some good barbecue around our house. Greg smokes a Boston butt that would win first place at barbecue cook-offs everywhere. Wes enjoys smoking ribs, and his method is flawless. Savannah and I have several homemade barbecue sauce recipes that we keep on hand too.

Barbecue chicken is not one of our specialties, though. That is, until recently when I tried a new barbecue sauce recipe. It’s a smoky sauce with chipotle peppers in adobo sauce that tastes amazing! It is the number one flavor that I am craving these days.

We have been eating this sauce on everything since I saw Valerie’s Home Cooking.  We have had it on Barbecue Nachos, barbecue burgers, barbecue shrimp, and on these delicious Barbecue Grilled Chicken Sandwiches.

Another important step, not to be skipped, in making these mouth-watering sandwiches is the brining of the chicken. In my opinion, there is no better Thanksgiving turkey than a brined turkey. I don’t fry chicken often but when I do you can bet I will brine it first.

The salt in a brine allows the chicken to retain moisture. A couple of things to remember when you brine chicken are first, try to use kosher salt or sea salt. Also, do not brine the chicken over two hours. It can get rubbery when overbrined.

 

Smoky Barbecue Chicken Sandwiches
 
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Ingredients
  • Brine:
  • ¼ c. coarse salt
  • ¼ c. firmly packed dark brown sugar
  • 20 whole black peppercorns
  • 1 c. hot water plus 3 c. cold water
  • 1 lemon, thinlhy sliced
  • 1 small onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed with the side of a cleaver
  • Smoky Barbecue Sauce:
  • 1 tbsp. vegetable oil
  • ½ small onion, chopped
  • 1 lg. or 2 small cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 c. ketchup
  • ½ c. molasses
  • ⅓ c. apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 chipotles in adobo sauce, seeded and roughly chopped
  • kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Grilled Chicken:
  • 2 lg. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half vertically, then cut into thin cutlets, horizontally
  • 4 lg. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Buns
  • Lettuce leaves
  • Sliced tomatoes
  • Sliced red onion
  • Sliced Colby Jack cheese
  • Additional Barbecue sauce, if desired
Instructions
  1. To make the brine: Place the salt, brown sugar, and peppercorns in a large glass bowl and add hot water. Whisk until the salt and brown sugar are dissolved. Stir in the cold water and let cool to room temperature. Pour the brine over the chicken and stir in the lemon slices, onion, and garlic. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and let stand in the refrigerator for 2 hours, turning the chicken once of twice.
  2. To make the barbecue sauce: Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook about 30 seconds. Add ½ c. water and the ketchup, molasses, vinegar, Worcestershire, chipotles, a pinch of salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Puree in a blender or food processor until smooth. Store the sauce in the refrigerator.
  3. To grill the chicken: Preheat the grill to high. When ready to cook, brush the grate with oil. Arrange the chicken on the hot grate and grill for 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165° F. During the last 2 minutes or so, start basting the chicken on both sides with barbecue sauce. Remove chicken from grill and assemble sandwiches right away.