Balsamic Chicken Drummettes

My vocabulary in meat greatly increased when i came to US.Growing up in India,chicken was not the everyday meal option for us.Rice,lentil and vegetable side dish is what we ate on regular basis.So eating chicken was sort of specialty,may be once in couple week,kind of occurrence.

                 After coming here i realized,that, here meal is not considered complete unless meat is served in the meal.Hmmmm....i thought...I never missed the meat,we had assortment of vegetables served with our meal,cooked differently and i am still the same way.

                  When you buy the chicken in India,you don't have an option to buy it by parts or at least decade ago, where i lived anyway.You get the whole chicken cut up in pieces.So  it was sorta weird in a way to see it being sold part wise here in US.I liked that you had the choice and so many options to cook it with.Thats  how  i got to know about  Drummettes.Because of the small size of it as well as being able to hold it with your hand and eat ,its considered perfect finger food during parties..particularly Superbowl party is not complete without Chicken Wings.I prefer Drummettes over wings because for one,they are less messy to eat.Two,they are meatier then wings.

This recipe is again a result of me being cooking show junkie. This  is where i got the Balsamic Chicken Drummettes recipe . I did minor tweaks to it.

-I reduced the amount of honey and brown sugar to 1/4 cup.I felt it would be too sweet otherwise for our taste.

-I did not add Rosemary.I find it  overpowering  the dish ,based on past experience.

-I didn't sprinkle with seasame seeds.

-I did not add parsely.

Despite of the tweaks it turned out to be tasty! 

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

My friend Emily is famous for her baked goodies.We often request her to bring dessert during parties.She is my Cookies helpline too ! This is her take on our friend Jessica's original recipe, which is great in itself.It calls for ground cloves.She left out the cloves and added half or more may be, bag of leftover chocolate chips and Peanut Butter Chips to it.

• ¾ c real butter, softened
• 1 c brown sugar
• ½ c sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ¾ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 ¾ c flour
• 2 c oats
• 1/2 or so bag of Chocolate Peanut Butter Chips mix (i think its 12 oz bag)

Mix together and drop onto cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 8 minutes. Do NOT overbake.ENJOY !

Sopapilla Cheesecake

First time i had  Sopapilla  many years ago at a place here in town called 'Ponchos',where my hubby took me for dinner.It was  sprinkled with powder sugar,served along side honey.It is a Latin American/Mexican dessert.It vaguely reminded me of sweet version of Indian crispy 'Katchori' and thats what  i call it at home.
            I  had never tasted the  Sopapilla  transformed to a Cheesecake before.When my friend Emily brought it to the party...ohhhhh it looked ....hmmm...can you say drool? Here is  how she made this divine dessert.

• 2 pkgs crescent rolls
• 1 stick butter
• 2 pkgs cream cheese, room temp
• 1 ½ c sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• cinnamon/sugar blend to sprinkle on top(Eyeball it)

Spray 9 x 13 pan. Place one layer of crescent rolls on bottom of pan; press seams together. In bowl, mix together 1 stick cream cheese and ½ c sugar until very fluffy (like egg whites). Add second cream cheese pkg and ½ c sugar. Mix again until fluffy. Add ½ c sugar and vanilla; mix until fluffy. Spread over crescent rolls. Add second can of rolls – don’t press together. Sprinkle with cinnamon/sugar blend. Melt butter and pour on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 – 20 minutes.Your taste buds will thank you after eating this.
This is how you say  "Sopapilla" :
"ll" is silent in this Spanish  dessert..so it sounds like (So-Pa-Pia).

Sausage Balls

Sausage balls are great party appetizer because of the ease of making it.I personally  can not tell how they taste but i have heard the rave reviews of it whenever my friend Emily brings it to the party.Here is how she makes them.

• 1 lb sausage (I used mild)
• 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 3 cups bisquick

Let sausage set out til room temp. Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl with your fingers. Mixture will be crumbly. Press together to form 1” balls. Bake 350F for  18-20 minutes. Rotate them half way through cooking to prevent them from sticking.

Side note:
Bisquick is a brand of baking mix for those not familiar with it,outside US.

Fruit Salsa with Bunuelos

Fruit Salsa also happens to be another snack item which i had a chance to taste at Ladies Fellowship.My friend Emily had brought it.I tasted  it and i liked it but didn't had the chance to make it.To me Fruit salsa is also a good way to eat fruits which i do not like by itself.Apple,Pear,Grapes etc also happen to be  those category of  fruits.I know crazy.
            With Superbowl approaching, i thought this would be nice little sweet appetizer to go along.I googled and came across this Fruit Salsa Tips. I based my fruit salsa using the tips here.I selected the hardy fruits,which doesn't get mushy  as it sits for couple of hours.This is what i added in mine.

• 1 Apple
• 2 Pears
• 1/2 of Medium size Pineapple 
• 2 Plums
• 8-10 Medium Size Strawberry
• 1/2 Lime Juice
• 1 Tbl-1.5 Tbl Honey
• 1-2 Tbl Powder Sugar 

Wash and cut all the fruits in very tiny size pieces.I peeled the pears before i chopped it.Drizzle it  with honey and powder sugar.I just eyeballed it and tasted it to make sure its right.Chill in the refrigerator for 1-2 hrs.Serve it with Bunuelos.

Side Notes :
-Bunuelos (Boo-Noo-Ye-lows) are corn Tortilla Fried and sprinkled with Cinnamon and regular Sugar.Its Tex Mex dessert in itself.Its very crispy and crunchy.You are bound to have sugar all over you when you are eating them,just saying.

Chips and Queso

Queso(sounds  like K-So) is a Spanish word for 'Cheese'.It is very popular in Texas,particular South Texas,which is not far from the Border of Mexico.South Texas cuisine is  heavily influenced by their Mexican neighbor. So much so,there is a term coined just for that kind of cuisine 'Tex Mex'.It also happens to be my favorite  after Indian of course.
                    I do not remember when i had Queso for the first time but whenever i did,i became a  fan of it.Also, since its SO EASY to put it all together,it makes regular appearance at the parties around here.
You can make 'Queso' using couple different kind of cheeses.For my superbowl party,i went to the easiest of the routes.Yes the Velveeta Route.There isn't really a recipe for this dish.

• 2 lb.(32Oz.) Block of Velveeta Cheese
• 1 can of Rotel Tomato

Cut the block of Velveeta in manageable size of pieces,to fit your pot.Add the can of tomato and keep stirring the mixture at slow heat until its all melted and mixed.It takes may be 7-10 minutes.Serve it with Tortilla Chips.
Side Notes :
- You can add meat or couple different  kind of chopped veggies to it.Name of the dish gets updated based on your choice of  ingredient.
-You can use any diced tomato with green pepper.I used Rotel brand of canned tomatoes ,it has chopped onions and mild green peppers added to it.
-As it cools,cheese solidifies.So keep it in warmer to maintain the thin consistency.
-Believe it or not,it took me a while to make good queso.You must be thinking really?How can you mess this up?I did.Then i watched my sister in law making it at some occasion.Yes the key is "Keep Stirring" and not leave the site of stove while you are making it.

Amanda's Tomato Salsa with Tortilla Chips

It was couple of years ago,when i had the opportunity to participate in Ladies Fellowship over Crafts and Scrapbooking. Everyone was encouraged to bring a finger food to munch while crafting and chatting away.Thats when i had a chance to taste this salsa with some tortilla chips and i am a fan of this YUMMIEST salsa ever since.Thanks to my friend Amanda !I had to ask her to bring it to Superbowl party since i was craving for this salsa  goodness so much.She happily obliged us and shared her recipe !

• 4 - 5 medium Roma tomatoes  
• 2 - 3 cloves of Garlic
• 1-1.5 Jalapeno 
• 1/4 medium size onion
• 1/2 lime juice 
• 1 tsp Cumin
• Handful of Cilantro(Coriander leaves)
• Dash of Onion powder
• Salt to taste

Amanda's Tomato Salsa

Tortilla Chips

Put all the the ingredients in Blender and liquefy it .You have the tastiest Tomato Salsa.Serve it with your favorite Tortilla Chips.It has very well balanced taste.You don't have ingredients fighting over for the top spot.It tastes great next day as well.


Amanda's side notes :
Jalapenos were deseeded and veins were taken out to reduce the heat.Of course if you like it spicy you can leave them or add more if you like.