Bacon Pimento Cheese Cherubs

After what feels like the longest no win streak in the history of forever, I'm happy to say that  these gorgeous bites are 1 of 4 finalists in the running for a really amazing prize! Nature Sweet Tomatoes asked for innovative tomato recipes for their Tomato-Vators contest and my Bacon Pimento Cheese Cherubs caught the judges eye! The recipe that earns the most votes will win a grilling experience for the winner and a guest at the Weber Grill

Academy at the Weber Grill Restaurant in St. Louis, MO, a Weber Spirit II E-210 LP gas

grill, and a Weber iGrill3 wireless thermometer!!!!

I don't have a gas grill and would really love the chance to go to BBQ school too!

If you have a moment, I would appreciate every vote I can get! The voting is open until July 10th and each email address can vote once a day

VOTE HERE

My recipe was a spin on the classic Southern Tomato and Pimento Cheese Sandwich but in bite size form. I took their super sweet cherub tomatoes, rolled them in pimento cheese then in crispy panko bread crumbs and bacon. They are the perfect summer bite especially with a chilled glass of wine. My kids helped me roll them out and form them. Good messy fun!

Bacon Pimento Cheese Cherubs

1 cup panko bread crumbs

4 slices cooked bacon, chopped very finely

1 ½ cup pimento cheese spread, well chilled

40 Nature Sweet Cherub Tomatoes

Heat oven to 400 degrees. 

Place the panko on a cookie sheet and lightly spray with cooking spray. Toast in the oven for about 5 minutes. Watch closely to prevent crumbs from burning.  Once panko is golden and toasted, mix with the bacon and place in a small bowl. 

Place the pimento cheese in a mini food processor and pulse until smooth.

Mold about 2 teaspoons of the pimento cheese around each tomato shaping it into a ball and then roll in the breadcrumb bacon mixture pressing lightly to help them stick.  

Set on a serving platter, refrigerate for 15 minutes, or until firm and serve immediately. 

Just a few tips when making these: make sure the pimento cheese is well chilled when rolling and that the tomatoes are completely dry. The firmer the cheese mixture is, the easier it is to form it around the tomatoes. I did the cheese part and then plopped it on the pan of bacon breadcrumbs and had my kids roll them in that. The assembly line made it much quicker!

Sizzlin’ Skirt Steak Tacos with Asparagus Corn Salsa and Creamy Chipotle Steak Sauce

I am participating in the first ever “Budweiser Sauces Ultimate Blogger Recipe Challenge – Freedom Reserve" and I am absolutely over the moon excited about my first entry! Budweiser sent me a load of their BBQ sauces, Wing Sauces, Steak Sauce and, my favorite, their Marinade Bags. These things are genius and I knew that was the first thing I was going to try out! You literally have to just throw your meat in the bag and let it sit until you're ready to cook. No mess, no cleanup, so so easy and I was very impressed with the flavor.

First up is my Sizzlin’ Skirt Steak Tacos with Asparagus Corn Salsa and Creamy Chipotle Steak Sauce. I put my skirt steak in the Budweiser Sizzlin’ Steakhouse Marinade Bag and let it sit in the fridge until I was ready to use it later that night. Then I made a summer salsa loaded with grilled asparagus, corn and some jalapeno for kick. I knew I wanted a sauce to drizzle over these tacos so I kicked up the Steak & Burger Sauce with some chipotle which totally made the perfect pair with the grilled steak and veggies. Add in the crumbled bacon and goat cheese and I truly think I have a winner!

Sizzlin’ Skirt Steak Tacos with Asparagus Corn Salsa and Creamy Chipotle Steak Sauce

1 ½ pounds skirt steak

1 (12 ounce) Budweiser Sizzlin’ Steakhouse Marinade Bag 

¼ cup Budweiser Steak & Burger Sauce 

½ cup mayonnaise

1 Tablespoon milk

2 teaspoons pureed chipotle in adobo

8 ounces asparagus spears

2 ears fresh corn

1 Tablespoon vegetable oil

1 jalapeno, diced

4 green onions, sliced

3 Tablespoons lime juice

2 teaspoons garlic salt

2 Tablespoons olive oil

12 warm flour tortillas

6 slices cooked chopped bacon

4 ounces crumbled goat cheese

Place the skirt steak into the Budweiser Sizzlin’ Steakhouse Marinade Bag and allow to marinate in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours and up to 8 hours long. Mine sat in the fridge for 7 hours and it was perfect!

When you are ready to cook, take the marinade bag out of the refrigerator so it can come up to room temperature and heat your grill to medium-high heat. 

To make the Creamy Chipotle Steak Sauce, whisk together the Budweiser Steak & Burger Sauce, mayonnaise, milk and pureed chipotle in a small mixing bowl. Place in the fridge to chill.

For the Asparagus Corn Salsa brush the asparagus spears and corn cobs with the vegetable oil and grill for about 5-8 minutes, or until the corn has nice char marks. Slice the asparagus into rings and remove the corn kernels from the cobs. Stir together the sliced asparagus, corn kernels, jalapeno, green onions, lime juice, garlic salt and olive oil in a small mixing bowl.

Raise the heat on the grill to high (mine was 550 degrees) and grill the steak for 3 minutes per side. Remove from the grill, cover with foil and allow the steak to rest for about 10 minutes before slicing. Once ready, cut the steak against the grain, in thin slices.

To assemble the tacos, spoon the Asparagus Corn Salsa into the warm tortillas. Top with slices of steak, chopped bacon and goat cheese. Drizzle with Creamy Chipotle Steak Sauce and serve immediately.

Makes 12 tacos.

You can visit Budweiser to see all of their sauces and marinades here, on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

#BudweiserSauce #BudweiserBBQSauce #KingOfSauces

You can find Budweiser Sauces and Marinades at WalMart, HEB, Giant, Winn Dixie, BiLo, Brookshire and Publix

Ham & Swiss Slider Burgers

Have you ever tried those baked slider sandwiches before with the sweet and sticky glaze, ham and melty cheese? They are absolutely decadent and delicious and I think I just raised the bar by making them into burger sliders! My son stopped in the middle of scarfing one of these down and declared 

"I could live off these for the rest of my life"

Me too son, me too.

I swapped the traditional dijon for a spicy brown mustard in the glaze and used Golden Potato pillowy slider buns to soak up all of the buttery glaze.

Look at those buns!! Who could pass that up?

Ham & Swiss Slider Burgers

2 Tablespoons spicy brown mustard

8 Tablespoons melted butter 

1 teaspoon onion powder

½ teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce

1 Tablespoon poppy seeds

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 pound ground chuck

1 pound ground sirloin

3 large garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons Kosher salt

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

12 slices deli ham

12 slices swiss cheese

1 package Pepperidge Farm Golden Potato Slider Buns

Heat a gas grill to medium-high heat and set the oven to 350 degrees.

In a small mixing bowl, stir together the mustard, melted butter, onion powder, Worcestershire Sauce, poppy seeds and brown sugar.

To make the Burger Patties, add the chuck, sirloin, garlic and salt into a large mixing bowl. Mix until well blended, handling as little as possible to avoid overworking. Shape into 12 even patties to fit the bun size. Brush the grill rack with vegetable oil. Place the patties on the rack, cover, and cook about 3-4 minutes. Flip the burgers over and top with ham and then cheese. Cover and cook another 3 minutes longer, or until the patties are medium rare and the cheese is melted. 

Place the bun bottoms on a large foil lined cookie sheet and brush them with a very thin layer of the melted butter mixture. Place the bun lids on top and then brush the remaining butter over them. Place in the oven and allow to toast for 5 minutes, watching carefully to prevent burning. 

To assemble the burgers, remove the buns from the oven and place the burger patties on top of each bun bottom, top with the bun lids and serve immediately with lots of napkins!

#RespectTheBunPromotion   #PepperidgeFarmBuns  

The Cobb Salad Burger

I'm so so excited to share my next entry for the Pepperidge Farm Respect the Bun Promotion!!
This one is a stunner for sure. Who doesn't love a good Cobb Salad?!
It's definitely hearty enough to satisfy those people that don't think a salad can be a meal. But there is no question this version is a full meal. Bacon, hard boiled eggs, blue cheese, avocado; I'm all in.
As amazing as this burger combo is, I think the real star of the show on this beauty is the Ranch Butter Buns. Yep, you read that right- Ranch. Butter. Buns.
Honestly, the Ranch Butter would be good on just about anything. Popcorn, grilled corn, baked potatoes, shrimp. I'll stop there to not pull a Forrest Gump, but I promise if you end up with extra butter, that would be a good problem to have.

The Cobb Salad Burger
Ranch Butter
4 Tablespoons room temperature butter
2 Tablespoons Ranch dressing seasoning mix

Burger Patties
1 pound ground chuck
½ pound ground sirloin
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons Kosher salt
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

4 Pepperidge Farm Sesame Seed Buns
1 cup shredded iceberg lettuce
1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese
8 slices cooked bacon
4 large tomato slices
8 slices ripe avocado
3 hard-boiled eggs, sliced

Heat a gas grill to medium-high heat and set the oven to 500 degrees.
In a small mixing bowl stir together the butter and Ranch seasoning mix.
To make the Burger Patties, add the chuck, sirloin, garlic and salt into a large mixing bowl. Mix until well blended, handling as little as possible to avoid overworking. Shape into 4 even patties to fit the bun size. Brush the grill rack with vegetable oil. Place the patties on the rack, cover, and cook, turning only once, about 3-4 minutes per side for medium-rare.
Lay the opened buns on a large cookie sheet. Spread each bun top and bottom with an even thin layer of the softened Ranch butter. Place in the oven and allow to toast for 5 minutes, watching carefully to prevent burning.
To assemble the burgers, place shredded lettuce, blue cheese and then a burger patty on top of each bun bottom and then top with two pieces of bacon. Place tomato, avocado and hard-boiled egg slices on top of the bacon. Place the top half of the toasted buns on each and serve immediately with lots of napkins!

#RespectTheBunPromotion #PepperidgeFarmBuns #Burgers #Grilling

The Italian Sub Burger

I just got home this week from a fabulous vacation in Mexico. 

14 people, 7 days, tons of belly laughs and more tequila than you can imagine. It was perfection! 

As usual, the time flew by way quicker than I was ready for and before I knew it I was home, unpacked and in the kitchen. First on the to do list: burgers.

Pepperidge Farm is hosting a contest perfect for Summer and I am excited to share all of my entries here with you! Their #RespectTheBunPromotion is calling for the best Burger and Hot Dog recipes that feature their delicious buns and I'm having so much fun coming up with entries for this one.

My first entry is  The Italian Sub Burger. I topped a perfectly grilled burger with all of the goodies you'd find on an Italian Sub; peppered salami, ham, melty provolone cheese, a sweet and spicy cherry pepper spread and tons of fresh crunchy veggies. As delicious as all of that is, I didn't forget the bun. I brushed it with Italian Vinaigrette and toasted it. Kinda like an Italian crouton. Sooooo good!

 The Italian Sub Burger

1/3 cup jarred pickled sweet and spicy cherry peppers

1 pound ground chuck

½ pound ground sirloin

2 large garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons Kosher salt

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

4 slices provolone cheese

4 Pepperidge Farm Onion Buns

3 Tablespoons Italian vinaigrette dressing

1 cup shredded iceberg lettuce

4 slices deli ham

12 slices peppered salami

4 large slices tomato 

4 thin red onion slices

 Heat a gas grill to medium-high heat and set the oven to 425 degrees.

In a small food processor or blender, puree the pickled sweet and spicy cherry peppers until smooth.

To make the Burger Patties, add the chuck, sirloin, garlic and salt into a large mixing bowl. Mix until well blended, handling as little as possible to avoid overworking. Shape into 4 even patties to fit the bun size. Brush the grill rack with vegetable oil. Place the patties on the rack, cover, and cook about 3-4 minutes. Flip the burgers over and top with cheese. Cover and cook another 3-4 minutes longer, or until medium rare. 

Lay the opened buns on a large cookie sheet. Brush each bun top and bottom with an even thin layer of the Italian vinaigrette dressing. Place in the oven and allow to toast for 5 minutes, watching carefully to prevent burning. Once buns are toasted, spread each of the top halves with 1 Tablespoon of the cherry pepper spread.

To assemble the burgers, place shredded lettuce and then a burger patty on top of each bun bottom. Top with ham, salami, tomato and red onion. Place the top half of the toasted buns on each and serve immediately with lots of napkins!