Spooky Face Burgers

monsters

monstersWhat You Need:

8 (4 oz.) ground beef patties
8 buns
8 slices of American cheese
8 slices of thin deli ham
16 sweet pickle slices
Ketchup

How to Make It:

Set the oven to preheat the broiler.
Use a cooking spray and lightly spray a broiler pan.
Lay the patties flat on the prepared pan and broil 4 inches from the heat for 5 minutes.
Turn the patties over and cook 6 more minutes or until the patties are cooked through.
Drain the patties well on paper towels.
Lay the bottom half of the buns on a serving platter.
Place one cooked burger onto each bun half.
With a sharp knife cut the cheese in a zigzag manner to look like teeth.
One piece of the cheese is placed on each burger with the teeth hanging slightly over the edges.
Fold the ham to resemble a tongue and place over the first piece of cheese so it hangs slightly over the edge.
Place a second piece of cheese onto the folded ham tongue.
Place the top half of each bun onto the sandwich.
Attach the sweet pickles to the top of each bun for eyes and place a dab of ketchup in the middle of each pickle.

Weather permitting these burgers can be grilled instead of broiled. Your monsters will look a little scarier when the burgers are charred. You can use green olive slices with pimento instead of the sweet pickle slices and ketchup for the eyes if you prefer.

Makes 8 burgers

Preparation Time: approximately 25 minutes
Cooking Time: approximately 11 minutes
Total Time: approximately 33 minutes

Nutritional Information (approximate value per burger):
Calories 480; fat 28g; sodium 1,260 mg; carbohydrates 24g; sugars 7g; protein 36g

Creepy Crawly Hot Dogs

hotdogs

hotdogsWhat You Need:

1 (16 oz.) pkg. hot dogs
1 T of canola oil
1/2 C of ketchup
2 t Worcestershire sauce
1/2 t spicy brown mustard
1 T brown sugar
6 hamburger buns

How to Make It:

Slice all the hot dogs into 8 strips each.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and stir in the hot dog strips.
Cook the strips 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until nicely browned.
Stir the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and mustard into the hot dogs.
Dump in the brown sugar and stir until well blended.
Cook the hot dog mixture for 5 minutes or until completely heated through.
Cover the bottom half of the buns with the hot dogs and cover with the top half before serving.

Kids and adults will talk about these creepy sandwiches for a long time as well as enjoying every single bite. If you prefer regular mustard may be used instead of the brown mustard. You may also add a dash of liquid smoke to the sauce.

Makes 6 servings

Preparation Time: approximately 10 minutes
Cooking Time: approximately 13 minutes
Total Time: approximately 23 minutes

Give Meals a Halloween Twist

pumpkinseeds

pumpkinseedsHalloween is a fun and exciting time for everyone. Kids anticipate dressing up, treats and being scared. It is as much fun for many parents as it is for the kids. Enjoying Halloween all day long can be one way of keeping those ghosts and goblins excited up to the last minute. Here are few ideas that you can incorporate into your Halloween meals, snacks, treats and parties to keep the excitement fresh all day.

Start them out on their Halloween adventure with a spooky morning breakfast. Toast can be transformed into ghosts by toasting the bread then using a gingerbread cookie cutter to cut the bread into ghosts. Smoother the bread with whipped cream cheese or plain yogurt and add raisins for the eyes.

Pumpkin oranges are another great breakfast idea. Use a toothpick or small sharp knife and carve a jack o lantern face into the outside of the orange. Be careful not to go to deep that you pierce the orange meat.

Lunch can also be transformed both at home and in the lunchbox. Goblin tongues can be the perfect tough. Use mini bagels and lightly spread them with mayonnaise. Cut slices of bologna into the shape of tongue and place on the bagel so they hang slightly over the edge of the bagel.

How about a worm sandwich? Slice hotdogs into several thin slices. Place them in the microwave and heat on high for a minute or so or until the hot dogs begin to curl slightly. Place them on a bun with ketchup to make them slimy.

You can also make ghost sandwiches. Add the filing to white bread then use a gingerbread cookie cutter to cut out the sandwich ghost. Remove the crust for the perfect ghost.

Don’t forget dinner? Transform devilled eggs into scary eyeballs by adding red food coloring to your egg yolks. Place a slice of black olive in the center for the pupil and you have some great blood shot eyes.

Having Italian for your Halloween dinner? Why not add Salty Bones to the meal. Use refrigerated breadstick dough and roll each triangle into a long skinny bone shape. Sprinkle with salt and bake as directed on the package.

Let’s not forget those snacks. Spider snacks can be a fun snack. Spread one round cracker with a dollop of peanut butter. Press stick pretzels into the peanut butter for the legs. Add raisins or small candy pieces for the eyes.

Graveyard snacks are also exciting. Use a cup of popped popcorn. Stir in the mini pretzels, marshmallows, chocolate chips and raisins to finish off the treat.

There are numerous ideas out there that will help in transforming any meal into a Halloween adventure. Cook up something spooky and don’t forget the BOO!

Tomatoes Fruit or Vegetable

slicedtomato

slicedtomatoTomatoes are typically classified as a vegetable but because of the seeds, is really a fruit. The reasoning behind classifying them as a vegetable is to avoid confusion with other countries that have import duties. Tomatoes can be eaten in many different ways, both hot and cold.

Tomatoes have only been eaten in this country for about two centuries. People once thought that they were poisonous, but once they learned differently, not only were they raised for their color but also to eat.

They are grown on both coasts of the United States all year round. Go to any grocery store, roadside stand, farmer’s market and even in any garden and you will find many kinds of tomatoes.

In the southern states, tomatoes are used on a sandwich or even as the sandwich. Have you ever had a tomato sandwich? All you need is bread, some mayonnaise and a tomato and presto, lunch!

Ever had a salad without tomatoes? Some people dice them, some slice them, and some quarter them for their salads. There are even cherry tomatoes that work well on salads. Grape tomatoes and even Roma tomatoes are great for any salad that you are making.
Another great use for the tomato is salsa. Tomatoes are a staple of a lot of Mexican dishes and without them the taste would be bland. Add some green peppers, jalapenos and you have a great chip dip.

Italian dishes use a lot of tomatoes also. You can cook the tomatoes down and make a great tomato base for spaghetti sauce, marinara sauce and sauce for lasagna. But first, you must remove the skin. To do so, you blanch the tomato and the skin peels right off. If you don’t want to use the tomato right away, just peel the tomato and place it in a freezer bag for later use. Then remove them when you are ready and prepare them the way you want.

To keep your tomatoes from going bad, do not store them in the refrigerator. Put them in a paper bag or on the counter and they will ripen naturally. If you put them in the refrigerator, they won’t ripen and the taste won’t be as good.

In the olden days, people used to can tomatoes for later use. This practice has gone out of style, what with the 2 person working family. But if you have time, you can jar tomatoes for tomato juice, spaghetti sauce and even fresh canned tomatoes. Think about how that will taste in January!

Tomatoes also fight the aging process. Growing or buying those fresh tomatoes are not only a healthy choice but a good tasting one as well.

Mother’s Day Meal Plans

fruitandflowersAccording to tradition we have turkey at Thanksgiving, ham at Christmas or both at Easter. What we do not have is a specific food that says “Mother’s Day”. Not having a specific food for Mother’s Day can either be a curse or a blessing, depending upon your outlook.

Your job will be simple if you already know what your Moms favorite food or meal is. First, make a menu of those items, create your grocery list, shop for the items and find the recipes, the last step is to cook the meal. Here are a few ideas for a Mother’s Day meal if you don’t have a clue what to prepare.

Breakfast Ideas

Does breakfast in bed sound like a good idea? Maybe to you, Mom may just be laying in bed worrying about the mess you are making. Why not just get the kids ready and this will allow Mom to shower and dress in peace. Then you can treat everyone to breakfast at her favorite diner or restaurant. If you are preparing breakfast for Mom make her favorite dishes and by all means don’t forget to clear the table, wash the dishes and put them away.

Brunch/Lunch Ideas

Why not let Mom sleep in a little on Mother’s Day? This will mean that you will have to tend to any little ones that might be around. Then serve her brunch or lunch. You can be preparing the meal while Mom is waking up and getting ready to start the day. This will be a surprise when she walks into the kitchen and finds a delicious meal waiting for her. Let’s not forget to take the responsibility of cleaning up. Make plans for Mom to do a relaxing activity while she is waiting for you to finish with the clean-up. A happy Mother is well rested and has food in her belly.

Dinner Ideas

Remember that Mother’s Day is on Sunday, a full day. This may mean that you have to wait until evening to shower your Mom with her edible treats. Are you not able to prepare the meal yourself? With a little advanced preparation it is still possible. You can still surprise Mom by ordering a meal from your local grocery store, restaurant or other food delivery service. Make sure that you don’t forget to include the paper goods with this. This will ensure that you have a “home cooked meal” without the dirty dishes that come along with preparing dinner.

A way to your Mom’s heart is through food. Food is one way to express love and appreciation to Mom this Mother’s Day. Any effort that you put forth to making this day special for Mom will be truly appreciated by her.

Menu Planning Resource Pack

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Double Grilled Cheese Texas Style

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What You Need:

2 t butter, softened
2 pieces of Texas toast
1 slice of Cheddar cheese
3 slices hickory smoked bacon, cooked crisp
2 slices of sweet red bell pepper
1 slice of Swiss cheese

How to Make It:

Spread one side of a piece of Texas toast with the butter.
Place the bread butter side down into a small skillet.
Place the skillet over medium heat.
Place a slice of the Cheddar cheese onto the bread in the skillet
Layer the slices of bacon over the cheese.
Arrange the bell pepper slices over the bacon.
Top with the slice of Swiss cheese.
Butter one side of the remaining piece of Texas toast.
Place the bread butter side up over the sandwich in the skillet.
Grill for 3 minutes or just until starting to brown.
Turn the sandwich over and continue cooking 3 minutes or until the cheese melts and the bread is browned on both sides.

Makes 1 serving

Remember how you feel when Mom makes you a grilled cheese sandwich? This special twist will give Mom that same feeling on her special day. Add some cottage cheese, applesauce or fresh fruit for the perfect Mothers day lunch.