Thanksgiving Appetizer Extravaganza!

WELCOME to our 1st Annual Siggy Spice and Friends Thanksgiving Dinner! 

Today we start with Appetizers. 
Before we get going, I just wanted to say a huge THANK YOU to all those that contributed recipes!  I have had such fun going through them and I have added many-a-dishes to my Thanksgiving menu.  I hope you all find as much inspiration and joy reading them as I did! 
I am also including a "linky" at the end of this post in case there are some people who wish to share some appetizers!
We didn't have too much as far as appetizers, but WATCH OUT, we have some A-MAZING recipes coming up in the main dish, side dish, and dessert category!
I will start the sharing with an appetizer that makes it's way onto every holiday table we have.  I love, love, LOVE it! 

Baked Brie

• 1 round loaf of bread.  Sourdough, Rye, Tuscan, Shepherds Bread...your choice
• 1 wheel of Brie cheese that fits your bread bowl
• 1/4 cup or more Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Garlic Powder to taste
• Fresh ground pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Using a serrated bread knife, remove the top of the bread bowl making sure to allow just enough height for the Brie wheel.  Using your Brie as a guide, carefully cut out the middle of the bread bowl so your cheese can fit in snugly.  Make sure you reserve the top of the bread bowl and the filling you removed.
Using a pasty brush, brush Extra Virgin Olive Oil all over the inside of the hole and sprinkle with garlic powder.  Remove Brie from wrapping, keeping the rind on, and set in bread bowl.  Set bread bowl on a cookie sheet and bake in oven for 20-30 minutes or until it is starting to puff up in the middle and is getting nice and melty.
Meanwhile, cube up your reserved bread from the middle and top of bread bowl into bite sized cubes. 
Remove baking sheet from oven and place bread cubes all around the bowl.  Lightly brush the cubes of bread with Extra Virgin Olive Oil and sprinkle with garlic powder and fresh cracked pepper.  Return the baking sheet with the bread bowl and bread cubes back to oven for an additional 15 minutes or until the bread cubes are nice and toasted.
Once you plate your appetizer, cut off the top of the rind to expose all that melty goodness!

Also, from me:

Cranberry Mandarin Brie Phyllo Bites

• 1 small wedge of Brie cheese
• 1/2 cup Cranberry Mandarin Sauce , click HERE for recipe
• 30 frozen pre-cooked miniature phyllo shells, defrosted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place phyllo tarts on a baking dish and put 1 tsp of Brie cheese in each tart.  Place in oven and bake for 15 minutes or until the cheese is nice and melty. Once plated, top Brie with 1/2 tsp of Cranberry Mandarin Sauce.  Beware, these are completely addictive!!!

Next up, the ever-amazing Laura from Real Mom Kitchen sends us some appetizer love with this gem!



photo courtesy of Laura at Real Mom Kitchen

Cranberry Cream Cheese Spread
Please click HERE to go to Real Mom Kitchen to get the recipe!


This last one amazes me!  I was not sure if I should put it under appetizers, side dishes, or table settings.  However, I figured that since so many of us do a veggie try as an appetizer, I would put it here.   Keri made this beautiful presentation and I am SO glad I now know how to do it!  Take a look, isn't it INCREDIBLE?!?!

photo courtesy of Keri

Cornucopia - submitted by Keri

I actually got this from Allrecipes.com (submitted by Becky), if you want to check user comments for
additional ideas. The trick to making this recipe a success is really perseverance because the aluminum
foil form has to be slick in order not to stick to the bread, but that makes it very slippery too! The bread
kind of wants to slide off the form. I just worked with it until it looked “okay” on the form and it all filled
in and looked much better after baking.

Ingredients:

• 3 (11 oz) containers refrigerated soft bread stick dough
• 1 egg
• 1 TBSP water
• Fill with whatever you want.  I chose fresh veggies.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
Tear off a 30X18 inch sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil. Fold it in half to 18X15 inches. Roll diagonally
to form a hollow cone, about 18 inches long with a diameter of 5 inches at the widest end (this will be
the cornucopia opening). Stuff cone with crumpled regular foil until form is rigid. Bend tail of cone up,
then down at the end. Spray outside of cone with non-stick cooking spray. Place on cookie sheet.
Beat the egg with water to make a glaze. Open and unroll the first can of breadstick dough on your
work surface. Separate breadsticks. Begin by wrapping one breadstick around the tip of the cone.
Brush the end of the next breadstick with glaze and press to attach it to the end of the first breadstick.
Continue spiral wrapping cone, slightly overlapping dough until there are 3 breadsticks left.
Pinch one end of the 3 breadsticks together, then braid. Brush bread around the opening of the
cornucopia with the glaze. Gently press on braid. Brush entire cornucopia with glaze.
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until bread is a rich brown. If parts darken too much, cover with pieces
of foil.
Remove from oven and let cool completely on cookie sheet on a wire rack. Carefully remove foil
when cool. If freezing, leave foil in bread for support and remove when thawed.

Remember on Tuesday we start the Main Dish recipes, tips, and techniques!  If you have anything you would like to contribute, you can still e-mail me for the upcoming categories.  Click HERE to see the categories and publish dates.
Now, if you have some appetizers you would like to share, please feel free to link-up below!  Make sure you link back to this post somewhere in yours so we can all share the linky-o-lovvee!

This post has been linked up at: Mommy's Kitchen, Cookbook Sunday, Nikki's Nifty Knacks, Frou Frou Decor, Simply Sweet Home, Tidy Mom, Make Ahead Meals for Busy Mom's, Eat at Home



Siggy Spice and Friends 1st Annual Thanksgiving Dinner Reminder

Happy Friday my friends!


photo courtesy of Muir Woods

 Just a reminder that if you were going to submit some recipes for the Siggy Spice and Friends 1st Annual Thanksgiving Dinner, I would LOVE to have your recipes by tomorrow!
Again, if you don't have a food blog, NO PROBLEM, just e-mail me your recipe with or without pictures. 
If you do have a food blog, please e-mail me the link and I will get everything linked for you OR I will also (try) to post a McLinky with each category.
There are many of you that also have an Etsy shop, website, blog, or home business.....make sure and include that information with your website so everyone can see your goods!
E-mail:  siggyspice(at)gmail(dot)com

Have a FABULOUS weekend!!!

Loaded Chicken Philly Sammies

Chicken Philly Sammies PLUS Homemade Hoagie Rolls (or hamburger buns, or french rolls, or whatever shape you want to make them into roll)  PLUS a pretty please :)
First, the Loaded Chicken Philly Sammies. 

I adapted this fabulous recipe from my dear bloggy friend Jill Pickle, who adapted it from The Country Cook.  So, here is my version, loaded with EVERYTHING!

Ingredients:

• 4 slices of thick sliced bacon, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 2 TBSP butter
• 1 pound of boneless skinless chicken breast, diced into bite-sized pieces
• 1/2 large sweet onion, diced
• 1 bell pepper (your choice, green, yellow, or red....or a combo), sliced
• 6 ounces white button mushrooms, sliced
• 2 TBSP lemon pepper seasoning
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 4 slices of provolone cheese
• 4 hoagie rolls, recipe below.  Feel free to substitute whatever bun you or your bakery may have
• REAL, good quality mayo.  I like Hellman's or Duke's best, but for gracious sake, do NOT use Miracle Whip!

Chunk up your chicken, toss into a bowl and season with lemon pepper and salt. Stir to coat all the pieces well.  Add the diced onion, sliced pepper and mushrooms to the chicken bowl.
In a skillet over medium-high heat, add your chopped bacon and cook for a few minutes until done. Scoop out and drain on a paper towel. Set aside. Leave the bacon grease in the pan. Add 2 tablespoons of butter to the bacon grease. Turn heat down to medium.
Toss in the chicken/veggies into the bacon/melted butter and cook for 8 minutes or so, stirring often to break up the pieces and evenly cook on all sides. Add in the bacon and stir. (taste now for additional salt or pepper if you need)
In the skillet, divide up the chicken mix into 4 portions and separate. Add a piece of provolone cheese to each portion and allow to melt over top. While cheese is melting, put mayo on both sides of your bun. Scoop your portion onto your buns and serve.

Now, onto these A-MAZING Hoagie Rolls!

It should be no surprise that Mel, from My Kitchen Cafe, is a favorite of mine.  This recipe for her French Bread Rolls morphs by shape into whatever I need it to be.  It truly is a fabulous sandwich roll.  I have used it as hamburger buns, hoagie rolls, and just as a sandwich roll.  You won't be disappointed....and I have to say, adding a freshly made roll to any sandwich really ups the flavor!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups all-purpose flour

In a large bowl, stir together warm water, yeast, and sugar. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
To the yeast mixture, add the oil, salt, and 2 cups flour. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough has pulled away from the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
Deflate the dough, and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 12-14 equal pieces, and form into round balls....or shape into whatever shape you need it to be.  Place on lightly greased baking sheets at least 2 inches apart. Cover the rolls with a damp cloth (or greased saran wrap), and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Bake for 12-13 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.  If you want the top crusty, spray some water into the oven a couple times in the first 5 minutes of baking.



photo courtesy of Muir Woods



And now, for the pretty please.
Pretty please E-MAIL me your favorite Thanksgiving recipes by this Saturday. 
This is a great way for all of us to share recipes....especially those without a blog!
Just send your recipe to:  siggyspice(at)gmail(dot)com and if you have anything you would like to promote, i.e., Etsy Shop, Blog, Website, Business, etc.  give me that information as well and I will publish it along side your recipe.

These recipes are linked up at:
Nikki's Nifty Knacks
Tidy Mom
Simply Sweet Home
Frou Frou Decor
Eat at Home

Siggy Spice and Friends 1st Annual Thanksgiving Dinner


Our table is set and YOU are invited!!!

photo courtsey of Muir Woods





If you are at all familiar with the blog-o-sphere, you have seen "linky parties", a place that other bloggers can link some things from their site they would like to share. However, I know there are SO many of my friends (yes, that is YOU) out there that are talented home cooks that do not have food blogs as a way to share their recipes. So, I wanted a way that YOU could share your Thanksgiving recipes with all of us as well. Not to mention, it totally is going to feed into my cookbook/recipe addiction since all of the boxes containing my "stash" are still tightly taped up in the garage....somewhere.

So, here is the dealio. I want your recipes for Thanksgiving! If you have a blog, fabulous....just send me the links and I will link it up for you. If you do not have a blog, fabulous....just send me your recipe (with OR without a picture) and I will publish those as well. Send me as MANY as you would like, because we all love options! Just get me your recipes and/or links by Saturday, November 13th. Here are the categories and publishing dates:

APPETIZERS - Sunday, November 14th

MAIN DISH (Recipes, Tips, Techniques) - Tuesday, November 16th

SIDE DISHES - Thursday, November 18th

DESSERTS - Saturday, November 20th

TRADITIONS (Things you do to make your day special, Crafts, Table-scapes, Place settings, etc) - Monday, November 22nd

Just send an email to siggyspice(at)gmail(dot)com. Sorry, those nasty spam bots will get me if I give I don't give you the email address like that, lol! Like I said, send as many as you want and include links if you have them, or if you have a separate website or etsy shop you would like to promote, include that with your recipe as well.
I really am SO excited to see all the yuminess that you guys are making!
OH, and I almost forgot the really, really exciting thing.....we are so very close to having our first giveaway! Every recipe, link, tip, craft, or story you submit, earns you one early entry to the giveaway that has yet to be announced...because I am a groovy chick like that! (((happy dance!!!)))

Linking up at:
Mommy's Kitchen
Nikki's Nifty Knacks
Simply Sweet Home
Tidy Mom
Frou Frou Decor

Crock Pot BBQ Country Ribs with Beer Braised Onions

The.  Move.  Is.  Over.
Thank goodness! 
We are still in the midst of unpacking, but at least the kitchen is mostly there.  There enough to make dinner, which is a good thing because if I have to eat any more take-out, fast food, or sitting to eat looking and feeling all nasty and sweaty in a restaurant again....well, let's just say it would not be pretty!
Last month, while in my "CLEAN IT OUT" phase of the packing process, I made this super yummy dish with some pork country ribs I had in the freezer.  It is super easy, simple, and DELISH!  I used to make this meal all the time, but hadn't in a while.  In fact, I think the last time I made it was for my Dadu while my Mom was out of town and he LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it!  For those that know about my Dadu, you know that for him to eat anything aside from steak, macaroni and cheese, or fried chicken was an incredibly rare thing.
Even though this has some prep work involved before you stick it in the Crock Pot, it is well worth it!

Ingredients:

• 8-10 boneless country style pork ribs
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
• 1 bottle of your favorite bottled (or homemade) BBQ sauce, 18 ounces.   I use the original Bullseye.
• 1 large red onion, peeled and sliced
• 1 bottle of beer of your choice.  I used an Amber Ale.

Salt and pepper both sides of ribs to taste.
Heat a large skillet with olive oil over medium high heat.  Add ribs and allow to sear until caramelized and brown on both sides, working in batches.  Remove the ribs once seared and layer in crock pot, topping with BBQ sauce using the entire bottle.
Once all ribs are seared, add an additional TBSP of olive oil if necessary, and add onion slices.  Allow onions to cook until caramelized as well.  Very carefully, add beer to de-glaze pan, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan.  Turn down the heat to medium-low and allow to simmer until most of the liquid has cooked down by half or more, about 3-6 minutes.  Add onions to top of ribs and BBQ sauce.  Cover with lid and allow to cook on low heat for 6-7 hours. 
This is fabulous served over mashed potatoes!
ENJOY!!!

This recipe has been linked up at:
Mommy's Kitchen