Best French and Italian Food Recipe

Chicken Parmesan Sliders

Chicken Parmesan Sliders are sweet dinner rolls toasted with garlic butter and topped with Parmesan cheese.  Slices of pan fried chicken, marinara sauce and piles of mozzarella cheese top this picture perfect slider.  It is a simple recipe that is absolutely heavenly and party ready!

I love the holiday season, love parties and love love love holiday parties.  Although I used to be the gal to spend all day in the kitchen and have a few of my besties over to help before the party, simple is now my middle name.  I love little time savers in the kitchen.  When I can find time savers for a party its a double bonus.  Less time in the kitchen means more time to spend with my friends.

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Top 10 All Time Game Day Appetizers

If you are looking for the perfect recipe for Game Day we have got you covered. Here are our Top 10 BEST EVER Game Day Appetizers!

No game day party, get together or gathering is complete without a fabulous spread!  Chad and I are not sport fanatics, but we love a good game.  Even when it was just the two of us we had a tradition of having a fajita bar, salsa, guacamole and chips.  It was so much fun and so delicious.  When the food is good it seems to hurt a little less when your team loses, not that I would know anything about that.  Right Chad?

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When in Doubt, Dip

Still deciding what to serve at or bring to that Super Bowl party? You can’t go wrong with a great dip. Here are some of my favorites, and trust me, they've all been extensively tested. Just click on the title, and away you go. Enjoy!

	Baked Crab and Artichoke Dip Nothing says, “this party rocks” like a creamy, cheesy, baked dip, and when you’re talking about a hot crab and artichoke dip, people have been known to put an extra choice word or two before “rocks.”
	Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip Not only is this baked spinach artichoke dip easy and delicious, but it's also a first in culinary history.
	Baked Buffalo Chicken Dip Arguing about what salad dressing is more appropriate for a baked Buffalo chicken dip recipe is kind of like debating about which shoes to wear with that Hawaiian shirt.
	Clams Casino Dip A big tray of hot clams casino would make a handsome addition to your Super Bowl spread, but that sounds hard, so make this dip instead.

Here are some additional Super Bowl resources
from my friends at Allrecipes. 

Outrageously Cheesy Stuffed Pretzel Bombs

Outrageously Cheesy Stuffed Pretzel Bombs are the perfect bite size appetizer to impress your guests.  Pretzel bites are loaded with cheddar cheese and baked to perfection.  All of this comes together in under an hour.

Finding the perfect finger food to blow your friends minds is a tough feat, whether its for game day or card night.  But these certainly fit the bill.  Chad has been begging for pretzels since we made out Pretzel Rolls last year.  Well I finally decided to make them.  I don't know what I was waiting for.  I guess I needed to create something outrageous and simple at the same time.  With these cheesy stuffed pretzel bites, I have succeeded! They are crazy good.

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Spicy Buffalo Chicken Burger

Spicy Chicken Buffalo Chicken Burger recipe is the fusion of hot buffalo wings and a burger.  It is truly the best of both worlds.  A moist and flavorful chicken burger with enough kick to make your taste buds stand at attention.  It is served on a soft pretzel roll with bleu cheese, it is a fav and you are going to love it too.
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Bagna Cauda – A Real Bathing Beauty

I’m more of a shower guy, but Bagna Cauda is one “hot bath” I’ll take any time. While this qualifies as a warm dip, it has nothing in common with the typical versions that will grace snack tables across America this Sunday.

Next Up: "Hot Bath"

Hearty Beef Soup

Look no further, this is the BEST EVER Hearty Beef Soup!  With juicy tender chucks of beef that melt in your mouth and a glorious rich soup loaded with vegetables it is truly the ultimate comfort food. This simple recipe has minimal active time and it is sure to be on your table again and again.  It has been on ours! If you are looking for the ultimate game day food, this is the one. 

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Jalapeno Popper Taquitos

Jalapeno Popper Taquitos are the consummate Game Day food.  An easy recipe that will knock your socks off, with instructions to make-ahead too. Loaded with your favorite popper flavors: jalapenos, bacon and ooey gooey cheese.  Adding perfectly seasoned beef makes this an awesome dinner recipe and it is on our menu regularly!

You may have noticed I have a thing for Jalapeno Poppers.  It all started with this grill recipe I created, then came the meatballs, the jalapeno popper pretzel bombs, breads - this one and that one, and then the mother of jalapeno popper recipes...
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2015 Super Bowl Prediction Using Chicken Wing Bones

Once again, it’s time I let you cash in on my magical method for picking the Super Bowl winner, using the ancient art of chicken wing bone reading. I can't tell you how I learned this, or why anyone would take it seriously, but I can tell you the bones are NEVER WRONG.

As you’ll see, the Seattle Seahawks will beat the New England Patriots. It's a guaranteed lock. Bet the farm, the house, and the farmhouse. Many people are saying that the Pats are going to lose because of bad karma, but that can’t be the reason. Have you ever seen a Bill Belichick press conference? If that were true, they'd never win a game.

Anyway, good luck, and I’ll apologize in advance for all those relatives bothering you for loans after you collect your winnings. Good luck, and as always, enjoy!

Next Up: Dem Bones

Put The Lime in The Coconut Chicken Bites

Bite sized chicken breasts are marinated in coconut milk and limes, then they are double coated to make these the crispiest most flavorful Coconut Lime Chicken Bites you have ever tasted.  This recipe is super easy and these chicken bites are sooo addictive you are going to want to make 2!  You put the lime in the coconut and drink it all up!  Well... maybe eat it all up.

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The Best Ever 25 Soups and Stews

I can not get enough soup, pumpkin, apples or cinnamon right now.  Must mean its time for fall.  Well everyone needs a fall soup guide and this is yours!  25 of the Best Soups we have ever made!  You are going to love these.  Get started cooking and maybe you can try them all by winter!  We might just have a new edition for you then.

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Reclaiming Your Cast Iron

I get a lot of emails asking for a video showing how we clean and season our cast iron pans. One of these days, when I burn whatever I was supposed to be filming, I may do that demo, but in the meantime, check out this great article by Noel Christmas from Allrecipes. This is pretty much the exact system I use, and I've never had a problem with rust or food sticking. Enjoy!

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Quick Pickled Pepper Onion Relish – Not Just for Mini Philly Cheesesteaks Anymore

As promised, here is the pepper and onion relish you saw me accessorize my bite-sized cheesesteaks a few videos ago. The whole trick here is to find peppadew peppers, which have a very vibrant, sweet-hot-tangy flavor, and quickly and easily turn a pan of sautéed onions and jalapeños into a world-class condiment.

Copycat Cracker Barrel Hash Brown Casserole

Enjoying a fabulous restaurant dish at home has never been easier.  Cracker Barrel Copycat Hash Brown Casserole is ready to go in the oven in a snap.  This recipe all starts with homemade soup and ends with a heap of cheese.  It doesn't get better than that!

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Cheesy Bacon Chicken Pierogi Bake

Cheesy Bacon Chicken Pierogi Bake made with a creamy bacon cheese sauce in just 30 minutes!  BACON.CHEESE.POTATOES!  It's calling your name. A simple recipe that will be on your table again and again.

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“Loaded Baked Potato” Super Bowl Dip – [Insert Deflated Football Joke Here]

Any decent Super Bowl snack table has to have a few substantial dips, and this “loaded baked potato” dip, with its three pounds of bacon, is nothing if not substantial. 

It’s also shaped like a football, which of course has been proven to taste better to people drinking beer than dips in a bowl. Speaking of beer, I think will pair nicely with something cheap, domestic, and in a can. Save the Pliny for the Kobe sliders. 

Needless to say, you can doctor this dip any way you see fit. There are so many ways you can “Tom Brady” this football, and change it to your liking. Some roasted chilies would be great, or maybe even some of that pickled pepper-onion relish I’m about to show you.

Jury Duty Update

I was asked to leave. Apparently, I'm not "jury box material." Oh well, I think we're all probably better off. Anyway, I'm working on a new Super Bowl dip recipe now, which should be up later tonight. And, yes, of course I'm going to predict the winner of the Big Game using chicken wing bones. Stay tuned!

Skinny Mocha Frappuccino

Skinny Mocha Frappuccino is the divine combination of coffee, chocolate and cream topped with more chocolate and cream. All this fabulousness without any of the guilt. This simple recipe with only 6 ingredients and 3 minutes will keep you enjoying this drink all year long.

I am a coffeehouse regular. I love to indulge in those decadent coffee drinks. But once I realized just how indulgent those drinks really are (about 500 calories and 80 grams of sugar a pop) I switched to drinking iced caffè lattes. A combination of espresso and milk, although they are fraction of the calories they never quite cured my desire for decadence, which left me feeling like I was missing out. Then I had an epiphany...

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Buffalo Chicken Meatball Poppers

Buffalo Chicken Meatball Poppers! Seriously. Does your family and friends devour wings?  You are going to love this recipe that is perfect for game day AND dinner. I love an easy appetizer and this one is great to make ahead, freeze, defrost and heat in a 350°F oven.  Or pop them in the microwave.  Packed with sausage & wing flavors these are addictively popable!  Made with chicken they are light, flavorful and delicious. 

I have a 'thing' for meatballs, you could even call it love.  I adore them for so many reasons.  Meatballs are limitless, any meat, or no meat.  Any flavor, any style.  Serve them for dinner, game day appetizer, fancy them up for a cocktail party.  There are absolutely no boundaries or rules with meatballs, okay perhaps one rule...

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Mini Philly Cheesesteaks – Winning the Super Bowl Snack Table

Miniaturized sandwiches don’t usually float my boat, or submarine, as they’re almost always not as good as the full-sized versions, but these mini Philly cheesesteaks really captured everything I love about the classic.

Chef John Has Jury Duty!

The Jury by John Morgan

That’s right, instead of entertaining you with my free (and worth every penny) videos, I’ll be trying to convince a court in San Francisco that I’m the last person they want deciding anything.

By the way, why do busy cyber chefs have to serve, when there are so many people who’d jump at the chance? Shouldn’t we honor our wise seniors by letting them populate America’s jury boxes? They’re retired, and they sure love those judge shows.

Plus, I heard on the news we have lots of them, and were getting more all the time. Anyway, it’s something to consider. Stay tuned for updates as they become available.

25 Minute Chicken-Parmesan Pasta Toss

Chicken Parmesan simplified. Now its ready in 25 minutes with this easy recipe. The combination of cheese, fire roasted tomatoes and zesty Italian dressing gives this dish such a vibrant flavor, it will leave you begging for more! 

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Celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day

I hope you're all enjoying a nice, long holiday weekend, and in honor of Martin Luther King Day, I thought I'd post his famous "Dream" speech, on the rare chance some of you have not seen it. If you haven't, you must; and if you have, watch it again. It never fails to inspire. Enjoy!

Top 10 All Time Favorite Fries and Dipping Sauces

You have to know what a 'burger freak' I am by now.  We have created tons of gourmet burger recipes and devoured every last one.  I know I have raved about my favorite burger places and gone on and on about the different burgers.

What I may not have told you is
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Beer Bacon Mac and Cheese

Beer, Bacon, and Cheese are pretty much my culinary trifecta!  With that said; Beer Bacon Mac and Cheese is the ultimate comfort food.  This restaurant quality recipe goes from prep to plate in just 25 minutes and will certainly make the Mac and Cheese Hall of Fame.  I dare you to try and eat just one bowl.

This super cheesy mac and cheese starts with thick cut bacon cooked in a skillet and a magical cheese sauce is created out of the bacon drippings.  Your favorite beer is cooked right into the mixture and a mixture of smoky spices are added in.  The cooked beer imparts a very distinctive taste that you can not get with any other ingredient.  These flavors result in a restaurant quality mac and cheese unlike anything that you have had before.  It's ready in less than half an hour.

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Sweet Blueberry Banana Milk Shake / Smoothie

Sweet Blueberry Banana Milk Shake / Smoothie - Packed with antioxidants and immune system boosters and only 3 grams of fat per serving, this is a very healthy milk shake!

I am so excited to share an amazing milk shake with you, one that is delicious enough for breakfast, snack or dessert.  We all loved it and Munchkin devoured hers.
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Crispy Honey Sriracha Chicken Wings – Ladies and Gentlemen, We Have a Winner

Every year about this time, I get a bunch of emails asking which of our previously posted oven-fried chicken wing methods is the best. I never know how to respond, since I think they’re all pretty close, but now I finally have a definitive answer…this one!

Perfect Peach Cobbler Dump Cake

Perfect Peach Cobbler Dump Cake is a very easy recipe made in one bowl, poured into a pan and canned peaches are poured over top.  It doesn't get much easier than that.  Well my four year old did most of the work and that is a simple cake.  

It seems I just missed peach season this year and I have been craving peaches like crazy.  I love my peaches with cinnamon and nutmeg and topped with a cobbler of some sort.  Yes, they are also scrumptious in a smoothie, grilled, with whiskey, and of course fresh.  But right now all I can think of is cake.  Peaches and cake.  Shocking huh?

Well if you know much about me, cake is my weakness.  Crumb cake, cupcake, pancake, layer cake, sheet cake, cake balls...  OK, before I start sounding like Bubba Gump let's move on.  If you care to see into the inspiration behind my cake obsession check out our Cake Cake Cake Pinterest board.

A reader mentioned their favorite cobbler yesterday on our Facebook page and I got to thinking.  In Florida, which is mostly southern whether y'all like it or not, we enjoyed many southern traditions.  Cooking whole animals in a fire pit, drinking out of mason jars, muddin', 4 wheelin', and of  course any reason to throw a get together.  Would it surprise you to learn that I used to drive a big ol' pick up truck?

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Next Up: Honey Sriracha Buffalo Wings

Why is there a video of our street being torn up on a tease post for Buffalo chicken wings? Because until this stops, which I assume isn't going to be until much later today, I can't finish the voice-over. The level of noise you hear in this clip is after going through very thick, double-pane windows. The good news is, the wings came out amazingly well, and the video should be up later tonight, or early tomorrow. Stay tuned!

Best Ever Chicken Tortilla Soup in Just 30 Minutes

The Best Ever Chicken Tortilla Soup is bursting with flavor and fully loaded with chunky tomatoes, peppers, chicken and smokey flavors. This recipe has very little prep work and it's ready in 30 minutes! Seriously.

Living in Arizona for 15 years I have developed a deep love for southwestern flavors.  When it comes to soup I don't think there is a soup more suited to the southwest than Chicken Tortilla Soup.  Classic ingredients of this Mexican inspired soup are some of my favorites.

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Going Butternuts

I’m not sure when National Butternut Squash Day is, or if that’s even a thing, but if it is, I bet it’s right around this time of year. Things like sweet corn and vine-ripened tomatoes are now a distant memory (except in bad restaurants where they just serve that stuff all year anyway), but thankfully we have this delicious and nutritious winter alternative to tide us over.

Cheesy Bacon Olive Poppers

Cheesy Bacon Olive Poppers are a taste of heaven. The easiest 4 ingredient game day appetizer. Crisp smoky bacon envelops the soft and tender dough. When you bite into it, you are met with an ooey gooey river of creamy Colby-Jack cheese and then at long last the saltiness and mild bitterness of the olive come through.  It all comes together to create an outrageous flavor sensation!

Super Bowl is just around the corner. Game day brings fond memories of my childhood.  Memories from years ago come flooding back. I can remember (like it was yesterday) couches and chairs filled with relatives. TV trays and coffee tables piled with drinks and snacks and a huge spread of appetizers. The women mostly gathered in the kitchen chatting about this and that and every so often you would hear cheering or shouting in those familiar Brooklyn-Italian accents coming from the living room.

I would peek my head around the corner to catch
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Pasta con le Sarde – Small Fish, Big Flavor, Long Shelf-Life

I’m no survivalist, but like any responsible chef I like to have a few cans of sardines stocked away, just in case. If times ever get tough, I could survive for hours, maybe days on them; but since things are going pretty well, I decided to dust off a can, and show you my version of Sicily’s famous, pasta con le sarde.

Next Up: Pasta con le Sarde

Copycat Hooters Fried Pickles

Most popular in the South, fried pickles are perfectly crunchy with just the right amount of tanginess. Made famous by Hooters restaurant, now you can enjoy your favorite fried pickles at home with our simple copycat recipe ready in just 30 minutes!

I mean look at that crisp coating.  Who could resist that?

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Fully Loaded Cheesy Baked Potato Soup

Ultimate Baked Potato Soup is now fully loaded and ready in just 20 minutes!  All the flavors of your favorite loaded baked potato come together in your new favorite soup recipe.  Chunks of baked potato in a rich cheese soup are garnished with cheddar cheese, bacon crumbles and chives.

Perfect make ahead or make with left over baked potaotes.

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One Skillet Meal: 20 Minute Cheese Lovers Mac and Cheese with Broccoli

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Bluetons (Blue Cheese Croutons) – Trademark Pending

As promised, here are the blue cheese croutons you saw floating on top of the roasted apple and parsnip soup we posted yesterday. They were just perfect together, and as I ate my soup, dozens of other, “perfect togethers,” easily came to mind.

Jack Daniel's Smoky Bacon Mac and Cheese

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Bacon Double Cheeseburger Stuffed Meatloaf

A meatloaf bursting with steak flavors is just about enough to make my mouth water, but stuffing it with cheese and covering it in the delicious brown sugar ketchup glaze and layered thick cut bacon put this recipe over the top.

We are burger lovers through and through.  You really can't go wrong with a classic bacon double cheeseburger.  We eat a lot of burgers. A lot.  But sometimes I can not fathom the idea of another traditional burger even though I am craving the flavors.  So, I have started creating recipes with these favorite flavors built it.

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Roasted Apple and Parsnip Soup – A Creamy Lesson in Seasoning

Besides being a delicious and comforting winter meal, this roasted apple and parsnip soup is great for honing your seasoning skills. With its mild, earthy, slightly sweet, gently aromatic flavor, it’s the perfect vehicle for tasting the effects of salt on food.

The Best Super Bowl Recipes Ever - A Round Up of 40+ Recipes

The best Super Bowl recipes ever are now at your finger tips!  Bite size finger food, burgers and sandwiches, dips and salsas and sweet treats all come together to create the perfect GAME DAY spread.

I have to admit, I am not a big TV sports fan.  Don't get me wrong, I love a good game in the ball park!  Baseball, football, volleyball.  But, wat ching sports on TV has never done anything for me. That is EXCEPT for the Super Bowl.  I love to watch that game and of course have a really fun party.

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Cauliflower!!!!!

When was the last time you were really excited about cauliflower in a recipe? Never? That is correct. We would have also accepted, “Are you kidding?” and, “What?” However, my friend Carl Hanson put together a great collection called, “Undercover Cauliflower…Dressed Up In 10 Delicious Disguises,” which may change all that.

Skinny Shake

Detox with Skinny Shakes!  A tasty smoothie that will knock your socks off.

Just about a year ago I came across a Dr. Oz show talking about a 7-Day Crash Diet that really piqued my interest.  Dr Joel Furhman was his guest.  He discussed many ways to kick start fat burning in your body, and who doesn't want that?! One of my favorite parts of the plan was the Skinny Shake.

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