Chili Nacho's

Aunt Millie’s Silly Chili Nachos

2 green/red peppers, chopped

8 cooked meatballs, diced or sliced

1 medium onion, chopped

1 ½ cups red kidney beans, drained (not rinsed)

1 ½ cups tomato sauce

1 red Chile pepper, finely chopped

1 tsp chili powder

½ tsp cumin

6.5 oz tortilla chips

1 ½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

¼ cup parmesan cheese

8-10 black olives

3 small Chile peppers, sliced

Sour cream

Salsa

Preheat oven to 450°.

In medium skillet, sauté onions and peppers for five minutes.  Stir in meatballs, kidney beans, tomato sauce, and spices and cook just until heated. 

Spread tortilla chips on cookies.  Spoon chili over top and sprinkle with cheeses; top with olives and Chile peppers.  Bake 450° for 10-12 minutes, just until cheese starts to bubble and edges of chips start to brown.  Serve with sour cream and salsa on the side.

© Crackerberries 2012

White Pizza

Chicken Chile Pepper White Pizza

Pizza Dough

6 oz cream cheese

1 Tbsp sour cream

1 tsp Italian seasoning

½ tsp garlic salt

1 cup basil seasoned sundried tomatoes

1-1½ cups chopped cooked chicken

½ cup sliced jalapeno and Chile peppers

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven 400°

Soak sundried tomatoes in 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil.

Combine cream cheese, sour cream, Italian seasoning and garlic salt in mixing bowl and blend until smooth. 

Spread cream cheese mixture over pizza dough.  Finely chop tomatoes and sprinkle over cheese.  Cover with chicken and peppers, and top with mozzarella cheese.

Bake 400° 20-32 minutes.

© Crackerberries 2012

Chile Pepper Pear Preserves

Hot Chile Pepper Pear Preserves

Make this using the crunchy pears that are like apples.

Ingredients:

Pears

Sugar

Hot Chile Peppers

Gran Gala Liqueur

10 cups peeled, cored, coarsely chopped hard pears

1¼ cup water

Bring to boil with cover on, reduce heat and cook 20-30 minutes, stirring often to soften pears.  Drain excess water.

*1 cup roasted hot Chile peppers, de-seeded and cored and finely chopped.

7 cups sugar

Bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer stirring often 1½ - 2 hours to further soften pears.  Return heat to medium-high and cook stirring often 45 minutes longer or until it reaches the **gel stage (220°). 

Remove from heat and stir in ¼ cup Gran Gala Liqueur, continue to stir 2-3 minutes longer to prevent the fruit from floating to the top; spoon into hot sterilized jars and process in boiling water bath 10 minutes. 

Yield 5 pints.

• To roast peppers, preheat oven to 450°.  Spread peppers on cookie sheet; roast 4-5 minutes until skins blister.  Place in zip lock bag to sweat in their skins for 10-15 minutes.  Once this is done it is easy to slide the tip of a spoon or butter knife in and slip out the seeds and white core.  WEAR GLOVES WHEN WORKING WITH HOT PEPPERS.

• The gel stage is reached at 220°.  Another way to test the gel stage is to place a small plate in the freezer.  Towards the end of cooking time, place a spoonful of the hot mixture on the plate, and return it to the freezer for two minutes.  Check to see if the mixture has gelled.

© Crackerberries 2012

Hot Pepper Sausage Corn Cakes

Hot Pepper-Sausage Corn Cakes w/Honey Lemon Butter

These are great for any meal of the day... even just a snack.

¾ cups Jimmy Dean hot breakfast sausage, cooked; reserving grease
1 cup self-rising buttermilk corn meal

½ cup whole wheat flour

2 Tbsp sugar

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp fresh ground pepper

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

1 ¹/₃ cups buttermilk (1½ tbsp lemon juice and top off with whole milk)

3 medium eggs, slightly beaten

1 medium onion, diced

2 Chile or jalapeno peppers, finely chopped

1½ cups frozen corn

Cook sausage in cast iron skillet, crumble as it cooks.  Remove sausage; set aside to cool.  Cook onion, peppers and corn in reserved sausage grease until lightly browned (5-7 minutes).  Remove from skillet and cool.

In medium bowl combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, pepper, baking soda, baking powder and cayenne pepper and mix well. 

Combine eggs and buttermilk and pour over dry ingredients.  Stir just to combine and moisten.    Fold in cooled sausage, corn, onions and peppers. 

Grease large skillet and pour ¼ cup portions onto skillet or grill.  Cook cakes until golden brown on edges (2-3 minutes), flip and cook an additional 1-2 minutes.  Serve warm drizzled with honey lemon butter.

Honey Lemon Butter:

½ cup butter

½ cup honey

1½ lemon zest

Melt butter in small pan, whisk in honey and lemon zest; spoon over corncakes.  Store leftovers in fridge and re-heat in microwave.

© Crackerberries 2012

Cherry Tomatoes & Hot Peppers

When in Rome …

Do you have an over abundance of those leftover garden vegetables?  Believe me, as a native Mainer I never thought I’d see the day when I’d be deep-frying cherry tomatoes, but… as they say, in the South, “it ain’t food unless it’s fried”.  These fry up so tasty and who would have thought anything fried could be good for you? 

1-2 dozen cherry tomatoes

1-2 dozen hot peppers (I used jalapeño and Chile peppers)

1 cup self-rising buttermilk corn meal

½ cup all purpose flour

1 egg

1¼ cup beer

1 tsp Creole seasoning

Oil for deep frying

Wash and dry veggies and let stand at room temperature before cooking.

Combine corn meal, flour and Creole seasoning and mix well.  Beat egg slightly and add to beer, pour over corn meal/flour and mix well. 

Dip veggies in batter to coat.  Be sure to cover all of the tomato before dropping into the oil or they will pop.

Cook in batches a few at a time.  Peppers for two minutes or so and one minute for the tomatoes.  Cool at least 10-15 minutes before eating tomatoes because they are very hot.  Serve with your favorite dipping dressings.  Honey mustard and Ranch works really well.

© Crackerberries 2012

Crackerberries Tomato Chili Pepper Pie

Preheat oven 350º

Crust:

1 cup all purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup self-rising corn meal

2/3 cup shortening

¼ cup ice water

Combine flours together and mix well.  Cut in shortening and mix in water.  Press into 10x10 inch baking dish.  Prick bottom and sides of crust all over.  Bake 10-12 minutes or until slightly puffy.

Filling:

6-8 good size tomatoes, sliced (I used black krim and beef steak)

¼ cup sliced chili peppers

1 cup Duke’s mayonnaise

2¼ cups shredded cheddar cheese

 

Sprinkle ½ cup shredded cheddar on the bottom of the crust.  Mix 1½ cups cheese, mayonnaise and peppers together until well combined.  Layer tomatoes, then mayonnaise mixture two times; sprinkle remaining cheddar cheese over top and add fresh ground pepper.  Bake 350º for 40 minutes.  Let cool 15 minutes before serving.

© Crackerberries 2012