Bacon & Mushroom Breakfast Casserole

When I saw this recipe on Pinterest, and I realized all the ingredients were right there in my fridge, well I had to give it a try.  I did some minor modifications which are listed in parentheses with the recipe.  Credit for the recipe goes to Linda's Low Carb Menus & Recipes.

Ingredients:

4-5 slices bacon, chopped
1 pound mushrooms, sliced
8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese (pepper jack)
8 eggs
3/4 cup heavy cream (half & half)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon celery salt
Dash pepper
4 green onions, chopped (one shallot sliced thin)

In addition I added one chopped Green Mexi Bell Pepper

In a large skillet, fry the bacon until crisp, reserving about 2 tablespoons of the drippings. Remove the bacon from the pan and sauté the mushrooms in the reserved bacon grease until tender and the liquid has evaporated. Season with a little salt and pepper. Spread the cheese in a greased 11.75x7.5" baking dish. Or a baking dish lined with non-stick aluminum foil.  Top with the mushrooms, then the bacon and green onions (mexi bell pepper) (shallot).

 In a medium bowl, beat the eggs, cream (half & half), salt, celery salt and a dash of pepper. Pour evenly over everything.

 Bake at 350º 35-40 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. 

Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Makes 6-8 servings 

Enjoy friends!

Jalapeno Poppers

The pepper plants this season are going crazy.  After roasting a boat load of Anaheim peppers this afternoon, I had some hot coals left on the weber grill, so I picked jalapeno peppers and, well, the rest is here....

There are a b-jillion recipes out there for poppers, but this is the one we like and it's super simple!  Not to mention yummy!

Take the jalapeno peppers, slice them in half, scrape out all the veins and seeds.

Next smear in some cream cheese -- I used the lower fat Neufchatel -- but really???

Now add a small cube of your favorite cheddar, or what ever hard cheese you like.

This little bundle is wrapped in a thin slice of bacon -- the thinner the better, so it cooks crispy.

I used a foil lined baking pan.

Onto the grill it goes!

The hot coals along with the aluminum foil liner will bake the poppers and the bacon will be crispy!

My bacon kinda slid off the gooey cheese, but what the heck?  Yummy yummy!

These were gone in no time!  Just a quick snack for the afternoon.

Enjoy Friends!

Roast Chicken with Smoky Bacon Biscuit Dressing

I purchased some free range chickens from a local farm.  These chickens are super delicious.  The family has been in the business for over 20 years, and they know their stuff!

Along with the chicken I made this wonderful dressing--recipe from Williams and Sonoma--bacon and biscuits in a dressing?  How can this be wrong?

Start by getting the chicken ready to roast.  I brined the bird in a salt and honey brine overnnight, drained, rinsed, then dried the chicken skin.  Stuff the cavity with lemon and a rosemary sprig.

Tie the legs together with kitchen string.

Rub the chicken with olive oil, then sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.  

Place the chicken on a roasting rack in a large foil roaster.

Roast in a 350 degree oven for about 2 hours,

or until the juices run clear.

Get the ingredients ready for the dressing:

Biscuits, bacon, mushrooms, onion, celery, seasonings, and chicken broth.
(That half & half was for another recipe, oooops)

Bake the biscuits while the chicken is roasting. 

Cut the biscuits into cubes.

Saute mushrooms, onion, and celery until tender.

Add seasonings--salt, pepper, sage, and poultry seasoning.

Add the biscuit cubes and mix it all up.
Add chicken broth to moisten the mixture to your liking.

Butter a baking dish, pour the dressing in and cover with foil.

This will bake for 30 minutes in the oven with the chicken.

Uncover and bake for another 10 minutes so the top gets kind of crispy.

Close up of the finished chicken and dressing.
Drying the chicken skin before rubbing on the oil,
makes a beautiful golden brown roast chicken!

Here's the entire Williams and Sonoma recipe for the dressing:
This recipe serves 10

Twelve 4-inch biscuits cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
1 lb. smoky bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 yellow onions, diced
5 celery stalks, diced
8 oz. white button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1/4 cup fresh flat leaf parsley
2 Tbl. chopped fresh sage
2 Tbl. chopped fresh thyme
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
5 cups chicken broth

Enjoy friends!