Parmesan- Dijon Drumsticks

Drumsticks are so moist and juicy, then add that to the full and robust flavor of this breading... Jessica Pace, you are welcome ANYTIME!!! ;)

3 C fresh white breadcrumbs made from firm white sandwich bread
1 C freshly grated Parmesan cheese (about 3 oz)
6 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
4 tsp onion powder
1 tbsp Hungarian sweet paprika
1 tbsp dried oregano
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 1/2 C butter (3 sticks)
1/2 C plus 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
24 chicken drumsticks

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter 2 large rimmed baking sheets. Combine breadcrumbs, Parmesan, parsley, onion powder, paprika, oregano, salt and pepper in large bowl; stir to combine. Melt butter in small saucepan over medium-low heat. Remove from heat; add all mustard and whisk to blend. Brush drumsticks generously with butter mixture, then roll in breadcrumb mixture, coating drumsticks completely. Arrange drumsticks on prepared baking sheets. Bake drumsticks until golden brown and cooked through, about 1 hour. Serve warm or at room temperature within 2 hours.

Healthy Open Face Chili Dogs

Healthy and Chili in the same title? Oh, yeah! After I had my daughter, I went on a healthy eating kick that lasted until about dessert time. Healthy desserts just aren't for me. I did, however, come upon this tasty recipe that is now one of my favs for BBQ season! The chili is chuck-full of tasty{and healthy} vegetables and these particular veggies have so much flavor, there's not all the unhealthy stuff to bugger it up. Plus, you can double the veggies when you're doing your chopping then freeze half of them so next time it's a simple pull it out and dump it in!

2 tsp canola oil

1 onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tbsp chili powder

1 (15 oz) can of black beans, with liquid

2 tomatoes diced {I used a can of diced tomatoes}

Turkey hot dogs

hot dog buns{we were out so we used a piece of bread to two dogs and it was super good}

cheese

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and bell peppers and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and chili powder. Cook until well blended, about 30 seconds. Add the black beans. Cook until warmed through, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat. Cook until the chili thickens: 10-15 minutes.

Either grill the turkey dogs or cover in water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 4 minutes or until heated through.

Place the dogs onto a bun and top with 1/4 of the chili each and top with cheese. Broil for about 1 minute, until the cheese begins to melt. Serve hot.

Spicy Honey Chicken

Oh, my. This was SOO good. SSOOOOOOOO good! Jayme Welly found this here at OurBestBites.com. Matt came back for seconds and couldn't get over how much they reminded him of his favorite wings from The Outback. He has already requested I make this again. Soon. Jayme isn't a big fan of spicy food, so she cut the spicy ingredients in half and broiled in her oven.

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs(can be done with breasts, but best with thighs.)
2 Tbsp vegetable oil

Rub:
2 tsp granulated garlic
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp coriander
1 tsp kosher salt {Jayme used sea salt}
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder

Glaze:
1/2 C honey
1 tbsp Cider Vinegar

Combine the rub spices in a bowl and mix well.
Use kitchen shears to trim off any excess fat from the chicken. Pat dry. Drizzle oil over the chicken and rub in with your hands to lightly coat all the pieces. Then toss chicken with the spice rub to coat all sides well. Use your hands to get in there! Grill chicken for 3-5 minutes on each side, until cooked through.

While chicken is cooking, warm honey in the microwave so it's not too thick {not too long, as honey can get scalding hot}. Add the vinegar and combine well. Reserve 2 tbsp of the honey glaze for later. Brush the rest onto both sides of the chicken in the final moments of grilling. Drizzle remaining glaze over top when cooking is done.

*** This WILL drip, so don't be surprised if you have burning drippings. Totally worth it!

Buffalo Burgers

Don't worry- they aren't really made of buffalo meat! Eww... That, for some reason, is just what they are called. My mom passed on a recipe she got from her sister who got it from her 7th grade Home Ec teacher! The recipe for a stuffed burger really takes on so many options... The trick is to put what are normally topping ingredients in between two really thin patties, making one monstrous burger. I've included the original recipe and additional possible ingredients for stuffing in a burger. BTW- I've decided to use a different font when I am rambling than I'll use for the actual recipe. I'm worried these recipes are looking longer and harder than they are because I can't shut up... Shutting up now.

2 lbs ground beef {or about 1/3-1/2 lb per person}

8 1/4" thick slices of cheddar cheese

Sweet Pickle relish

Worcestershire sauce

salt and pepper

Make 6 THIN patties from 1 pound of ground beef. Place one slice of cheese, 1 tsp relish, a couple splashes of Worcestershire sauce, and salt and pepper on each. Top with a thin patty made from remaining beef. Pinch edges to seal and shape into smooth, fat patties. Grill or broil until done on both sides and cheese starts to melt out. Serve with you favorite hamburger toppings.

I actually like to add about 1/3 C of oatmeal per pound of beef and sprinkle the salt and pepper and Worcestershire sauce on the beef before I mold it into patties. The oatmeal helps the patties stay together a little better and helps keep the burgers moist. The S&P and sauce keep the flavor a little more evenly delish. The burgers pictured have Monterey Jack cheese and relish as the filling, with some dehydrated onion lightly pressed directly into the inside of a patty.

Other options include, but not limited to:

Avocado slices, sauteed onions or mushrooms, salsa, A-1, bacon {though, I don't know if I would put this INSIDE the burger...}, Teriyaki sauce and pineapple crushed or tidbits, etc...

Matt's Tri-Tip Garlic Dry Rub

Look at this! My hubby is so dang supportive! He found a recipe, altered it {who does that?? ;)}, and wrote it down for me! Kinda... He is the master griller in the family. Seriously, I can't seem to get anything good on the grill. I blame it on the fact that grilling is a very intuitive thing, and I tend to forget when a timer isn't set... Anyway, I'm not generally a straight meat kinda person, but this was REALLY good! Just don't over cook it... So, to the best of his description:

Tri- Tip( about 1 lb per person)
3 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp salt
2 tbsp pepper
1 tbsp parsley flake
{this makes a lot of dry rub so you could save the unused portion for another time}

Preheat a grill on high heat and lightly oil the grate. In a medium bowl, mix all spices then coat both sides of the tri-tip. {Matt actually likes to let it sit on the meat for a couple hours.} Sear both sides on a hot grill then cook for 20-25 minutes or until center is light pink. Slice at an angle. EXCELLENT!

Monterey Chicken

I got this from my sister-in-law, Kristen. Chicken, cheese, bacon, what's not to love?? It's really easy and awesome for grilling on these gorgeous summer evenings. Until it gets too hot... Luckily, it's pretty versatile.

12 chicken tenders or 5-6 chicken breasts; seasoned and fried, baked, or grilled.
1 - 1 1/2 C Barbecue sauce
1 lb bacon, crisped and halved
1 - 1 1/2 C cheddar cheese and Monterey jack cheese, shredded (we opted for sliced Monterey jack)
Tomatoes, chopped
Green onion, chopped {But, obviously not pictured... forgot about these...}

Season the chicken with your favorite seasoning salt or chicken seasoning. Cook chicken according to your preference. Place the cooked chicken in a casserole or 9x13" pan. Pour BBQ sauce all over and top with bacon and cheese. Broil in oven until cheese is melted. Top with tomatoes and onion.

We just left the chicken on the grill and turned the heat down really low before adding the sauce and toppings. We also added sliced pineapple for a little extra zing.