Sweet and Spicy Wings

Pork Rind, Nutella & Sriracha Chicken Wings

*This recipe was developed out of a 3 ingredient challenge where I had to create a dish using Pork Rinds, Chicken Wings and Nutella.  Here you go!

Ingredients:

12 large chicken wings

2 cup crushed pork rinds

½ cup balsamic vinegar

½ cup Nutella

4 Tbs Sriracha or 6 Tbs of hot sauce

1 Tbs garlic powder

1 Tbs red pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Crush pork rinds and set aside (tip: pulse in food processor).

2. In separate bowl, pat wings dry with paper towel.  Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

3. Over low heat, melt Nutella and remove from heat.  Add remaining ingredients and thoroughly mix.

4.  Add sauce and thoroughly glaze wings.

5.  Dredge wings in pork rind crumbs and place on parchment covered cookie sheet.

6. Place in 400 degree oven for approximately 24-30 minutes.

7.  Sprinkly red pepper flakes evenly over wings and serve with your favorite dipping sauce or eat as is!

* I like a lot of kick on my wings so I pour more Sriracha or hot sauce over the finished wings.  It make for an even better presentation as well!

*** You can find Sriracha in almost any grocery store in the ethnic/asian section.  It’s inexpensive and really good on so many things!

The Art of the Gift

The art of the homemade gift is fading. I remember as a kid making many of the gifts I gave.  In fact, my first tween girlfriend, Julie Lowry,  was the recipient of my basement made agate necklace.  With the help of my crafty neighbor Christopher’s rock tumbler, I fashioned a large polished stone from the corn field onto a cheap silver chain and presented it to her at the Skatin’ Place on a wintery Saturday night in 1976. She loved it, and gave me my first kiss stained with orange Bonnie Bell Lip Smacker.   It makes me sad that the tradition of making home spun gifts is dying.  Yet, I remain hopeful! If you think about it, the art of cooking and baking is one of the last vestiges of the self-made offering.

What I love about my cupcake in a jar, is it that it makes the cupcake more presentational and glam.  Simply take your favorite cake batter (mine is hands down my Chocolate Zucchini Yogurt cake) and fill your mason jar a little over ½, set on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 until complete (about 20-25 minutes). You don’t need a water bath for this I promise.  Allow the cupcakes to fully cool.  Decorate with frosting, candies, sprinkles or shaved chocolate…whatever floats your boat.  Attach your lid and tie a string around the top with an eating utensil and BAM!  You have a killer gift made with heart.  When I serve this for dessert, everyone makes happy sounds when presented with this on the table.  It’s a childhood smile in a jar!

The Blackberry Guzzler is just in time for summer!

Last year in Nashville I did a gig for Tim McGraw and Faith Hill’s new fragrance line from Coty called Soul2Soul which has “blackberry notes”  in it.  That’s perfume talk for “what’s in the dang perfume” (I didn’t know this at all!)  LMAO!   So, along with singing and cooking, I was asked to create a drink with blackberries in it.  I set out like a mad scientist and created my Blackberry Guzzler.

This is a tangy and sweet summer drink that looks like a million and tastes like a trillion.  Serve it in mason jars with a garnish of lemon, lime and a few fresh blackberries.  I served them on an old slate backboard and just wrote the name by the drinks.  Cool huh?  Recipe below.

Blackberry Guzzler

Ingredients:

1 oz vodka

1 oz rum

1/2 once blackberry simple syrup (I use Monin)

splash of lemonade

soda splash

garnish with lemon, lime and blackberries

Instructions:

Serve in 8 oz jar/glass, mix all ingredients over ice and garnish.