More Southern Fare

Nashville weekend means a visit with super-host cousins Becky and Mike, with good food always. Lots of summer goodness comes straight from the garden, like sliced tomatoes,  but these two recipes were decadent standouts. Can't write too much of a review..... Time to get back in the pool and have some white sangria delivered by Poolboy(aka Hubby). But suffice it to say these recipes were perfect for a lazy, sunny, calorie laden, relaxing weekend. Sure, we'll be eating salad for the next week, but it was SO. WORTH.IT.


APPLE DUMPLINGS
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled , cored and sliced into 8 pieces( can also use peaches)
2 cans crescent rolls
2 sticks butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 t. Cinnamon
1 12 oz. Mountain Dew soft drink

Wrap each apple slice with crescent roll. Place in 9 x 13 baking dish. Melt butter and add sugar and cinnamon. Pour butter mixture over dumplings. Just before baking,pour can of soda over dumplings. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Serves 16. Wonderful served with ice cream.

SUPER WHITE SANGRIA
1 (750 ml) bottle dry white wine such as chardonnay
1 6 oz. can frozen lemonade
1/2 cup light rum
1/2 cup triple sec or orange flavored liquor
1 15.25 oz pineapple tidbits in natural juices
1 large apple
1 16 oz. bottle or two cups lemon lime soda
Strawberries, orange slices for garnish

In a one gallon pitcher, put in wine,lemonade, rum, triple sec, and pineapple with juices.
Core and dice apple, and put in pitcher. Stir well and refrigerate , chilling two hours. Just before serving, add soda and garnishes.

Bourbon Chocolate Cake

I'm not sure if I have ever made a cake totally 'from scratch' , but it turns out it is not too hard, just a little more time consuming.   This was part of the bourbon themed Bunko dinner for my girlfriends.  It was Dana's birthday and close to someone else's, so I wanted to do something special for dessert.  This cake was decadently awesome. Most folks again said they weren't really bourbon drinkers, but loved this combo of bourbon and chocolate. The next day, hubby and I kept taking "just a sliver" of the leftover cake until it was almost all gone. I will definitely make this again! (Adapted from The All New Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook)

DECADENT BOURBON CHOCOLATE CAKE
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 (16 ounce) package light brown sugar
3 large eggs
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1 cup hot water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup bourbon ( I used Woodford Reserve)
Bourbon Buttercream Icing (recipe below)
2 3/4 cups chopped pecans, toasted
1 (4 ounce) semisweet chocolate bar, shaved or chopped (I used Ghiradelli's)

Melt chocolate chips in microwave on high, 30 seconds at a time, until melted.  Stir in between each 30 seconds of heating. When melted, stir until smooth.

Beat butter and sugar at medium speed wth an electric mixer, about 5 minutes or until well blended. Add eggs one at a time. Add melted chocolate, beating just until blended. 

In another bowl, sift together flour, soda,salt. Gradually add to chocolate batter, alternating with spoonfuls of the sour cream. Beat at slow speed just until blended.  Gradually, add hot water in a slow steady stream, still at slow speed.  Stir in vanilla and bourbon. 

Put into 3 greased and floured 9 inch cakepans. Bake at 350 degrees for 23 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cook in pans on wire rack 10 minutes then remove cakes to cool completely on a wire rack.

Apply bourbon buttercream frosting between layers and on outside.  Top with  half of the toasted pecans and chocolate shavings. Press rest of pecans onto sides of cake.  Keep in refrigerator until just ready to serve.

Bourbon Buttercream Icing
1 cup butter softened
2 ( 16 ounce) packages of powdered sugar
2 to 3 tablespoons milk
1/3 cup bourbon(I used Woodford Reserve)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Use a low speed to add powdered sugar a small amount at a time alternating wth milk and bourbon. Stir in vanilla. Makes about 5 cups.

The Recipes!

Here are the recipes for the Bunko girls night out. I was bragging about this dinner so much when I got together with my college Pi Phi girlfriends, they asked me for the recipes, so I figured I had to "put up or shut up". My friend Cindy is a caterer, so maybe this will turn up on an event menu sometime!  Enjoy..... and tell me what you think in the comment section if you end up cooking any of the items.

BOURBON SLUSH COCKTAIL - These were a fun way to kick off the festivities and even non-bourbon drinkers enjoyed the cool, citrus-y drink. Having the tea along with the bourbon seems to make this a quintessential Southern drink.  You might want to make these the day before or early enough to allow them 6 hours in the freezer. They were not "slushy" enough after the two hours recommended in the recipe. They shouldn't freeze solid because of the alcohol in the mixture. (Adapted from The All New Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook)

4 regular size tea bags
2 cups boiling water
2 cups sugar
7 cups water
1 12-ounce can Frozen Lemonade Concentrate
1 12-ounce can Frozen Limeade Concentrate
1 12-ounce can Frozen Orange Concentrate
2 to 2 1/2 cups bourbon , to taste (it's OK if it is a little strong because of the added soda when serving)
Ginger Ale or Lemon Lime soft drink

Put tea bags into the boiling water and steep 10 minutes, discarding tea bags when done.
Combine tea, sugar, 7 cups water, and juice concentrates in a large pot and stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves.  Remove from heat, stir in bourbon and cool.   Freeze in zip-top freezer bags or shallow plastic containers.  If frozen solid, allow to sit at room temperature 30 minutes and scrape with a fork. 

To serve,  place 1/2 cup slush into cocktail glass and top with splash of ginger ale or lemon lime soda.

STEAK BITES APPETIZER - takes a while to prep and assemble, but worth it. The sweet of the caramelized onions were a good contrast to the blue cheese mixture. And with the tomato on top, they are attractive too. Although it kind of hurt my soul to pour out a cup of Kentucky bourbon after using it as marinade, it did give the meat an awesome flavor.( Adapted from The Woodford Reserve Culinary Cocktail Tour)

1 cup bourbon ( I used Woodford Reserve)
2 pounds fillet Mignon
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 large white onion, sliced
1 baguette French bread, cut in to 1/4 to 1/2 inch slices
1/2 cup blue cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup sour cream
1 bunch flat leaf parsley, trimmed
3/4 cup grape tomatoes, cut into halves or quarters

Pour the bourbon over the fillets in a shallow dish, turning to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour, turning occasionally. Drain, discarding the marinade, then season with salt and pepper.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat the olive oil in a large ovenproof saute pan. Add the fillet to the hot oil and sear for 1 minute per side.  Roast for 15 minutes or until a meat thermometer registers 145 degrees for medium rare.  Let rest for 15 minutes. Cut the fillet lengthwise into halves, and then cut each half into 18 thin slices. 

Heat the butter in a large saute pan over medium-low heat. Add the onions and cook for 30 minutes or until the onions are light brown and tender, stirring occasionally.

Preheat the broiler. Brush baguette slices lightly with olive oil and arrange on a baking sheet. Broil until brown on both sides. 

Mix cheese and sour cream in a bowl ( you can do this step earlier and refrigerate so the flavors can blend. 
Assemble just before serving.  Put one fillet on each toasted bread slice. Add a layer of onion and add a spoonful of the cheese mixture. Add a tomato half, and garnish with parsley.

WOODFORD STEAK SALAD - This dish was PERFECT for a supper on a hot summer night!  It was such a pretty presentation, my girlfriends even took pictures! Serves 6, but you can easily add more meat and vegetables to serve more. I used fresh basil from my garden and the smell in the kitchen was awesome. To save time you can also use prepared balsamic vinaigrette and add the mustard and spices (Adapted from The Woodford Reserve Culinary Cocktail Tour)

THE STEAK
2 Tablespoons Woodford Reserve Bourbon
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons ketchup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 pounds flat-iron steak, flank steak, or top sirloin

Mix the bourbon, oil and other ingredients to create the marinade.  Put the steak in a shallow dish and cover with marinade. Marinate in refrigerator at least 45 minutes, turning occasionally. Cook steak on grill or in broiler until medium-rare.  Allow to cool before slicing, then cut into bite-size strips.

THE VEGETABLES
6-8 new potatoes or Redskin Potatoes
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut into halves
2 medium carrots, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 small zucchini, julienned
1/3 cup chopped scallions or green onions
1/3 cup thin red bell pepper strips
1/2 cup broccoli florets

Cook the potatoes in lightly salted water until tender. Drain, cool, and cut into quarters. Combine with tomatoes, broccoli, peppers, scallions, zucchini, carrots and any other vegetable you would like to add. Keep vegetables cold, then combine with the slightly warm potatoes just before adding the vinaigrette. You can cut the vegetables up ahead of time to speed preparation/assembly.

BASIL VINAIGRETTE
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons finely chopped basil
2 tablespoons finely chopped Italian parsley
1/8 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Whisk the ingredients together. Add the vinaigrette to the potatoes and vegetables and toss to coat.  Serve on large platter and arrange steak slices on top. 


The fabulous dessert, Bourbon Chocolate Cake with Bourbon Buttercream Icing,  will be saved for the next post.