My Simple Patty Melt

When you order a classic Patty Melt,  you usually get a burger on rye bread smothered with onions and cheese.  But what if you don't like Rye bread and what if you're not in the mood for all those onions?   To me a Patty melt is simply a cheeseburger fried up like a grilled cheese sandwich.  And so I bring you my very own classic Patty Melt....for those who like the simple things in life.


My Simple Patty Melt

4 tablespoons of butter, softened

¼  pound ground chuck

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 dash Worcestershire Sauce

2 slices Provolone Cheese

2 slices of good cheddar

2 slices of your favorite bread

In a medium bowl, mix together the ground beef, salt & pepper, and Worcestershire. Form into a patty. Fry the patty on both sides until done. Remove from skillet and wipe out skillet and return to burner.

Set you heat to medium and melt two tablespoons of butter. Butter one side of your bread and lay it buttered side down in the skillet or on a griddle. Next add your 2 slices of cheese, the hamburger patty, and the other two slices of cheese.  Butter the side of the second slice of bread and lay it on top with the butter side facing up.

Grill the sandwich over medium heat until golden brown and the cheese has melted.  Slice in half and serve immediately!

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Monster Cookies

It's an Oatmeal cookie, chocolate chip cookie and peanut butter cookie all wrapped into one delicious chewy scrumptious treat!  This is my favorite cookie!  Especially warm, just out of the oven, with a cold glass of milk! Make them as large as you want....I make mine smaller because I like them thick and chewy. I use a tablespoon to scoop my cookie dough.  Notice these have no flour in the ingredients so you don't want to over bake them.  Take them out a little early and they will continue to bake while in the pan cooling.

Monster Cookies

1¼ cups chunky peanut butter

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 cup granulated white sugar

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

3 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

4 cups quick cooking, 1-minute oats

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup M&M's

½ cup caramel bits

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Using a hand mixer mix  together the peanut butter, brown sugar, white sugar, and butter until creamy.  Mix in eggs, vanilla extract, and oats. Next, stir in baking soda, salt, oatmeal, chocolate chips, M&M's, and caramel bits until blended.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto lined baking sheet. Flatten slightly with a fork dipped in cold water. Skip this step if you like a thicker, chewier cookie.  Press a few extra M&M's into the top of the cookies if you’d like.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Do not over bake. Let stand for about 3 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool.  Cookies will continue to bake while cooling in  the pan so be careful not to over bake in the oven. Place cookies on a  cooling rack to finish cooling.  Enjoy!

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Cheesy Camp Fire Potatoes

I call these my camp fire potatoes.  Not because I camp. I am not a camper.  My idea of camping would be at a 5 star hotel preferable in the penthouse suite overlooking the ocean.  But if I was a camper and I wanted the perfect side dish, I would serve this with whatever I was cooking up over the camp fire.  

I guess you could call cooking out on the grill the closest I come to camping. And when I’m making chicken, steak, fish or any other dish, this is my favorite side dish to serve.  It takes only a few minutes to make these when you use the pre-packaged little microwavable potatoes.

Cheesy Camp Fire Potatoes

1 package of microwave ready potatoes*

5 slices of bacon, cooked and diced

1 cup cheddar cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

Make sure your potatoes are all roughly the same size whether you are using pre-packaged microwavable or fresh baby potatoes from the produce section. 

Place potatoes on a microwave-safe bowl or plate and cook on high for 3-4 minutes until tender when you test them with a fork or knife.

Preheat the grill or if using the oven preheat it to 350 degrees.  Lay out 3 sheets of heavy duty aluminum foil to make your packet. Spray the foil with non-stick cooking spray.

Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle, slice a single layer on to the foil.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and top with cheese and bacon.  

Repeat layers two more times until all potatoes, cheese and bacon are used. Fold up the sides of the foil and pinch the top closed. Place on grill, cover and cook for 10-20 minutes, until potatoes are tender and the cheese has melted. Open foil and serve!

NOTE:  There are different varieties and brands of microwavable potatoes. Or you can buy baby potatoes and microwave them but make sure they are all about the same size.

*These potatoes can also be baked in the oven for roughly the same amount of time at 350-400 degrees.

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Fried Chicken with Pecan Honey Glaze

Do you ever get food cravings?  I mean real cravings for that certain food that you just can't stop until you drop everything you're doing and go make it.  That's what this is....your ultimate food craving.  I think about this chicken a lot. I dream about this chicken.  I mean there's something about crunch and sweet that sets off cravings like nothing else.  Make it once and you'll know what I mean.

Fried Chicken with Pecan Honey Glaze

1 quart buttermilk (4 cups)
1 frying chicken (3-4 lbs.), cut up into 8 pieces

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tablespoons garlic powder
1/2 tablespoons onion powder
11/2 tablespoons sweet paprika
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
Vegetable oil or shortening

Rinse the chicken and pat completely dry with paper towels.

Pour 1/2 the buttermilk (2 cups) into a shallow bowl. Add the chicken and turn to coat well. Then cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Set up your dredging station with three shallow bowls. Place the remaining 2 cups of buttermilk in one bowl. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, garlic and onion powders, paprika and cayenne and divide the mixture into the other two shallow bowls. Season both bowls generously with salt and pepper.

Remove the chicken from the refrigerator and drain off buttermilk.  Then pat it dry with paper towels. Dredge the pieces a few at a time in the flour mixture and then shake off excess. Then dip each piece of chicken into the buttermilk and again shake off the excess buttermilk. Finally, dredge the chicken a third time into the second shallow dish of flour and shake off excess. Set chicken pieces on rack until ready oil is hot enough to fry.

Add about 3 inches of cooking oil to a heavy skillet…add no more than half way up the sides. Fry the chicken over medium high heat working in batches of 3-4 pieces at a time. Using tongs, turn the chicken pieces in hot oil for about 20 minutes or until golden brown and cooked all the way through. I like to cover my chicken half way through this cooking process.

Remove chicken from the oil with tongs and move to a rack lined with a paper towel to drain; repeat to cook the remaining pieces.

Pecan-Honey Glaze

1 cup (2 sticks) butter
3/4 cup honey
1 cup coarsely finely chopped pecans

To make the glaze, melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Whisk in the honey until well blended. Bring to a simmer and add the pecans. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Ladle the glaze over the hot fried chicken and serve.

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