Holy Smoked BBQ!

Nothing says fall like the smell of smoking meat. I came home Sunday for family dinner and the smell was in the air. First day of football ANNNNDDD smoked meat?? Yes please!  So my dad was smoking a few butts (maybe they were shoulders, I'm not really sure) and a rack of ribs for a few hours. I took home a few pieces and threw them in the crockpot with some apple cider vinegar to cook while I was at work. Did my apartment smell amazing or what?!

Smokin' on the grill

Look how it came clean off the bone!

TaDa!

Add one cup of apple cider vinegar. Cook for 10 hours on low in your favorite slow cooker. Remove from crockpot and shred with two forks. Put in a casserole dish or bowl and top with your favorite barbecue sauce. I used a locally made sauce, "Mini Malbons"

**One of Joe's favorite. He ate almost all of his in two seconds!

Orange Crush

A Virginia Beach favorite is the Orange Crush. The best can be found at Waterman's Surfside Grille and Chick's Oyster Bar.  We decided to try to make our own! The trick is using fresh oranges.  

Here's how to make one:

Crushed ice

Juice from one orange

1.5 oz orange vodka

1.5 oz triple sec

top with a splash of Sprite

**Such a great summer drink! Image sipping on this with your best friends just yards from the ocean or river.  Can't get much better than that!

Mexican Casserole

My roommate and I have a slight Costco addiction. The issue here is that the produce must be consumed ASAP before everything spoils.  Trudy purchased about a dozen avocados the other day and we needed to eat them, so I decided to try out this mexican casserole. With a few minor substations I was able to make this a slight bit healthier than the average mexican casserole. 

You will need:

1 lb ground turkey

1 jar of salsa

1 can of refried black beans

1 packet of reduced sodium taco seasoning

1 avocado, sliced

1/2 green pepper, chopped

multigrain tortilla chips, smashed up

1 can of diced tomatoes

spinach leaves, chopped

1 small can of sliced black olives

mexican cheese, shredded

Preheat the oven to 350. In a large frying pan, cook the ground turkey and drain whatever little fat remains. Mix in refried beans, taco seasoning, and salsa.  In an ungreased casserole dish, layer tortilla chips and top with meat mixture. Layer on top of this the green pepper, black olives and half of the tomatoes. Then top with cheese.  Bake for 25 minutes or until cheese is melted. Take out of the oven and top with spinach leaves, more tomatoes, and avocado. Enjoy!!

**We used the left overs the next day to make nachos! Joe said they were the best he's ever had. The secret definitely is mixing the beans, salsa, and taco seasoning. mmmm mmm!!

Quinoa Pizza Bites

I know what you're thinking: "How much quinoa does this chick buy?"  But seriously y'all, it's the best grain ever! I even made PIZZA out of it.  This are so yummy and so simple to make. I replaced beef pepperoni with turkey pepperoni, so it's a little healthier.  This would be great in a lunch box, or even as an appetizer on Italian night. The best part? It's healthy pizza!! Can you believe it??

Here's what you need:

2 cups of cooked quinoa

2 large eggs

1/2 cup of fresh chopped basil

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup of chopped turkey pepperoni

2 tbsp of minced garlic

1 tsp of sea salt

1 tbsp dried oregano

1 tbsp paprika

Preheat oven to 350. Mix together all ingredients.  Scoop into a mini muffin tin, or in my case, silicone muffin tins. I like the silicone ones because they did not stick to the sides. Be sure to really compact the mixture into the muffin tins so it bakes all together and does not fall apart. Bake for 15-20 minutes. I cooked mine for a three extra minutes since my muffin tins were a bit larger. Enjoy!

**Dip these in your favorite pizza sauce! Oh, and I guess you can add chopped onion if you really want. 

Chick Pea Salad

I have had a can of Garbonzo Beans in my pantry forever, and I wanted to put it to use.  I came across this recipe online and thought it looked great!! It has all the veggies that I will actually eat (minus red onions, which were NOT added to my salad). I pretty much will eat anything that contains black olives and feta, mmmmmm.  This was so light and fresh, and healthy!! Check it out.

You will need:

One 15 oz can of chick peas, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup of sliced black olives

One small roma tomato, diced

1/2 cup of cucumber, diced

1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced

Two or three fresh basil leaves, cut into small pieces

1/2 cup of feta cheese

1/2 cup of red onion, diced (IF YOU DARE)

splash of lemon juice

splash of red wine vinegar

salt and pepper

oregano

one large spoonful of plain greek yogurt

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir it together until the dressing is consistent. Enjoy!

**This would be great for a yummy healthy lunch. It would also be awesome as a topper on some yummy grilled chicken.