Watermelon Drink Dispenser

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This is cool! 

Materials
1 large watermelon
Paper towels
Sharp chef’s knife
Cutting board 
Large spoon or ice cream scoop 
Apple corer 
Power drill and paring knife (optional) 
Tap kit (includes a shank and faucet — available at many hardware stores)
Waterproof plate

Instructions

  1. Wash the watermelon and wipe it dry with paper towels. Using a sharp knife and cutting board, cut approximately 1/2 inch off the bottom to keep the watermelon standing straight. Cut off the top of the watermelon, about 3/4 of an inch
  2. Using a large spoon or ice cream scoop, hollow out the watermelon. Reserve the fruit for use in your favorite summer recipe
  3. Using an apple corer, cut a circle through the rind about 2 1/2 inches above the bottom of the watermelon. (Choose the prettiest side for a party-worthy presentation.) Don’t have an apple corer? Drill a small hole, then use a small knife to widen the hole until it’s slightly smaller than the shank of the tap
  4. Insert the shank into the hole; tighten hardware inside the melon. Attach the faucet to the shank
  5. Place the watermelon keg on a clean, waterproof plate at the end of a table. Fill it with ice, then your favorite lemonade, punch or tropical drink recipe

Tip: Avoid beverages with pulp; they can clog the spout.

Tasty Summer Treats 
Not sure what to do with the leftover watermelon? Try these fresh, fruity ideas:

Assemble Fruit Kebabs: Thread watermelon chunks, fresh strawberries, grapes and pineapple chunks on bamboo skewers to create kebabs. This is a great way to get kids to eat more fruit!

Make a Spritzer: Puree watermelon pieces in a blender, and then mix the pureed fruit with lemonade or sparkling water. Serve over ice. 

Blend up a Smoothie: Cut watermelon into chunks and freeze. Mix in a blender with other fresh and frozen fruits — and a splash of juice — to create a tasty smoothie. 

Chill Summer Drinks: Freeze small chunks or balls of watermelon to use as ice cubes in your favorite summer beverages.

Ham and Cheese Roll-Ups

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Here's how to make this yummy dinner! From Kraft Foods:
1
can  (10 oz.) refrigerated pizza crust
1
pkg.  (6 oz.) OSCAR MAYER Smoked Ham
1
cup  POLLY-O Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

make it 

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Unroll pizza crust dough onto lightly floured surface; press to form 12x8-inch rectangle.

ARRANGE ham slices evenly over dough to within 1/2 inch of edges; sprinkle evenly with cheese. Starting at one of the short ends, roll up dough to form log. Pinch seam together to seal. Place, seam side down, on greased baking sheet.

BAKE 25 to 30 minutes or until deep golden brown. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting into 8 slices. Serve with yellow mustard or KRAFT Horseradish Sauce, if desired.

Genius Grilled Cheese

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Here is how to make the best grilled cheese! From Food52.com.

Serves 10

  • 20(1/2-inch-thick) slices rustic bread (from about 1 1/2 loaves)
  • 1cup mayonnaise (Hamilton likes Hellmann's)
  • 1pound shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
  1. Heat the oven to 300°F and arrange a rack in the middle.
  2. Place half of the bread slices on a work surface and spread with half of the mayonnaise. Flip the bread slices over and evenly divide the cheese among the slices.
  3. Spread the remaining bread slices with the remaining mayonnaise and place them mayonnaise-side up over the cheese to form 10 sandwiches.
  4. Heat a large nonstick frying pan or griddle over medium-low heat until hot, about 4 to 5 minutes. Place 2 to 3 of the sandwiches in the pan and cook until the bottoms are golden brown and the cheese is starting to melt, about 5 minutes. Flip the sandwiches and cook until the second sides are golden brown and the cheese is completely melted, about 5 minutes more. Transfer to a baking sheet and place in the oven to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining sandwiches.
  5. When all the sandwiches are cooked, remove the baking sheet from the oven and place on a wire rack. Let cool 1 to 2 minutes before cutting each sandwich in half.

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwiches

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Slow cooker pulled pork sandwiches, one of my family's fave meals!

Ingredients

  • 2 lb pork tenderloins
  • 12oz Root Beer
  • 1 cup BBQ sauce (any variety)
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Instructions

  1. In a slow cooker, whisk together the root beer, BBQ sauce, salt and pepper. Add pork tenderloins. Heat on low for about 8 hours. Shred pork with two forks.
  2. Serve on a bun with additional BBQ sauce, if desired.

Baked Ravioli Lasagna

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Baked Ravioli lasagna, have to try this! From Olivesandgarden.com
Ingredients
  • 1 package frozen ravioli, any flavor you like
  • 1 cup store bought marinara sauce of your choice
  • 1 package shredded low fat mozzarella cheese
  • 1 tsp dry basil
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Spread a little marinara sauce on the bottom of a small baking dish.
  3. Top with one layer of ravioli, a little marinara sauce and some cheese. Then repeat making another layer.
  4. Sprinkle with basil.
  5. Bake until the cheese is melted and the the sauce is bubbling, about 15-20 minutes.

Deep Fried Oreos

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Deep Fried Oreos

2 quarts canola or vegetable oil
1 package Oreo cookies
1 1/2 cup pancake mix
1 egg
1 cup milk
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
powdered sugar for garnish

Directions
Heat oil in a deep fryer or dutch oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a tray with paper towels for drainage. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the milk, egg, and two teaspoons of oil together. Slowly add the pancake mix until no lumps appear. Once oil reaches temperature, coat 4-5 Oreos at a time in the batter, then drop into the hot oil. (Cook in small batches to prevent overcrowding and burning.) Cook for 20-30 seconds per side, or until golden brown. Remove and drain on paper towels. Serve warm with sprinkled powdered sugar.

Cookies & Cream Cheesecake Bars

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Cookies & Cream Cheesecake Bars- another Bakerella favorite!

Makes 25

Crust
18 Oreos, crushed into crumbs
2 tbsp. sugar
5 tbsp. butter, melted

Cheesecake Filling
12 oz cream cheese, softened
½ cup sugar
1 tbsp. flour
1 egg, plus 1 yolk
½ cup sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla
12 Oreos, broken into pieces

Chocolate Ganache
½ cup heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp. butter
¾ cup semi sweet chocolate chips
⅛ cup powdered sugar
6 Oreos, broken into pieces

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2. To make the crust, mix cookie crumbs and sugar together in a medium bowl. Add melted butter and stir until completely combined.

3. Using the bottom of a glass or measuring cup, firmly press mixture into the bottom of an 8″x8″ baking dish. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from oven and let cool.

4. To make the cheesecake filling, add sugar, cream cheese and flour to a large bowl. Using a mixer on medium-high speed, cream mixture until combined.

5. Turn mixer to low and add egg and yolk, mixing until combined. Add sour cream and vanilla and mix until combined.

6. Stir in broken cookies and pour batter on prepared crust. Bake for 35-40 minutes, then remove and let cool completely.

7. To make ganache, add cream and butter to a saucepan and heat on stove, removing just before boiling.

8. Place chocolate in a large heat-proof bowl and immediately pour cream over it. Let sit for a minute and then stir until completely combined.

9. Add powdered sugar and beat with a wire whisk until smooth. Pour over cooled cheesecake and top with remaining cookie pieces. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

10. Cut into bars and serve.

Pizza Cake

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This looks amazing!!! Kind of like a really super, deep dish Chicago pizza.
Here's the recipe!
For baking use
  1. 1 pot (6 1/3 diameter , 4 inch tall )
For dough
  1. 1 ½ pound all purpose flour
  2. 2 ½ cups warm water
  3. 4 tbsp olive oil
  4. 1 1/2 tsp salt
  5. 3 tsp sugar
  6. ½ oz dry yeast
For topping
  1. 1 ½ cup pizza sauce
  2. 14 oz cheese, grated or thinly sliced
  3. 14 oz pepperoni
  4. fresh mix of greens (optional)
Instructions
  1. Combine yeast and sugar in a small bowl. Stir in warm water.
  2. Sift flour and salt into a large bowl. Add yeast mixture and olive oil and stir until combined.
  3. Knead the dough on the lightly floured surface for 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic.
  4. Return the dough into the bowl.
  5. Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for 1 ½ -2 hours, until doubled in size.
  6. After rising, punch the dough down and place it to a flour-dusted surface and knead it around a bit to push the air out with your hands.
  7. Divide the dough into 8 balls.
  8. Roll six balls out into a 1/5 inch thick layers and cut out 6 rounds 6 1/3 inches (16 cm) each in diameter.
  9. Let them rise in a baking tin for 10-15 minutes.
  10. Bake in the preheated oven (400F) for 15 minutes. Let them cool a little bit.
  11. Line bottom and sides of pot with baking paper.
  12. Roll the rest of dough out into a 1/5 inch thick layer and cover the sides of the pot but not the bottom.
  13. Place one layer of pre-baked dough on the bottom of the pot.
  14. Add tomato sauce, pepperoni and cheese.
  15. Place next layer of dough.
  16. If necessary fill cracks with dough.
  17. Repeat, until you have all the layers complete.
  18. Remove the excess dough and tuck in the edges.
  19. Bake in preheated oven at 400F for 25 minutes.
  20. Remove it from the oven.
  21. Let it cool in the pot for 5 minutes then carefully remove.
  22. Top with fresh mix of greens and enjoy!

Smashburger Copycat Recipe

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Have you ever wondered how Smashburger makes their burgers? They have been kind enough to share a burger recipe that you can replicate at home.

Ingredients (Serves 4):
2 pounds fresh, never frozen, 100% Certified Angus beef
4 slices of pepper jack cheese
2 avocados
2 sliced tomatoes
2 finely chopped onions
8 large lettuce leafs
4 torta rolls
4 wedges of lime
Sour Cream
Chipotle Mayonnaise
Chopped cilantro

Instructions:

1. Set grill to 400 degrees
2. Place a flat metal surface over the grill (this allows you to caramelize the outside while sealing in the juices)
3. Form loosely-packed third, or half, pound balls of fresh, never frozen 100% Certified Angus Beef
4. Paint the grill with real, unsalted butter
5. Use a cast-iron grill press to sear patty and lock in juices
6. Smash the meatball on the grill for the first 10 seconds to ensure meat is seared on the outside
7. Once the juices start to percolate, flip the burger to keep the juices in
8. Grill the beef patties until they are cooked thoroughly and then remove them from the grill
9. Melt spicy pepper jack cheese on top of each patty
10. Add half of a hand-sliced avocado
11. Add tomato slices
12. Sprinkle a blend of freshly chopped cilantro and onions
13. Add lettuce leaves
14. Top with a scoop of fresh sour cream and chipotle mayo
15. Serve the burger on a fresh torta roll with a wedge of lime

Source: Lajollamom.com

Photo Credit: Smashburger

In N Out Burger Copycat Recipe

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In N Out fans, here is a perfect copycat!
For 4 burgers, you need:

1 lb ground beef (I used 70% lean. Better is 60%.)
Salt and pepper for seasoning
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
Lettuce
Tomato, sliced
Red onion, sliced (I don't like raw onion in my burger, so I made caramelized "grilled" onion for my burger. To caramelize onion: add slices of one yellow onion to a sauté pan on medium-low heat with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Put the lid on the pan. Check every 10 min to see that the onions don't burn but get soft and caramelized. Takes about half and hour.)
4 or more slices of cheese (I used Kraft's American cheese)Special Pink Sauce (recipe below)
4 Hamburger buns

Special Pink Sauce (In n Out Burger copycat)

½ cup mayonaise (Hellman's mayonaise are gluten free)
¼ cup ketchup (Heinz Ketchup is gluten free)
¼ cup relish (gluten free)
⅛ teaspoon (a pinch) salt
⅛ teaspoon (a pinch) sugar
⅛ teaspoon (a pinch) onion powder
¼ teaspoon (2 pinches) garlic powder
½ tablespoon worcestershire sauce

How:

Add worcestershire sauce to ground beef and mix it well. Divide the meat in four portions and make patties. Make the middle of the patties thinner than the outside. This will prevent the patties from swelling up when cooking.

Put a pan on or griddle on medium-high heat. Cook one side of the patties for 3 min. Flip it over and cook for another 3-4 min. Place a slice of cheese on top and remove the patty when the cheese is melty.

For Pink Sauce:

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Store away the unused sauce in a jar in your refrigerator. It will have the same life as your ketchup or mayo.
Build your burger:

Top part of bun
Lettuce
Tomato
Caramelized onion
Cheese
Beef patty
Pink sauce
Lower part of bun
Source: HappilySpiced.com

White Castle Sliders Copycat Recipe

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Enjoy!

1 pound of ground beef, preferably 15-20% fat
2 teaspoons powdered “au jus”, available in a paper packet
1 small white onion, diced very small
3 tablespoons dried onion
1/2 cup beef broth
vegetable oil
salt & pepper
yellow mustard
dill pickle, sliced very thinly by hand
American cheese, optional
soft dinner rolls. I used Sara Lee brand.

Now to make the square burgers. In a large mixing bowl blend by hand the ground beef and the au jus powder. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper or wax paper. Spread ground beef evenly out on the paper and cover with another layer of paper. Using a rolling pin flatten the meat until you get a large meat slab about 1/4 inch thick all over. With a spatula straighten out the edges until you have a large meat rectangle. Remove top paper and with a long, sharp knife score a grid to create squares of meat approximately 2 1/2 to 3 inches on each side. I ended up with 12 square patties. To create the holes I used a chopstick and wiggled it around five times in each burger. Replace the top sheet of paper and freeze the patties for a couple of hours.

When your patties are frozen solid, remove the tray from the freezer and break the meat sheet by hand along the score lines into individual patties. You can let them defrost if you’d like or cook them frozen. It’s fine either way.

When you’re ready to cook put fresh and dried onions in a bowl and soak in the beef broth.

Now set up a steamer to warm your rolls. Use a pot filled with an inch of water lined with a steamer basket with the center pole removed. Line steamer basket with aluminum foil. Bring water to a boil and then reduce to a very low simmer. Split rolls in half and put them in the foil-lined steamer. Cover pot with a lid and keep warm while you cook the patties.

Heat a flat griddle or a very large saute pan. Add a generous tablespoon of oil to the surface and spread around evenly with a spatula. Cook burgers three at a time (more or less depending on the area of your cooking surface) by first placing a small pile of wet onions for each patty into the hot oil. Each pile of onions will be about one full tablespoon of onions. Flatten the onion pile and immediately place a burger patty onto each pile. The onions will cook and steam the burger from underneath. Season the top of each patty liberally with salt and pepper. Cook for about two minutes.

Now flip the burgers over and, using your spatula, arrange cooked onions on the top-side of the patties. If you want to top with American cheese now is the time. Cook for one minute more.

Take buns out of the steamer and add mustard to the top side and bottom side of the roll. Add two thin slices of pickle to the top portion. Add your burger patties and close.

Source: Spencer Gray

Rubik's Cube Cake

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How cute is this??!! Here's how to make! 

Abby Head of specialty bakery Creative Crumbs Nashville is the mastermind behind the dessert version of the classic toy.

“I started off with a half sheet cake, which I cut into squares and stacked on top of each other to make a cube,” she writes. You can also bake three smaller square cakes — your favorite basic recipe will work just fine — and stack those.

When the cakes are stacked into one mega-cake, frost the whole thing in chocolate frosting. Head then coated her cube with cake spackle, which is a mixture of cake crumbs and icing, before covering it in black modeling chocolate. The spackle is firmer than buttercream and thus holds its shape better, so the modeling chocolate will layer on with no bumps, she says. (If you’re okay with your cake not looking bakery perfect, just do the chocolate frosting step and call it a day.)

For the squares, try Head’s recipe for marshmallow fondant, dyed with food coloring and rolled out super-thin before cutting into 45 squares. To be exact, measure the height and width of your cake, divide each number by three and make each square a little bit smaller than those dimensions (to allow for space between the squares). They should be tacky enough to stick right to your cake.

Great news: All you need to conquer this Rubik’s Cube is a fork!

Marshmallow Fondant

1 16-oz. package marshmallows
2 tbsp. water
1 2-lb. bag confectioners’ sugar
¼ cup shortening

1. Place marshmallows and water in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave 1 minute on high; stir until mixed well. Continue microwaving 1 minute more; stir again. (If you need to tint the entire batch of fondant, add a little food coloring to the melted marshmallow mixture before adding confectioners’ sugar. For smaller amounts of tinted fondant, add gel color to portions of fondant as needed.)

2. In the greased bowl of a standing mixer, combine marshmallow mixture and about 7 cups of the confectioners’ sugar. Using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed for 5-6 minutes. If the mixture is too soft (it should be pliable but firm), add more powdered sugar.

3. Remove fondant from bowl and knead on a generously greased work surface for 1-2 minutes. Don’t skimp on the shortening — it helps with the texture of the finished fondant.

4. It’s best to allow marshmallow fondant to sit, double-wrapped, overnight before using. Prepare the fondant for storing by coating with a thin layer of shortening. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in a resealable bag, squeezing out as much air as possible. Marshmallow fondant will keep well in the refrigerator for several weeks. When ready to use, knead fondant until smooth and roll out to ⅛-¼ in. thick.

Nana's Cheesecake Recipe

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Nana's Cheesecake is famous, everyone loves it. She said I could share the recipe with all of you, so here it is!
Ingredients:
Crust:
1 c. flour
1/4 c. sugar
1 tsp. lemon peel
1/2 cup oleo (margarine)
1 slightly beaten egg
1/4 tsp. vanilla
Filling:
(5) 8 oz. cream cheese bricks, softened (we like Philadelphia Cream Cheese)
1/4 tsp. vanilla
3/4 tsp lemon peel (grated)
1 3/4 c. sugar
3 tbs. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
4/5 eggs (1 cup)
2 egg yolks
1/4 c. whipping cream
Steps:
Combine flour, sugar, lemon peel. Add eggs and vanilla. Blend, pat 1/3 dough into 9" bottom springform pan, with the sides removed. Bake at 400 degrees for 8 min. Cool, attach sides of pan.
Beat cream cheese, add vanilla, lemon peel. Mix in sugar, flour, salt, add in cream cheese, add, one at a time, until blended. Stir in whipping cream. 
Bake for 12 min. at 450 degrees. Then 55 minutes at 300 degrees.
Cool 1/2 hour, then loosen sides of pan and place cheesecake on plate.
Top with cherries, strawberries, whatever you like!

 

Vintage Home: Dole Pineapple and Cream Cheese Upside Down Cake

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My mother in law Janet made the most amazing Dole Pineapple and Cream Cheese Upside Down Cake. Here's the recipe!

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 can (20 oz.) DOLE® Pineapple Slices, drained
7 or 8  maraschino cherries
1 pkg. (9 oz.) yellow cake mix
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA® Cream Cheese, softened
1 pkg. (3 oz.) JELL-O® Brand Lemon Flavor Gelatin
2  egg(s)

DIRECTION

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Spray 9-inch cake pan orspring form pan with nonstick cooking spray.  If using a spring form pan, wrap foil around the bottom.


INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 can (20 oz.) DOLE  Pineapple Slices, drained
8 maraschino cherries

DIRECTION

Stir together melted butter and brown sugar in pan.   Place 7 or 8 pineapple slices in sugar mixture.  Place cherry in center of each pineapple slice; cut remaining 2 slices of pineapple in half and place decoratively around slice in center of the pan.


INGREDIENTS

1 pkg. (9 oz.) yellow cake mix
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA® Cream Cheese, softened
1 pkg. (3.0 oz.) JELL-O® Lemon Gelatin
2 eggs

DIRECTION

Prepare cake mix according to the package directions (if using cake mix larger than 9 oz., a 10 or 12-inch pan is recommended).  Pour half cake batter evenly over pineapple.  Beat cream cheese, lemon gelatin and eggs in bowl of an electric mixer until smooth.  Spread cream cheese mixture gently over cake mix.  Pour remaining cake mix over cheese cake in pan.


DIRECTION

Bake 65 to 75 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

DIRECTION

Cool 5 minutes.  Loosen edges and turn out onto serving platter.

Vintage Home: Easter Ham

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Here is the perfect ham recipe for Easter!
  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
  2. Score ham, and stud with the whole cloves. Place ham in foil lined pan.
  3. In the top half of a double boiler, heat the corn syrup, honey and butter. Keep glaze warm while baking ham.
  4. Brush glaze over ham, and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes in the preheated oven. Baste ham every 10 to 15 minutes with the honey glaze. During the last 4 to 5 minutes of baking, turn on broiler to caramelize the glaze. Remove from oven, and let sit a few minutes before serving.