Growing up, my mom always made this stuff we like to call Cracker Candy at Christmas time.  It’s sweet, it’s salty, crunchy and delish.  And…it is EASY to make!  One time I made it and someone asked how I made the flaky pastry that was inside.  I just said it was years of skillful practice.  (ok, not really…I told the truth that the “flaky pastry” is really just saltine crackers.)

My soul sister, Emily, and I have made cracker candy every year since I met her back in 2000.  We started out making half a dozen pans and dividing it up to give little boxes of the treats to neighbors and a few coworkers.  This year, after 12 years of friendship, weddings, babies, moves, and kids in school…we have a few more than just a small handful of people to give treats to for Christmas.  So today, since we’ve turned the art of making cracker candy into a study in efficiency and a science of perfect skills, we knocked out 25 pans worth in about 4 hours.  And you know what I’ve decided….I’m glad I didn’t become a baker afterall.  But once a year in a tradition of baking and good girl time, it sure is fun!

Check out the goods….

Here’s what you’ll need:

• A cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (trust me…you’ll appreciate this step for cleanup later.)
• Saltine Crackers (usually a pan takes about 1 1/2 sleeves of crackers)
• 1 1/2 c chocolate chips
• 1 c. brown sugar
• 2 sticks butter

Preheat oven to 350.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and cover with crackers. Melt butter and brown sugar over med-high heat.  Once boiling, boil while stirring constantly for 4 minutes.  Pour over crackers and spread out to evenly coat the crackers.  Then put in the oven to bake for 5 minutes.  As soon as it comes out of the oven, sprinkle the chocolate chips over the crackers and let them melt.  Once melted, spread the chocolate to evenly coat the crackers.  If you want to expedite the process, put the pan in the freezer to let the chocolate harden.  When it’s hardened, cut it up and try not to eat the whole pan!

So, I made my first vlog today all by myself!  Let’s hope it worked!

I made this yummy appetizer yesterday for some friends coming to dinner, and then I made it again for a girls’ night tonight, and I thought it might be more fun to try a vlog for ya’ll!

And for those of you who want a written version too, here you go!

• 10 oz log of goat cheese
• julienned sundried tomatoes
• peeled and roasted garlic cloves (roasted at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes)
• herb mix (herb de provence or italian, or whatever savory blend you feel like doing)

Roll goat cheese into balls, toss in herbs and put in baking dish. Surround with roasted garlic and sundried tomatoes and bake at 350ish for about 7-8 minutes. Serve on crostini, lavosh crackers, or any other yummy cracker.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon ground paprika
• 1 tablespoon sea salt
• 1 tablespoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 (6-pound) or 2 (3-pound) pieces Boston butt or pork shoulder
• 1 cup apple cider or unfiltered apple juice
• 20 to 24 corn tortillas, grilled
• Toppings: lime slices, grated cheese, fresh cilantro, sliced avocado, sour cream, Garden Tomato Salsa

Preparation

1. 1. Preheat oven to 325°. Combine first 4 ingredients in a small bowl; rub spice mixture all over pork. Place pork, fatty side up, in a large Dutch oven. Pour cider and 1/2 cup water around pork. Cover with a lid or aluminum foil, and roast at 325° for 5 hours or until fork-tender. Uncover and cook another 30 to 40 minutes or until skin is crispy and pork breaks apart easily with a fork.
2. 2. Remove from oven, and let stand 10 to 15 minutes before shredding into chunks with 2 forks. Skim fat from cooking liquid, and add liquid to pork before serving. Serve warm with grilled tortillas and desired toppings.

This may look like a standard issue BLT to some, but trust me….it’s not.  I have created a sandwich so completely incredible, I’m fairly certain that it’s served in heaven.  It’s so good it kinda makes your eyes roll back in your head….THAT level of goodness…but simple goodness too, just kinda amped up.

So, to make this amazing sandwich which I’m dubbing…

Not Yo Granny’s BLT

You will need:

• Incredible bread  – I’m into hearty, grainy, seedy, whole grain varieties….but pick your fav.  No Wonderbread for this one, it will disintegrate.  It can’t handle the truth, and this sandwich is the truth!
• Homegrown tomatoes  – And if you can get homegrown heirloom tomatoes, then consider your sandwich “next-level-ified”
• Palmetto Pimento Cheese with Jalapenos  – If you don’t live in the south or your grocery store doesn’t carry it, then you’re missing out, but you can always make THIS recipe for pimento cheese and use it.  It’s pretty stellar albeit more labor intensive than opening up a tub of other-person-homemade creamy goodness.
• Fresh lettuce  –  Had I any arugula though, that would have taken it over the top even more.
• Extra crispy bacon – Applewood Smoked is the bomb, I also love Smithfield Peppered Bacon, just make sure whatever you choose, it’s cooked to crispety crunchety perfection (My new fav bacon cooking method is on a foil lined cookie sheet in the oven…about 375 for 20-30 minutes…just til it’s perfect.  In My book, the cleanup is way better than a splattery mess too!)
• Avocado  – I like the Florida Slimcado, but whatever kind you have will be great as long as it’s ripe
• Fresh Ground Pepper – Crack some of that goodness right on top of your tomatoes.
• Drizzles of Truffle Oil and Thick, Super-Aged Balsamic Vinegar –  These additions may have just put this thing into a whole new category for me.  My favorite balsamic vinegar is a fig balsamic, so it has a little more thickness and sweetness….killer on this sandwich.  And truffle oil….seriously…if you don’t know it, then get to know it…YUM!  Oh sweet happiness….do this.  It’s incredible.

Friends, I’m telling you…this might even be better than the Fried Green Tomato BLT with Fresh Goat Cheese that I had a couple of years ago on our trip to Blowing Rock, NC.  I love me some fried green tomatoes, but you just can’t beat a killer homegrown heirloom.  Lord, have mercy on my metabolism….I’m gonna be eating these things every day until the vines are no longer yielding!

I was at Haven last week in Atlanta and had a blast meeting loads of talented and fun women!  My roommates and I got deliriously silly one night and made a vlog that I’ll share with you soon.  I still can’t believe I did it, but I did!  And it is most definitely ridiculous!  So…more to come on that!

Today though, before my baby had to have his tooth pulled, I took my kiddos to our neighbor’s garden to pick green beans, squash and plums.  As we speak, my countertop is covered in gorgeous sweet and tart plums that are just begging to be sliced up and tossed into a cobbler.  I just had to share!

So here you go…easiest cobbler recipe ever. You can use this same basic recipe with lots of different kinds of fruit.  The last time I made it, I used peaches and blackberries, but my MOST favorite version of this is to use tart plums to make it…delish!

Ingredients:
3/4 stick butter
3 c. fruit (for peaches, plums, etc…peel and slice)
1 c. flour
1 c. sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 c. milk

Preheat oven to 350. Melt the butter in a baking dish (I usually do it in about a 9×13 because I like lots of the crunchy top parts) in the oven. While the butter is melting mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and milk. Once the butter is melted in the dish evenly pour fruit into the dish. Then pour the mixture evenly over the fruit and do not mix up or anything. Bake at 350 for about 30-45 minutes or til it’s nice and brown on the top. Serve it warm with vanilla ice cream.

In an effort to keep things different in my fridge around here without starving while I’m on the Daniel Fast, I’m trying out some different salads here lately.  This pad thai salad that I made for the first time today is from one of my favorite cookbooks, Fresh Everyday by Sara Foster.

I’ll make it again.  It is really yummy!  And instead of chopping cabbage, I used a bag of shredded cabbage (that I had leftover from making the most amazing fish tacos last week.) I think I’d do it again that way too.

So here you go friends!  (Daniel fast friendly even if you use brown rice pad thai noodles and leave out the sugar in the dressing!)

Pad Thai Salad

Serves 4 to 6

1/2 pound flat rice noodles
1/4 pound snow peas or sugar snap peas, stem ends and strings removed and blanched
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and julienned (about 2 tablespoons)
1/4 small head of Savoy or Napa cabbage, cored and thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
2 scallions, minced (white and green parts)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
1 cup unsalted peanuts, roasted and finely chopped
2 ounces bean sprouts or pea shoots (about 1 cup)
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Pad Thai Dressing (recipe follows)

1. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Remove the pan from the heat and immerse the noodles in the hot water. Let the noodles stand in the hot water for 7 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until they are tender, but still firm. Drain in a colander, rinse under cold water, and drain well. Turn the drained noodles into a large bowl.

2. Julienne the snow peas and toss them into the bowl with the noodles. Add the ginger, cabbage, scallions, cilantro, chives, half of the ground peanuts, half of the sprouts, the red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Drizzle with the Pad Thai dressing and toss gently, taking care not to break the noodles. Serve immediately, garnished with the remaining peanuts and sprouts.

Note: If you want to make this salad in advance, cover and refrigerate and garnish just before serving. You may also need to toss the noodles with a little more dressing because they tend to absorb the dressing.

Pad Thai Vinaigrette

This recipe makes twice what you need for the Pad Thai Salad. There are so many ways to use the leftovers: as dressing for a sandwich, salad, sliced tomatoes, or avocado slices.

Makes about 1 cup

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Thai fish sauce (nam pla)
2 tablespoons tamarind paste
2 tablespoons light soy sauce or tamari
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger (1-inch piece)
2 cloves garlic, minced
Grated zest and juice of 1 orange
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper or chili paste

Whisk the vinegar, fish sauce, tamarind paste, soy sauce, olive oil, ketchup, sugar, ginger, garlic, orange zest and juice, lemon zest and juice, and crushed red pepper or chili paste in a small bowl. Use immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Photo Credit: Foster’s Market Fresh Everyday