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Cranberry Almond Broccoli Salad

Nov 14, 2016

Cranberry Almond Broccoli Salad – a lightened up version of the classic! Broccoli, crumbled bacon, almonds, red onion, and dried cranberries in a creamy, tangy dressing. Perfect side dish for a summer party or a holiday dinner!

Heeeey guys, happy Monday! Fresh week! I feel like we all need a fresh start, huh?

Can you believe that Thanksgiving is NEXT WEEK?! I cannot. How did this happen?

I haven’t planned a thing! I have a turkey in my freezer though so I know that’s happening, at least. And I’ll make the dressing that my family always makes because that’s my favorite.

And I’m sure there will be pie. There’s always pie.

Another thing I also always make is broccoli salad. But first, that bowl!

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Bacon Cheddar Mashed Potatoes

Oct 11, 2016

Bacon Cheddar Mashed Potatoes – the perfect side dish for every meal! These potatoes are loaded with sour cream, cheddar cheese, bacon, and green onions!

So if you follow me anywhere, you know I was in Austin at BlogHer Food all weekend. It’s a conference for food bloggers where we all talk about what annoys us about our job and then we eat everything in the city.

And, in case you’ve ever wondered, I am horrible at conferences. (Very good at the eating part though.)

I showed up for 3 things the entire conference. And only stayed the full time for 1 of those.

Sitting still is hard for me, y’all.

Also, I sat down with a group of girls I didn’t know for the closing keynote and they asked if I had a business card.

And I didn’t.

I mean, do I seem like the kind of girl that carries business cards?

Anyway, one of the girls said, “Aww, you must be a new blogger!”

So that was kind of how the conference went for me.

I did get to hang out with friends that I’ve only ever known over the internet which was honestly the only reason I went to begin with so that totally made up for the conference being… ahem… lame.

And also there was lots of food!

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Creamy Dill Cole Slaw

Oct 03, 2016

Heeeeey guys! On our road trip home a few months ago, we discovered that my 4 year old absolutely loves coleslaw.

I don’t know that he had ever tried it before but we were at a seafood restaurant in Orange Beach and he pointed to a bowl of coleslaw on someone else’s plate and said, “I want that.” Ate the whole bowl. Asked for more.

A few days later, on our way back to Texas, we stopped at this gourmet hot dog place in Houston and he ordered the slaw. Ate all of it. Asked for mine.

He is obsessed. Who knew a 5 year old could love cabbage so much? But it is totally fine with me because it is also one of my favorite foods and really, is there a better side dish for barbecue? And you know I am all about the barbecue right now.

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Cherry Bourbon BBQ Sauce

Jul 25, 2016

Cherry Bourbon BBQ Sauce – delicious sweet and spicy barbecue sauce made with fresh cherries and Bourbon! Perfect on grilled chicken!

Happy Monday, y’all!

How was the weekend? Fantastic, I hope.

I had a very busy weekend.

Finished New Girl. Took some naps. Caught a lot of Pokemon.

Definitely not ready for Monday! But I have a delicious recipe to share today so I guess it’s okay.

Have you tried Four Roses Bourbon?

I posted a photo on Snapchat when I received this bottle and 10 people were all, “OMG THAT’S MY FAVORITE!”

It is the only bourbon distillery that blends 5 proprietary yeast strains with two separate mashbills to produce 10 distinct bourbon recipes. The bourbon is then aged in one-of-a-kind single story rack warehouses that allows the bourbon to age gently and undisturbed throughout the years. Each bourbon variety has it’s own unique character, spice, and rich fruity flavors.

I used the Four Roses Bourbon Yellow for this Cherry Bourbon BBQ Sauce. They created this one by mingling all 10 of their bourbon recipes. It’s fantastic, with hints of apple and pear, a floral aroma, and a taste of honey and spice. It’s smooth and mellow and is great for creating sophisticated cocktails.

Check out the Four Roses Bourbon website for more info, lots of recipes, and to find out where to buy your own delicious Four Roses Bourbon!

Cherry Bourbon BBQ Sauce!

I bought a ton of cherries when this bourbon showed up on my doorstep because bourbon and cherries? Perfect together. (Ice cream recipe coming soon!)

This bbq sauce is sweet and spicy and fruity and delicious. Perfect on grilled meat, perfect on a spoon. I’m obsessed.

I made tater tots at 1 am the other day and stood at my kitchen counter, dipping them in what bbq sauce I had leftover.

That good.

Cherry BBQ Sauce

Ingredients

1 tablespoon coconut oil or olive oil
1 onion diced
3 cloves garlic minced
1/4 cup Four Roses Bourbon Yellow
1 1/2 cups ketchup
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
salt and pepper
3 cups fresh cherries pitted and halved

Instructions

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook until softened, stirring frequently. Add garlic and cook until just fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Add Four Roses Bourbon Yellow, ketchup, yellow mustard, brown sugar, cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, crushed red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and add the cherries. Simmer for about 10 minutes, until slightly thickened.
Remove from heat and cook slightly. Use a blender to puree the sauce until smooth.
Store in refrigerator until ready to serve.

Want more bourbon recipes?

Strawberry Basil Bourbon Smash

Raspberry Bourbon Smash

Grapefruit Bourbon Sour

This recipe created in partnership with Four Roses Bourbon. Thank you for supporting my sponsors!

Sausage and Cranberry Cornbread Dressing

Nov 23, 2015

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of The Hillshire Brands Company. All opinions are entirely my own.

How do you take a holiday from good to great?

I’m pretty content as long as I have my family, my dogs (#crazydoglady), and really yummy food.

I make pretty much the same meal for each holiday and each time, I look forward to the cornbread dressing most of all.

It is absolutely in the top 10 list of foods. I love any variety, I love the baked ones, I love the ones made on the stove, I just love them all.

This Sausage and Cranberry Cornbrad Dressing is such a delicious version. It has the cubed cornbread, leeks (which I use in all my dressings – you have to try it if you haven’t already), dried cranberries, and pecans. Plus, the star of the show, Jimmy Dean® Regular Sausage!

The savory sausage with the sweet cranberries is so delicious and then all the different textures… seriously, it doesn’t get better than this!

You can find the Jimmy Dean® Regular Sausage in the refrigerated meats section at your local Walmart and be sure to check out the Great Value products. I just love how easy Walmart makes shopping – especially this time of year when you’re constantly rushed and just need to get everything at one place. Walmart is perfect for that!

Check out joytothemeal.com for more recipe inspiration!

How do YOU bring #joy2themeal?

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Twice Baked Red Potatoes

Oct 06, 2015

This article has been compensated by PAM Cooking Spray. All opinions are mine alone. #PAMCookingSpray

One of my favorite things about this time of year is the anticipation of the holidays and holiday meals. I’ve had a forever long list of Thanksgiving menu ideas on my desk since August.

Last year it was kind of up in the air whether my husband would be home in time for Thanksgiving (deployment) and he ended up coming home on Thanksgiving. So it was super simple since the boys and we spent several hours at the welcome home ceremony. This year though? I wanna go all out. Because next year my husband will probably be gone again. So why not?

One of my favorite and most important ingredients in my cooking, especially around the holidays, is PAM Cooking Spray. I use it pretty much every day of my life but because I use my vintage Pyrex dishes (handwash only!) for all holiday meals, I am most definitely spritzing everything with PAM Cooking Spray. PAM Cooking Spray leaves 99% less residue than margarine or bargain-brand sprays so clean up is quick and easy! It just makes life so much easier. Really, who wants to spend time scrubbing dishes after the Thanksgiving meal?

*vs. leading cooking sprays (except olive oil), after spraying on glass bakeware, baking at 400°F for 30 min, cooling, and then washing in standard home dishwasher with detergent and repeating 4 times.

These Twice Baked Red Potatoes are something you could serve for a holiday meal or just with a regular weeknight dinner! My husband and I used to make these when we lived in our very first apartment before we had kids. We’d make baked chicken with a salad and these potatoes and we felt like real adults. Because we bought raw potatoes and cooked them ourselves.

The recipe is super simple. Just bake the potatoes on a PAM Cooking Spray coated pan until their fork tender. Scrape out the insides and mix it with all kinds of cheesy goodness (and bacon!) and then put it back in the potato shells. So easy and so yummy! You can’t go wrong with potatoes with cheese and bacon!

For more information on PAM Cooking Spray, visit www.PAMCookingSpray.com. Follow PAM on Facebook and Pinterest for recipes and cooking tips!

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Carrot Casserole with Crumb Topping

Oct 05, 2015

I was compensated by Nielsen-Massey Vanillas for my time in developing this recipe and post. All opinions are my own.

Have you started thinking about the holidays yet? I cannot even believe how fast the year has gone and I feel like fall totally snuck up on me! I had big plans to be super organized and have my entire Thanksgiving menu planned out by now. But yeah, didn’t happen.

I’m slowly coming up with ideas and then trying to figure out if my family will actually eat them. You know how it goes. Normally when you have a carrot casserole, it’s loaded with sugar and butter and it’s scrumptious, but I’m looking for a more savory carrot dish this holiday season.

For this dish, I cooked carrots and shallots and then pureed them until smooth and delicious. I stirred in some Nielsen-Massey Lemon Extract for some brightness and a few eggs for that carrot casserole texture we all know and love.

The Nielsen-Massey Lemon Extract is perfect for adding that little touch of lemon flavor! My husband is forever using all my fresh lemons for his water so I love having the lemon extract in my kitchen as a substitute. Half a teaspoon of the extract is equal to a whole tablespoons of fresh lemon juice or 1/2 teaspoon of lemon zest! It is so convenient.

And then the topping! Butter, fresh breadcrumbs, sage, and garlic! All my favorites! That is just mixed up and sprinkled on top before baking. It becomes a little crunchy during baking which is the perfect complement to the silky smooth casserole.

The casserole is absolutely delicious! If you are searching for a new side dish to try for Thanksgiving, definitely give this one a go!

For more recipe ideas and inspiration, visit the Nielsen-Massey Facebook page orPinterest page! Want more ways to use the Nielsen-Massey Lemon Extract? Check out their Uses and Pairings page for lots of ideas!

I’m the Paleo Fanatic over at Food Fanatic (although this recipe is definitely not Paleo)! This Carrot Casserole with Crumb Topping recipe is one of many I’m sharing over there so make sure you check back!

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Easy Apple Butter

Aug 03, 2015

Happy Monday!

How was your weekend? Ours was good. Found all the Lay’s Do Us a Flavor chips. Spoiler: the Truffle Fries one tastes just like sour cream and onion chips. Laaaaaame. However, the Reuben one? Amazing.

I also decided that it’s too hot in Texas. I’d really like to go anywhere with snow right about now. The dogs end up looking like this at the end of our walk, no matter how early or late we go. Seriously, 95 degrees at 7 pm is stupid.

Dear Army gods, please send us far away from here. Colorado would be fabulous. Thanks.

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Mexican Rice

Jun 11, 2015

We’ve officially been in Texas for 2 months.

And that’s nuts. I simultaneously feel like we just got here and that we’ve been here for 10 years.

Overall, I don’t hate Killeen like everyone said I would. Seriously, everyone I came in contact with told me how bad it would be. I still meet people that tell me that. At my last doctor’s appointment, the doc actually said, “Ugggghhhh, I’m sorry!” when I told him we’d just arrived from Colorado.

But yeah, I don’t hate it.

What I do hate (and don’t be mad at me) is the food.

I cannot find a good Mexican place to save my life. We’ve tried every place on the first page of Yelp.

No. I won’t go back to any of them.

I tried to order a drink at the last one BECAUSE THEY WERE ON THE MENU and they looked at me like I was crazy and said, “Uhhh, we don’t have drinks.”

And I was all, “Waaaaaaaaiiiiiiit a minute, how is it possible to have chips and salsa without a margarita?”

I’m just not into it. I need to venture down to Austin soon but gahhh, who has time to drive anywhere?!

Anyway, I’ve been craving a really good enchilada since we had our last once at our fave Mexican place in the Springs. Last night I finally admitted defeat and made my own.

I used to make this Mexican Rice recipe once a week years and years ago (had to track down my first blog to find the recipe!) and it was just as good as I remembered. And no, that’s not a pea, it’s a jalapeno.

(Texans, whyyyyy are there peas in your Mexican rice?!)

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Cilantro-Lime Cauliflower Rice

Jul 22, 2014

I don’t know if I’ve ever told you guys but I really don’t like rice. I don’t dislike rice but it’s not something I’d choose to eat. The exception being Mexican restaurant rice and even then, I mix it into the refried beans because… that’s just the way it should be done.

Oh, and any kind of casserole that includes rice, cream of- soup, and tons of cheese.

But, like, plain rice? Nope. I don’t even like the cilantro-lime rice at those burrito joints (that this recipe is based on) unless it’s absolutely covered in salsa (and queso if we’re at Qdoba).

Weirdly enough, I really dig cauliflower rice. It’s the perfect substitute for those of use that either don’t like rice or maybe we’re trying to cut back on calories. But yeah, I eat cauliflower rice with everything. At one point, before my husband deployed, he had to tell me to cool it with the cauliflower rice because he was sick of it.

So naturally I switched to mashed cauliflower and he was not amused.

Since I’m currently going through one of my Mexican food phases, this Cilantro-Lime Cauliflower Rice has become a staple in my diet. It’s really good and the perfect side dish for all the stuff I’m currently coating in cumin, dousing in lime juice, and covering in jalapenos.

Quick warning: if you don’t like cauliflower, you won’t like this. No amount of lime zest and cilantro can hide the taste (and smell) of cauliflower. If you do like cauliflower, you will looove it!

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Funeral Potatoes

Nov 11, 2013

Happy Veteran’s Day! I hope you’re enjoying a well-deserved day off.

I wanted to talk to y’all about something today.

I think I’m going to skip posting Thanksgiving recipes on the blog this year. I’ve done them in years past and cooking them and then eating them for days afterwards… it really takes away the magic of Thanksgiving. You know, the one day of the year that you can eat whatever you want without guilt. The special, once a year casseroles. Stuff like that just loses it’s specialness (not even a word, I know) once you’ve already done it, photographed it, and yapped about it on your blog.

But depending on how many glasses of wine I’ve had by the time Thanksgiving dinner is ready, I plan on photographing and blogging. No promises, but… maybe.

In the meantime, I thought I’d share a recipe that is definitely Thanksgiving-appropriate.

I’ve been hearing about these potatoes for years but since I’m not really a potato person unless they’re deep-fried and served with chicken nuggets, I’ve kind of just ignored them. But I’ve been obsessed with The Shaytards lately and they mentioned them in a vlog recently and all of the sudden, the potatoes seemed really appealing.

They are SO good. I had three bowls of them. I skipped everything else I cooked and just ate potatoes. And now I may end up making them on Thanksgiving because they are just that good.

One year ago: Pumpkin Pie Milkshake
Two years ago: Monster Cookies
Three years ago: Jalapeno Popper Dip
Four years ago: Sweet Cream Biscuits
Five years ago: Enchiladas in Pumpkin Sauce

Funeral Potatoes

from Taste and Tell

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups shredded cheese
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cups sour cream
1/2 cup melted butter
1/4 cup dried onion
32 ounce package cubed hash browns
3 cups coarsely crushed corn flakes
2 tablespoons melted butter

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 9×13 inch baking dish with oil.
In a large bowl, combine the cheese, cream of chicken soup, sour cream, melted butter and onions. Fold in the hash browns. Spread in the prepared pan.
Sprinkle the crushed corn flakes on top of the mixture. Drizzle the 2 tablespoons of butter over the corn flakes.
Bake in the preheated oven. If using shredded hash browns, cook for 30 minutes. If using cubed hash browns, cook for 55-60 minutes.

Cheesy Quinoa Bites

Jul 31, 2013

I have been trying to get on a Monday – Thursday posting schedule for months now but it seems like every week something happens that just messes everything up.

My blog went down Monday – my apologies if you were in dire need of a muffin recipe or something and couldn’t reach it – and I didn’t really think anything of it. Technical issues with the blog are one of the only things in life that I’m pretty laidback about. My host usually knows of an issue before I do and I figure they can fix things faster if they aren’t having to respond to my emails every 5 minutes. But anyway, on Tuesday morning it was still down and since I had a few “wtf” tweets and emails I decided to contact them. The guy emails me and says “There are no files in that database. That’s why nothing’s there.” And I’m all “Good joke but no really, where’s my 5 years of blog posts?”

He eventually got all my posts up but I had to go searching for my header and such and since I’m on my third computer this year, I didn’t have it saved. So I had to go digging through my external hard drive and once I pull that thing out, I’m done. Because why would I fix my blog and get a post up when I can go through every single photo I took in 2006?

And then I took the fat baby swimming for the first time.

So that’s my incredibly long story for why I won’t have 4 blog posts up this week. Stay tuned for next week’s excuse.

These quinoa bites are the new favorite side dish around here. Even my husband loves them and he’s anti anything weird like quinoa. They’re really easy to adapt to fit your needs too – like maybe add some diced ham to make a portable lunch!

One year ago: Everything Bread
Two years ago: Chocolate Chip Scones
Three years ago: Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Blondies

Cheesy Quinoa Bites

from So Very Blessed

Ingredients

2 cups cooked quinoa cooked in low-sodium chicken broth, preferably
2 large eggs
1 cup shredded carrot
2 stalks green onion diced
2 cloves garlic minced
2 tablespoons fresh basil chopped
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F.
Mix together quinoa, carrot, egg, green onion, garlic, basil, cheese, flour, seasoned salt and pepper.
Distribute mixture into a greased mini muffin tin, filling each cup to the top.
Bake for 15-20 minutes or until bites are firm to the touch.

Caesar Pasta Salad

Jul 01, 2013

Caesar Pasta Salad – the perfect barbecue or potluck side dish! Pasta with bacon, tomatoes, olives, Parmesan cheese, and caeser dressing. It is really simple and comes together in less than 20 minutes!

I made my husband cook pretty much every meal this past weekend. Even though it was his birthday weekend.

And I totally tricked him into it by tossing the new grilling issue of Bon Appetit at him on Friday afternoon. I was hoping he’d find at least a couple things that he needed to make immediately and he came through for me.

On Saturday he made some grilled chicken tacos and then on Sunday he made the always popular beer can chicken.

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Zucchini Fritters

Oct 17, 2012

A few weeks back Brandy contacted me about being a part of a cookbook review for Faith’s new cookbook, An Edible Mosaic. Stoked doesn’t begin to describe how I felt about this opportunity. An Edible Mosaic is a Middle Eastern cookbook which is my alltime favorite cuisine but it’s not something I ever really cook at home so this book is perfect for me!

Over the next few weeks I’ll be sharing some recipes from An Edible Mosaic and giving a full review of the book. A full list of bloggers participating can be found here. Get excited, y’all! I know I am!

The first recipe we were asked to make was Zucchini Fritters which I’m sure everyone has had at least once in their life. But these are different from the traditional fritters we’re used to here in the US. These are more of a savory pancake with zucchini throughout. They were absolutely delicious! My husband loves zucchini so I’m excited to make these for him when he comes home.

They were also very simple and quick to make. You guys know that I don’t enjoy frying but this was no more difficult than making regular breakfast pancakes.

More Zucchini Recipes

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Yield: 6 servings

Zucchini Fritters (A Mid-East Feast)

from An Edible Mosaic

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, diced
3/4 lb 350 g zucchini (about 1 medium), grated
2 large cloves garlic, crushed in a mortar and pestle with 1 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 bunch fresh parsley, minced
Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
Canola oil, for frying

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat; add the onion and cook until it starts to soften, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the zucchini and cook until softened and the water has evaporated, about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally; add the garlic and cook 1 minute more, stirring constantly. Cool slightly.
Lightly beat together the eggs, flour, parsley, and black pepper in a medium bowl. Stir in the zucchini mixture.
Add enough canola oil to a large nonstick skillet to lightly coat the bottom; heat the oil over medium heat.
Drop the batter into the hot pan using a small (about 2 tablespoon) or large (about 4 tablespoon) scoop. Fry until set and golden on one side, about 2 minutes; flip and cook until set and golden on the other side, about 1 minute.
Transfer the cooked fritters to a paper towel-lined plate to drain any excess oil, and cook the remaining egg mixture the same way, adding more oil to the skillet as necessary.

Baked Sweet Potato Chips

Apr 11, 2012

Happy Hump Day! How’s about a giveaway to make this Wednesday a little less painful?

I was recently sent a mandoline slicer as part of the OXO Blogger Outreach Program. I was pretty stoked about it because I’ve wanted a mandoline foreverÂ but those dang TV chefs had me completely scared of them. I mean seriously, those chefs talk like the sole purpose of a mandoline is to cut off your fingertips. But as it turns out, it’s really no big deal. And this handheld slicer from OXO comes with a nice little food holder that keeps your fingers far from the blade.

I knew immediately that I wanted to make some sort of veggie chip. I love those veggie chip mixes that you can find in bulk bins. LOVE them but how horrible are they for you?! The veggies don’t taste or look like their original form once they come out of the deep fryer.

So I sliced a sweet potato with my sparkly new mandoline and then baked them for what seemed like days. They turned out to be everything I hoped for and more. My oldest, who doesn’t like sweet potatoes, went crazy over them! They do take a verrrrryÂ long time to bake but I promise it’s worth it. And don’t crank the oven up to speed things along – you’ll end up with black sweet potato chips. Not that it happened to me or anything… ahem.

And now for the giveaway!!

I have an OXO mandoline slicerÂ to give to one lucky reader! All you have to do is answer:

What would you make if you won the mandoline?

Rules:

US only, please.
Giveaway will run until Sunday April 15, 2012 at 10 pm Mountain time.
Winner will be randomly chosen. I’ll email the winner and he or she will have 48 hours to respond before I have to choose another person.

GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED! The winner is Abbi!

One year ago:Â Slow Cooker Macaroni and Cheese

4.8 from 5 votes

Baked Sweet Potato Chips + a GIVEAWAY!

Ingredients

1 large sweet potato sliced thinly with mandoline slicer
1 teaspoon olive oil
salt and/or cinnamon

Instructions

Preheat oven to 225F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
Place sliced sweet potato in a large bowl. Drizzle olive oil over top; sprinkle with salt (or other seasoning). Toss the potatoes with your hands to make sure all are covered.
Lay the sweet potatoes out in a single layer on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for about 1Â½ hours (may be longer), rotating the sheets halfway through. until the sweet potatoes are crispy.
Let cool slightly. Best eaten the day they are made.

I was sent a mandoline to test out but was given no further compensation. All opinions are my own.Â

« Previous Page

Cranberry Almond Broccoli Salad

Bacon Cheddar Mashed Potatoes

Creamy Dill Cole Slaw

Cherry Bourbon BBQ Sauce

Cherry Bourbon BBQ Sauce!

Want more bourbon recipes?

Sausage and Cranberry Cornbread Dressing

Twice Baked Red Potatoes

Carrot Casserole with Crumb Topping

Easy Apple Butter

Mexican Rice

Cilantro-Lime Cauliflower Rice

Funeral Potatoes

Cheesy Quinoa Bites

Caesar Pasta Salad

Zucchini Fritters

More Zucchini Recipes

Zucchini Fritters (A Mid-East Feast)

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Baked Sweet Potato Chips

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Cherry Bourbon BBQ Sauce!

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More Zucchini Recipes

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