Author Archives: Parker

Mini-Melty Chocolate Chip Cookies

Bite size morsels of delish…

I normally stick to a low-carb, sugar-free, gluten-free diet. It’s just what works for me– and keeps my butt fitting into my skinny jeans. On any given day, I’d say I much prefer a big ‘ol steak and a piece of cheese to some sort of sugary confection. Except when it comes to chocolate chip cookies. They are one of my favorite things in the world… I will risk allergic reactions, bloated carb regret, and sugar withdrawal to indulge every now and again in melty, chocolatey deliciousness. I love experimenting with different recipes. Mark Bittman’s chocolate chip cookies from How to Cook Everything are my all-time favorite. For me, chocolate chip cookie perfection is when there is a slight crunch that gives way to a soft doughy inside that is warm and oozing semi-sweet chocolate chips.

I decided to try making chocolate chip cookies using sweetened condensed milk. This recipe requires no eggs and no added sugar, so making them is a breeze. The don’t get very browned in the oven, but I loved how they turned out! Super cute and bite size! The texture is a little more biscuit-y than cookie-y which JP wasn’t a fan of. I, on the other hand, promptly went into a self-induced carb/sugar coma that was epic.

Ingredients

1 cup butter softened (2 sticks)

1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk

2 cups flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions: Cream butter and condensed milk. Add everything else and mix until combined. Roll into 1-inch balls and place on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Chocolate Dipped Pecan Pie Balls

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Dark chocolate outside, pecan caramelly delish on the inside….

So, you’ve made your Thanksgiving Day pecan pies, right? Now it’s time to take them to a whole new level of delicious.

Pretty….but even more delicious wrapped up in a ball of chocolate!

Scrape the whole pie– yup, crust and all, into a bowl, mash it up a bit and pop it into the freezer for 2 hours. Then, the caramelly yummy delish will have firmed up and you can shape them into golf size pecan pie balls. Don’t put the balls in your mouth yet! Umm, I just said that. I digress. Put the pecan pie balls back in the freezer while you melt your chocolate. You can get those little cups of melting chocolate in the baking aisle of the grocery store and melt it in the microwave.

Find dipping or melting chocolate in the baking aisle of the grocery store

Set down some parchment or wax paper, then using a spoon, dip the pecan pie balls into the chocolate. The melting chocolate dries quickly, so if you want to put a single salted pecan on each chocolate ball, do it within 30 seconds of plunking it on the paper. Let dry and then bite into the best piece of pie you’ve ever tasted. The combo of chocolate with the pecan caramel melt-in-your-mouth-with-buttery-crust….

I. DIE.

Pecan-gasm. Seriously.

If you need to start from scratch and bake a pecan pie, Grandma Ronnie’s recipe is a show-stopper.

Ingredients

1/3 cup butter softened to room temperature plus 1 Tb

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

3 eggs

1 c. light corn syrup

1 1/2 heaping cups pecans + more for decorating

1 Tb vanilla

1/4 tsp salt

Directions: Preheat oven to 425. Line a 9-inch pie pan with pie crust. Put 1 Tb butter in a frying pan and melt it on medium heat. Toss in the 1 1/2 cups pecans and toast them in the butter– 5 minutes or so.

Toast your nuts first!

Filling: Cream butter and brown sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time. Stir in corn syrup, pecans, vanilla and salt. Fill the shell. *Bake at 425 for 10 minutes, then bake an additional 35-40 minutes at 350.

*Sometimes it takes my oven 50 minutes to cook the center of the pie. Keep an eye on it— it will congeal more once it comes out of the oven.

Happy Thanksgiving, y’all!

Gobble, gobble up the chocolate dipped pecan pie balls!

Curried Butternut Squash Stuffing

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A must-have side dish for your holiday spread!

OK, so I admit it. My signature stuffing up until now has been ~~fatty on a platter~~ a sausage smorgasbord. In fact, when I had Thanksgiving with JP’s family for the first time years ago, we had an entire debate about Stuffing vs. Dressing. Down here in the South, it’s called dressing. Where I come from, dressing is what you put on a salad! So, his family nicknamed my dish, “Yankee Stuffing” and like a true chef from north of the Mason-Dixon line, I loaded it with sausage and sage and butter….

The recipe was a hit, bless their little hearts!

So, when the lovely folks at Whole Foods Market asked me to come up with a recipe for a plant based vegetarian stuffing for our segment, I tried to talk them out of it. But Yankee stuffing is my favorite recipe, I sniffed.

Then, I (reluctantly) took the meat-free challenge. When I actually started experimenting with veggie options, I realized that meat doesn’t have to be the star– (sorry, Jimmy Dean!) Instead, butternut squash took the spotlight. It’s light, but savory and scrumptious!

Standing ovation, please!

Ingredients

1 loaf of ciabatta bread cubed and toasted in oven at 375 for 10 minutes

3 cups butternut squash chopped (steam for 10 minutes)

2 Tb curry powder

1 Tb Tandoori Masala spice mic

1 ½ cups vegetable stock

3-4 Tb sage

3 Tb currants

3 Tb toasted almonds

1 box of fresh sliced mushrooms

1 medium onion diced

3 stalks diced celery

3 garlic cloves diced

Saute in 1 Tb olive oil: Mushrooms, onion, celery and garlic

Add 2 Tb curry powder and 1 Tb Tandoori Masala spice mix to 1 ½ cups vegetable stock

Add vegetable stock with spices to bread, squash and mushroom/onion mixture.

Fold in:

3-4 Tb chopped fresh sage

3 Tb currants

3 Tb toasted almonds

1 tsp of kosher salt plus more to taste.

Mix together and bake at 400 for 10-15 minutes.

Maple Sweet Potatoes with Caramelized Onion and Bacon

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Can’t. Stop. Eating. These.

I already posted a great sweet potato recipe this week, but I had a couple leftover taters in my kitchen, so I decided to improvise with another version. I like this one even better. OHMYGOD. I couldn’t stop eating them out of the pan! Adding in a bit of Grade B maple syrup gives them a decadent, slightly sweet finish to compliment the savory sage and bacon. OHMYGOD.

Ingredients

2 large sweet potatoes (peeled and diced)

6 pieces of cooked, crumbled bacon

1 medium onion cut into thin rings

1 Tb butter

1 Tb olive oil

1/4 cup brandy

1 tsp kosher salt (plus more to taste)

2 Tb Grade B Maple syrup

2 Tb fresh sage chopped

Directions: Toss peeled and diced sweet potatoes in boiling water for 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Bake bacon at 400 for 10 minutes until crispy. Drain and crumble.

Heat up a frying pan on medium heat with oil and butter. Put onions in when butter gets bubbly with 1 tsp kosher salt. Saute for 20 minutes until softened and beginning to brown and caramelize. Add in 1/4 cup brandy and crank up heat for a couple minutes. Then turn heat back down and cook off alcohol, another 15 minutes. Add in softened potatoes and crumbled bacon. Stir in the 2 Tb of Grade B Maple syrup to coat everything. Garnish with fresh sage.

I dare you to try not eating them straight outta da pan. OHMYGOD.

Meaty Monday: Smack Yo Mama (it’s so good) Jambalaya

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A stick to yer ribs kinda meal

This is probably, hands down, JP’s favorite meal. Inevitably, our kitchen is filled with exclamations that go something like this: “OHMYGODPARKERYOUARESOFREAKINGAMAZINGILOVEYOUANDTHISJAMBALAYASOMUCH!!”

Classic jambalaya usually has chicken, but I normally just add shrimp and spicy andouille sausage. My go-to brand is Ragin’ Cajun.

My fave brand of sausage for jambalaya

I make my jambalaya in piece-meal and then combine it all— making the rice, sautéing the veggies, then the sausage, then doing the shrimp last so they don’t get tough. The best part is that it tastes even better the next day– (if it lasts that long!) I serve it with jalapeño cornbread . Prepare to smack yo mama after the first bite…..it’s that damn good!

Ingredients

1 box of Zatarain’s Jambalaya Rice Mix

2 bay leaves

1 onion diced

3 garlic cloves diced

1 green or red bell pepper diced

3 celery stalks diced

1 jalapeño diced

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with chilies (like Rotel) undrained

1 Tb tomato paste

1 Tb srirachi or hot sauce

1 Tb worcestershire

1/4 cup white wine

1 Tb Grade B maple syrup

2 Tb butter

2 Tb olive oil

3 Tb fresh thyme leaves

1 package of andouille sausage

1 pound of shrimp (peeled and deveined) tossed with 2 Tb of spice mix (recipe below)

Spice Mix

1 tsp coriander

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp thyme leaves

2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp kosher salt

Directions: Make Zatarain’s mix according to package directions with the addition of the bay leaves and set aside.

Veggies: Saute vegetables (onion, peppers, garlic, jalapeño, celery) in 1 Tb olive oil on medium heat until soft, about 10 minutes. Add to rice. (I usually put rice in a large saucepan after it’s cooked to make room for the other ingredients). Then, add in worcestershire, tomatoes, tomato paste, white wine, hot sauce and fresh thyme. Let simmer uncovered on low heat until you add the sausage/shrimp and are ready to serve. Stir occasionally.

Sausage: Slice sausage to desired thickness (I do about 1/4 inch) and saute in 1 Tb butter and 1 Tb olive oil on medium heat until cooked through– about 10 minutes. Then add the Grade B Maple syrup to coat. Grade B is the thicker more organic variety than your regular Aunt Jemima. It has a stronger maple taste– combined with the sausage, it’s got a touch of sweet and a whole lotta spicy, smoky and delish.

Shrimp: Toss shrimp (after they’re peeled and deveined) in 2 Tb of the spice mix. Heat up 1 Tb butter and 1 Tb olive oil in a frying pan on med/high heat and let the butter get bubbly. If you add a shrimp to the pan and you don’t hear a *sizzle*– it’s not ready. Wait another minute or so. Don’t crowd the shrimp in the pan– you’ll need to do atleast 2 batches if you’re cooking a whole pound. Add a little more butter and olive oil between batches.

Saute shrimp for 3 minutes on one side and flip– then 2 minutes on the other side. Put your timer on so they don’t go too long and get overdone!

Fold in the sausage and the shrimp to the rice and serve hot with cornbread. Prepare for a par-tay on your palate that Mama would be proud of.

Baked Cod in Parchment with Mediterranean Tapenade

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Substitute in any white fish you like…

Earlier this summer, I had the chance to cook with one of the most inspiring women I know….Deb Shigley is a published author (check out her book The Go-Getter Girl’s Guide) a regular on the Today Show, incredible wife and Mom to 3 (yes, 3 kiddos!) and host of her own cooking blog In Deb’s Kitchen. Together, we whipped up one of my favorite fish recipes, Baked Cod in Parchment paper with a Mediterranean Tapenade. Fish en papillote, if ya wanna get fancy. Watch the video to see the intricacies of wrapping fish, folks….

Ingredients

For each 4-oz cod fillet you’ll need:

A pat of butter

Sprig of Fresh Thyme

Slice of lemon

Splash of white wine

Sea Salt

Black Pepper

Parchment Paper

1 Egg, beaten (to seal parchment paper)

For the tapenade:

2 fresh garlic cloves
1 roasted red pepper (jarred)
2 Tablespoons chopped sundried tomatoes in oil

Handful of green olives
handful of kalamata olives
1 Tablespoon capers

Crumbled goat or feta cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place your piece of parchment paper (about 9 X 12 in.) on the counter or cutting board. Arrange one cod fillet in the top center of the paper. Add a pat of butter, sprig of thyme, splash of white wine and lemon slice on top of the fish and season with sea salt and pepper. Using a pastry brush, paint a line of egg wash around the perimeter of the paper, about 1/2-inch from the edge. Fold paper in half to seal in the fish like an envelope. Starting from the bottom left corner, fold and roll the paper over itself in 1/4 inch sections, continuing along the edge toward the bottom right corner until you’ve sealed the fish in its little parchment paper pocket. Transfer each parchment packet to a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.

For the tapenade, place all ingredients except the goat cheese into a mini-processor. Pulse about 15-30 seconds, until blended but still very chunky (if you pulse too long the tapenade will get soupy). Transfer tapenade mixture to another bowl and top with a handful of crumbled goat cheese. Remove fish from its parchment packet when ready and plate. Spoon a few tablespoons of tapenade on top of baked fillet.

Enjoy!

HOLY *&%# WTF Bars

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Might be the best dessert EVER.

HOLY *&%# WTF Bars. Why the profanity, you ask? Because that’s what came out of my man’s mouth when he tasted these….They are hands down, one of the best desserts ever. And they’re legendary in my family. Many years ago, they were nicknamed, “Nancy Reagan Bars,” and that’s actually still what everyone in my fam calls them.

Weird, right? Let me explain.

The story my Mom tells is that back when Ronald Reagan was elected in 1980, all of the living First Ladies were asked to submit a recipe to the Washington Post. Nancy wasn’t exactly known for her culinary skills, so Mom was intrigued by her submission: Vienna Chocolate Bars.

Nancy Reagan…kisses and a recipe that if you don’t try, Mr T would say, “I pity the fool!”

I’ve made a lot of cookie recipes– this one is unique because of the layers of shortbread, raspberry jam, chocolate and a whipped nut merengue on top. It sounds high maintenance, but these ~~badmuthafuckas~~ dessert bars are surprisingly easy to pull together. The only thing I changed was adding white chocolate chips (in addition to the regular chocolate morsels.)

The recipe has been a must-have in my family for the last 33 years. Check out how it looks in my grandmother’s cookbook, Recipes from Ronnie’s Kitchen…now that’s worn with L.O.V.E. (and some smeared butter).

My Mom’s contribution to my Grandmother’s family cookbook

Warning: Prepare for exclamations of HOLY *&^% WTF is this??? when friends and families get a taste of the delish.

Ingredients

2 sticks butter

2 1/2 cups flour

2 large egg yolks

1 1/2 cup sugar divided

4 egg whites

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels

1 cup white chocolate morsels

1 (10oz) jar of seedless raspberry preserves

2 cups of ground nuts (I like walnuts best in this recipe and just pulse them until they’re finely ground in the food processor.)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350.

Layer 1: Cream 2 sticks of butter with 1/2 cup of sugar. Add egg yolks one at a time. Then add flour until combined. Press batter into the bottom of a greased jelly roll pan or a 9×13 cake pan. It will be soft and a little crumbly but will spread out easily to cover the bottom of the pan.

Spread shortbread dough into pan and bake at 350 for 15-20 min.

Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes until golden. It looked like this when I took it out of the oven.

The shortbread layer gives these bars a buttery crunch

Layer 2: Spread jelly on cooled shortbread. Then top with chocolate chips.

Layer 3: Beat 4 egg whites with 1/4 tsp salt until stiff. It took about 2-3 minutes with an electric hand mixer. Then fold in 1 cup sugar and the 2 cups of ground nuts.

Beaten egg whites with nuts and sugar folded in

Gently spread nut/egg white mixture on top of chocolate chips. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes.

Baked to perfection

And, then, the next morning, I was like, “HOLY *&%# WTF??!!!”

Apparently, someone (fitting the description of a 6’3, 240lb dude) got up in the middle of the night for a ~~feeding~~ snack.

Warning: Night feedings may occur

Chocolate Chipotle Chili

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It’s an award winner, y’all!

I always come back to this chili recipe…not just because it’s won two awards, (let me just brag for a minute!) but because it’s That. Damn. Good. This week, I sent the recipe to a girlfriend of mine who made it for a potluck party. She promptly declared– and I do quote: “Oh dear God, Parker. I’m not kidding. That’s the best chili I’ve ever tasted! And I live in Texas. I’m giddy with excitement to take it tomorrow!”

I never get tired of hearing ~~applause~~ compliments for my recipes— mostly just because it makes my heart happy to share food, and for me, it’s sharing pure L.O.V.E.

The show-stopper ingredients in this chili are the hint of chocolate (1 Tb cocoa) and the chipotle peppers. Once you brown all the ingredients and combine, you can let it simmer on the stove or in a crockpot on low for about 3 hours, but don’t keep it going in the crockpot all night or it will dry it out. Just put it in the fridge and thin it out in the morning with a bit of beef stock.

Just let it simmer in the crockpot for 3 hours on low, but not overnight.

Ingredients

Lots of ingredients, but so worth the effort!

2 pounds ground beef (sometimes the butcher will label it “chili mix”– the beef is thicker than regular hamburger meat)

1 pound spicy sausage (I use Jimmy Dean HOT sausage)

3 Tablespoons butter

2 medium or 1 large yellow/white onion diced

4-5 garlic cloves diced

2 jalapeno peppers diced (not seeds)

2 cans Rotel tomatoes (original)

1 (6 oz) can of tomato paste

1 can of red beans with juice (Kidney)

1/4 cup honey

4 Tablespoons BBQ sauce

1 Tablespoon Tabasco sauce

4 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (diced with seeds), plus 4 Tablespoons of sauce

1 12 oz bottle amber beer

2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

1 Tablespoon Cocoa

2 cups of beef stock (I prefer using “Better Than Bouillon” paste. You boil 2 cups of water and add 2 Tablespoons of the paste and mix.)

2 Tablespoons Cumin

4 Tablespoons Chili powder

1 Tablespoon Garlic powder

1 Tablespoon Onion powder

2 Tablespoons Paprika (Hungarian/spicy is best)

2 Tablespoons Brown sugar

1 Tablespoon Cayenne pepper

1 Tablespoon Kosher Salt

2 Tablespoons Black pepper

4 ears corn on cob, cut off cob

Bunch of Scallions chopped to garnish

Shredded cheese to top

Directions: In a large saucepan, brown chili meat and sausage. Do not drain. In a separate frying pan, melt butter and saute onion, garlic, jalapeno and corn until soft, 5-7 minutes. Add to beef saucepan and stir to combine. Add all the spices to the beef mixture and saute over medium heat until combined…Pour in everything else and simmer for 2-3 hours! Top with chopped scallions and shredded cheese!

Love Jambalaya and Chili? Try my Chili-laya recipe too!

Ready to dive in…

Turkey Cranberry Salad…Leftover Turkey Heaven

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Leftovers won’t last long with this delish salad!

Who wants cold turkey sandwiches for 11 days after Thanksgiving? Not this girl. Your turkey just went to leftover heaven with this fabulous turkey cranberry salad. The secret ingredient is the heavy whipping cream folded in– it takes away that mayonnaisey taste that sometimes overwhelms chicken salad. The result is a salad that is creamy and decadent (and low-carb!) Sounds like the kind of legacy every turkey would want to leave behind, right?

Ingredients

4 cups of fresh roasted turkey chopped

½ cup of full-fat mayonnaise

3 Tb fresh parsley

3 Tb celery diced

3 Tb onion diced

3 Tb fresh cranberry sauce

3 Tb fresh toasted almonds

½ cup heavy whipping cream whipped into soft peaks

1 tsp kosher salt, more to taste

Directions: Mix everything together– fold in heavy whipping cream last. Enjoy!

Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Pistachios and Sage

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Savory, smooth, crunchy and delish!

Who doesn’t love the Southern classic Thanksgiving sweet potatoes with marshmallows and pecans? Since I’ve been trying to ~~keep my ass in skinny jeans this holiday season~~ cut down on sugar, I was inspired to come up with a savory version that cut the sugar without cutting out the flavor. Meet Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Pistachios and Sage…

Ingredients

3 sweet potatoes (peeled and diced)

8oz container of whipped cream cheese

1/2 stick melted butter (4 Tb)

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 cup heavy cream or half-n-half

3 roasted garlic cloves (roasted in jackets at 400 for 15 minutes, drizzled with olive oil)

Chopped fresh sage

1/2 cup toasted, crushed pistachios

Directions: Boil sweet potatoes until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and add the rest of ingredients to your mixer. Blend until smooth. Top with sage and pistachios.