There’s something about using the word smothered in the same sentence as bacon and cheese that just really gets me going….I mean, look at that melty delish.  It’s Level 10, y’all.  And it’s totally low carb perfection.  The mayo layer in this recipe isn’t totally necessary, but it just makes it even creamier and gooey-er.  Do it.

There are a few easy steps to make this melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness.  First, saute red onion (cut into rings) in butter until it starts to caramelize, about 20 minutes.  Then add in a couple fresh jalapenos and 5 slices of bacon cut up.  Saute until bacon is done, another 10-15 minutes.  There’s nothing in the world like the smell of bacon and onion sauteeing in a pan together.  A girlfriend of mine once said that when she invited a date over for dinner, no matter what she was cooking, she would fry up onions and bacon– and the dude was instantly hooked.  (On her and whatever she was serving up that night!)

I like to take my time with the onions and really get them soft and caramelized.  They’re so good, I had to stop myself from eating them straight out of the pan!

While the onion mixture is cooking, start grilling your chicken.  I use a grill pan with a combo of butter and oil and cook about 2/3 of the way through.  These were super thick breasts, so I did about 10 minutes on each side and then they’ll cook the rest of the way when you pop them in the oven.  Key to perfect chicken is to dry the meat off with paper towels so the pieces cook evenly.  I always use a 2/1 ration of butter to oil (2 Tb butter to 1 Tb of olive/coconut/canola oil– whatever oil you want to use.  I season both sides of the chicken with a combo of paprika and steak seasoning.

Mix a cup of mayo with 1/4 cup of shredded cheddar cheese, a 1/2 tsp each of garlic powder and onion powder with a pinch of kosher salt.  Slather that on the chicken breasts and put in a casserole dish.

Then, spoon the yummy jalapeño, bacon, caramelized onion goodness on top of the chicken.

Put some smoked gouda slices on top of that. (I used 5).

Bake at 400 for 10 minutes (or a few minutes more if the chicken is super thick) and broil for one minute to brown the cheese.

Dive into delish!  ERMAHGAWD.  So. Damn. Good.

Note: There will be some greasy puddles at the bottom of the casserole because of the fat from the mayo and cheese, but just use a slotted spoon to scoop out the bacon and onion that slips into the bottom of the casserole dish.  When I was cleaning up my kitchen later, I found myself using my, uh, fingers, to grab those buttery, yummy stray pieces of bacon.  Oh yeah, baby!

Y’all already know I can throw down some wings.  In fact, my White Girl Can Cook Wings made me (almost) famous in Atlanta after a very memorable catering gig a few years back.

Well, this Wing Woman was blown away by a recipe shared with me by a dear co-worker, Martin Williams.  His Mom made wings for our office before the holidays and I didn’t even get to sample them while they were hot.  Marty had wrapped up a few and left them on my desk for me for when I returned to the office.  OMG.  I ate them cold and licked my fingers.  Oh, it’s true.  They were that good.

Mrs. Williams’ wings became my new obsession.  I had to practically stalk her for the recipe.  I made them the first time with fresh rosemary and they were amazing.  Then, when I was out of fresh herbs, I used my Herbs de Provence mixture and they were even more sublime.  Make them.  NOW.  No frying, no flour, no carb drama.  AH-MAZING!!!!!  Thanks Mrs. W!

The lady behind the delish factor. Thanks Martin and Mrs. W!

Ever since JP and I got together, steak has been our go to date-night-in meal.  He tackles the grill while I work on the side dishes.  Usually we opt for big, marbled rib eyes, but during “Snowpocalypse,” JP picked up some flank steak.  I grew up eating flank steak and always have found it kind of blah.  It’s such a lean cut of meat that it can be overcooked really easily and more often than not, it ends up tough.  Grilling it hot and fast is usually your best bet.  I doctored this marinade from a Rachael Ray recipe and it turned out fabulous.  Tender, juicy and full-oh-flavah.