Smoked Turkey

Thanksgiving is almost here and I’ve had numerous questions about smoking a turkey. Now I’ve tried roasting and deep-fried and I will have to say smoking is my favorite. Today I will be starting with a 14.5 pound bird. This was sitting in a brine for about 16 hours. You can find my brine recipe…

Turkey Brine

Thanksgiving is near and I like to brine my Turkey. I’ve noticed the flavor is better when I started to brine. Many will argue that a simple saltwater solution will do the trick. Others will argue that you do not need to brine a Turkey. I say do what you like! This is the recipe…

Vanilla Maple Pumpkin Cheesecake w/ Maple Praline Glaze

I was asked to participate in a recipe contest using The Maple Guild products. I immediately had my mind going in many directions. Here is my entry for the baked goods category. Pumpkin Cheesecake is a family favorite so I did a little tweaking and came up with this recipe using The Maple Guilds Vanilla…

Smokin’ Brothers

How I LOVE thee…..ok so its been about a month since I’ve gotten my new pellet smoker in. I’ve baked on it, done short cooks, and a few long cooks. So I got the Premier 30 model. Let me tell you this thing is built like a beast! Made in America and this thing is heavy-duty!…

Smoked Four Cheese Mac & Cheese

So I’ll be perfectly honest and tell you that my kids don’t always appreciate smoked food. In fact, when I made this they asked if I could just bake it next time. I know….its breaks my heart too! Luckily this recipe can be “baked” on a smoker or cooked in the oven. This would also…

Albondigas

So let me start by saying that there are probably hundreds of ways to make this soup. I changed this recipe through the years from how I was originally taught. My Grandmother always insisted that I put Mint into the meatballs but I never have. Just my personal preference. You can also add or leave…

Mexican Rice

There seems to be a few variations on this rice depending on where people are from. Some you’ll see with veggies, some more of a yellow color, and some that are not orange in color.  This was the way my Grandmother and mother taught me. It was never measured and always thrown together by “eye”. In…

Fiesta Stuffed Peppers

These are a favorite in my home. They can be baked or cooked on a grill or smoker. There are a few ways to switch the recipe up to your liking. I use ground turkey but you can use beef. I also like to use green bell peppers to stuff. This is just a personal…