Wow, you guys did great yesterday – I am so proud of you! The participation aspect is one of the differentiators I like about writing here every day; with blogs, the authors can really get instant feedback, and communication is very much a two-way street. You can ask questions or make comments, and I get the opportunity to see them realtime. Visitors here get a direct line to me, with give and take, something that can’t be found in newspapers and magazines. Even when comments and e-mails are just a small percentage of the amount of visitors coming here every day (the comments today were actually less than 10% of the visitors today as of the time of this post), bloggers can see their impact with their readers. It really is quite cool.
The guilty pleasures you all contributed really ran the gamut … from salty to sweet, carbs to proteins, and everything in between. I was surprised to see more “real” food than junk food, but that’s a good surprise. ;) As for me, I have a few guilty pleasures. My junk food guilty pleasures these days have been Combos and Dunkaroos. Just can’t get enough of them, but I try to show restraint; I don’t feel too guilty though, because I’ve been using my treadmill religiously. Now for non-junk food guilty pleasures, it would be plain, hot buttered tortellini or this Vesuvious Cake that we sometimes get from a wholesale bakery. The bottom layer (where the walnuts are) is cheesecake, the second layer (the part that looks like turrets) is truffles covered with ganache, and lastly, in the center, which isn’t very visible, is chocolate mousse. Quite the bargain at $10, eh? My favorite part are the truffle turrets. Truth be told, we usually just eat the top layer …
OK, now for the Frozen Lemonade Cocktail. I wrote a short piece for Paper Palate the other day, with the recipe (what, you all missed it?) and you can find it here. It had endless variations, and Nicholas loves the non-alcoholic version, and so do I; it is just as good. Whichever way you make it, it’s very refreshing, and you’ll find yourself whipping up a batch again and again.
Now for dinner tonight … a new recipe, a Sweetnicks original, Parmesan Chicken Burgers. I got creative with some ingredients I had on hand, and ended up with a very moist, flavorful burger with a slightly crispy coating.
The New (to Me) Blogger on the Block and Rediscovering My Library segments will return next week; the guilty pleasures topic took precedence. ;) Tune in tomorrow to see what one-off event I’m throwing together, called I’ll Show You Mine, If You Show Me Yours. Until then…
A year ago today… delicious pasta and new cookbook acquisitions.
Parmesan Chicken Burgers
*as this is a Sweetnicks Original, if you share the recipe with someone, please let them know you got it from here. Enjoy.
1 pound ground chicken
1 small onion chopped
8 ounces shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons ketchup
1/2 teaspoon cumin
salt and pepper, pinch of each
1/2 tablespoon dried basil
2 teaspoons dried parsley
1 egg
half a sleeve of Ritz crackers, crushed
In a large bowl, combine the chicken, onion, mozzarella, ketchup, cumin, salt, pepper, basil, parsley and egg. Mix well and form patties. In separate shallow bowl, mix cracker crumbs and Parmesan cheese. Coat each burger, both sides, in cracker/crumb mixture. Heat a bit of vegetable oil in large skillet (or spray with non-stick spray) over medium-high heat. Cook burgers about 6 minutes each side, or until done. Serve.
Everything on your site looks sooooo delicious, Cate!!! Thanks for the incentive and inspiration!
Where do you get a Vesuvius Cake for $10 bucks? Watta deal!
I am definitely trying this burger.
Don’t you love it when you can come up with your own recipes. Sometimes it is more fun than finding ones to copy!
Thanks, Julie – I try! :)
La Vida Dulce – isn’t that an amazing bargain? They have super deals — eneough that sometimes it doesn’t pay to make it yourself.
Heather – hope you like them.