st patricks day – Sweet Heat Chefs

There is one thing my household loves more than avocado and that is bacon. That is why when I saw this recipe I instantly knew I HAD to make it, and soon.

This recipe is from my sweetest and most awesome friend Bernadette. Her fabulous blog is Rantz From My Crazy Kitchen. You can find many amazing recipes there including a page with 58 bacon recipes from breakfast all the way through to dessert, which means you can have a PORK PARTY all day! You can view Bernadette’s recipe for her outta this world guacamole here. Below is my version with just a slight modification.

INGREDIENTS

2 avocados
4 slices thick center cut bacon
1/4 cup purple onion, diced fine
3/4 tablespoon jalapeno, diced fine
4 heirloom cherry tomatoes diced
1/2 lime juiced
1/2 lemon juiced
2 cloves garlic, minced (small cloves or 1 big one)
handful of freshly chopped cilantro
dash of salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

Cut up bacon in bite sized pieces and fry the bacon with the onions until crisp. (this is money right here, in the voice of Guy Fierre!) If you prefer less done/burnt onions, remove as you are cooking. I enjoy crispy bacon and crispy onion and they cooked together the entire process in a pan of marriage bliss! Drain everything on a paper towels when done.
In a small bowl mash the avocado
Next add; tomatoes, lemon juice, lime juice, garlic, cilantro and salt and pepper. Stir until well combined.
Stir in the bacon and onion, cover tightly with plastic wrap pressed right on top of the guacamole and refrigerate for at least 1/2 hour.

This recipe fed 3 of us, 2 boys and myself. We ate every last drop.

I TEENY TINY PIECE OF ADVICE ON THIS RECIPE…..The yield here is NOT enough, plan to quadruple it for your first try. That way you won’t be licking the container clean just to get a little bit more.

For this cookie, I was looking for something fun to do for St. Patrick’s Day. We all know to wear green and if not you get pinched. We also know that corned beef and cabbage is the honorary food of this day. But sweets, what about the sweets? I need sweets!! Ok, over my sugar high now. So with this past year I was at home with my kids and we were trying to think of something new to make. I decided sugar cookies because they are so versatile you can add to them almost anything and get a great result. Ok, added green food coloring, kids love it, our hands not so much. Then my daughter, Jasmine, came up with the idea of using cookie cutters. Brilliant, we found shamrock! Several batches later we found the perfect ratio of food coloring to dough and all the rest of the sugary goodies that kids love fell into place! Also knowing and always promoting that I am not a baker, makes me feel even more sugary and sweet inside about this recipe!

INGREDIENTS

2.5 – 3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup sugar
2 sticks butter
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Leaf Green Coloring

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees
1. Combine the flour and baking powder, set aside

2. Cream the sugar and butter

3. Add egg and extracts, mix well

4. Gradually add the flour mixture and beat until well combined

5. Divide dough in 4 parts {or leave all one color} gradually add coloring

6. Place in fridge about 30-60 minutes to make handling the dough easier

7. Roll out dough between 2 pieces of wax paper approximately 1/4″ thick, cut with a shamrock cookie cutter

8. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray

9. Place cookies on sheet and bake about 12-14 minutes or until firm to the touch, but still soft

10. Cool completely

11. Frost one side of cookie with frosting and put your favorite sprinkles on it, then top with another shamrock cookie and roll in more sprinkles!

12. Or if you don’t want the sandwich cookie, frost and sprinkle one cookie.