CHICKEN STUFFED WITH PESTO AND CHEESE (recipe by Lori)

Here is Lori's second recipe using Epicure's Pesto Herbs, which looks just as yummy as the first recipe!

2 chicken breasts, pounded flat
2 tbsp. Epicure's Pesto (recipe here)
2 tbsp. cream cheese
2 tbsp. shredded mozzarella
1 egg, beaten
3 tbsp. Parmesan cheese
3 tbsp. panko breadcrumbs

Season chicken breasts with salt & pepper. Spread cream cheese and pesto on the flattened chicken breasts. Sprinkle with mozzarella and roll up. Secure with toothpicks. Place egg in a shallow bowl and combine parmesan and panko in another shallow bowl. Dip the rolled chicken into the egg and then roll in the crumb mixture. Place in a baking dish and bake at 375F for 30 minutes.

ARTICHOKE PESTO DIP (recipe by Lori)

Here is another recipe from a customer who tried out Epicure's Pesto Herbs. Looks delicious! Love the fresh basil and pine nuts on top for presentation!!

1 c. softened cream cheese
1/2 c. mayo
3 tbsp. Epicure's Pesto (see recipe here)
1 can artichoke hearts, drained & rinsed

Mix up the pesto recipe. (I toasted the pine nuts then combined all the ingredients and blended them with my stick blender to get a nice emulsified mixture.) Roughly chop all but 1 of the artichoke hearts and dice that one to fold in at the end. In a food processor (or I continued with my stick blender), fold together cream cheese, mayo, and pesto mixture. Pulse to blend. Add the chopped artichoke hearts and blend to desired dip consistency. Fold in the finely-diced artichoke by hand so the pieces remain larger. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Serve with veggies, taco chips, or toasted pita bread.

CHICKEN WITH BACON & ROASTED TOMATOES

This was a delicious, simple meal from my Jamie Oliver Meals in Minutes cookbook.  This is definitely a new family favourite!

CHICKEN WITH BACON & ROASTED TOMATOES (adapted from Jamie Oliver)

4-5 chicken breasts

salt & pepper

Epicure's Mild Smoked Spanish Paprika

oregano, or try using Epicure's Poultry Seasoning or Montreal Chicken Rub for something different

olive oil & butter

8 slices of bacon

1 pint cherry tomatoes

1 lemon, quartered
Optional: Epicure's Little Italy Secret Sauce (recipe on the jar)

Season chicken with spices.  Heat oil and butter in a frying pan over medium-high heat and brown chicken on both sides, about 4-5 minutes.  Transfer chicken and juices to a baking dish, add cherry tomatoes and lemon wedges, and lay 4 bacon slices over top.  Place under the broiler in the oven for about 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked.  Meanwhile, cook the other 4 bacon slices in the frying pan and add them to the chicken dish when it's finished in the oven. Serve with Little Italy Secret Sauce.

SQUASHED POTATOES

1 1/2 lbs. baby potatoes (leave the peels on)

olive oil

6 garlic cloves

Epicure's Sea Salt

Boil potoates for 12-14 minutes, until tender.  Drain.  Arrange them in the frying pan after you finished cooking the bacon (leave the bacon fat in there!)  Add some olive oil, crushed garlic cloves, and salt.  Use a lid from a smaller pan and gently squash the potatoes until they burst.  Let them brown over medium heat and then toss and squash them again.

CUBAN PULLED PORK PIZZA (recipe by Richelle)

Here's another recipe from one of my customers, who sampled Epicure's Cuban Seasoning (my favourite Epicure seasoning!)

Slather pork tenderloin in oil and Cuban Seasoning. Put in crock pot with 1 c. water and cook on low for 4-6 hours. Shred meat with a fork. Top homemade pizza crust with BBQ sauce, pulled pork, and French's onions. Add cheddar and fresh parmesan cheese. Bake and enjoy!

Richelle said the Cuban seasoning had an amazing smoky BBQ flavour, and the leftover pork will be on buns for lunch tomorrow.

WORLD CUP FINAL (GERMANY VS ARGENTINA)

Tonight's supper was inspired by the World Cup final between Germany and Argentina. Germany may have won the game, but both countries were winners in this meal - everything tasted great and I would definitely make all of these recipes again sometime (though probably not in one meal!) This fed 5 adults and 5 kids so there was a lot of food, but it was all simple to make and everyone seemed to enjoy it.

From left to right:

BUENOS AIRES HEARTS OF PALM SALAD (from this recipe)
1 can heart of palm, sliced
2 tomatoes, sliced
2 avocados, sliced
Dressing:
1-2 tbsp. olive oil
1-2 tbsp. lemon juice
1-2 tbsp. lime juice
salt & pepper

Layer everything on a plate and whisk together dressing. Drizzle over salad and season with salt and pepper.

CHURRASCO (from this recipe)
20 garlic cloves, sliced
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. peppercorns (Epicure's Garlic Pepper or 4 Pepper Blend would be perfect)
1 c. orange juice
juice from 1 lemon (about 1/4 c.)
juice from 1 lime (about 1/4 c.)
1 onion, chopped
3/4 c. olive oil
6 steaks (you could also try chicken instead)

Combine marinade ingredients in a glass baking dish and arrange steaks in the marinade. Refrigerate overnight. Discard marinade and grill steaks on the barbeque. Serve with chimichurri.

CHIMICHURRI SAUCE (based on this recipe) **This recipe made way more than we needed - I would cut it in half next time.
2 bunches parsley (I used flat leaf and curly parsley)
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
2-3 tsp. dried oregano
2 tsp. paprika
2 tsp. chili flakes
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
1 c. olive oil

Combine all ingredients and use a food processor or immersion blender to smooth it out a bit, but still keep it a little bit chunky. Refrigerate overnight if possible to let the flavours develop.

PORK SCHNITZEL WITH MUSHROOM SAUCE (from this recipe)
10 pork cutlets or porkchops
1/2 c. flour
salt & pepper
oil or butter
2-3 c. mushrooms, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/3 c. chicken bouillon (for a low-sodium version, use Epicure's Chicken Bouillon)
1 tbsp. soya sauce
1/3 c. sour cream

Pound porkchops till they are 1/4" thick. In a shallow dish, mix flour, salt, and pepper. Coat porkchops in flour and save leftover flour mixture. Heat oil or butter in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook porkchops for 5-6 minutes, turning once. Set aside and cover with tinfoil to keep warm. When all the porkchops are done, add mushrooms and garlic to the frying pan and sauté till soft. Add leftover flour mixture and cook for 1 minute before adding chicken bouillon. Bring to a boil and then simmer over medium heat for a few minutes until sauce starts to thicken. Stir in soya sauce and sour cream. Serve pork with mushroom sauce on top, and garnish with parsley if you like.

BLACK FOREST CUPCAKES (based on this recipe)
1 Devil's Food cake mix
2 eggs
1 can cherry pie filling
whipped cream (whipping cream, icing sugar, and almond extract)
cherries for garnish

Combine cake mix, eggs, and pie filling. Place 24 cupcake liners in muffin pans. Pour batter into each one, and bake at 350 F for 18-20 minutes. When cupcakes are cool, top with whipped cream and a cherry.

STRAWBERRY SRIRACHA WINGS (recipe by Jamie)

Jamie outdid herself with this recipe! It sounds amazing!

chicken wings
1/2 c. strawberry jelly (split)
2 tsp. Epicure's Sriracha Seasoning (split)
1 tbsp. hoisin
1 tbsp. honey
2 tsp. garlic (split)
salt & pepper

Mix 1/2 the jelly, 1/2 the sriracha, hoisin, 1/2 the garlic, salt and pepper. Line a baking dish with tin foil and add chicken wings. Pour mixture over chicken and make sure everything is covered. Cover with tin foil and bake at 350 F for 30 minutes. At 30 minutes, raise the temperature to 385 F and turn wings. Cover and bake for another 30 minutes. During the last 30 minutes, mix the other 1/2 jelly, sriracha seasoning, and garlic with honey. Remove chicken from oven and turn on broiler. Pour out the chicken juice. Toss chicken in new honey mixture and return to baking dish. Broil for 5-10 minutes.

BBQ PORK RIBS (recipe by Jamie)

I gave away some free Epicure products for 5 of my friends to try -- in return, I asked them each to come up with 2 recipes that feature the product they were given. This recipe comes from my friend Jamie, and features Epciure's Sriracha Seasoning. It sounds delicious!

Add 1 package onion soup mix (or try Epicure's French Onion Dip Mix), Montreal Steak Rub, and Epicure's Sriracha Seasoning to a pot of water. Bring to a boil. Add pork ribs. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 2-3 hours. Remove from water and grill on the barbeque for 10-20 minutes until brown. Baste with BBQ sauce if you wish while grilling.