Here’s a new idea to give a boring grilled cheese some life! Check this easy recipe for a “Jalapeño Popper Grilled Cheese” made with our Sweet Pepper Jalapeño Jam – Yum! 

ngredients

• 2 slices sourdough bread
• 1-2 oz. cream cheese softened (goat cheese works great too!)
• 1-2 Tbsp. Sweet Pepper Jalapeño Jam
• 1-2 Tbsp. bacon cooked and diced

Instructions

1. Butter the outsides of both slices of bread. Spread the unbuttered side of one slice of bread with softened cheese, then Sweet Pepper Jalapeño Jam. Sprinkle on some bacon. Put second slice of bread on top, butter side out. Grill on both sides until lightly browned.

Want to new "drink"?

This will blow your guest away....

S'mores Martini

Ingredients
3 Tablespoons TS Sweet Smores Cocoa Mix
2 oz. chocolate vodka (Marshmallow/Whipped would be yummy!)
3 oz. milk
3-4 ice cubes
Crushed Graham Crackers or TS Caramel Cinnamon Sprinkles to rim the glasses

Directions:
Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Shake well; strain into martini glass. Makes 1-2 servings.

Simple Pasta Salad.

 Summer picnics and potlucks almost always feature pasta salad. However, there’s one problem with most pasta salads at a picnic – they’re made with mayo. Which requires refrigeration. Enter Simple Pasta Salad – like other pasta salads, it has a great summer flavor and comes together quickly. Unlike other pasta salads, it doesn’t contain mayonnaise and can sit on the picnic table until everyone has had their fill (if it lasts that long).

• ¼ cup Simply Salsa™ Mix
• 2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes or 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
• 2-3 Tbsp. olive oil
• 8 oz. bowtie pasta, prepared and cooled
• 15 oz. can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
• 6-8 oz. block Cheddar cheese, cubed
• 1 cucumber, peeled and diced
• ½ cup sliced black olives
• Sour cream
• Fresh cilantro for garnish

Combine first 3 ingredients; chill 2 hours. One hour before serving, place next 5 ingredients in a large bowl; add Simply Salsa mixture. Toss to blend; refrigerate until served. Garnish with sour cream and cilantro. Makes 8-10 servings.

Bacon Bacon BLT

But you know what everyone loves? BACON! So, as a compromise, I serve Bacon Bacon BLTs. They have twice the bacon flavor for people who wish they were eating a bacon sandwich. And I can add an extra slice of tomato (or two, or four extra slices) to my sandwich to maximize the tomato-y goodness of summer. And, since everyone is individualizing their sandwich, just slice the bread and tomato, cook the bacon, make the Bacon Bacon Dip and set it all on the table – perfect for busy summer nights, and you can even serve sandwiches on paper plates with a side of chips (with the already-made Bacon Bacon Dip) for easy clean-up!

• 1 Tbsp. Bacon Bacon™
• ¼ cup mayonnaise
• ¼ cup sour cream
• 8 slices Bountiful Beer Bread Mix^®
• 2 tomatoes, sliced
• 8 slices cooked bacon
• Leaf lettuce

Combine first 3 ingredients; chill 2 hours. Spread 2 slices of Bountiful Beer Bread (toasted if desired) with Bacon Bacon mixture; top with tomatoes, bacon and lettuce to make a sandwich. Repeat with remaining slices of bread and toppings. Makes 4 sandwiches.

Great Summer Coolers

Just add your favorite beverage, freeze and enjoy!!!

Kabobs…Unskewered

• 1 ½ lbs. beef, chicken or pork
• 1 ½ – 2 Tbsp. Burger & Brat Mustard
• 2 Tbsp. (1 capful) Honey BBQ Seasoning & Rub
• Honey Apple Grill Sauce

Cube the meat into large-ish chunks – about 2”.  Place the cubes in a bowl and toss with the mustard to coat.  Then add the Honey BBQ Seasoning; stir to coat.  Let stand for up to 30 minutes, more if you refrigerate it.  Grill.  Serve with Honey Apple Grill Sauce.   Serves 4-6.

• I used a pork tenderloin and it was delish!
• You don’t really taste the mustard in this recipe – it’s just the glue that helps the Honey BBQ Seasoning stick. 
• I let the cubes of pork stand while I prepped the veggies for grilling, and that was enough time for the seasonings to do their thing…the pork was very tasty and juicy.
• Immediately after taking the pork off the grill, I put it into a serving bowl and stirred in the Honey Apple Grill Sauce.                                  
  

  Grilled Veggies

  This is just a guide…you can use about anything you like, cut into largish chunks.  Here’s what I had in this batch:
  
• ½ green bell pepper, cut into chunks
• ½ red bell pepper, cut into chunks
• ½ yellow bell pepper, cut into chunks
• 4 oz. fresh button mushrooms, quartered
• 6 oz. fresh portabella mushrooms, gills removed; cut into chunks
• 6 stalks of asparagus, cut in 2” pieces
• 1 small zucchini, sliced into rounds about 3/8” thick
• 1 small summer squash, sliced into rounds about 3/8” thick
• 2 Tbsp. Balsamic & Basil Dipping Oil
• 1 tsp. Seasoned Salt
• 1 tsp. Garlic Pepper Seasoning; optional

Place the veggies in a large flat pan, such as a 9×13 cake pan.  Drizzle with the oil, then add the seasonings and stir to coat.  Add a little more oil if needed – all the veggies should have a thin coating.  Let stand 30 minutes or so.  If you are in a hurry…let stand 5 minutes.  If you are moving slow, let stand up to a couple of hours.  It’s pretty flexible.  Grill over medium heat using a veggie rack or pan for about 15 minutes, stirring as needed.  Serves 4-6.

Testing Notes

• First off…I could live off this recipe.  Seriously…it’s one of my favorite things.
• The recipe is very, very flexible.  Sometimes I have but one type of veggie, so I just do that.  Other times I have a different combo, like broccoli, cauliflower, green beans.  You can use potatoes too, but I par-boil them first.
• The mushrooms are the best!
• Use a smoker box on your grill!  It is awesome and adds so much flavor.               
  

  Grilled Pineapple

• One whole pineapple
• Creamy Caramel Sauce

Wash the pineapple then cut it into quarters, leaving the leaves intact.  Gently heat the Creamy Caramel Sauce in the microwave, then brush a little on the pineapple.  Grill over medium heat, about 5 minutes on each of the two exposed sides, until the fruit is hot and has grill marks.  Remove from grill and brush with more Creamy Caramel Sauce.  Serve immediately.  Serves 4.

Testing Notes

• I have to say…this was fab!
• I was kind of worried about cutting through the leaves when quartering the pineapple, because I thought it would be difficult to make it look nice, but it wasn’t hard.  I used a very sharp 8” chef’s knife and just cut right through.
• I was also thinking the Creamy Caramel Sauce might burn, but it didn’t. 
• Try this!!!  Yum!!!

Using your product in delicious ways

You thought Sunny Strawberry Margarita's were only for drinking didn't you...WRONG, LOL!

Go ahead.....you can read this, you can make it, and you can even enjoy every taste of deliciousness!

Sunny Strawberry Ice Box Dessert~Tastefully Simple Idea
Crust: 1 C. graham cracker crumbs, 1Tbsp sugar, 3 Tbsp melted butter. Mix all and press into a 9x9 or 7x11 pan. Chill 15 min.
Layer 1: 8 oz soft cream cheese, 1 C powdered sugar, 8 oz thawed Cool Whip. Mix cream cheese and powdered sugar, then fold in Cool Whip. Spread on graham cracker base.
Filling Layer: 3Tbsp Sunny Strawberry Margarita Mix (Tastefully Simple item) mixed with 6 oz soft cream cheese and then fold in 4 oz thawed Cool Whip. Spead ontopof Layer 1.
Top with 4oz of thawed Cool Whip.
Garnish with additional graham cracker crumbs or fresh strawberries~~as desired.
Chill 3 hours or overnight.