2 posts tagged “mozzarella”

First the recipe, then the back-story.

Begin with boxed mac and cheese.

Prepare according to the directions on the box.

Don't worry that's just the shortcut, the magic in the recipe happens next, although it is equally sneaky/lazy.

Once the mix is hot and saucy in the pan,

add one handful of pre-shredded sharp cheddar cheese.

Add a handful of pre-shredded Colby Jack cheese.

Add a handful of pre-shredded Mozzarella cheese.

Stir the additional cheese into the mix until it is melted and incorporated.

Spoon the mac and cheese out onto serving plates, and dust with a handful of seasoned breadcrumbs to give the illusion of a crust (mine come in a carton from the store.)

It's still so easy that a fifth-grader could do it, but it's oh so more gourmet than the box mix by itself.

Now, for the inspirational back-story.

My wife's parents bought a birthday present for our recently one-year-old daughter on Amazon.

They also bought themselves a book travel guide covering the sights to see in Hawaii for their upcoming trip.

Their order was enough for free shipping, IF they sent both items to one address, OURS.

This was followed by a request to then mail their book back to them after we received the present.

Nice.

They get free shipping on their book.

And we get to pay to mail it back to them.

So, I admit, I dawdled a bit in making the trip to stand in line at the post office, this being tax-return mailing line from hell season there.

However, since their trip is in a week, we began getting pressure to get their travel guide back to them post-haste.

So, I trek down and stand in an absolutely awful line and send the thing back to them.

Priority was only a few cents more than the book rate, so I went for it, to make sure it got to them before their trip.

Which leads to today, when the In-Laws received the book and noticed how much the postage cost.

We get an email telling us that really, that was unnecessary and that we should have used book-rate instead of priority and to keep that in mind for next time.

NEXT TIME?

Sneaky and cheesy.

They get free shipping, that we have to stand in line and pay for, and then they scold us for how much we spent of our own money to send them their free book in time for their vacation.

Which is where the breadcrumbs come in.

I'm feeling fairly crusty at the moment myself.

I will endeavor to begin sharing my yum-yum discoveries with you.

Today we will review an appetizer, or cocktail finger-food.

This is going to be easy.

What you will need to do this:

Toothpicks.
Round, flat, or square won't matter.  I used flat, because that's what I found in a drawer.

Turkey bacon or any precooked deli sliced meat of your choice.
I mention turkey bacon by name, because it's what I used.  I wouldn't recommend traditional pork bacon.  First off, it's raw out of the package, whereas turkey bacon or deli ham is not.  Hey now, you say, wait a second, what If'n I cook it up m'self there buddy, what do you think of that, huh?  I would then say back to you, that attempting to roll crisply cooked fried bacon is infinitely more fun than pushing a length of cooked spaghetti up a cat's nose, and your welcome to try it anytime, but neither one of those things is going to be as productive as just following my directions.

Sour cream.
You won't need much for this, but I'll include how to use up what's left before it has a chance to turn.

Green onions.
Okay, so, they're always optional, but I used them when I created this, so I'm calling them out.

Cooked white meat chicken portion, seperated.
I didn't include this ingredient, but kind of wished later that I had, so I'm openly repenting here.
Breast or tenderloin won't matter, and you won't need much or maybe you will, depending on how many of these you want to prepare.  This is not a comment on how much you consume.  Unlike my experience at the McDonald's drive through.  All I said was that I wanted 5 double cheeseburgers.  Hey, the wife and kids were with me.  2 for me, 2 for her, and one for the eldest daughter.  The youngest is still on rice cereal and formula.  Not that I'm self-consciously explaining myself to you.  What if I did want all 5 to myself?  What business is it of yours? 
So anyway, they say, "FIVE?" like it's the most unbelievable request they've ever heard. 
Yes, five double cheeseburgers! 
Damn. 
I mean, how do they know I wasn't on a food run for people at the office? 
Or that there might be OTHER people in the car with me. 
Seriously,  5 double cheeseburgers simply cannot be the largest order they've ever seen. 
Reasons supporting my assumption:  I'm in the midwest.  People here are LARGE.

Anyway.

Cheese.
Any kind you desire.  I used mozzarella, for no particular reason than I had a package that was already open.

Directions.

Lay out a piece of meat.  Spread a layer of sour cream on top.  Sprinkle on green onions, chicken, and cheese.
Roll the meat up and pierce diagonally with a toothpick to hold shape.  If using a thin strip, like turkey bacon, roll on a diagonal to produce a thin cigar shape, instead of a thick sticky bun shape.  Repeat as many times as desired.
Microwave for one minute or bake in an oven pan at 350 for 10 minutes.  Let cool, remove toothpicks, and enjoy.