Easy 4th of July!

Hi guys!  If you have looked at my Facebook page, then you know that tonight I am going to be at Real Deals “Designing Divas” event.  I will be selling Gourmet Rooster and giving out advice on 4^th of July entertaining.  I am also providing some yummy and easy appetizers and desserts.  I will have recipe ideas that are super simple for the 4^th too.  Nobody wants to spend their 4^th of July inside cooking, whether or not you are hosting…….I think that my sauces and spreads can help you jazz up some really easy recipes so that you look like a cooking bad-ass.  Nobody will know you used canned this, or pre-packaged that.  They will just think that you are awesome.

Today I am going to share with you two of the ideas that I am featuring tonight.  I am going to show you how to use my County Fair Peach spread to make a yummy sausage topping, and I will use my Whiskey Apple spread to make a delicious baked beans recipe.  Let’s start with the sausage topping because it is super quick and easy.

All I use is a jar of County Fair Peach spread, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper.  See?  Literally….the easiest recipe ever. 

I think that mustard and peaches go so well together, and I have always been a fan of fruity mustards.  I think that these two things together make the best topping for sausage of any sort……kielbasa, smoked sausage, brats, etc. 

The ratio for the fruit spread to mustard is 2:1.  So it doesn’t matter how much you want to make, just double your fruit spread to mustard.

I also add a smidge of salt and pepper.

I put my peachy mustard over grilled smoked sausages.  Tonight I will be serving it with little bites of smoked sausage.  I think this will be a fantastic appetizer.  Are you on tap to bring an appetizer to a 4^th festivity?

Yum!  Of course, you have to like mustard to enjoy this, but I think the sweet flavors of peach mix so well with the sharp tang of mustard.  This is a new and exciting topping for your typical sausage.  You d0on’t have to tell anyone how easy it was.

Next, I will share with you an easy recipe for baked beans that features my Whiskey Apple spread.  Again, this is sweet and savory flavors mixed together, but I love the sweet apples with smoky bacon and beans.  I have done a version of baked beans that is super similar to this, but it is so good it could stand a repeat…in any variation.

For these beans, I used 2 tall cans of plain baked beans, onion, bacon, garlic, and Whiskey Apple Spread.  If you are wondering what that squirty bottle is…..When I sample my products at Farmer’s Markets, I have to have an easy way to get the product to people….hence the squirt bottle.  This was leftover from last week.

I started by chopping about ½ a pound of bacon.  I don’t care how sharp your knife is…..chopping raw bacon sucks.  Muddle through….it’s worth it.

I cooked the bacon until it was browned.  Then, I removed it from the pan with a slotted spoon.  I left about 2 tablespoons of bacon grease and dumped the rest.

Ok, I didn’t dump it.  I saved it in a dish.  That will come in handy sometime;)

I added my onions and garlic to the bacon grease.  At this point, you can add some pepper if you want.  You can also add a smidge of salt, but remember….bacon is super salty.

I cooked the onions until they were softened….just a few minutes.

Next, I stirred in my Whiskey Apple spread.  It will coat all the onions and stay pretty thick.

I stirred in my two cans of beans and poured the whole mixture into a baking dish.

And whoops….I forgot the bacon, so I added that back in to the beans in the baking dish.  This will bake at 425 degrees until it is heated through and bubbly on top.  Baking it in the oven gives it a chance to thicken.

Yum!  Baked beans are essential for the 4^th of July, I think.  This recipe is still super easy, but it doesn’t taste like a can o’ beans.  It is sweet, smoky and crazy good.  If you can’t find my Whiskey Apple spread, feel free to use any kind of apple butter that your store has.  But it won’t be as good;)

I hope to see some of you tonight!  I will be the one by the food.

County Fair Peach Mustard

1 cup Gourmet Rooster County Fair Peach Spread

½ cup Dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

Mix all ingredients together.  Store in refrigerator.

Whiskey Apple Baked Beans

½ lb. bacon, chopped

1 cup white onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ teaspoon black pepper

1 cup Gourmet Rooster Whiskey Apple Spread

2-28 ounce cans baked beans

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In a large skillet, brown bacon over medium high heat, about 5 minutes.  Remove bacon with slotted spoon, leaving about 2 tablespoons of bacon drippings in the pan.

Sauté onion and garlic in bacon drippings, over medium high heat.  Season with pepper.  Cook until onions are softened, about 4-5 minutes.  Add Whiskey Apple Spread and beans.  Mix well.  Stir in reserved bacon.

Pour beans into baking dish and heat until hot and bubbly, about 15 minutes.

Serves 8-10