Hello Munchers!

I’d like to start with a deep appreciation for sticking with me during this (way too) long period of me getting my health under control. For well over a year now, I have been suffering from chronic migraines. So, between work and life requirements, by the time I got to everything else, I was “out of spoons.”

https://www.healthline.com/health/spoon-theory-chronic-illness-explained-like-never-before#1

After months of trying different medications and dosages, of being a zombie, gaining 35 lbs in 3 weeks, and memory loss that has not quite righted itself, I am back to normal-ish. I still get them every so often, but they are few and far between compared to my daily ones.

Long story short, I am extremely grateful that you hung in there and I hope you are excited for some awesome recipes coming your way!

And now I give you….

Stuffed Sweet Peppers

Ingredients

• 12 sweet peppers
• 2 bricks (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
• 1/8 cup Everything Bagel Seasoning
• 2 tbsp cayenne pepper

Recipe

1. Turn on oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cut top of the peppers off and then cut in half and use a spoon to take out the seeds.

3. In a bowl, mix softened cream cheese, everything bagel seasoning, and cayenne pepper until well blended. Transfer to a ziplock bag.

4. Cut the tip of the ziploc bag off, with a wide opening, and squeeze contents equally into the 24 pepper halves.

5. Transfer peppers to a baking sheet and bake in oven for 15 minutes.

6. Remove from oven and enjoy!

Welcome to a whole new season of The Munching Dead! Some delicious treats are in the works!

Cannoli Dip Trio – Classic Pistachio, Chocolate Chip, and Pumpkin Spice

Ingredients

• 2 cups Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese (squeezed to get excess milk out)
• 8 oz pkg Cream Cheese- room temp
• 1 1/2 cu Confectioner’s Sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 cu semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cu pistachios (crushed)
• 2 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

Directions

1. In a bowl, mix ricotta, cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until well mixed. For fluffier dip, mix with hand-mixer. For creamier dip, mix with fork.
2. Separate into 3 bowls. Approx. 1 cup each.
3. In the first bowl mix in the chocolate chips, leaving a few to top for appearances.
4. In the second bowl, mix in the pistachios, leaving a few to top for appearances.
5. In the third bowl, mix in the pumpkin pie spice. Sprinkle a light dusting on top for appearances.
6. Place in fridge for half an hour to chill.
7. Serve with graham crackers or waffle cone pieces and enjoy!

For tonight’s app I am going a little old school. I promised something wrapped in meat and while I was in love with my original idea (which will be coming up) I had a sudden craving for this old classic we had growing up. It’s a Chicago staple called a Francheezie. Now I was first introduced to this delight at a small resturaunt in Des Plaines I called the Choo Choo. Food was delivered via this little train on a track- undoubtedly my favorite place to go. The place is long gone and greatly missed.

Growing up we also made out own versions of these at home. Various twists, but the original is the best.

Now this can be a meal or an appetizer. Served on a bun or cut into pieces and served on a toothpick.

I genuinely hope you all enjoy, and maybe fall as in love with it as I did!

The Francheezie

Ingredients

4- Hot Dogs, bun length

8- slices of bacon (thin sliced is best for crispiness)

4- pieces of American Cheese

1 box of wooden toothpicks

Hot dog buns, if wanted

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees

2. Cut a deep slit lengthwise on the top of the hot dog, towards but not thru the bottom.

3. Cut each piece of cheese into 4 long strips and insert into the slit of the hot dog.

4. Wrap hot dog with bacon, 1 piece should wrap half. Continue in middle with second piece.

5. Secure bacon with toothpick, ideally one at each end.

6. Place on pan and bake for 35 minutes.

7. Remove and dispose of toothpicks and serve.

8. Enjoy either cut into chunks or served on a bun!

For this recipe, my husband and I played with a bunch of shapes to find the best one. In our excitement, we didn’t take the best pictures or take pictures of the best shape alone. We tried shapes based on goodies we’ve eaten elsewhere, such as crab rangoons and the like. But the egg roll shape won the day. I hope you enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 container Pimento Cheese
• 1 package Egg Roll Wontons
• Oil for frying

Directions

1. Heat a pot half full of oil to 350 degrees. I recommend a candy thermometer off the side of the pot to measure the heat.
2. Take 1 wonton and put 2 heaping tbsp of pimento cheese in the middle.
3. With a finger, wet the edges of the wonton.
4. Fold one corner over and tuck under filling. Tuck in 2 sides and then wrap with the remaining corner. Repeat until you have the desired amount of egg rolls.
5. Place in hot oil with slotted spoon and watch (2 max). After 2 minutes, flip over. Let fry for 2 more minutes, until brown.
6. Take out and place on paper towel for excess oil to drain.
7. Serve with ranch dressing and enjoy!

Let’s be real. I grew up in the midwest. Pimento cheese- not a thing. When I moved to the South, it became a thing, an obsession- fast. I’ve tried it from everywhere I can. I’ve tried (and failed) to make it. But I found the best.

It’s from this chain called Chicken Salad Chick. We have one closeish with the greatest people in existence running it. So I go over there and get it, get creative and delicious things come to be. Grilled cheese, eggs rolls, and today’s creation, mac and cheese. Which is a stupid simple recipe.

Ingredients

1/2 box macaroni noodles

1 cup pimento cheese

Directions

1. Boil to preferred tenderness and drain macaroni

2. On low heat put noodles back in pot and add cup of pimento cheese.

3. Stir until melty and delicious.

4. Enjoy

While, what was supposed to be, window shopping, I came across a shop that makes and sells oils and balsamic vinegars. As I walked around the shop, sampling some of the balsamic vinegars, I came across one that instantly screamed at me. It said “mix me with bacon and make deviled eggs”. And so I did and it was one of the most delicious things I’ve made in a long time.

Maple Balsamic and Bacon Deviled Eggs

Ingredients

12 Hardboiled Eggs, peeled and halved

1/2 cup Mayo

3 Tbsp Maple Balsamic Vinegar

1 lb bacon, cooked to perfection

Directions

1. Put egg yolks in bowl and mix with mayo, balsamic, and all but 5 pieces of bacon, crushed. Mix well, if you feel it’s too dry, add more mayo (this is a preference thing)

2. Put filling in bag and cut a hole in 1 corner and pipe filling into the eggs.

3. Break remaining bacon into 24 smaller pieces and place 1 piece onto the top of each deviled egg

4. (Optional) Drizzle Maple balsamic over the eggs

And of course, enjoy.

A couple months ago I woke up from on one of those rare days I managed to sleep thru the dogs hopping all over the bed and licking our faces like they’re coated in BBQ sauce, and my husband was in the process of making cheddar biscuits and gravy.

It was delicious.

Beyond delicious.

My husband is a genius. And fantastic cook.

But then we had the problem of half a dozen of these biscuits leftover and needing to be eaten before the humidity and time got to them- inevitably making them hard as a rock and completely inedible. (Gotta love Georgia weather…. not)

As I was making BLTs for dinner that night, inspiration struck. I could toss the bread in the freezer and use the little nuggets of deliciousness instead. After all, the tomatoes in my garden were the size of golf balls, and when sliced they would fit perfectly.

So away I went, picking those beautiful tomatoes, cooking up some bacon, and making magic happen!

My little tomato bounty- that kept giving ALL SUMMER LONG. So many BLTs and fresh tomato sauce.

Cheesy Biscuit BLTs

Ingredients

12 Jim n’ Nicks Cheesy Biscuits (Recipe here)

3 Tomatoes, slices into 4 slices each

1/4 head lettuce

12 slices bacon, cooked to your idea of perfection

Mayo

Directions

1. Heat pan
2. Cut open muffins and put a thin layer of mayo on each inside. Place in hot pan and cook until toasty.
3. Layer on lettuce, tomato, and then bacon.
4. Place a little more mayo on the top muffin piece and place on top.
5. Serve and enjoy!

Mmm, nothing like a little cheesy BLT.

The Munching Dead is going to be on hiatus until the premier of Preacher on June 24th to work up new recipes and some awesome things coming!

Hello everyone, thanks for bearing with me for the last few weeks of silence. My sister came to visit and then the holiday but while I intended to be back last week, a family emergency came up that required a 14 hour long trip (partially in snow) up to Iowa.

In fact I still haven’t seen last weeks episode and this was the first moment I had to sit write up a recipe. This one has been in the coffers for a while, something randomly made one night that turned out amazing.

I didn’t want to leave the finale without a recipe and to hope to be back and posting weekly next week.

Pizza Dip

Ingredients

Pizza dough rolled out

2 cups pizza sauce

1 cup ricotta

1/2 mozzarella cheese

Pepperoni (mini if possible)

1. Unroll pizza dough and use pizza slicer to cut pizza into pieces, I like to cut it random ways. Heat oven to instructions on packeging

2. In each ramekin put 1 cup of pizza sauce, put scoop of half a cup of ricotta in the center and then top with cheese and pepperoni.

3. Put pizza dough sheet and ramekins in the oven, cook until dough is golden brown and then remove dough and ramekins.

4. Enjoy!