While the exact history of corn dogs is unknown, their creation happened sometime between 1920 and 1940. Several different vendors have claimed they invented them, in places such as Texas, Minnesota, Illinois, and California.
Newly arrived German immigrants in Texas, who were sausage-makers finding resistance to the sausages they used to make, have been credited with introducing the corn dog to the United States, though the serving stick came later. A US patent filed in 1927, granted in 1929, for a Combined Dipping, Cooking, and Article Holding Apparatus, describes them, among other fried food impaled on a stick.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and spray a mini muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the butter and sugar. Add eggs and stir well. Add evaporated milk and whisk until combined.
In a separate bowl, add flour, cornmeal, baking soda, and salt, and stir to combine.
Whisk half the flour mixture into the egg mixture until combined. Add in the remaining flour mixture and whisk until completely combined.
Spoon 1 Tablespoon of batter into each mini muffin cup. Place a 1-inch hot dog piece into the middle of each muffin cup.
Bake for 10-12 minutes or until muffins are golden brown. Remove from oven and place muffin pan on a wire rack. Allow muffins to cool 5 minutes in pan before serving.
Notes
Spray the mini muffin pan liberally with non-stick cooking spray, including the cups and the area between the cups. This will make it easy to remove the muffins from the pan.
Use a 1 tablespoon measure to spoon the batter into the muffin cups. Overfilling the muffin cups will cause the muffin tops to connect while baking. The corn dog muffins will still taste good, but you’ll have to cut the tops apart. Trust me, I’ve had this happen.
Onion Patties – While everyone has heard of onion rings before, my favorite friend onion was always the patty. Onion patties as a side for meatloaf…yum.
History. A British recipe from 1802 calls for cutting onions into slices, dipping them into a batter including Parmesan cheese, and deep frying them in lard. It suggests serving them with a sauce of melted butter and mustard. Many recipes for deep-fried onion slices or rings are found starting in the early 20th century …
In a large bowl, mix all dry ingredients, then add milk and stir. This will give you a thick batter.
Add onions and mix until well blended.
Heat 1/2 inch oil in skillet over medium high heat. Drop batter by tablespoons into the hot oil.
Flatten with the back of a spatula, then brown on both sides until crispy, golden brown.
Drain on paper towel, sprinkle salt to taste.
Notes
You can make these even more craveworthy by adding 1/4 cup crumbled, cooked bacon to the batter before cooking. Other tasty add ins include: 1/4 cup green pepper, 1/4 cup cooked mushroom, or sprinkle cheddar on top after you’ve finished cooking.
Many sources say the first meatball was made in ancient Persia, but this is debated by food scholars. Nevertheless, these meatballs, called kofta, caught on and inspired new recipes as the Persians traded with neighboring countries and exchanged goods and knowledge.
Preheat oven to 400°. Prepare and bake muffin mix according to package directions. Cool completely and crumble; transfer to a large bowl.
Add 1 envelope taco seasoning, eggs, 1-1/2 cups enchilada sauce and meat; mix lightly but thoroughly. Shape meat mixture into 1-1/2-in. balls; bake on greased racks in 15x10x1-in. baking pans lined with foil until lightly browned, 10-12 minutes.
Place meatballs in a 5- or 6-qt. slow cooker. Combine remaining enchilada sauce, salsa, chiles, 1/2 cup cheese and remaining envelope taco seasoning; pour over meatballs. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cook, covered, on low until meatballs are cooked through, about 3 hours.
Notes
Tips
Serve enchilada meatballs with tortilla chip scoops to capture all the rich flavor. The chips and meatballs together taste like mini tacos.
Set these out on the buffet with traditional taco toppings, including shredded lettuce, diced tomato and cheddar cheese.
Bacon Ranch Chicken Soup – Okay, so whether this dish is a soup or a ridiculously creamy pasta is besides the point – we’re choosing for it to be a soup and it is AMAZING
People have obsessed over chicken soup since the domestication of fowl around 7,000 to 10,000 years ago in Southeast Asia. The Ancient Greeks also had their own version of chicken broth, and believed the soup to have those healing properties I was harping on about earlier. Today, the dish is a staple meal in cuisines from all around the world. You can practically feel tomato soup quaking with envy – always in second place, never in the spotlight.
Heat olive oil in a large stock pot over medium-high heat and sauté onion, carrot and celery until softened. Season with salt and pepper.
Add dry ranch mix and cook for 1 minute, stirring until veggies are evenly coated, then add chicken broth and chicken soup.
Stir together and mix in spaghetti, bacon and chicken, then bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes, or until noodles are cooked and veggies are tender, then stir in cheddar cheese and half-and-half.
Cook for another 3-5 minute, then serve and enjoy.
Cheese Taco Cups – Taco shells made out of cheese is the ultimate Keto hack. These cups take inspired from our Pepperoni Pizza Crisps and are so easy to make! (NOLOW – No or Low Carbs)
Origin of the Modern Taco
Authentic Mexican tacos in their modern form developed sometime in the 19th century in the booming Mexican silver mines. The first true type of taco was the “taco de minero,” or “miner’s taco.”
Taco shells made out of cheese is the ultimate Keto hack. These cups take inspired from our Pepperoni Pizza Crisps and are so easy to make! (NOLOW – No or Low Carbs)
Preheat oven to 375° and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Spoon about 2 tablespoons cheddar a few inches apart. Bake until bubbly and edges are beginning to turn golden, about 6 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet for a minute.
Meanwhile, grease bottom of a muffin tin with cooking spray, then carefully pick up melted cheese slices and place on bottom of muffin tin. Fit with another inverted muffin tin and let cool 10 minutes. If you don't have a second muffin tin, use your hands to help mold the cheese around the inverted tin.
In a large skillet over medium heat, heat oil. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, then add ground beef, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon. Cook until beef is no longer pink, about 6 minutes, then drain fat.
Return meat to skillet and season with chili powder, cumin, paprika, salt, and pepper.
Transfer cheese cups to a serving platter. Fill with cooked ground beef and top with sour cream, avocado, cilantro, letus, and tomatoes.
Notes
You can replace the all the spices when cooking the ground beef with a package of your favorite taco seasoning. Saves some time.
New Orleans Mardi Gras King Cake is so symbolic of the Mardi Gras celebration for residents it is believed that consuming King Cake outside of the Carnival season will result in rain on Mardi Gras day.
The “king cake” takes its name from the biblical Kings. In Western Christian liturgical tradition, the Solemnity of Epiphany—commemorated on January 6—celebrates the visit of the Magi to the Christ Child. The Eve of Epiphany (the night of January 5) is popularly known as Twelfth Night (the Twelve Days of Christmas are counted from Christmas Eve until this night). The season for king cake extends from the end of the Twelve Days of Christmas (Twelfth Night and Epiphany Day), up until the end of Shrovetide: Mardi Gras, “Fat Tuesday,” or Shrove Tuesday; the day before the start of Lent. Some organizations or groups of friends may have “king cake parties” every week through the Carnival season. In Portugal and France, whoever gets the King cake trinket is expected to buy the next cake for these get-togethers.
A popular theory holds that Mardi Gras’ origins lie in ancient pagan celebrations of spring and fertility, such as Saturnalia and Lupercalia. Some experts contend, however, that Mardi Gras-type festivities popped up solely as a result of the Catholic Church’s discouragement of sex and meat during Lent.
Try these other Southern recipes
Mardi Gras King Cake
One of our best memories is of Mardi Gras in New Orleans, The King Cake is a great Mardi Gras tradition.
Dark green, purple, and yellow or gold sugars, If desired.
Miniature Baby, if desired.
Instructions
Mix 2 1/2 cups flour and yeast in mixing bowl of stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, on low for about 30 seconds.
Heat milk, sugar, and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat until sugar is dissolved and milk is between 120°F to 130°F.
With mixer on low, pour in liquids and mix until incorporated. Add eggs one at a time. Continue mixing until a shaggy dough forms. Clean off paddle and switch to dough hook. Mix in the remaining 1 cup flour a little at a time, adding more or less flour as needed to make a soft dough. Add the softened butter, a piece at a time, kneading until each piece of butter is absorbed.
Knead for eight minutes on low. The dough should completely clear the sides of the bowl. If it is too sticky, add additional flour 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing in thoroughly before determining if more flour is needed. If the dough seems too dry, spritz with water from a spray bottle a couple of times, mixing in thoroughly before determining if more water is needed. Every 2 minutes, stop the machine, scrape the dough off the hook, and then continue kneading.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times by hand to be sure it’s smooth and elastic. Form the dough into a ball. Place dough into a greased bowl. Turn once so greased surface is on top. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Filling
While the dough is chilling, make cinnamon filling. In small bowl, combine the brown sugar and ground cinnamon. Combine butter with cinnamon mixture and mix well.
Roll the chilled dough into a 10 x 20 inch rectangle. Spread the filling on half of the long side of the dough. Fold the dough in half covering the filling. Pat dough down firmly so the dough will stick together. Cut dough into three long strips. Press the tops of the strips together and braid the strips. Press the ends together at the bottom. Gently stretch the braid so that it measures 20 inches again. Shape it into a circle/oval and press the edges together.
Transfer the ring to a parchment lined or greased baking sheet. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it rise until doubled, about 1 hour. While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 350°. Bake the cake until it is golden brown, 20 – 35 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes on baking sheet and then place it on a cooling rack to cool completely before icing. To hide the baby in the cake, if desired, make a small slit in the bottom of the cake and put the miniature plastic baby in after the cake has cooled.
Icing
In a small bowl, mix powdered sugar, milk and vanilla until smooth (add additional milk if mixture is too thick or powdered sugar if too thin).
Spoon icing over top of the cake. Immediately sprinkle on colored sugar, alternating between the three colors.
This recipe uses Rapid Rise yeast which eliminates the time consuming first rise in a typical brioche recipe.
Use a pizza cutter to easily cut dough into strips.
The cake can also be made without braiding. Just roll up the dough jelly roll style after spreading the filling.
Mardi Gras conjures up images of fun, frivolity and feasting and no Mardi Gras celebration would be complete with a colorful King Cake. A brioche or sweet roll dough is braided, baked in a circle and decorated with icing and purple, green and gold sugars. Kind of like a crown shaped cinnamon roll all dressed up for a party.
