Saturday afternoon- Tex-Mex Grilled Cheese

 

Like many people, my go-to for a quick hot meal is a grilled cheese sandwich.  One of the great things about a sandwich is the ability to improvise with different ingredients to make it new as often as you want.  We had a bag of 4-cheese Mexican blend shredded cheese in the fridge and always have peppers and such around, so I decided to do a nacho/ Tex-Mex sandwich this afternoon. 

Dead simple and tasty, it's the little things that combine to create magic in your kitchen. 

Fatboy Tex-Mex grilled cheese

2 slices bread (I used a multi-grain with some nut flour) 

1/8  cup shredded Mexican 4-cheese blend

4-6 slices pickled jalapeño peppers  

2-4 Tbsp. unsalted butter

1.  Heat cast iron skillet to medium-high
2. Spread cheese and peppers between slices of bread
3. Butter outside of both sides of sandwich
4. Place sandwich in skillet and place a second skillet or sandwich press on top
5. Fry each side 2-3 minutes or until cheese is melted and bread is toasted to preference  
6. Remove sandwich from pan and cut in half to serve. 

Leftover mashed potatoes? Earn some fat boy street cred with this Fat Boy Mashed Potato Soup

​The holiday season is full of big meals and family gatherings, but that means it is also full of leftovers.  One of the hardest things to reuse around our house has always been left over mashed potatoes.

i came across a recipe for mashed potato soup from Rachael Ray and decided to take it to the next level to make it a Fat Boy recipe instead of just a family friendly one.  The biggest changes are adding more bacon and switching to beef broth instead of chicken.  Both changes make for a deeper and richer soup, trust me, your family will love the changes.​

Ingredients

• A drizzle of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

• 1 lb. bacon, chopped

• 4 tablespoons butter

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 4 tablespoons flour

• 1 quart beef stock

• 2 cups leftover mashed potatoes

• 8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

• Chopped chives, for garnish

Preparation

In a medium pot or Dutch oven, heat a drizzle of EVOO over medium-high heat. Add bacon and cook until crispy. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate and reserve.

Drain off excess bacon fat from the pot and add butter. When it is melted, add the onion and cook until softened, about five minutes. Sprinkle flour into the pot and cook with a wooden spoon for one minute. Whisk in the beef stock and bring to a bubble. Cook until slightly thickened, about 2-3 minutes.

Whisk in mashed potatoes, then stir in the cheddar cheese with a wooden spoon and cook until the potatoes are hot and the cheese is melted. Add half the bacon and let cook for 3-5 minutes to allow flavor to combine.

Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with the reserved bacon and chopped chives. Instant Fat Boy Heaven.

Fatboy Challenge: Juicing(?)

I really should never let old friends meet my wife.  When I do crap like this happens.  When Coop and I ended our Fat Boy Summer Road Trip a couple of weeks ago it gave my lovely wife a chance to get to know him.  That led to him talking about healthy living, the polar opposite of the Fat Boy lifestyle.  He encouraged her to watch a documentary made by a man named Joe Cross entitled "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead".

In the movie he details his incredible weight loss achieved by going on a juice only diet.  The success of the film caused him to write a book of recipes, sign a deal with a juicer manufacturing company, and exploit his success.  Suddenly my darling wife wants me to order her a juicer, and a new series for Fat Boy Heaven is born.​

Over the next week I will compare two popular juice based cleansing diets, the "Reboot with Joe" made famous by Joe Cross, and The BluePrint Juice Cleanse, ​a very popular brand of pre-made cold pressed juices that sell for a huge amount ($7-11/each) and whose recipes have been widely copied and published via the web as a result.

Each plan is a three day cleanse, and we will compare taste, variety, cost of ingredients, and weight loss/health changes to determine which plan works out best for me and proves most time and cost effective.​

All of this for just 3 days of juice?  This is more vegetables and fruit than I ate last year!

First up starting tomorrow will be a DIY version of the BluePrint Renovation Cleanse, their most varied and flavorful package intended for those of us new to Juicing.​

BluePrint has an iOS app to help you track your cleanse

Drink of the Week: Kentucky Mule

The Moscow Mule, served in copper mugs has been making a loud revival at bars nationwide.  A blend of Vodka and Ginger Ale over muddled lime and mint leaves, it is a tasty beverage.  Since I hate vodka, I decided to create the Kentucky Mule.  Essentially the same drink, but with bourbon rather than vodka.  Super simple and amazingly flavorful, this will be a go to drink for quite a while.

Kentucky Mule

1/8 Lime

3 mint leaves

2 oz Kentucky Straight Bourbon

Ginger Beer

Ice

Instructions:

1. Place lime slice and mint leaves in glass and muddle
2. Add ice
3. Add bourbon
4. Fill glass with ginger beer and enjoy.