Tuttorosso Wooden Spoon Giveaway

Tuttorosso will be giving away 3,000 wooden spoons over the next three weeks starting Oct. 22nd at   -- to celebrate the nostalgia and heritage of the wooden spoon in so many classic tomato-based recipes (chili, soup, lasagna, manicotti, salsa, etc.).

As you may know, or perhaps have experienced, wooden spoons are often handed down from generation to generation -- and are the preferred tool by professional chefs since they are soft, won't scratch, don't remove heat out of sensitive recipes and have a high heat tolerance.

Anyone can get in on the wooden spoon random drawings by 'liking' Tuttorosso on Facebook and providing some contact information.

(3,000 spoons will be given away over three weeks, as well as a grand prize of one Tuttorosso personalized heirloom wooden spoon and a 6-piece signature cookware by La Creuset).

As company background, the family-owned Red Gold company (which makes the Tuttorosso brand -- ) has been around since the 1940s focused on growing local in the Midwest where true seasons impact the flavor of tomatoes. The Midwest, while it's cold in the winter, has the perfect growing season for tomatoes, perfect angle of the sun, perfect temps -- and even the winter is perfect for tomatoes, as it breaks up the soil for tiny root systems. Few places in the world can you grow such tomatoes.

Do you have a special wooden spoon that's been passed down through your family?  Share your story in the comments below!!   Want a chance to win a wooden spoon from Tuttorosso? Hurry over to the FB page and enter to win!!

How to make Varsity-style Chili Cheese Dogs

Tonight for dinner I made the yummiest homemade chili for hotdogs! It is similar to the chili found at the world-famous Varsity restaurant.   No beans, just yummy spiced meat!  What'll ya' have!?!?

Varsity-Style Chili for hot dogs

1 lb lean ground beef (I used ground turkey)
1/8 onion, chopped fine (omitted in my version)
1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt 
1/2 tablespoon ground cumin
1 1/3 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 cup water 
1/2 to 1 whole (1/3 ounce) package chili seasoning mix, adjust amount to your taste


Directions:

Brown ground beef in skillet and drain fat.

Add all other ingredients and combine.  Cook on medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring often.  Add  additional 1/2 c water, 1 8 oz can tomato sauce, stir well and cook, covered on med. low for 30 minutes. Stir as needed.  I also added a little more water as needed so it didn't completely thicken up.    

I topped our Hebrew National beef hotdogs on Sara Lee whole grain buns with this chili and some shredded cheddar cheese.  SO good! At the Varsity, you can get them topped with chopped onion, too.  My husband always does!  We enjoyed these with Baked Lays chips and a sweet fruit salad. :)


This is my adaptation of a recipe on Food.com: the original version can be found at http://www.food.com/recipe/varsity-chili-for-hot-dogs-120680?scaleto=4&mode=null&st=true

~ Skillet Bacon Jam Review ~

Like Bacon? Then I've got a product to share with you!!  Last week I received a really cool jar in the mail ~  the label read Skillet Bacon Jam.  I opened the top to take a tiny taste and found sweet & savory, fragrant jam inside! I wasn't sure what I would use it on, or with, so I did a little googling... 

The results?  I'm not a fan of BLT's (at least the LT part of them) ~ but supposedly, Skillet Bacon Jam on a BLT is crazy good! (You'll have to let me know, 'cuz I'm not planning on eating one) I found other suggestions, including burgers, grilled cheese, cooked with scrambled eggs, or quiche. You can also use it in a vinaigrette. (think hot bacon dressing, maybe?)  Basically, any recipe you would use bacon in, you can make with Bacon Jam.  So far, I've tried it on a turkey & swiss sandwich - divine! and with scrambled eggs on half of a bagel. I can't stress enough how tasty this Bacon Jam is.  If you are a fan of bacon, you will really enjoy Skillet Bacon Jam!

From their website, here's the description of this heavenly concotion: 

we take a big bunch of really, really good bacon, and render it down...add a bunch of spices..onions, etc. and let it simmer for about 6 hours...give it a quick puree, blast chill it...and you have bacon jam...


I think it has a smoky, barbecue flavor, and the bacon flavor really stands out.  It's a savory but sweet condiment that you will have a blast experimenting with! 

How do you get your hands on this yummy Bacon Jam?  Well, the website is http://www.skilletbaconjam.com/.   There they have an online store, where you can buy a jar for $14.   Or share the bacon-y goodness and get the three jar package for $39.50.  If you'd like to contact Skillet Street Food, their email address is eat@skilletstreetfood.com.  They even have Bacon Jam recipes !  (will save you loads of time if you just head there for recipes instead of googling, like I did)

I would love to hear your recipes or ideas for using Skillet Bacon Jam.  Try it, and let me know what you think!



I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com created by WebBizIdeas.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.

Just found out I'm a TOH Field Editor!

I LOVE it. And I am SO honored - I received an invitation to be one of their Field Editors for Georgia today!! I can't wait to be a part of their magazine, it is one of the best out their for delicious recipes, helpful hints, menus and more!! I am excited to find out more tomorrow when I log in to the website and find out what I'll be doing! Yipppppeeeeeee!!!

My new can't-live-without products!!

So I've been doing a lot of freezer cooking lately. A lot! Our crockpot is used 3 - 5 days a week now. One chore I detested was cleaning the crock from the crockpot. It would get so sticky and gunky and gross! Then my friend Renea and I had to run into Publix one day before we went to pick up our boys at school. She bought the most amazing product ~ Reynolds slow cooker liners! I had never seen them before, but they are amazing. I can make the messiest thing in there now, and I just pull the liner out and throw it away! WOW! What a time saver it has been!


Another amazing product for me is McCormick Recipe Inspirations: these are the coolest spice collections!! I paid $1.99 for mine - it's a little more than I'd usually pay for a spice packet but it is so cool! There is a recipe card on the back, and on the front, six premeasured spice blister packs. I bought the Quesadilla Casserole blend for our chili today, as it had the cumin, chili powder, red pepper and garlic that I would use anyway!

I love finding & sharing new products(or at least, new to me!) What are your favorite products that save you time or money, or both?!