Theresa's Mixed Nuts

Friday, November 8, 2024

Cornish Game Hens With Fruit Chutney

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items. 
 
 
Every now and again I like to get on Pinterest and take a look at what what pins of mine are grabbing people's attention. A lot of my travel pins circulate year round, but then there are seasonal ones that start gaining popularity before the holidays hit. One of my most popular pins to date would be the Golden Blossom Honey Glazed Cornish Game Hens that I posted about in 2017, and I find it fascinating that 7 years later, it still gains even more steam as Thanksgiving approaches. Since the pandemic, I've seen a shift to smaller family gatherings and I don't know if it's because something fundamentally changed in our social behaviors since then, or because the cost of groceries has skyrocketed in recent years, hosting large dinners simply isn't in the budget anymore for most families, or because most of us are just burnt out, but I think more and more people are scaling back and opting for smaller holiday gatherings. And I think that's why smaller main dishes, like Cornish game hens over a big turkey, gain traction every year around Thanksgiving. So I thought I'd offer up a new recipe this year for those who may have already tried the first one from 2017. Golden Blossom Honey has several tempting Cornish game hen recipes on their site, but the Cornish Game Hens with Fruit Chutney spoke to me this year. 

These little hens are super easy to prepare and are perfect for a small holiday gathering. For me, the hardest part was separating the skin from the meat to spread the mixture, so I ended up using a meat injector to get the mixture under the skin which made the prep work that much quicker. The end result was a tender and juicy bird that is probably much better than turkey, which usually comes out of the oven dry no matter how hard you try to keep it moist. 

Ingredients

2 Cornish game hens

1/3 cup GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

1/4 cup lime juice

1 1/2 tablespoons dried rosemary

1 apple, coarsely chopped

1 pear, coarsely chopped

2 kiwi fruits, peeled and coarsely chopped

1/2 cup cranberries

 CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

While meat usually is the star of any Thanksgiving meal, can we just talk about the fruit chutney for a second? The chutney was what sold me on picking this recipe over the others this week because I love a good fruit dish. I ended up buying double the fruit the recipe called for so I could make a heaping dish of the chutney for myself. I just drizzled a few tablespoons of honey over the fruit, then baked for the allotted time the recipe called for. The end result was sweet, sweet perfection! So I wanted to point out to the non meat eaters to not overlook some of Golden Blossom Honey's meat dishes because sometimes you'll find a part of the recipe that you can make your own like this fruit chutney here. 

You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.


If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to
Pin It on Pinterest! 


   
Have you noticed a shift towards smaller family gatherings over the last few years?



Friday, November 1, 2024

Roasted Root Vegetables

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.
 
 
 
I don't know how November rolled around so quickly, but here we are at the starting line of the holiday season. Last year Jason and I didn't even participate in the family Thanksgiving meal. We decided to opt out of the gathering in favor of a low-key holiday and went to a Brazilian steakhouse instead. My grandparents always dined out on Thanksgiving in their older years, and now that I'm getting older, I'm starting to realize that they were onto something there. I don't think we're going to be let off the hook so easily this year since we plan on staying in Indiana for a change, so I've been gathering up some easy recipes so we can at least keep it as simple as possible. Thanksgiving for me is always about the side dishes. I love the salads, potatoes, beans, rolls and stuffing. But aside from my mom's marshmallow topped sweet potatoes (sorry mom, those are just gross), I love all of the other veggies that get put on the table. I love this time of the year because root vegetables fresh from the oven are my favorite. That's why when I saw this simple but delicious sounding Roasted Root Vegetable recipe on Golden Blossom Honey, I bookmarked it in case we will be attending the family gathering this year. 
 

Roasted root vegetables aren't a new concept, but what intrigued me about this recipe was the crumb topping. I don't normally put a breadcrumb topping on my veggies and was curious how it would turn out. I did stray from the recipe just a touch and used butter instead of olive oil for the crumb portion because I wanted a richer tasting topping, and will say that it did not disappoint. Turnips aren't something that I make often here, so I was glad to find a recipe to utilize them more. If you aren't a fan of root vegetables, you could easily swap out some of the veggies here for others and it would still come together quite well. The recipe was minimally challenging to toss together, and while roasting does take some time it wasn't necessarily fast, but the simplicity made it worthwhile and one to definitely add to the holiday menu.
 

Ingredients

5 carrots, peeled

4 medium white turnips, peeled

30 small white onions

8 whole garlic cloves, peeled

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

1/2 teaspoon marjoram

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup bread crumbs

1 tablespoon olive oil

 
 
 
 
You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.


If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to
Pin It on Pinterest! 


   
What is your favorite root vegetable?



Friday, October 25, 2024

Baked Bean and Bacon Casserole

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.
 
 
 
I know we haven't had Halloween yet, but I've already been thinking about Thanksgiving and trying to decide what the menu will consist of this year. It's never a surprise at my moms because she likes to keep things simple, consistent, and traditional. I, on the other hand, always try to change a few things up to keep the menu fresh and exciting. Of course I keep a few tried and true staples year after year, but sometimes I'll add a little twist to a classic dish to see how it goes. One thing that seems like it would be a sin to change is our family baked bean recipe, but I came across this Baked Bean and Bacon Casserole on Golden Blossom Honey and thought it might be a fun one to try this year instead. 
 
 
There are a few similarities to our family recipe, but I was intrigued not only by the 3 different types of beans in this dish, but also by the use of Canadian bacon instead of American bacon. The normal bacon that we use adds a bit of extra flavor because of the fat and grease that bakes out of it and into the beans, so I was curious how much flavor the ham would provide instead. I'll be honest and say that there were so many other flavors in this recipe that I didn't really notice any extra oomph from the Canadian bacon, but if you're looking at this from a healthy eating standpoint, Canadian bacon is leaner and has fewer calories than regular bacon, so in that respect it wins out. I personally don't eat pork, so I could leave this part of the recipe out and be content having this as a standalone meal. It's makes for a filling and healthy one pot dinner idea or for a simple holiday side dish. If you're in the early planning stages of your holiday meals right now, earmark this recipe to shake things up a bit on your table this year, too. 

Ingredients

1 large onion, chopped

1 large green bell pepper, chopped

2 Tablespoons water

6 ounces Canadian bacon, cut into bite-size pieces

2 (15 ounce) cans red kidney beans, drained

2 (15 ounce) cans Northern white beans, drained

2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, drained

3 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

1 cup hickory-flavored barbecue sauce

1 teaspoon dry mustard

3 Tablespoons cider vinegar

CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

 

You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.


If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to
Pin It on Pinterest! 


   
What traditional recipe do you always have on your holiday menu year after year?



Friday, October 18, 2024

Apricot, Almond & Coconut Candies

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.
 
 
 
This is a dangerous time of the month for me. Candy everywhere! Normally we just grab a few boxes of the full sized candy bars from Costco to pass out to the few trick or treaters that we get on our court, and that's bad enough keeping them in the house untouched until Halloween. But, we decided that our business was going to participate in the city's police department trick or treat event this year too, so that meant I had to buy and resist the temptation to eat any of the 4,000 pieces of additional candy sitting in my pantry. If you know me, you know that my sweet tooth is unmatched so the restraint is killing me. In an effort to be good though, I figured I could make a sweet treat to hold myself off until every last piece of the stash is passed out to the kids in our community. Thankfully I found a recipe for these Apricot, Almond & Coconut Candies on Golden Blossom Honey and knew that it was just what I needed to keep me on my best behavior until the end of the month. 
 
 
Not only are these candies super easy to make with only 4 ingredients total, they are so much healthier than the processed bagged treats filling the grocery aisles right now. The mixture will be sticky before rolling in the coconut, but I found that instead of dropping by spoonfuls, using a cookie scoop to gather the mixture worked much better. I'd just release from the scoop into the coconut, sprinkle a little more coconut flakes on the top and press slightly into the mixture, then roll it all between my palms for a nice little candy ball. I was able to make right around 20 candies with this recipe, but it could easily be doubled if you wanted to make these for holiday treat boxes instead of snacking on during the Halloween season. 

Ingredients

1 cup GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

12 ounces dried apricots, finely chopped

1 cup blanched almonds, slivered

1/2 cup coconut, or more if needed

CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE


 
You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.


If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to
Pin It on Pinterest! 


   
What candy will you pass out this Halloween?



Friday, October 11, 2024

Warm Broccoli and Mushroom Salad

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.
 
 
Just because it's now autumn doesn't mean that it's time to put the salads away. We just need to find creative ways to eat a bowl of warm veggies. I usually like a warm pasta salad, or even a warm potato salad for lunch or dinner, but what about a Warm Broccoli and Mushroom Salad? I usually throw those veggies into my stir fry wok, so why not make a quick salad instead? This Golden Blossom Honey recipe has been sitting in my "to make" folder since the beginning of summer just waiting for the temperatures to drop before giving it a try.
 
 
This salad can be served as either a side dish or as a full meal. Aside from the bacon, which can be left out to make this a vegetarian meal, this salad is nutritious, packed with fiber, antioxidants, and vitamins to help support a healthy immune system, which is important as we start inching towards cold and flu season. And, as the holidays are hot on our heels, it's always so easy to reach for all of the tempting treats, but by eating this salad first, it will be so much easier to consume sweets minimally. And in my opinion, it's much better than the carb or sugar heavy foods anyway, so it's a no-brainer to keep this recipe on hand throughout the cooler months ahead.
 

Ingredients

1 head of broccoli

5 slices of bacon, chopped

1 medium onion, diced

4 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 Tablespoons GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced

 CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE

 


You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.


If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to
Pin It on Pinterest! 


   
What warm weather salads are your favorite?



Thursday, October 3, 2024

Moroccan Style Caponata Sandwich

Disclosure- I received the mentioned product courtesy of the sponsor for the the purpose of this review. All opinions are genuine, based on my experience with the product, and have not been influenced by promotional items.
 
 
We've just left bbq season and are transitioning into party season. I live minutes from Notre Dame University, so if the increased traffic doesn't tell us it's football season around here, the tailgating definitely does. We don't usually hit the campus for the tailgating parties, but we've been known to host a few at home viewing parties for those who want to be close to the stadium but want to avoid the crowds. For the eats, we'll stick with the basics- sliders, hot wings, hot dogs, and burgers. Sometimes we'll throw in some sandwiches for good measure. As I was browsing Golden Blossom Honey earlier this week, I saw this recipe for Moroccan  Style Caponata Sandwiches and thought they would be a fun addition to the football feast. 
 
 
So much of football viewing eats are centered around either fried foods or meats, there aren't usually many vegetarian or healthy options for those who have dietary restrictions or are simply trying not to fall into the unhealthy eating habits that usually come with game day parties and tailgating. This sandwich has a lot of delicious veggies and spices piled onto toasted Italian bread, making it a perfect Mediterranean inspired sandwich worthy to be served as game day grub. No matter who you're rooting for, win or lose, with this sandwich on the menu, everyone comes out a winner! 

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 (1 pound) eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 medium onion, coarsely chopped

3 medium garlic cloves, chopped

1 cup water

3 tablespoons lemon juice

3 tablespoons GOLDEN BLOSSOM HONEY

1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 loaf Italian bread

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

1/3 cup fresh basil leaves

CLICK HERE FOR FULL RECIPE


 
You can find this recipe, as well as many more delicious recipes right on the Golden Blossom Honey recipe page! Be sure to follow Golden Blossom Honey on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and promotions.


If you like this recipe, be sure to come back every Friday, where I feature a new recipe from Golden Blossom Honey, and be sure to
Pin It on Pinterest! 


   
Which team will you be rooting for this football season?