Pork Is MVP This Tailgating Season

By Sarah Ford of Indiana Pork

It is time to pass around the pigskin, don your favorite team colors and plan an all-star menu because tailgating season is here! Indiana Pork is ready to show you why pork is your M.V.P. (Most Valuable Protein) this season.  Pork’s great taste, versatility, and value make it easy for fanatics to throw pork on the grill. It is also quick and easy to prepare, making it the perfect choice for game-day festivities.

Keep from fumbling this tailgating season with these tips for a winning menu:

• “Flavor Hall of Fame” – Get in the “end zone” by adding a delicious sauce to finish off your tailgating dish or a spicy dry rub to enhance the flavor of your meat before cooking. Both are easy to create and very economical flavor boosters. For a great Indiana made product, try Shoup’s Country Foods seasoning and BBQ sauce.  You can find it at a Marsh near you, or visit their website at www.shoupscountry.com.
• “Menu Playbook” – Make sure to include a variety of dishes for your hungry fans at your tailgating party. Planning a spread with everything from kickoff kabobs to game day pork and chile wraps, ensures no one will be sidelined by hunger.
• “Points for Protein” – Lean pork cuts such as pork tenderloin and pork chops make great tailgating companions. Consider passing these healthy indulgences during your next game day gathering.
• “Regional Pride” – Put a regional stamp on any favorite football snack and in Indiana that means the breaded tenderloin!  

For more great tailgating recipes, visit www.porkbeinspired.com.  

Wordless Wednesday: What a CROCK!

What's in your crock pot?

Have you entered to win our slow cooker giveaway?

Crockpot Mania

By Michelle Plummer of Winners Drink Milk

Dinner in a Dash, 30-Minute Meals, Grab and Go or Carry Out or Drive Thru! Everyone is looking for a way to keep dinner wholesome and nutritious for their families and do it in a way that does not take a culinary degree or hours of prep and attention!

Bringing back family dining should not be the worst thing on your TO DO list. Let me see if I can help you with making dinner and family dining fun!

Crockpots are all the rage and why not! Slowcookers can make your dinner easy to make in one pot, takes less expensive cuts of meat and turns them into tender and moist entrees. By using a slow cooking method many dishes that are generally thought of “as better when reheated” the Crockpot does this the first time. Long slow cooking, can be done while you are at work or on the run. Comfort foods, pulled pork, roasted chicken and stuffing and yes Mac and cheese! 

If you are familiar with Crockpots from the 70’s and 80’s you will be really surprised when you visit sites such as The Crockpot Blog (You will really enjoy the Island Pork, I served this with baked sweet potatoes) OR this great Overnight Oatmeal recipe-- you will not believe how great oatmeal can really taste!
I have used a crockpot for years to keep hot mulled cider, warm applebutter for biscuits, and large amount of Rotel (the Rotel tomato and chilies mixture with processed cheese) or nacho cheese with processed cheese, chili with beans and any condiments you wish to add such as onion, garlic, jalapeño, chips etc.

I have also tried a wonderful chilies chicken with chicken breasts, tomato and chilies mixture and spices. Cook for 4 hours and then shred and serve over tortillas. Add cheese and sour cream. I am getting more adventurous and really enjoying the crockpot for many meals.

I encourage you to try one of these wonderful recipes or something on your own….let me know and you may be the winner of a new crockpot, just in time for all those great tailgates! Check out the widget below to enter to win!  We will select a lucky winner to receive a Hamilton Beach 6 -quart crockpot with clips for secure transporting (great for the busy holiday season) and removable pot for ease in serving and cleaning.

Cantaloupe Listeria Outbreak: What You Need To Know

Jensen Farms has recalled its Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupes in response to a multi-state outbreak of listeriosis. Cantaloupes from other farms have not been linked to this outbreak. The Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention reports that 35 people in 10 states have been infected with this strain of Listeria monocytogenes. The FDA advises consumers - especially vulnerable populations, including older adults, people with weakened immune systems, and pregnant women - not to eat the recalled cantaloupes and to throw them away. Don't  try to wash the bacteria off of the cantaloupes because contamination might be both on the inside and outside. Cutting, slicing, and dicing may also transfer harmful bacteria from the rind to the fruit's flesh. Source: FDA

Wordless Wednesday- Harvest

Apple Festival & Craft Fair

Check out the upcoming Apple Festival at Anderson's Orchard!

September 24th & 25th, 2011 - Rain or Shine

Orchard, Concessions & Food:
8am until 8pm or dark whichever comes first
Crafter Tent:
9am - 5pm
Join us for:

• Picked and U-Pick Apples (Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, Jonathan, and many other favorites)
• Visit our Pumpkin Patch
• Crafter Tent (50+ Crafters)
• Grilled Sandwiches and Hot Dogs, plus an assortment of sides and drinks
• Concession Stand is open
• Straw Pile
• Picnic Areas
• Home-made Apple Cobbler with Ice Cream
• Homemade Breads

In honor of this and all things fall we are giving away a $25 Gift Card to Anderson's Orchard!

Enter on the widget below:

It's Apple Pickin' Time!

By Jen from Mess Hall to Bistro and Real Farmwives of America and Friends

With four kids ages 7 to 15, it’s nearly impossible to find something they all enjoy and doesn’t break the bank.

One of our family’s favorite things to do in the fall is head out to the local orchard and go apple picking. It’s one of the times we get to see the rare sighting of a 15 year old smile.

We don’t just limit our apple picking weekends to the six of us; we usually bring along some friends and, of course, grandpa.

The kids (and the big kids!) love riding in the back of his truck through the orchard as we fill bags with different kinds of apples.

 And what’s a trip to the orchard without some apple sampling!

After lots of hard work out in the orchard, we step into the store to check out the other fresh produce and get an apple cider slushie!

After a morning of picking, we head home and can our bounty. The kids love to help me out in the kitchen making apple butter, sauce, pie filling and caramel apple jam! If it was up to the kids, we would pick bushels of apples every weekend; I just wish we had a place to store them all!

Visit my blog at http://messhalltobistro.blogspot.com