My Dinner with Chef George

Apple-Strawberry Sangria

Regular readers to this blog will remember that yours truly was the Grand Prize winner of the FoodBuzz/ConAgra Super Bowl promotion last January. After creating an appetizer that we called Southwest Super Bowl Baskets, our entry was chosen as the winner! The prize was a dinner cooked for us and 10 friends by Chef George Duran (Hunt's Tomato Sauce spokesperson and host of TLC's Ultimate Cake Off). And what a feast it was!

"Volunteer" Prep Chefs

After months of planning and countless e-mails, Chef George delivered the menu and shopping list. Since it was summer, we wanted an outdoor, grill-centric party. 


Chef George arrived promptly at noon, and soon after, our "volunteer" prep chefs joined us.  He immediately put everybody to work - chopping, peeling, mixing, eating, drinking, and laughing. 

Tomato Basil Bruschetta

Ready to go when the guests arrived were platters of Tomato Basil Bruschetta, Mushroom Goat Cheese Bruschetta, and Apple Strawberry Sangria.

Mushroom Goat Cheese Bruschetta

For dinner, we enjoyed Short Rib Kebabs, Grilled Jumbo Shrimp with Pineapple, Spicy Grilled Broccolini, Guasacaca Sauce (a Venezuelan specialty), and for dessert, Grilled Peaches with Honey-Mascarpone Sauce.  Is your mouth watering yet?! Most of these fabulous recipes are in George's cookbook, "Taste this Dish and Twist It."

Shrimp on the Grill

Short Rib Kebabs Ready for the Grill

What a treat it was to have a professional chef in our kitchen! Chef George was an absolute pleasure. Not at all stuffy or uptight, as you might imagine a pro chef being when confronted with a team of "civilian" chefs. Besides being a fun day, we learned alot from him. It was a terrific day - delicious food and fabulous friends, what more could one ask for?!

Chef George 

Grilled Peaches with Honey-Mascarpone Sauce

I can't thank Chef George, the people at FoodBuzz and ConAgra enough for this special day!  But most of all, thank you to our friends for sharing this culinary feast with us!

UPDATE: WE WON!!! South of the Border Super Bowl Baskets

Greetings, Cook's Tour Readers!  


Terry here with BIG news!  I was notified by the FoodBuzz people yesterday that the recipe we submitted was chosen as the Grand Prize winner!  Chef George Duran (Hunt's Tomato spokesperson, host of TLC's "Ultimate Cake-off", and and author of "Take This Dish and Twist It") chose our South of the Border Super Bowl Baskets out of the recipes submitted by FoodBuzz Featured Publishers.  Chef George will be coming to our home to do a food demo!  More details to come about that.  


In the meantime, some folks have asked for a written version of the recipe, which I am happy to supply.  The recipe is quick, easy, delicious, and will be a terrific snack for your Super Bowl parties!  Please watch the video below to see exactly how we did this.  But first, I must give credit to my husband, Barry, for coming up with the recipe idea - the man is very talented!


South of the Border Super Bowl Baskets
(this recipe makes approximately 12 baskets)


1 package flour tortillas
PAM Cooking Spray
1 can Rotel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies
2-3 links fresh chorizo sausage
1 can refried beans
Shredded Mexican cheese
Guacamole
Sour Cream


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.


Take small ramekins and place in large roasting pan. Spray ramekins with PAM.


Heat a saute pan.  Split the chorizo sausage casing down the middle and remove the casing. Drop the sausage into the pan and break up.  Cook thoroughly.  


Using an upside down glass bowl, cut tortillas to fit ramekins and place one in each ramekin. Bake tortillas for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven.  Move rack to top level and set your oven to broil.


While tortillas are still warm, spread approximately 1 tablespoon of refried beans on bottom of each tortilla. Next, add about a tablespoon of cooked chorizo, followed by a tablespoon of Rotel Tomatoes and Green Chilies, and cover with small handful of shredded cheese.  Slide pan of ramekins under broiler and broil for approximately 2 minutes. Watch carefully.  Remove from oven when tortillas are crisp and brown around edges.


Remove tortillas from ramekins, arrange on serving platter. Top with a dollop of guacamole and sour cream. Enjoy!


Printable recipe here!




















As part of a promotion from FoodBuzz and ConAgra, yours truly won a package of ConAgra food items and an HD Flip Video Camera with which to create a new recipe especially for the upcoming Super Bowl!


Our idea: South of the Border Super Bowl Baskets.  Made with flour tortillas, ground Chorizo sausage, Rotel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies, refried beans, and topped with shredded cheese, guacamole, and sour cream - it's the perfect all-in-one football snack.  The chorizo and Rotel tomatoes with green chilies add just the perfect amount of spice to this dish.  


They asked us to videotape the recipe in the making so attached below is my first attempt ever at a food video.  Let me tell you, that video stuff is not as easy as it looks!  The writing, directing, filming, editing, voiceovers - the list goes on and on!


So while the video may not be "Food Network" quality, our South of the Border Super Bowl Baskets are (as we say in football lingo) "up and good!"  Besides being "super" easy, they are delicious.  You can prep them ahead of time and then just finish them off in the broiler for a few minutes right before serving.  This way you won't miss any of the big game.  Hope you enjoy eating them as much as we did creating them!