Jalapeno Poppers & Mango Sangria

It's Monday.  And again, I haven't cooked anything.  I had big plans to try out a new veggie burger recipe for our Father's Day BBQ this weekend.  But I got busy.  And lazy.  So instead I threw a Morningstar veggie burger on the grill next to everyone else's moo-cow-patties.

So today you get two recipes, that are absolutely meat-free, but maybe don't make a traditional meal.  Although, I think if you pair them together, you'll be so pleased you won't even notice you are drinking your dinner.

First up: the appetizers!  I was watching Rachael the other day and she was making jalapeno poppers in the oven.  They looked fantastic.  And they didn't call for any carne.  I was intrigued, but when she mentioned you could make them on the grill, I knew they'd be perfect for our BBQ.  It's grillin' season friends... and I don't want to turn on my oven.

Apparently I don't want to take pictures either.  Or at least not very good ones...

Get em' while they're hot!

Cute pic Drew, but I can't see the poppers.

Grilled Jalapeno Poppers from my BFF Rachael Ray

Ingredients:

• 12 large jalapenos
• 2 oz feta
• 4 oz cream cheese, room temp
• 4 oz pepper jack, shredded
• Handful of cilantro, chopped
• 2 Tbsp onion, grated
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

Method:

• Preheat grill to medium high.
• Cut peppers in half, lengthwise and scoop out seeds and ribs using a teaspoon.
• Mash the rest of the ingredients together in a bowl and spoon into peppers.  Place peppers in a grill pan.
• Grill for 15 - 20 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and brown.
• Eat up! 

These were fantastic.  We ate them all.  And everyone was raving about them.  I mean... seriously good.  And so easy!  We had those bad boys on the grill before anyone even showed up.  If you know my entertaining style... usually I haven't even showered by the time people show up.  Let alone prepared food.

But, what to drink with those spicy little suckers???

We had plenty of cerveza to go around, but it was such a nice night and something fruity and girly seemed appropriate, even though we were technically celebrating dads.  I decided white sangria was just the thing, but wasn't sure how to make it.  I read lots of recipes on Food Network, but was lacking a complete list of ingredients.  So I did what I do best and took the basic method from all the recipes, along with the hodge-podge of ingredients in my kitchen, and voila: sangria!

I can't freakin' believe I didn't take a proper picture.  The pitcher of sangria was just lovely.  So were the second and third pitchers. 

Up there in the left.  That's sangria.  Yo.

Jamie's Super Fantastic White Mango Sangria

Ingredients:

• White Wine*
• 1/2 - 1 cup mango rum, depending on how heavy your hand is
• 3 Tablespoons sugar
• 1 green apple, chopped
• 1 cup-ish mango cubes**
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced

Method:

• Pour rum and sugar into pitcher.  Stir until sugar is dissolved. 
• Add fruit.
• Fill pitcher to the top with white wine.
• Serve over ice.

Nutritious and delicious!

The first pitcher was pretty much ladies only.  But word got out about the tastiness of this beverage and pretty soon everyone was drinking it.  Three pitchers of sangria later... and that's what I call summer.

Happy {meatless} Monday!!!

*I recommend a box of wine***.  It's classy, and you don't have to worry about how many bottles you've gone through.
**How on Earth do you cube a mango???  I just buy it frozen, pre-cubed.
***Don't hate.