Buffalo Chicken Grilled Blue Cheese

I love Buffalo Sauce! I like it on hot wings, Buffalo chicken pizza, in buffalo ranch chicken dip, just about anything. I'll find something to put it on.

I also like to eat hot wings - but I'm a HUGE wuss. I love the buffalo wing flavor, but I have to eat it in mild form, or else my nose starts running, my eyes are watering, and I start panting like a dog because it's so hot! (at least to me).

Last week, Archie and I went on our date night to Smoke Eaters. It's a local wings bar and grill type restaurant that was featured on man vs. food on the Travel Channel. They have a "hellfire challenge" that requires you to eat 12 of their hottest wings in 10 minutes with no drinks and no napkins.

Can I just say... I think that is INSANE!!! When we were there, we saw a guy attempt. Notice, I said attempt. He ate about 2 and a half and he was literally drooling and snotting all over the place, waving his hands around, and screaming. People were taking video of him, poor guy! I bet he didn't think that when he was getting taped, he wasn't going to finish all of them. The worst part is, the only thing you get is a polaroid picture of yourself and a t-shirt if you do it.

Really??? That's all??? What's the point! :) I'm sorry for those of you who have it in you to try things like this. I'm definitely not an adventurer!

In my effort to create a MILD version of the buffalo flavor, I attempted this buffalo chicken grilled cheese sandwich. I saw a version on Pinterest. (P.S. Have you joined Pinterest yet?? If not, you should! It's amazing. You can follow me here). I needed to tweak it a bit since I didn't really care for mayonnaise being the base of my sandwich. So, I ended up changing half the recipe, but the final result was awesome!

I used Frank's buffalo sauce with ranch and blue cheese and the combo was quite tasty!

Buffalo Chicken Grilled Blue Cheese Sandwiches (Adapted from: Closet Cooking)

Serves 4

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

2 boneless skinless chicken breast, cooked and chopped/shredded

1/3 cup ranch dressing (I used a light version)

1/4 cup Frank's Red Hot wing sauce (or other version of wing sauce, I just like Frank's the best)

1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese

8 slices crusty bread (I used sourdough, and it was delicious)

Preparation:

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine shredded chicken, ranch, wing sauce and blue cheese and stir to combine.

2. Butter slices of bread, and layer chicken mixture on top, spreading evenly among the four sandwiches.

3. Cook over low-medium heat until browned on both sides and chicken mixture is warmed through and cheese is melted. Enjoy!!

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Best New Thing Ever....

Have you tried these?!......

Amazing!!! Simply amazing! They grow on you! The first one or two, you think... "yeah, they're okay, they're pretty good". Wait till the 4th or 5th one... You will be addicted.

My husband's favorite snack is chocolate covered pretzels. He jokes frequently if he could have one thing on a deserted island, it would be chocolate covered pretzels. This met his requirements.

Go get some! :)

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Once A Year Guilty Pleasures

Do you have those foods that you just LOVE... that you CRAVE.... one's that are full of guilt, but are just so darn good. You know, the ones you make like one time a year, and completely gorge yourself with because you know you only get them one time a year. I made one of those for Christmas dinner this year (I have tons of these recipes, but I just made one). Of course, getting away with a recipe like this clearly calls for the excuse, "It's Christmas"! World famous caramelized onion cornbread stuffing from Tyler Florence. It's just that good! I also made mashed potatoes, and played around with an old recipe to change it up a bit with what I had on hand, and let me tell you... they turned out amazing! Hope everyone had a fabulous Christmas!

Caramelized Onion Cornbread Stuffing
Ingredients

* 2 tablespoons butter
* 2 onions, chopped
* 6 large cornmeal muffins, cubed
* 1 egg
* 1/4 cup heavy cream
* 1/4 cup chicken stock
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper


Place cubed cornbread muffins in a large bowl.


Saute onions in a pan with butter until golden brown and caramelized. Then, mix onions together with cornbread.

In a separate bowl, whisk together chicken stock, egg, and whipping cream until well blended, then pour over cornbread and onion mixture and mix well.


Place in a buttered 8" x 8" baking dish and bake in a 375 degree oven for 30 min or until golden brown. Then, divulge and enjoy!!!!


Smashed New Potatoes
I usually make my mashed potatoes with warm cream, but wanted to try a version with cheese, and had the mascarpone cheese on hand. Thought it sounded delicious, and so I replaced the cream with the cheese. They turned out super creamy and velvety, and were a big hit!

Ingredients:
~3 lbs new red potatoes, cubed with skins on
1 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
4 oz. mascarpone cheese
drizzle olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Place diced potatoes in a large pot covered with 2" water. Boil on medium high heat for ~ 15 min or until knife goes through them easily. Drain and return to pot.



Using hand held mixer or wooden spoon, mash potatoes together until slightly lumpy.

Add Parmesan cheese, mascarpone cheese, drizzle of olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Using hand mixer, continue to mix until cheeses are melted and potatoes smooth. Transfer to serving bowl and sprinkle with extra Parmesan cheese if desired.

And Tada! The finished product!

What's your favorite once a year guilty pleasure?

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