Cook Time: 20 minutes Difficulty: Easy

Move over BBQ chicken, and say hello to Spicy Cherry Chicken, featuring Cherchies® Cherry Hot Pepper Jam and a few pantry items! This easy sweet, spicy chicken recipe is baked in the oven but can also be grilled (unless it is sub-zero outside, where grilling is no fun!).

Grilling is my hubby's thing. Our family usually grills year round, but at 19 degrees, as it was here the other day in Pennsylvania, with a wind-chill factor of something crazy, it was even too much for my die-hard grilling hubby. Of course, my craving for BBQ chicken occurred on the coldest day of the year, so we baked the chicken instead and stayed nice and toasty inside;).

One problem, we were out of our favorite bottled BBQ sauce;( So, what's a gal to do? Improvise! One missing ingredient was not worth braving the Tundra to the grocery store, so I improvised with what I had in the pantry, ketchup, Cherchies® Cherry Hot Pepper Jam, and liquid smoke! Holy Smoke (pun intended), it worked!

The chicken legs were juicy, tangy, and delicious; I may never return to store-bought BBQ sauce again, friends! Homemade is so much better, even baked! So stock up on Cherchies® Hot Pepper Jams (Cherry, Cranberry, or Strawberry), and the next time you crave a sweet and spicy BBQ chicken (even if it is sub-zero outside), you will have all the ingredients for this Spicy Cherry Chicken Recipe, ready at a moment's notice.

Comment below if you have made this recipe. Thank you for visiting! Join us again for more family-tested recipes, entertaining ideas, and cooking tips using all our favorite Cherchies® gourmet products.

Ingredients

1 package of chicken legs or chicken breasts
1 Tablespoon Cherchies® Garlic Seasoning Blend
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup Cherchies® Cherry Hot Pepper Jam (could also substitute Cherchies® Strawberry Hot Pepper Jam, or Cherchies® Cranberry Hot Pepper Jam)
1/2 cup ketchup
1 teaspoon (tsp) liquid smoke
1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) olive oil

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, mix together the Cherry Hot Pepper Jam, ketchup, and the liquid smoke. Place chicken on a baking sheet and drizzle the chicken with olive oil. Sprinkle the chicken with Garlic Seasoning and pepper. Brush half of the ketchup mixture over the chicken, reserving the other half for later in the baking process.

Bake chicken for 15 minutes. Remove chicken briefly from the oven and brush on the remaining sauce and finish cooking for another 15 minutes or until thermometer reads 165 degrees. Once chicken is removed from oven, allow it to sit for 10 minutes.

Serve the Spicy Cherry Chicken with our Herbed Mashed Potatoes and Strawberry Spinach Salad for a complete meal. Enjoy!

Yum

Cooking Tip: How To Create an Easy Cheese Plate

November 19, 2015cooking tips, partiesSheri SpalloneComment

Entertaining should be easy, not difficult. It's all about quality time with family and friends, not the time spent in the kitchen. With the busy holiday season on our doorstep, time is of the essence, and a quick and easy go-to appetizer is a necessity.

Our go-to appetizer is a charcuterie platter, (aka a cheese plate or antipasto platter). It takes very little effort to create a fabulous charcuterie platter, but the presentation speaks volumes.

Cheese and fruit are a given for cheese platters, and when we are entertaining, we often open up jars of our products (Our award-winning mustards, Hot Pepper Jams, Butter Spreads, Preserves), and pair them with good quality cheeses. Our guests love to create and share their own concoctions (You'll find out shortly how to create your own). Plus, it's also a great conversation starter.

There really is no exact recipe for a cheese plate, as it lends to individual creativity, so below we've given our recommendations for the perfect cheese/antipasto platter: Let's build it together! Here are the tools needed for a fabulous cheese/antipasto display:

Vehicle (Thank you Martha Stewart)- A pretty cutting board, tray, or platter is the perfect "vehicle" for creating a cheese board. If you have a large gathering, a piece of furniture works well to "stage" your appetizers. Check out my in-laws 50th Anniversary party this summer (thank you Charlie from Yellow Springs Inn for your innovation and inspiration). We re-created a smaller version later for friends on Labor Day. They loved it!

Pretty Containers

The world is your oyster when it comes to containers:) Gather up your "pretties" (bowls, martini glasses, crystal, votive holders, tea cups, etc. ) for your display, anything that will hold the loose items such as olives, nuts, crackers, bread sticks, etc.

We used our "pretties" to hold olives, mini toasts, bread sticks, and of course CONDIMENTS! We used one each of our Mustards, Hot Pepper Jams, Butter Spreads, and Preserves.

Labeling

Chalkboard anything is all the rage for labeling, and the possibilities are endless. Here, we used picture frame napkins rings (you could substitute mini picture frames) that we had lying around, and then added black construction paper to the frames to create "faux" chalkboards.

Cheese

You had me at cheese! Invest in some good quality cheeses, like aged cheddar, blue, brie, or whatever combinations you decide upon. Depending on your gathering size (under 10 people), Martha Stewart (thank you again Martha...you rock!) suggests selecting three different cheeses, all of varying textures, with a mild cheese as one of the options.

Fruit and/or Fruit Preserves

There's usually something sweet on a Cheese Plate, such as fruit (fresh or dried grapes, apples, apricots, berries, cranberries, etc.), and we've gone a step further to include fruit AND our Preserves, Hot Pepper Jams, Butter Spreads, and Mustards as an accompaniment to the cheese. This is where the fun begins! The flavors are amazing! Stay tuned!

Bread

So technically, you could just pick up a slice of cheese and top it with a piece of fruit and be done. Or, you could grab a slice of a baguette or a cracker (make sure to get good crackers ...Water Crackers tend to be a favorite...we used mini toast crostinis we found at our local Wegman's), and start creating, combining cheeses with fruit, pepper jams, mustards, preserves, meats, oh my!. Your taste buds will thank you!

Try these options to start (the possibilities are endless!):

Cherchies® Blackberry Preserves paired with Blue Cheese
Cherchies® Hot Pepper Jams paired with a good sharp Cheddar
Cherchies® Apple Butter Spread and Brie with a slice of apple on top
Cherchies® Champagne Mustard (or Cranberry Mustard) and cheddar, with a few Champagne grapes on top (cute little grapes, normally found at specialty stores)

Miscellaneous Items

Usually, cheese plates have some sort of meat, such as sausage, salami, etc. In addition to salami, we decided to amp up our cheese board even more and add Pepperoncini Peppers and olives, but you could also add nuts.

Cheese platters are not only an easy and elegant option for entertaining, but the combinations of ingredients are also infinite. We love to add our personal touch and pair cheese with fruits, olives, meats, preserves, mustards, pepper jams, etc. You will find tons of themed charcuterie options on the internet for the creative side of you (see below). We'd love to hear your favorite combinations!

The best part of a charcuterie/cheese platter is that you'll have more time on your hands for what's important...spending quality time with your family and friends! Happy easy and elegant entertaining this holiday season!

Yum

Turkey and Cheese Waffle Panini Recipe

November 18, 2015leftovers, lunch, entreesSheri SpalloneComment

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

My kiddos have begged me for a panini press for some time, and while the thought of having one more appliance didn't appeal to me, the idea of my kiddos cooking together did, so I am at an impasse.

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Thank you Pinterest people for always providing such fabulous ideas! You are all so creative, because while I was trying to justify another appliance, I ran across an idea to use my waffle iron and simulate a panini press! Yipee! Impasse avoided!

I told my kiddos about my waffle discovery when they came home from school. Low and behold, (I've never seen teens jump so fast at anything), they jumped up, grabbed some turkey, ham, butter, bread, our gourmet Champagne Mustard, Apple Butter Spread, Cranberry Preserves, Cranberry Mustard, and started experimenting...and mom smiled:)

As I mentioned in my "Cooking With Kids" Blog recently, my kiddos gobbled up their waffle sandwich creations before I had a chance to photograph them. With Thanksgiving next week, I recreated one of their culinary inventions for you, which includes leftover turkey, Cranberry Preserves (Thanksgiving wouldn't be the same without something Cranberry), Champagne Mustard, and cheese. Oh my goodness...the flavor! The waffle sandwich possibilities are endless (grilled ham and cheese with Champagne Mustard would be nice too).

Who knows, maybe I'll break down after all and get them a panini press for Christmas, since they love to cook so much! Shhh, don't tell them.

BTW, stay tuned later this week. Our newsletter (don't forget to sign up...www.cherchies.com...page down until you see the section for our newsletter, and enter your email) will be going out on this Friday with some fantastic deals on our cranberry products. That's right, all three cranberry products mentioned will be on sale this weekend, beginning this Friday:) Surprise!

Here's our secret recipe (not really secret).

Ingredients (per sandwich)

Leftover turkey
One slice of cheese per slice (I used American this time because I didn't have Brie in the house. Brie or a nice aged cheddar would be good)
Cherchies® Champagne Mustard (Feel free to substitute Cherchies® Cranberry Mustard)
Cherchies® Cranberry Preserves (Feel free to substitute our Cranberry Hot Pepper Jam)
Two slices of bread
Butter;)

Preparation

Turn on waffle iron. Generously butter (or use cooking spray on both plates of waffle iron). While waffle iron is warming, assemble the sandwich.

Spread one slice of bread with a small amount of Cranberry Preserves, and the other with Champagne Mustard. Then add the turkey...

And don't forget the cheese! My mouth is already salivating! Place the sandwich on the waffle iron, close the lid, press down slightly, and wait for the waffle iron light to go off.

It's that easy to recreate something new with leftover turkey! Let us know your favorite Cherchies® combinations. Next time I think I'll add stuffing...saw that too on Pinterest...Thanksgiving reconstituted:) I love it! Enjoy!

Yum

Candied Pepper Jam Bacon Recipe

September 1, 2015appetizers, snacks, breakfastSheri SpalloneComment

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Sometimes you just need to eat bacon, because I said so! Everything in moderation, right?

I have been wanting to try this for a long time...candied bacon. I was very intrigued by the whole concept, so I researched the ingredients, and found mostly maple syrup (sugar) and/or brown sugar, and sometimes a spice like cayenne. Then I thought pepper jam...hmmm...we have that! So I decided to give it a try. Below, I used our hot pepper jams (sweet, spicy and salty) as well as our Lem'n Raspberry Marmalade (the lemon and the raspberry, combined with the salty bacon was to die for). The result, amazing! Buy our Cherchies® Pepper Jams today, and you'll have them in time to impress your guests for the holiday weekend.

Ingredients

Bacon, sliced in half (you could use entire slice without cutting)
1 Tablespoon (per slice) Cherchies®Cherry Hot Pepper Jam (or Cherchies® Strawberry Hot Pepper Jam, Cherchies® Cranberry Hot Pepper Jam for the holidays, or Cherchies®Lem'n Raspberry Marmalade)

Preparation

Slice desired amounts of bacon and place in jelly roll pan. Spread about 1 Tablespoon of pepper jam on each slice of bacon. Cook at 350 until bacon is cooked to your desired doneness. Serve the bacon on a pretty platter or glass for an appetizer. It's that easy! Enjoy!