GEORGIA TECH vs MIAMI

2 teaspoons hot chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
1 pinch cayenne pepper (or more if you like it hotter)
1 pinch red pepper flakes

Mix chili powder, paprika, sea salt, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and red pepper flakes in a bowl.  Makes the equivalent of one packet of store bought taco seasoning mix.

1 c red wine

3/4 c red wine vinegar
1/4 c sesame oil
1/2 c extra virgin olive oil
4 TBSP garlic, chopped
3 TBSP fresh ginger, coarsely chopped
3 TSP thyme, leaves (substitue 1 tsp. dried)
1 TSP cracked black pepper
1/2 TSP coarse sea salt
2 lb beef flank steaks

Whisk all marinade ingredients in a bowl.

Trim any excess fat, and then score each flank steak against the grain.

Place the marinade in two separate gallon sized zip lock bags and add one flank steak to each bag. Zip bags closed and shake to evenly coat the meat.

Place in a pan and into fridge. Marinate the steak overnight turning several times to evenly coat the meat.

On a preheated grill over medium high heat (375 F), first sear the flank steak on each side, approximately 1-2 minutes per side. Continue cooking about 6 minutes or more per side (depending on how you like it), turning once. When the internal temperature reaches desired doneness, remove from grill and rest ~10 minutes under a piece of foil tented over the top. Slice the flank steak against the grain, and serve as is or with rolls for sandwiches.

***COOL GADGET ALERT
My brother and sister-in-law gave me this cool herb chopper last time they came for a visit, and now it’s my favorite gadget!

Wash and wrap potatoes in foil.  Cook on high for about 2 1/2 to 4 hours in the crock pot.

Then, set up a potato bar at your tailgate with your choice of toppings such as:

*Sour cream
*Assorted shredded cheeses
*Crumbled bacon
*Scallions
*Chives
*Butter
*Chopped olives
*Chopped jalapeno pepper
*Salsa

I can’t wait to serve this dish!  Who doesn’t love a caprese salad?  And this one is easy to eat at a tailgate and just so darn pretty!  I’ll serve in smaller clear PLASIC cups however, but it’ll still be cute.

This recipe looks to serve about 4-6 people, so I’ll probably triple it for the tailgate.

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1 cup basil, chopped
16 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut into wedges
1/2 cup prepared pesto (optional; also fine with olive oil alone)
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

If you’re using the pesto, add a few tablespoons of olive oil to make it more pourable. Layer in the order of tomatoes – mozzarella – basil and then drizzle a bit of pesto, if using. If not, this is where a touch of olive oil comes in for each layer. Repeat until glasses are full. Top with more basil.

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for pan
1 bag (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips (2 cups)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup flour
1 cup mini marshmallows
1/2 cup chopped nuts, such as pecans, or walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8-inch-square baking pan. Line bottom with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides; butter paper.

In a heatproof bowl set over (not in) a saucepan of simmering water, combine butter and 1 cup chocolate chips. Heat, stirring occasionally, just until melted, 3 to 5 minutes.

Remove mixture from heat; stir in sugars and salt, then eggs, and finally flour, stirring just until combined.

Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.

Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs attached, 30 to 35 minutes.

Remove from oven, and ***sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips, then marshmallows and nuts.

Bake until chocolate is shiny and marshmallows are puffed, about 5 minutes.

Cool completely in pan. Using paper overhang, lift cake onto a work surface; cut into 16 squares.

***Note: To prevent toppings from sinking into the batter, sprinkle them on after brownies are baked. An extra 5 minutes in the oven melts the topping together for easy slicing.

2 cups sugar
1 TSP baking soda
2 cups flour
1 TSP salt
2 sticks butter
1 cup water
1 cup peanut butter
½ cups milk
1 TSP vanilla
2 whole eggs

Frosting:
1 stick butter
½ cups peanut butter
6 TSP milk
1 pound powdered sugar (~ 3 cups)

In a large bowl, mix together sugar, baking soda, flour and salt. Set aside.

Combine butter, water and peanut butter in saucepan and bring just to boil stirring to melt the peanut butter well. Pour over flour mixture. Mix together.

Add milk, vanilla and eggs, and mix well.

Pour into a greased 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 400F degrees for 20 minutes. Cool.

Frosting:

Bring butter, peanut butter and milk to boil in saucepan. Add powdered sugar.  Mix well, and add more milk if necessary to get desired consistency for the frosting.  Spread frosting over cooled cake.