Spicy Meatballs with Sweet BBQ Sauce

Huge hit and easy since it's a make ahead dish!

Make meat mix and sauce the day before. A few hours ahead on the day of, roll meatballs out. Try to make them bite size. Cover with plastic wrap and store until needed.

When guests are about to arrive, preheat the oven to 425. Cover each meatball with a drizzle of the sweet sauce. Bake meatballs for 5-7 minutes. Then turn on the broiler and continue to cook until meatballs are slightly browned on top or until cooked through (you can cut one in half and see it's doneness). Cover cooked meatballs with another drizzle of sauce. I served all of mine on a platter piled high and then placed a pile of toothpicks next to them for easy eating! (I suggest a trash bucket or something nearby to place the used toothpicks in.)

Sauce

1/2 cup chili sauce
1/2 cup boysenberry jame, seedless
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
2 tbs. Sweet Rays BBQ Sauce
Salt and Pepper
Use red chili flake and brown sugar a tiny bit at a time to adjust heat(chili) or sweetness(sugar). 


Meatballs:

1 lb. ground beef
1 lb. ground pork
1 lb. ground spicy italian sausage
1/2 cup of milk
3 slices white bread, broken into crumbs
2 tbs. parsley
2 tsp. red pepper flake (more or less depending on your desired hotness level)*
3 tbs. ketchup
2 eggs
1 tbs. garlic powder
1 tbs. onion powder
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. pepper


1. Combine all sauce ingredients together. Over medium low heat, cook sauce until thickness desired is reached.

2. Crack eggs into a large bowl. Whisk together with a fork. Then combine all meatball ingredients. Make sure not to over stir the meat mixtures so the meatballs don't get tough.

2. Make a small test patty. Cover with sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning.

* When it comes to adding heat to any dish, always start lower then you think. You can always add more to increase the heat but it's difficult to get it back out! 

Cheesecake Bars 2.0

I revised my cheesecake bar recipe. This version has a thinner crust with a thicker cream cheese filling. The directions are exactly the same as the original recipe but the proportions are different. This makes an 8x8 pan and comes out to about 24 bars.It's a great make ahead dessert that keeps well in the fridge. If you like cheesecake, you'll like these!!!

Ingredients
Crust:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans and walnuts
1/2 stick butter, melted

Filling:

  3(8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tsp salt
Fresh berries, mint leaves, and/or melted chocolate for garnish if desired

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Combine butter and brown sugar in a bowl. Add flour and nuts until mix is combined, do not over mix. Press dough into an ungreased 13 by 9 by 2-inch pan. You want the dough thickness to be between 1/4 - 1/2 inch. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Allow crust to cool for 20 - 40 minutes before pouring filling in.

3. For filling, beat cream cheese and granulated sugar together in a bowl until smooth, using a handheld electric mixer. Add eggs and extract; beat well. Pour over crust. Bake for 20 minutes. Cool completely in the fridge for 4 hours. Cut into squares before serving. Decorate tops with berries and mint leaves, if desired.