Jolene's Recipe Journal

For day 4 of #BBQWeek I'm sharing one of our favorite summertime thirst quenchers, Iced Strawberry Tea.  I found this recipe on the Taste of Home site but have adapted it to our tastes. This post is sponsored in conjunction with #BBQWeek. The sponsors, Rainier Foods and Intensity Academy, generously provided prize packages to give away to the readers, however, all opinions are mine alone. One thing I love about this drink is that it works with either fresh or frozen strawberries. This time around I used 10oz frozen whole strawberries. I let them partially defrost and then whizzed them up in the blender with lemon juice. The original recipe calls for the sugar to be added after but I find that it's hard to get it to dissolve that way.  I brewed my tea, added the sugar and then let it cool.  You could also use a simple syrup instead of the granulated sugar. This is absolutely fantastic as is but you can make an adults only version by adding some rum, vodka or even bourbon. I li

We're halfway through #BBQWeek and I hope you're enjoying it as much as I am! Today I'm sharing Grilled Buttermilk Chicken, a recipe I found on the Taste of Home website. This post is sponsored in conjunction with #BBQWeek. The sponsors, Rainier Foods and Intensity Academy, generously provided prize packages to give away to the readers, however, all opinions are mine alone. I've always struggled making chicken on the grill that doesn't turn out dry or flavorless.  I find I have the most success with recipes that are marinated first. I like to do my marinating in zip top bags but you can do them in a bowl or shallow pan if you like.  This one had buttermilk, whole cloves of garlic and fresh thyme.  If you don't have fresh thyme you can definitely substitute dried. I wish I could get beautiful grill marks like others can but I concentrate more on getting the chicken cooked through.  I use an instant read probe thermometer and like to pull chicken at around 160 deg

It's day two of #BBQWeek and today I'm serving up a sensational side dish, Pesto Pasta & Potatoes! My grill has a side burner but if yours doesn't you can definitely cook this one indoors. This post is sponsored in conjunction with #BBQWeek. The sponsors, Rainier Foods and Intensity Academy, generously provided prize packages to give away to the readers, however, all opinions are mine alone. I chose baby Dutch yellow potatoes but it would be great with red or purple too.  I had frozen steam in bag green beans on hand, we're still a while away from getting fresh local green beans. Since my guys are allergic to nuts I have to choose my pesto carefully.  My favorite right now is the Classico brand. It's delicious and comes in the most adorable little jars.   You could also use a tri color pasta or other shapes, just choose something that the pesto and cheese can grab onto. It's fantastic hot or chilled. I served it alongside Grilled Buttermlk Chicken and I'

Welcome to the third annual #BBQWeek hosted by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures . We are excited to have 15 bloggers sharing over 50 recipes this week as we head toward grilling season. I've got five new recipes coming your way this week! This post is sponsored in conjunction with #BBQWeek. The sponsors, Rainier Foods and Intensity Academy, generously provided prize packages to give away to the readers, however, all opinions are mine alone.   One of my favorite apps to order when I go out is jalapeno poppers.  I rarely fry at home so when I saw these grilled Bacon Cheddar Jalapenos on the Taste of Home site I couldn't wait to give them a try.   The first thing you want to do is cut the tops off the peppers and take out the seeds/membranes.  I highly recommend using a tomato corer to do this, it makes it super easy.  I combined the cheeses and loaded them into a Pampered Chef gadget I have called the Easy Accent Decorator .  It made fast work of filling up the poppers.  Wrapping t