BBQ Grape Meatballs & Happy 10 Years!

You know you work at a good place when your company celebrates its 10 year anniversary by having a party at a tasteful venue with an open bar and unlimited oysters on the half shell. (Not to mention the giant chocolate bars they gave out which made my head look small in comparison.) Being a new employee, it was really cool for me to be a part of the celebration that was such a milestone for our partners and long term employees. Our marketing team made a great video of how the company started which made its debut at the party.  (Click here to see it! Or scroll down for meatballs)

So, without further ado, this post is dedicated to the company that hired me into the role that ultimately inspired the name of the new blog.

Is there an appetizer that is easier to share or more of a crowd pleasing dish, than a hot crock pot of sweet, savory, tender meatballs?

I will answer for you..... No. (Could I have chosen a better blog title?!)

You can stuff them in a sub roll, pile them on spaghetti or rice, or go at them via toothpick (or hands if you ask my brother). Whatever your preference is, there is no wrong.... As long as you don't get sauce on your new blazer at work. Tip of the day: Always keep a spare top in your car.

I have made multiple different meatball recipes that digress from the usual marinara base. One of my favorites is sweet and sour, for which I usually do a ketchup-pineapple-brown sugar sauce (Check out the recipe on my old blog here). I decided to try a recipe similar to what my boyfriend's mom does, one which I have seen stellar reviews online for, and I was instantly sold. It's simple, but the flavors pop and and make your mouth water for more after each bite.

All I think I need to say to convince you is that I brought a crock pot full to work and they were gone by 9:30 am. My coworkers hardly waited for them to fully reheat (let alone wait until lunch time came around). 

Make them for your next holiday party, potluck, or just to brighten the office some day!




Some tips:
- You can alter the sauce ingredients to your taste preference. Feel free to add extra chili sauce or a few squirts of sriracha to turn up the heat
- I strongly recommend doing a beef/pork mixture for this recipe, not just straight beef. It goes better with the flavors.
- Make gluten free meatballs by using GF oats and processing until fine, or using GF bread crumbs








BBQ Grape Meatballs

Ingredients:
Meatballs:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 lb ground pork
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/3 cup milk
Sauce:
1 cup BBQ sauce
1 cup grape jelly
1/2 cup chili sauce

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 and line baking sheet with foil.
• Combine meatball ingredients, mixing with hands if necessary until it is an even mixture.  
• Roll meat into 1 1/2" balls and place on baking sheet. 
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. 
• Make sauce by mixing the three ingredients directly in the crock pot. 
• When meatballs are done in the oven, add to crock pot and stir to coat. 
• Keep warm for serving. 
• (If making the day in advance like I did, you can add meatballs and sauce in separate bowl to refrigerate over night, then dump into crock pot before heading to your party!)

Honey Chipotle Chicken Wings

Football is in full swing and I couldn't be more pumped up for this season. Watching the Pats go 4-0 after all of the the recent drama feels pretty darn good, but I'll tell you there is something that makes another victory even sweeter (or spicier?).

Honey Chipotle Chicken Wings.

If you know me you know I won't let a Sunday in Fall go by without supplementing game day with a homemade snack. I wouldn't consider it a superstition, but at the same time if I didn't cook and we lost, it would be 100% my fault. Therefore, I have plenty of recipes up my sleeve that I am excited to share.

 This recipe is a new one and was named the best wings I've ever made by a unanimous vote (and I have made some delicious wings). The sauce is bursting with the perfect combination of sweet, tangy and spicy. What takes them over the edge is placing them back in the oven after tossing them in the sauce to allow it to thicken and caramelize to the crispy skin.

Can you say "finger lickin' good"?!

A great thing about this recipe is how it is such a crowd pleaser. There's enough spice to cater to your buffalo loving friends, yet they are mellowed by the sweetness and mild enough for the wimps in the house.


Serve with blue cheese and I promise you can't go wrong serving these at the next Pats game!





Honey Chipotle Chicken Wings

Ingredients:
3 lbs chicken wings
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder 
1 tbsp olive oil  
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey 
2 cloves garlic, minced 
1 minced chili pepper from can w/ adobo sauce + 1 tsp of sauce
2 tsp cider vinegar 
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line a baking sheet with foil.
• Pat wings dry. Toss them in salt, pepper, garlic powder, cumin and oil. Spread evenly on baking sheet. Don't overcrowd the pan; Use two sheets if necessary. 
• Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes, then flip wings over and bake another 20-25 minutes or until skin is brown and crispy. 
• While wings are cooking, mix all sauce ingredients together in saucepan over stove. Bring to a low boil, stirring frequently then reduce heat and simmer 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Toss wings in sauce, then spread back on cookie sheet and cook 5-7 minutes longer to let the sauce caramelize and thicken.
• Serve with ranch or blue cheese and lots of napkins!

 

Iced Pumpkin Cookies & the New Blog Intro

The last time I wrote a blog post, I was a month away from graduating college having a great time in Orono, Maine. 

Now, 6 months later I am a finance recruiter in Portsmouth and am somehow managing to be having nearly just as much fun. I could list all the things I love about work, but that isn't why you are reading this. My guess is you are hungry. So I will get right to the point.

(After a brief explanation of my inspiration)

My company was running a clothing drive with our local clients to support the Epilepsy Foundation of New England. Below is a picture of the donations gathered from just my office in Portsmouth (one of three locations). We ended up donating 3251 POUNDS of clothing thanks to all of the generous businesses in the local community!

As a thank you to my wonderful clients who had participated, I made my favorite pumpkin cookie recipe. I received a very excited email from one of them asking me to share the recipe because she and her coworkers loved them so much.  Then it hit me.....

How wonderful would it be if I had a place to share all of my favorite recipes with all my favorite clients?! I hadn't thought of my trusty old college food blog in months. I had to think of a new name and theme, because Gourmet Taste for the College Buds wouldn't cut it, as I am now (what I like to consider) a "professional" and of course no longer a student.

Immediately, the brainstorming commenced. My sister and I had a good laugh tossing around some ideas (ie: Biscuits & Blazers, Knife Skills & Corporate Thrills, and some others I don't need to disclose), and finally settled on Cold Calls & Meatballs. (See "About Me" for further explanation.) I am very excited to tap back in to my creative culinary side. I think my coworkers may be excited as well because the more I blog, the more I cook, and they will reap the benefits.

Now after my brief explanation, I can get to the important stuff. The iced pumpkin cookies...

The cookies that will literally put a smile on your face when you take a bite and will have even pumpkin haters asking for the recipe. We've been making them every year since I can remember, so I knew they would be the perfect treat to give my clients for participating in the clothing drive. Turns out I was right!


I brought a box in to the office as well and my coworkers loved them. It's a great way to celebrate the season; Nothing screams fall like pumpkin! Now pair it with spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves all blanketed in sweet icing. Really, it's perfect. Even your dog will be begging for a bite. (Though she was begging for peas just before this photo was taken so I suppose that isn't the best way to judge the worthiness of a recipe)

 

The end of the story is if you are craving a simple, fall treat or a good way to impress a client.... consider making these.




Iced Pumpkin Cookies


Ingredients:

Cookies:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cloves
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
Icing:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tbsp half & half (or milk)
1 tbsp melted butter
1/2 tsp vanilla 

Directions:
For cookies:

• Preheat oven to 350
• Combine flour, baking powder & soda, spices and salt in bowl. Whisk to combine.
• In medium bowl (kitchen aid mixer preferable) cream together softened butter and sugar until well combined. 
• Add in pumpkin, vanilla and egg and beat until creamy, stopping to scrape the bottom a couple of times.
• Pour pumpkin mix into dry ingredients and mix to combine. 
• Drop on ungreased cookie sheet by tablespoons. 
• Bake for 17-18 minutes. 
• Let cool completely before icing. 

For icing:

• Mix all ingredients together. Add half&half/milk slowly, being careful not to make it too liquidy.
• Let the icing set on the cookies and store in air tight container.

PS: I've made them without icing and add mini chocolate chips - another crowd pleaser!