This week we're in Duluth, Minnesota on the shores of Lake Superior, the largest freshwater lake in the world. The lake keeps the climate a bit cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter than the rest of the state; it is also beautiful and completely breathtaking. Duluth provides the perfect merge of city and country living with a hip, artsy vibe and brimming with local artists and musicians. Duluth is also the gateway to the scenic North Shore of Lake Superior, a playground for outdoor enthusiasts and tourists who want to experience life on the Greatest Lake.
Chicken Rolls
These chicken-stuffed crescent rolls are delicious! Crescent rolls filled with a savory chicken and cream cheese mixture
are incredibly easy and simple to prepare! This versatile recipe and dish would make a great light lunch when served with a
green salad or a fruit salad. Or, dress it up with a simple gravy and serve for brunch. There are countless ingredient
substitutions for the chicken and cream cheese filling including leftover turkey and cranberry sauce after Thanksgiving!
Try Monica's Strawberry Gin Cocktail, a refreshing blast of "strawberry" to sip slowly in the afternoon shade of a hot, autumn afternoon.
Crescent rolls are a versatile ingredient to have on hand in your kitchen. Easy to work with, it can be used to make
everything from appetizers to desserts with spectacular results.
Prevent your filling from leaking out during baking by sealing the edges of your crescent rolls well. Simply pressing down
along the edges should do the trick.
To make small batches of fresh croutons any time all you need is a non-stick frying pan, bread and oil. Begin by cutting your bread into medium squares then add them to a warm, lightly oiled non-stick pan. Cook croutons on very low, stirring continuously until all the bread cubes are coated in oil and begin to brown, drizzle a little more oil if necessary. While the bread is browning, slowly sprinkle herbs or spices (garlic powder, dried basil or Italian seasoning) onto the bread cubes for additional flavoring.
Mini Crescent Burgers
These are so easy to make and a sure hit with the family!
Lit'l Smokies Mummy Dogs
For your next Halloween party, create spooky mummy dogs with strips of crescent dough for the bandages and tasty Hillshire Farm® Lit'l Smokies® for the mummies.
Savory Crescent Chicken
Refrigerator crescent rolls form pockets around a delectable chicken-cream cheese filling for a piping hot, irresistible sandwich for family or guests.
A native Minnesotan, Monica is a graduate of University of Minnesota and an event planner for the University of Wisconsin at Duluth. Monica comes from a long line of cooks so it was inevitable she too
would love to cook, but she also enjoys spending time traveling, reading, gardening, tap dancing, and being with family and
friends. She's also is a big Fan of Allrecipes.com.
"I have many traditional family recipes that I cherish, but I also love to try new things. My husband will eat anything, so he makes for a good guinea pig. I love to bake, especially muffins, breads, and pies. I also love pasta with lots of vegetables! While I have always been interested in baking, I also LOVE to cook traditional comfort foods. I am obsessed with Macaroni & Cheese and love to make different versions of it. My latest success was Cheddar & Blue Cheese Mac with Walnut & Panko topping. I also have an insatiable craving for Thai food, so we eat lots of Thai inspired soups, salads and stir-fry. Deep down, my husband is a meat and potato guy, so I also like to indulge him every now and then with a nice steak or pork tenderloin and garlic mashed potatoes."
"A rolling chicken gathers momentum." ~ Nom D. Guerre
Duluth, Minnesota was not what I expected, even though I find myself hard pressed to even articulate what I expected. To start with, it sits right on the shores of Lake Superior, the largest freshwater lake in the world, 31,280 square surface miles, and for the scuba diver in me, it is the final resting place for over 350 shipwrecks, including the famous Edmund Fitzgerald.
The day started out with a lot of cloud cover and the promise of rain, but the temperature quickly climbed as we made our way to Duluth's famous Aerial Lift Bridge. Going up 25-30 times daily during the busy parts of the shipping season, we were "bridged" as Monica phrased it, as we waited to cross the small canal which was put through the thin but long sand bar named Minnesota Point or more commonly known as Park Point by the locals. An interesting tie-in to the Pacific Northwest is a little history around the canal itself. In 1888 Wilhelm Boeing, who owned 14 plots on either side of the canal, tried to stake a claim that he had the right to charge a toll to ships using the canal. In October 1889, he posted notices around the Twin Ports that a rope would be stretched across the canal and that all canal traffic would be stopped. It is unclear on whether he ever carried out his threat; however, the issue became moot when he died the following month in Detroit. His son, William E. Boeing, went on to found the Boeing Aircraft Company located in the Pacific Northwest, also home to Allrecipes.com.
After being "bridged" a second time on our return, we agreed that we needed to visit the 22nd Annual Bayfront Blues
Festival featuring international, national and regional music acts. We listened to the opening act on the main stage right on the
shore of Lake Superior while behind us, music was starting in the acoustic tent (smaller, covered, and considerably more intimate).
With act names like Reverend Raven and the Chain Smoking Alter Boys and Dr. John & the Lower 911, this was sure to be a
good show! We had the pleasure of meeting both the Sheriff and the Mayor of the Blues Festival, even being honorably deputized in their august
presence. When asked if she had a name she wished to be deputized under, Monica replied, "I don't" and was thus deputized as
Deputy Don't. I took the name Deputy Mad Cow and from there we headed to Monica's kitchen to begin our official duties. Heading back
to the car, we could hear the music across the grass competing with the sounds of tribal flags snapping, awnings flapping, and the
wind as it slowly picked up some courage. No one except the acts were singing the blues on this beautiful afternoon.
Upon arriving at Monica's kitchen, we started right in on making her Chicken Rolls, a delicious combination of shredded chicken, cream cheese, butter, and crescent rolls. These things were downright easy to make and I am looking forward to making them with my kids on some rainy, Northwest evening. Rolling them in crushed croutons rounds out the recipe for the rolls themselves, other than popping them in the oven. I have to admit, however, that Monica lost a little bit of credibility when she indicated that crushing the croutons was a great activity for her husband when he was looking for something to do during a football game. Looking for something to do during a football game?! Either they're newlyweds or she's adding a bit of shine to this tale!
Monica also makes a tasty gravy for this treat with a story that's hard to beat. Apparently her grandma, from whom this recipe was handed down, felt strongly that food must have color and be vibrant in its presentation, often adding red food coloring to the mix. Needless to say, this resulted in a pink gravy that is still a story told around the table year after year.
Finally, to top it off, Monica created an ice-cold gin cocktail that we took outside to enjoy with the food. It was all delicious and thank you, again for a great experience! Oh, I almost forgot, in the making of the cocktail, Monica finished up, declared it good, and then realized she'd forgotten the gin! Perhaps this should be the new story told around the table? Worth consideration!
Bayfront Blues Festival
A must stop, look, and listen if you're in the area as this is the Midwest's largest Outdoor Blues Festival featuring international,
national and regional music acts. Right on the shores of Lake Superior, it's a perfect setting to get your "Blues" on!
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