Copycat Recipes Again - Summer 2020

One of our pandemic activities was trying new recipes; it's a great stay-at-home hobby! After completing the Skillet Bread List, we saw a list of Copy-Cat Recipes and decided that would be good to go through next. Here are some of the recipes that would work well for snacks or lunches or light dinners. (The links to the dinner recipes we tried can be found here.)

from Texas Roadhouse - Rattlesnake Bites - I'd never heard of these, but they sounded intriguing and worth a try. I even bought jalapeno peppers (with extra to freeze for future recipes)! Combine grated Cheddar and Jack cheese with the peppers and some garlic. Take by the spoonful and mush until the mixture sticks together in balls; then freeze for 30 minutes. Roll the cheese balls in seasoned flour, then an egg wash, then seasoned bread crumbs. Fry in hot oil for a few minutes and serve with Ranch dressing. Note that while our bites were nice and golden, inside they were still cold. They were in the freezer for more than 30 minutes; I think that was probably the problem, but I guess we'll have to try it again to make sure.

from Red Lobster - Cheddar Bay Biscuits - This needed some adjustments, but after a few tries we have something that works perfectly for us.

from Wendy's - Chili - It's been a while since we've tried a new chili recipe (here's our regular choice), but this is a good one as well, particularly if you don't have mushrooms around. I was concerned that the three tablespoons of chili powder might be too much, but it wasn't. This was a great use for our food storage beans!

Wendy's-Style Chili

• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1-2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 pound ground beef, cooked
• 1 can (28-ounce) crushed tomatoes, with 1/2 can water
• 1-2 cans (15 ounce each) pinto beans
• 1 can (15 ounce) kidney beans
• 3 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1-2 teaspoons salt

Combine all ingredients; bring to a boil; simmer at least 40 minutes. Serve with grated cheddar cheese, sliced green onions, and sour cream.

from the grocery store - Hot Pockets - Just roll out some pie crust, fill with pizza sauce and toppings, fold and bake. These are much better than those you get in the freezer aisle, especially if you have extra sauce to add on top.

from Taco Bell - Quesarito - This is also more of a process than a recipe, although if you want some measurement ideas, click the link. Using two tortillas, make a quesadilla. Then top with seasoned ground beef, lime rice, cheese sauce and sour cream. Roll up, heat on griddle again, and serve warm with salsa.

from Costco - Chicken Bake - Spread a circle of pizza dough with creamy Caesar salad dressing and top with Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, cooked bacon and chicken with some Italian seasoning and sliced green onions. Fold in the sides and roll up. Brush with an egg wash and sprinkle with more cheese and Italian seasoning. Bake at 425 degrees for 25 minutes. Garnish with parsley and serve warm.

from Chipotle - Burrito Bowl - We've made Chipotle Bowls before and really like them, but we did try this ground beef version, and liked it also. It gave us the opportunity to make our own Pico de Gallo and use up some food storage beans. To make your own, top rice and pinto beans with some taco-seasoned ground beef, Jack and Cheddar cheese, guacamole, sour cream, salsa, and even tortilla chips if you want.

from California Pizza Kitchen - BBQ Chicken Pizza - Wayne's not necessarily a fan of non-Italian-flavored pizza, but he basically inhaled this and said more than once that if we ever need to make several pizzas for a party, this should definitely be one of them. I made half a recipe of our pizza dough (from here), and then only used half the dough for our pizza (making breadsticks with the other half), so it had a pretty thin crust. After rolling the dough and placing it in a greased 14" pizza pan, I topped it with barbecue sauce, chopped chicken (really turkey this time) mixed with additional barbecue sauce and chopped red onion. I sprinkled twice as much Mozarella as called for on top, then added grated Gouda cheese as well. (I need to remember in the future that this is a hard cheese like Parmesan, at least the package I picked up this time was.) Bake for 10 minutes at 500 degrees and serve.

from California Pizza Kitchen - BBQ Chicken Skillet Pizza - There's not much difference between this recipe and the one above, other than it's baked in a cast iron skillet instead of on a pizza pan, it uses Cheddar and Fontina cheeses instead of Mozarella and Gouda, and suggests drizzling with barbecue sauce and Ranch dressing after it's baked. I guess those are a few differences after all.