Category Archives: Recipe Book

The “cookbook” portion of BiteTheRoad with all my fav recipes, adaptions, tricks and that occasional original recipe I create. For space, the recipe “card” is listed by cllcking on the “continue reading” link.

Simple & Straight Forward Coddled Eggs

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This simple steamed egg dish is a perfect, quick and easy way to make eggs. This is to prepare two eggs. But keep in mind if you use smaller eggs; double up!

Essentially preparing coddled eggs is just a fancy way describe gently or lightly cooked eggs. In the past – they even had a bunch of really lovely glassware called “coddlers” to use to cook and serve them in. Some ways of preparing them include cooking them in the eggs shells themselves, or cooking & serving them in the coddlers or ramekins or  the coddlers serving as a cooking mold and they are up-ended out onto the plate. Chefs and cooking host from Martha Stewart to Jacque Pepin have plenty of recipes for them. In fact it was the Heart & Soul recipe series from Pepin that prompted this breakfast. You can find a bunch of those versions here. Cooking them doesn’t need any fancy equipment; you can use regular style 4 or 6 ounce shuffle ramekins or the ones I tend to use; the 6 ounce pyrex custard cups. You can even find specialty ramekins or “coddlers” as they are known at antique stores or Amazon.

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Bacon Wrapped Sweet Potato Bites

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Bacon Wrapped Sweet Potato Bites

These were the “New Try Recipe” and how could it go wrong – bacon, butter, sweet potatoes, brown sugar, salt … oh and did I mention bacon? I found this recipe in Taste of Home magazine and the only adaption I did was the use of a maple enhanced salt by the devilishly creative folks at Sinful Salts. They offer some “worth sinning over” salts direct online or currently offered for sale at the Castro’s Under One Roof Store.

  • ¼ cup butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt (I used the maple flavored salt)
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or red repper flakes if you like the sweet, hot and salty)
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 pounds large sweet potatoes (about 1-3/4, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes)
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar (dark or light- I found I prefer dark)
  • 1 pound of bacon strips (halved)
  • Maple syrup (warmed)
  1. Preheat oven to 350°.
  2. Clean and peel, then cut potatoes into 1 inch cubes.
  3. In a large bowl or large sized resealable baggie, add in seasoning mixture (Salt, pepper, cinnamon), add butter and mix.
  4. Add potatoes and toss to coat.
  5. Place brown sugar in a shallow bowl, break apart so that it is easy to dip into. Since I used a flavored salt I also added it here as well (using less in the mix part above)
  6. Wrap one piece bacon around each sweet potato cube; secure with a toothpick.
  7. Dip each side in brown sugar. (Optional: you can also do a quick dip into a mixture of warmed maple before hitting the sugar dip for extra impact – you might want to put these on a rack to drip before placing on parchment)
  8. Place on a parchment paper-lined 15x10x1-in. baking pan. FYI – Parchment or silicone baking sheet is crucial – these get sticky and can burn
  9. Bake 40-45 minutes or until bacon is crisp and sweet potato is tender.
  10. Note: the seasonings on this can be adjusted to your taste or menu. Red pepper flakes, chopped rosemary, nutmeg, seasoned salts, etc.

Serve with maple syrup. 

Yield: about 2-1/2 dozenAdapted from Kelly Williams recipe shared in Taste of Home Magazine  http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/bacon-wrapped-sweet-potato-bites

Artichoke & Spinach Bites

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Artichoke & Spinach Bites

This adaption of an Artichoke snack takes all the parts of that fav dip and turns it into a solid form. A great starter or stand-in base for a Sunday brunch or midweek “clean out the refrigerator” meal. Tonights versions had roasted red peppers added into one. The use of the marinade from the artichoke then cooked off really set this apart from other recipes. This version is adapted from one found that was similar to one I have cooked since I was a kid. I have adapted this to add the spinach and other flavors items. When adapting this – keep in mind the balance between wet and dry as that will affect the final outcome

  • 2 ounce jars (6 sizmarinated artichoke hearts
  • 1/2 – 1 box frozen spinach thawed and squeezed (not squeeze again!!! Imean you want super dry)
  • 1-2 pinches of Nutmeg to taste
  • 1 small -medium yellow onion (peeled and finely chopped)
  • 1 clove garlic (minced)
  • 4 eggs (lightly beaten)
  • 1/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon dried oregano (crumbled)
  • 1/8 teaspoon hot red pepper sauce
  • 2 cups coarsely shredded sharp cheddar cheese
  • 2 tablespoons minced parsley or cilantro
  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Grease 8-by-8-by-2-inch baking pan; set aside.
  2. Drain marinade from half the artichokes (one jainto small skillet; discard marinade from second jar. Coarsely chop artichoke hearts and set aside.
  3. Heat marinade in skillet. Add onion and garlic to skillet, set over moderate heat, and stir-fry until glassy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Transfer to large bowl.
  4. Add eggs, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, oregano, hot pepper sauce, cheese, chopped artichokes and parsley, (the squeezed spinach if used and other itemand mix well.
  5. Pour into foil pan (or glass brownie pan – the original recipe suggest a cast iron skillet would I think would be perfect as welprepped with cooking spray and bake uncovered about 30 minutes, until set like custard. Should be slightly browned at the edges.
  6. Cool slightly in the pan, cut into squares, and serve warm or at room temperature.
  7. By adding the full box of spinach and doubling the eggs and bread crumbs you can make a larger version of this. If you put it all into the ½ size deep foil pans – it will raise – making it good for a meal – but not as workable for a party unless you serve it as “spoon bread” type dish. Ultimately it’s a preference thing.
  8. Note: You can also add pre-cooked chicken sausage, raw vegetables like squash and zucchini to this dish or use with left over roasted vegetables, marinated peppers. For every of “stuff” I add, plan to add 1 additional egg to the batter and additional bread crumbs.

This is a favorite type of recipe – as it isn’t a set one and gives the cook lots to  explore with it.

Original Recipe Source: Sunset All-Time Favorite Recipes,

Adapted FVStrona 2013