While I was feeding Poppy her lunch yesterday I heard something on the radio that stopped me dead in my tracks….”HAPPY NATIONAL HOT DOG DAY” Whaaaaat?!! How did I not know it was national hot dog day?! Lucky for me being the wonderful wife that I am, I had bought Kegan the most amazing book on hot dogs for fathers day. I quickly flipped through the book for inspiration and before I knew it the “wiener and bean dog” was born!

• plain and simple, nothing fancy hot dogs
• classic white buns
• baked beans in tomato sauce
• bbq sauce, see recipe below
• shredded cheddar cheese

BBQ SAUCE

• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1 tbsp white vinegar
• 1 tsp liquid smoke ( if you don’t like a smokey sauce skip this step )
• 1 tsp molasses
• 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 cup white onion, minced
• 1  clove of garlic, minced
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 3/4 tsp smoked paprika
• pinch of chipotle chili powder
• pepper to taste

Toss all of the above into a medium pot and simmer over medium heat for 40-45 minutes, stirring frequently until thickened. BBQ sauce can be refrigerated for up to a week.

ASSEMBLY

in your skillet over med-high heat add a small knob of butter and cook the hot dogs for about 3 minutes, turning so they brown on all sides. Toast the buns. On the toasted bun sprinkle some cheese, add the dog, top with baked beans and bbq sauce. Enjoy!

I came up with this recipe yesterday while brainstorming the millions of different types of tacos I could make for dinner. I just happened to have a butternut squash kicking around that needed to be eaten asap…and so the “pulled butternut squash taco” was born. This is another recipe in progress. Don’t take that the wrong way though, these taste amazing! I just mean I will definitely be playing around with it. I would like to make a healthier bbq sauce and maybe add a few tasty extras. So if you have a fave bbq sauce, feel free to swap it out for the recipe I used. Enjoy.

serves 8

PULLED BUTTERNUT SQUASH

4 cups butternut squash, shredded

1 red pepper, thinly sliced

1 green pepper, thinly sliced

1 large yellow onion, sliced in half moons

1 can of black beans, strained

safflower oil

BBQ SAUCE

3/4 cup ketchup

1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp worcestershire sauce

1-2 tbsp honey

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp chipotle chili powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1 1/2 tbsp mollases

1 tsp dijon mustard

salt and pepper to taste

TO MAKE BBQ SAUCE: Add all of the above bbq sauce ingredients in a medium sized bowl and whisk until blended.

TO MAKE THE PULLED BUTTERNUT SQUASH: In a Cuisinart using the shredder attachment, shred the butternut squash. In a large pan ( preferably one with a lid ) heat the oil over medium heat.  Add the shredded squash, peppers and onion. Cook, covered, for 10 minutes stirring throughout. Add 2 tbsp of water and cook, covered for 5 min. Add the sauce, as much or as little as you like. Add the black beans and cook for 5 more minutes.

TO SERVE: Warm taco shell of choice ( I used a soft corn tortilla ). Spread a layer of crema. Pile on some pulled butternut and top with avocado, shredded cheese and sriracha.

WANT TO MIX IT UP A BIT? TRY ADDING ANY OF THE FOLLOWING TO YOUR TACO-

-Shredded red cabbage

-pickled jalapeno

-Fresh diced tomato

-turn it into a breakfast burrito and add some scrambled eggs!