Watermelon Thai Gazpacho

If there is a downside to buying a watermelon, it's gotta be the looming question of what to do with the reaming after you eat a cup of it. I was staring at a mound of juicy red melon and was saddened at the thought that it might go to waste.

Coincidentally, I had planned to make a couple of different variations of gazpacho for an afternoon birthday party. Watching the peppers whirl in the blender gave me the idea to turn the watermelon into a soup.

Toasted almonds give this watermelon gazpacho texture while the ginger and hot pepper tingle the Thai senses.

This watermelon soup could be a great appetizer, lunch or amuse bouche even. It was a hit at the birthday party and will turn any event into a fat and happy party!

Grilled Vegetables with Carrot Basil Dip

Fat and Happy originally started because I have a bad memory when it comes to creating recipes. I'll make something great then forget what it was or how I made it or exactly what I used. So now I have a very sophisticated process - I keep track of my ingredients by scratching down notes on a piece of paper. Then ultimately I type up my notes into the blog. My house is filled with hundreds of notebooks and piles of loose paper with chicken scratch writing and food stains on them.

But there are times when I fall back to my old ways, when I assume I will remember all the random stuff I threw in.  Then before I know it a couple of days go by, I use up a few brain cells at work and at play ... and BAM. I forgot I made this dip at all.

My friends reminded me it was good. Whew.

So I'm fairly certain this recipe is close, but feel free to try it out and tell me.Perhaps you will want add a little more of this or a little less of that. Be creative, try out a few things, deviate from the recipe and make it your own. That, my friends, is Fat and Happy cooking!

Grilled Jalapeno Shrimp over Gazpacho Salad with Bonus Roasted Pepper Soup

Gazpacho is all the rage in the summer. It's a fresh and filling fusion of summers finest. And easy as pie to make. Let the blender do all the work, just drop the ingredients in.

I began to wonder what would happen if I didn't push the blend button. Certainly it would be a bit cruncher, resembling a salad or salsa rather than a soup, but would the overall taste change? And if it does, is that a bad thing?

The blender sat quietly on the counter while the sounds of my knife filled the kitchen. This gazpacho salad requires just a bit more chopping than a pulverized soup, but I tend to find that process rather calming and methodical.

While tasty, the Gazpacho Salad doesn't really stand on it's own, it needs more. Shrimp grilled with jalapenos adds a great dimension without adding complication.

Easy Pretzel and Chocolate Covered Ice Cream Bars

A lot of ice cream gets made at Fat and Happy and there is nothing sadder than old, wasted ice cream. The problem being that ice cream is difficult to share. Between lugging around the ice cream, the bowls, the scooper, the napkins and the spoons and then getting all that back, it's a dang hassle.

Solution: ice cream bars. Not only are they portable, but using pretzels in place of popsicle sticks makes these little puppies green too!

Of course, I'm a proponent of making homemade ice cream, but not everybody has that option. The best part about this recipe (aside from eating it) is that you can use store bought ice cream and still come out a hero!

All you need is ice cream (check out the Fat and Happy Ice Cream archive for amazing, interesting ice cream flavors), pretzels, chocolate and small dixie cups. There are a couple of easy steps involved, so start the night before or the morning of.

No more more wasted ice cream. Your friends, kids, guest, coworkers, doormen and mail carriers will go ape over these Fat and Happy, completely edible, ice cream treats and will dive in the moment you hand it to them. Even if it is 7am. Trust me.

Boozy Blueberry Tea Slurpee

Recently 7-Eleven celebrated its 45th birthday with free Slurpees. Those Slurpees were always so refreshing on a hot day, albeit just a little sweet for my taste.

I decided to make my own Slurpee in honor of this classic drink. An adult Slurpee using frozen blueberries and tea. And spiked with just enough booze.


This isn't quite the slushy texture of the real Slurpees, but it doesn't need to be. It's cold, refreshing and blueberry-riffic! A perfect fat and happy summer cocktail.

Sweet and Hot Pepper Relish Pasta - Gluten Free Optional

Summer conjures up emotions of carefree days and uncomplicated meals. Running through sprinklers and washing cars mean more than slaving in a hot kitchen. It just feels like the right time to simplify life.

At the beginning of summer, a jar of Sweet and Hot Pepper Relish came to me as a secret ingredient. Admittedly, this seemed like a challenging ingredient; most people would agree that this is an item enjoyed as is, nothing really needs to be done to it.

But my goal with secret ingredients is to make an actual recipe out of it, so I needed to pull out my thinking cap.  But summer-lovin means it had to be elementary, like tossing in a pasta dish that has the versatility of being served hot, cold or room temperature.

My love for all things pickled and relished is not a secret. I've been known to eat spoons of tangy, fiery and vinegary substances directly from the jar. I did question whether the sweet side of the relish would be too sweet for a savory pasta dish, but coupled with the chewy pasta, hot pepers and the salty cheese it worked great.

Recipe Swap: Orange Ginger Scallops with Wasabi Coleslaw

The beginning of July brings a new Recipe Swap; this month's recipe redo is for a classic coleslaw - Oregon Style- from an old recipe book called The Second Ford Treasury of Favorite Recipes From Famous Eating Places. Our goal is to recreate the recipe in our own spin by changing at least 3 ingredients.

There are hundreds of coleslaw variations out there already so my creation needed to stand out from the usual crowd. On it's own, coleslaw is a great side salad. But when you pair it with a main course such as with pulled pork or with tacos, that's when it really shines.

Summer vegetables scream to be left fresh so my thought was to create a light summer coleslaw and top it up off with seared scallops. The wasabi just adds a little kick to the whole dish while topping with wasabi peas finishes it off with a whimsical crunch.  (if only I had remembered to get them while at the grocery store!) This is a revved up Fat and Happy coleslaw that rises above the classic salad.

Cream Cheese and Green Chili Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Happy hour drinks landed a  few friends at our house for some wii, a game of darts and a final round of libations.

It was one of those nights when the fridge was nearly void of food; thankfully we have thousands of restaurants just waiting on stand by to bring us much needed nourishment.

The downfall of the delivery system is the 60 to 90 minute wait. Snacks were need stat!

Armed with cream cheese and the remnants of a pumpernickel snack loaf, simple grilled cheese sandwiches were already in the works. I then found a small can of green chilies in the cupboard, just the thing to take these cheesy morsels to the next level and tie us over until the delivery boy made his way to us.


Nothing complicated. Nothing fancy. Just peppers and cream cheese melted together on toasted bread. But there is something fat and happy about tipsy snack making.