Give me some peanuts and cracker jacks...

Baseball is JJ’s favorite sport. It was also the center of our first date – a Hickory Crawdad’s Baseball Game! JJ and I sat behind home plate, and during the 5th inning, a foul ball was hit straight to him. Naturally, he caught the ball (he was a catcher). Sadly, neither of us were thinking ‘we’re going to get married one day and this ball will be treasured’ so a kid came over and JJ gave it to him. He probably thought I liked kids and thought it was a sweet gesture, but I want that ball!

Moving on…JJ is a huge Braves fan, but he’ll watch baseball anywhere, anytime, no matter what. I love going to games, but I can’t watch it on TV, it’s too boring for me! Since today is opening day, I told him I’d made a ballpark-ish dinner for him. When we were in school and I’d make dinner in the dorm kitchen, there wasn’t much space or tools at my disposal. Everyone loves and uses the cocktail frank wrapped in a croissant, but I took it one step further to make it healthier and dinner-like. I use hotdogs, and wrap them in Pillsbury breadsticks. The breadsticks are lower in calories and fat, and I use turkey dogs, which are fat free. I found some turkey hotdogs at Trader Joe’s that have no additives and are very healthy. The dogs in a blanket are very easy to bake off and the leftovers can be reheated.

I’ve learned many new and exciting baking techniques because of my baking group, Tuesdays with Dorie. One of the things I learned when making Snickery Bars was caramel sugar coated peanuts, exactly how cracker jacks are made! There is quite a bit of sugar though, so I didn’t want to coat all of the popcorn in it as well as the peanuts in my homemade cracker jacks. I used a bag of kettle corn, because it’s naturally a little sweet, and made the caramel peanuts to toss in.JJ and I thought about any vegetables at a ballpark, and we were stumped, so I made a chopped salad to round out the meal.

I hope you enjoy opening day!

Turkey Dogs in a Blanket, Semi-Homemade Cracker Jacks, Chopped Salad

Turkey Dogs in a Blanket:

1 package of Turkey Hotdogs

1 tube of Pillsbury Low Fat Breadsticks

Guldens Brown Mustard

Preheat oven to 375. Roll each hotdog in a breadstick, you’ll have 2 left over. Bake for 15 minutes. Serve.

Lighter Semi-Homemade Cracker Jacks:

1 bag of 99% fat free kettle corn, popped (I like Orville Redenbacher’s)

½ cup roasted peanuts

1/3 cup sugar

3 tbsp. water

In a saucepot on high, melt the water and sugar together. Let it boil for a few minutes until amber colored. Remove from the heat and stir in peanuts. Once coated, pour onto a baking mat and let them cool about 5 minutes. Break them up. Pour popcorn into a bowl and sprinkle on peanuts.

Chopped Veggie Salad:

4 cups romaine lettuce

2 tomatoes, chopped

½ cucumber, diced

1 hard boiled egg, chopped

¼ cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1 bell pepper, chopped

¼ cup dressing

¼ cup croutons

Toss all ingredients together and serve immediately.