Just Like That The Summer Is Going, Going, GONE!

The change of seasons is one of the best things about living here in New York, as the weather begins to cool, the trees and their leaves will soon bless us with their spectacular technicolor extravaganza!
All this makes me hungry, So friends, let us COOK!

“Big Mack” Empanadas
Here is what you will need:
• 4 Six Ounce Hamburgers
• 1 Pack of Goya Empanada Shells

Instructions:
On the grill place your burgers, salt, and pepper them and cook until medium rare. Let cool slightly and then finely chop the meat and place in a bowl. Next on a mandolin, shred the lettuce with the cross-cut blade, you want it finely cut. Now you will want to slice the onion paper thin on your mandolin. (If you do not have a mandolin, use a good sharp knife and get the lettuce and onion as thin as you can) Next slice the baby dill pickles paper thin as well. Place all the ingredients in separate bowls. Now that everything is prepped, let us take our empanada shells and place one on a cutting board. In the center of the shell, place about 1 ½ Tablespoons of the grilled burger meat. Add ½ Teaspoon of the Thousand Island dressing and top with a good pinch of the shredded lettuce. Top the lettuce with a pinch of the finely chopped onion, a few slices of the pickles and top with ½ Teaspoon of ketchup.

To properly seal your empanadas, keep a small finger bowl of warm water and moisten the outer rim of the shell. Fold over in half and make sure the shell is lined up perfectly. Push out the excess
air and with a fork, close the shell tightly. In a large frying pan or deep fryer, place your empanadas into the hot oil and cook until golden in color and enjoy!

A great, quick & easy dipping sauce you can make with the ingredients you already will have handy for these empanadas goes like this: In a food processor add 2 Tbsp of Mayonnaise, 2 Tbsp of Thousand Island Dressing, 1 Tbsp of Ketchup, 1 Tbsp of Chopped Onion, 2 Baby Dill Pickles and 1 Tbsp of the pickle juice. Blend well and enjoy dipping your empanadas in this delicious dipping sauce.

Super Quick & Easy Gameday Buffalo Chicken Nachos
This is a go-to favorite in my house on gamedays. So easy and quick to prepare, your family and guests will love this scrumptious spicy delight! Here is what you will need:

1 Large Bag of Tostitos Scoops • 1 Large Jar of Chunky Salsa • Sliced Jalapeños • Sour Cream • Crumbled Blue Cheese • Franks Red Hot Buffalo Sauce • Sliced Black Olives • Chopped Scallions • Chopped White Onion • 1 Supermarket Rotisserie Chicken • Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese • Shredded Cheddar Cheese

First thing you will want to do is pull all the chicken off the bone and shred it. In a larger bowl soak the chicken in the hot sauce and set aside for 1 hour occasionally mixing the chicken. Next, you want to take a 16oz container of sour cream and in a bowl mix it with 10oz of crumbled blue cheese and lightly mix, you do not want to blend the blue cheese in just lightly mix it with the sour cream. The next step is to get a large baking dish or sheet tray and add a first layer of tortilla chips. Top with a healthy layer of the shredded cheeses, salsa jalapenos, onions, scallions, olives, an even dolloping of the blue cheese infused sour cream, then a layer of the buffalo chicken. Repeat this to total 3 layers and you should put double the amount of the toppings on the top layer with the shredded cheeses going on last. Bake on 350 for roughly 20 minutes and once the cheese is nicely melted remove from the oven and enjoy!

Vintage Pride O’Pumpkin Cake
A real autumn holiday cake… fragrant with spices… crunchy with tender-sweet nuts.
And it’s easy as ABC to make this beauty. From Swann Flour, 1953.

Ingredients:
2¼ cups sifted cake flour • 3 teaspoons baking powder • ½ teaspoon salt • ¼ teaspoon soda •
1½ teaspoons cinnamon • ½ teaspoon ginger • ½ teaspoon allspice • ½ cup butter or other shortening •
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar • ½ cup granulated sugar • 1 egg and 2 egg yolks, unbeaten •
¾ cup buttermilk or sour milk • ¾ cup pumpkin, pureed • ½ cup finely chopped walnuts.

Directions
Measure sifted flour, add baking powder, salt, soda, spices. Sift together three times.
Cream butter, add sugars gradually and cream well.
Add eggs and egg yolks, one at a time, beating until light.
Add flour alternately with buttermilk in small amounts, beating after each addition until smooth.
Add pumpkin and nuts. Mix well.
Bake in 2 round 8-inch layer pans, line on bottom with paper, in moderate oven (350 F) for 30 to 35 minutes, or until done.
Cool; frost with fluffy frosting, tinted in a fall color.
Garnish as you wish.