Vegetable Tray with Fiesta Dip

Sometimes when things look pretty, it tricks you into thinking you want to eat  more of it. That was the case with this vegetable tray I made yesterday for my father in laws birthday party. Now if I could only figure out how to NOT make this theory work when it comes to sweets. I mean, sweets don't even have to look pretty and my brain is still tricked into thinking I want more. But thankfully the veggie tray looked and tasted great and so I got to enjoy quite a bit of it. This is such an easy and yet decorative way to serve veggies and dip.

For the vegetables:

1 head Savoy cabbage
Any vegetables you want cut up for dipping

Wash the cabbage head and cut a fairly large circle into the top with a knife. Gently remove the circle and use a melon baller to take out the insides of the cabbage head, leaving enough of a lining to support the dip you will pace inside.
Gently pull back the outer layers of the savoy cabbage.  (If they break off that's ok because you can tuck them under the head of cabbage on the tray to fill with the vegetables) Place the head of cabbage in the center of the tray and fill each "leaf" with your favorite vegetables. Make the fiesta dip and place it into the cabbage head when you are ready to serve.


For the Fiesta Dip:
4 oz cream cheese, softened 
1/4 cup nonfat plain yogurt  
1/8 cup light mayonnaise  
1 Tbsp cilantro, chopped 
3/4 tsp lime juice 
1/4 teaspoon Sriracha Sauce (or your favorite hot sauce) 
1/8 teaspoon salt 
2-3 Tbsp chopped jarred roasted red bell peppers 
1 Tbsp finely chopped green onion


Place the first 7 ingredients in the bowl of your food processor and process until smooth. Add the roasted peppers and the green onion and pulse the processor just a few times until blended they are blended in.
Place in a bowl and cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Bacon Wrapped Baked Jalapeno Poppers

Those that know me, know that I don't care for bacon too much. So when I saw grilled poppers, wrapped in bacon at the race track last week, I asked the hubby if he wanted to try one.I knew I would probably take a bite of his, but had no  idea that I would actually love these! Could I be turning into a bacon eater? Not likely, but I will definitely make myself a bacon wrapped, jalapeno popper eater!
When my daughter came to visit this week, we decided that we would try to make these. Not only did we have a lot of fun while putting these together, but boy oh boy, did we enjoy eating them. I would venture to say that these are only a "tad" bit healthier than the breaded popppers, but a "tad" counts, right????
These only require 3 ingredients, and  yes they are spicy, but oh so yummy!

10 large jalapeno peppers
1 block cream cheese, softened
1 lb bacon

Wash the jalapeno peppers and pat them dry.
Cut off the stem (about 1/8 of an inch in) leaving a small hole in the top of the jalapeno. With a small spoon, or the handle of a regular spoon, fill each pepper with cream cheese, by stuffing it down to the bottom and filling it up.
Wrap each jalapeno with one strip of bacon, covering the entire pepper, except the top.
Use a toothpick to secure the bacon onto the pepper.
Find a pan that allows the peppers to stand up while baking. (I suppose you could lay them down, but I am guessing that the cream cheese just might run out as it gets too soft.)
Bake at 400° until bacon is cooked through. 30-45 min. You can cook it longer if you want the bacon crispier.

Caesar Salad in Parmesan Cheese Cups

Awhile back I had made some Parmesan disks to go with dinner that were absolutely delicious. I mean seriously, who doesn't like melted Parmesan? I'm not talking about that gross kind that you shake out of a plastic container that smells like dirty socks. I'm talking about fresh shredded Parmesan cheese, that you either purchase in the deli department or shave right off the block of cheese yourself! The Parmesan disks were super easy as you just melt Parmesan on a cookie sheet covered with Parchment paper and eat the hot melty cheese disks as a side dish after they firm up a bit. Well, when I saw the idea on Pinterest to mold those same little disks around something to create a "cup" I just knew I had to try it. So I decided to fill my little cups with Caesar Salad since Parmesan is such an integral part of Caesar Salad. They were tasty, small enough to just pop into your mouth with one or two bites, and who doesn't like eating their bowls? I know I do!

This is where I found the idea: http://duhlicious.com/2010/07/parmesan-cups-make-for-simple-canapes/

Shredded Parmesan Cheese (not the powdery kind, the fresh kind)
Romaine Lettuce or a Bag of Caesar Salad
Caesar Dressing
Croutons

Heat oven to 350°
Line a cookie sheet with Parchment paper.
For each cup, place 1 Tbsp of Parmesan onto the Parchment paper and flatten it out a bit with the back of the tablespoon. Don't flatten it all the way, it will melt and flatten itself out.

 Place each tablespoon full at least 2 inches apart as it will melt and spread out.

Fill up the cookie sheet and place in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove and let stand for about 20 seconds.

Use a spatula and lift each cheese disk and place it either over a shot glass (turned upside down) or a mini muffin tin flipped upside down so the bumps or cavities for the muffins are facing up. Use your fingers to "mold" the cheese around the container to create "cups." Allow these to cool and then remove onto a tray or plate.

Toss your romaine or Caesar Salad mix into a bowl with the Caesar dressing. Place a small amount of salad into each bowl and top with croutons. Enjoy!

Asian Chicken Wings

I need to start with a confession here. These are made from last night's leftover baked chicken wings. So I only made the sauce tonight and "re-baked" them. Since I like my chicken wings, super crispy, I tend to bake them for quite awhile and then they have that "fried" kind of texture on the outside without all the unhealthiness of fried wings. So if you want to start with raw chicken wings, I assume you could just put the sauce on them and bake them until they are done, but I can't guarantee the outcome since this is the first time I have created these. I'm sure it would work just fine, but for the purpose of this recipe I will tell you how I made them with already baked wings.

Tonight I wondered what I could do with leftover baked wings. I contemplated BBQ sauce of some kind, but then  my creative juices really started flowing. I made a mad dash around my pantry and refrigerator collecting anything I thought might come together to make a good wing sauce. Ok so it wasn't really a mad dash as I was actually really happy about creating these, so it was more like a
"happy dash." The hubby and I were both pleasantly surprised at how great this tasted. I can't wait to make them again!!

For the chicken:
12 Chicken wings
salt/pepper

Season the wings with salt and pepper. Bake in a 375° oven for approx. 1 hour or until crispy, brown and cooked through.  Set aside. (While the chicken is cooking, prepare your wing sauce)

Asian wing sauce:
1 lg garlic clove, chopped finely
1 Tbsp canola oil

1 cup water


1/4 tsp pepper
 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp finely diced, fresh ginger
1 tsp sesame oil
 2 1/2 tsp sugar
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
1 Tbsp fish sauce (sold in the Asian section at the grocery store)

1 Thai chili pepper, chopped finely
1 Tbsp chili garlic sauce (sold in the Asian section at the grocery store)

2 Tbsp corn starch
2 Tbsp water

2-3 Green onions, chopped (for garnish)
Toasted sesame seeds (for garnish)

Heat oven to 375°
In a medium saucepan, heat the 1 Tbsp canola oil. When it's hot, add the garlic and saute until the garlic is golden and tender. Add the water, pepper, salt, ginger, sesame oil sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, fish sauce, Thai pepper and chili garlic sauce. Combine thoroughly. Bring to a slow boil.

In a very small bowl, combine the cornstarch and water. This will be your thickening agent for your sauce. After it's stirred well together it should resemble watered down milk. Add  this starch mixture to your sauce. Continue to heat until the sauce thickens. When you think it's thick enough to stick to your wings, remove from heat.
Place all the wings in a large bowl. Pour the sauce over them and mix thoroughly to coat each wing with sauce on all sides. You can also use a spoon to spoon more sauce over each one. Place the "sauced" wings onto a broiler pan or baking pan. Place the wings into the oven and "re-bake" them for 30 minutes.
When wings come out of the oven, garnish them with chopped green onions and toasted sesame seeds.

Spicy Ceviche

I'm sensing a theme here. My last couple of posts have begun with the word "spicy". I guess that's what happens when all your chili peppers ripen at once in your garden. That, plus the fact that I can't get food spicy enough anymore for me. I think I must have burned a hole in my stomach that the spice goes through, because I almost don't taste it anymore. I watch people at work actually break into a sweat when they barely dip their chip into the salsa and I almost want to burst out laughing. Me? Give me the spiciest version of food and I probably won't think it's spicy. So for those of you that wouldn't want your food so spicy, just be sure to take the seeds out of the jalapenos as you make this ceviche. Try it spicy...you just might like it!

3 Tilapia Fillets, chopped into bite size pieces
1 cup lemon juice
1 cup tomatoes - diced
2 fresh jalapeno peppers, diced
1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup green onions, sliced
4 cloves garlic, choppped
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon Franks Red Hot sauce or Tabasco sauce

In a bowl, mix together the fish and lemon juice. Place the bowl into the refrigerator for 4 hours. (No less than this...the lemon needs this long to absorb into the fish and change the texture)

After it has been in the refrigerator for 4 hours, drain off the excess lemon juice. Add the tomatoes, jalapenos, bell pepper, onion, garlic, garlic salt, cilantro and red hot sauce. Stir well. Keep in the refrigerator until serving time. Serve with tortilla chips or over shredded cabbage.

Bacon Pineapple Bites

For those of you that love bacon, this one is a winner. I am not a big fan of bacon, but I did try this and I have to say it was actually really good. I guess I like bacon as long as there is something else to drown out it's flavor haha! The hubby ate these up and loved them!
 Now if I could just figure out a way to wrap everything in chocolate and I will be a happy camper also. ;)

 The original recipe can be found here: http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/appetizers-and-snacks/bacon-wrapped-pineapple-bites/

6 pieces of bacon, cut in half
Fresh pineapple cut into chunks, or canned pineapple chunks (in juice, not in syrup)
1/2 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 375°.
Place the brown sugar in a medium bowl.
Take a bacon half and dredge it through the brown sugar.
Roll the sugar coated bacon around a chunk of pineapple.
Place the rolled bacon/pineapple onto a broiler pan, sprayed with Pam, so that the fat can drip through. Cook at 375° for 25 minutes. Turn on the broiler and broil these for just a couple minutes to crisp them up. Watch them carefully as the sugar will burn fast under the broiler.

Quiche Bites

Do you ever wonder what to bring to a pot luck or to a friends house as an appetizer? These little quiche bites make an easy appetizer and they are scrumptious. I like the flaky pie crust on the outside and the eggs and peppers on the inside. Great combo!!
I think when I make them next time, I will add some diced jalapenos, and some chopped bacon.
Hats off to Anne Coleman over at http://family.go.com for coming up with this one!

1 single pie crust (a store-bought shell works fine, or you can use your own recipe)
1 large egg
1 Tablespoon sour cream
2 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tablespoons each red and green pepper - chopped fine
1 Tablespoon green onion - green tops only
Pinch salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a mini muffin tin with 12 cups.
Roll out dough to a 1/8-inch thickness and cut into an 8 x 6-inch rectangle. Cut into twelve 2-inch squares. (You can do this with a store-bought shell, but let thaw first if frozen.)
Fit squares of dough into muffin tins. Set aside.
Combine egg, sour cream, Parmesan cheese, peppers, onion and salt. Blend well.
Spoon a teaspoon of mixture into each dough-lined muffin cup.
Bake for 10-12 minutes or until egg puffs and dough is lightly browned at the edges. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from tins and serving

Ham and Roast Beef Roll Ups

I'm sure everyone has tasted these somewhere along their life journey. I had tasted them a couple years ago but had never made them. I was out walking with a friend recently and I shared with her that I needed an appetizer recipe that would be easy to travel with. Most of my appetizers are better served warm and right out of the oven. She suggested these roll ups. They fit in with what I needed since I didn't feel like lugging a crock pot or much else with me. The plus side  is that they take hardly any time at all to throw together.
Now if you want me to be honest, I can't say I'm a fan of these because I don't care for ham or roast beef, but everyone I know that has tried these, loves them. That must mean there is something wrong with my  taster ;) So if you need a quick appetizer and you are a red meat fan....these just might work for you!

Ham slices ( I used Bar S brand, it's the right amount of thickness)
Roast Beef Slices (not the super thin kind, a little thicker)
Soft spreadable cream cheese
Green onions
Fresh red bell peppers

Basically you just spread cream cheese on your ham and roll up a slice of green onion in the center and slice into bite size pieces. Do the same with roast beef, but use red pepper instead of green onions. Here is a pictoral how to that I took as I prepared them:

                      Place the green onion "lengthwise" on the ham that

                       has cream cheese spread onto it. Then roll it 

                and cut into bite size pieces

 

Place the red pepper strips on each of the short ends

of the roast beef slice that has cream cheese spread 

on it.

Now roll it up from each side until it meets 

in the middle. Slice down the center and re-roll

any loose edges of roast beef

Now slice into bite size pieces. 

Lemon Cheesecake Cheese Ball

Have you ever had one of those days when everything and everyone just "rubs you the wrong way?" This was one of those days for me. As if that wasn't enough, if I continued to eat anymore of this amazing cheese ball, even my thighs would be rubbing me the wrong way....oh wait...they already do! ;)
When I first saw this recipe on Pinterest, I just knew I had to try it. So who better to try it on than co-workers? That way if it didn't taste good, I could make up some lame excuse as to why it went wrong, but my family....they would know better.
As I read the recipe, I saw that the instructions said "mix everything together in a bowl with a spoon". Well....given the fact that this usually takes brute strength like Popeye, and I can't stand spinach, I decided to whip this together in my food processor. Best decision I made all day. I know that's not  saying much, but it's been a strange kind of a day.

The original recipe is from Annie's Eats, but like always I adapted the recipe. I just can't stand to leave recipes as they're supposed to be ;)

10 oz. cream cheese
4 1/2 Tbsp. sugar
Zest of 1 large lemon and one small lemon
4 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla
3 graham crackers, crushed

Combine the cream cheese, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla in a food processor until smooth. Place the mixture into a piece of plastic wrap. Shape it into a ball, the best you can, and refrigerate it for at least 3 -4 hours. Once it's firm roll the entire ball into crushed graham crackers until evenly coated. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Serve with: Apple slices, graham crackers, animal crackers, vanilla wafers etc.

LadyBug Crackers

We all agree that lady bugs are far too cute to even think about what they would taste like. That would just be a crime. But....if you could make an appetizer look like one, that included seasoned cream cheese, olives, tomatoes etc, well than maybe you might think it would taste great! That's what my mom and I did for one of our Christmas appetizers. They tasted great and everyone thought they looked super cute!

2 oz cream cheese, softened

2 Tbsp sour cream

Black Paste food coloring ( I didn't have this, so I used equal parts of yellow, blue and red food coloring until I got it dark enough)

1/2 tsp chives, minced

1/8 tsp garlic salt 

1/8 tsp fresh parsley, minced

Ritz crackers
Cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters or grape tomatoes, cut into halves (width wise)
Large, ripe pitted olives
Chive pieces, cut into 1-1 /2 inch long pieces for antennas


In a small bowl, beat cream cheese and sour cream until smooth. Remove 1 tablespoon to a small bowl and tint black. Place tinted cream cheese mixture in a small plastic bag and set aside. 

 Add the chives, garlic salt and parsley to the remaining, non tinted, cream cheese mixture. Spread over crackers. Arrange two tomato pieces on each cracker, for the ladybug wings. 

For heads, halve the olives width wise and  place one half on each cracker with the larger hole end facing up. Insert two chives into the olive head for antennae. 

Use tinted cream cheese mixture to pipe spots onto wings. 

Prosciutto, Basil and Gruyere Rolls

Who doesn't love bread? Seriously....but who truly doesn't love bread stuffed with yummy goodness? Last night was our first cold day/night of the Fall season. So I made a big pot of vegetable soup and made these rolls to eat with it. These will definitely be made again at this house, because every single one of them got eaten....and quickly!! They made a great addition to a bowl of hot soup, but trust me, I could eat these as the main dish itself. Super simple to make and I can't believe I never thought of doing this before finding this recipe.
*Sorry that my pictures aren't great. I never claimed to be able to take pictures haha!

 
*Recipe adapted from: Whatscookingamerica.net 


1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
4 ounces thinly-sliced prosciutto
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
 1 cup grated Gruyère cheese  
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1 egg, beaten

Heat oven to 400°
Place puff pastry sheet on work surface. Cut in half.
Place the prosciutto on each half leaving a small border along one side. Place basil onto each half on top of the prosciutto. Top with the gruyere cheese. Sprinkle red pepper over the top. Brush the small border that you left unfilled, with the beaten egg. Starting at long side opposite the egg washed border, roll the pastry up, pressing gently to seal. You can use more of the beaten egg if needed, to help seal. Wrap in plastic wrap. Put in the refrigerator for about an hour to firm up the dough. After the dough is ready, cut into 12 individual "pinwheels" or servings. Place on a Pam sprayed cookie sheet (or you can line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. I just used Pam) and bake at 400° for about  16 minutes.

Sweet and Salty Bacon Wrapped Pretzels

 Sweet, salty, crunchy, chewy, spicy! Those are the words I would use to describe this treat. My company tonight definitely loved these and I will remember these as a "go to" recipe for a pot luck type appetizer dish. They are quick to make, easy as pie and are a crowd pleaser!! :)

 1 package of bacon, cut into halves
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
3 Tbsp chili powder
3 Dashes cayenne pepper (next time I'm going to use more cayenne and make this good and spicy)
1 package Pretzel rods


Preheat oven to 375.
Break the pretzel rods in half. Cut the bacon slices in half also. In a bowl, (use a flatter edged bowl for easily dipping the bacon), stir together the brown sugar, chili powder and cayenne pepper. Dip each bacon half into the brown sugar mixture, pushing down and making sure you coat all sides of the bacon with the sugar mixture thoroughly. Wrap the dipped bacon half around the half of a pretzel rod. Cover the entire rod with the piece of bacon. (for some pieces it only "almost" covers them, that's ok)
Place the covered pretzels onto a broiler pan (or any pan that has holes for the fat to drip through into a bottom container) so that when the bacon cooks, the fat drips off of them into the broiler pan below. Bake at 375 for about 15 minutes. Let these cool as the pretzel "hardens" back up after it cools a bit. Serve!

Cheese Ball

My mom has made this wonderful snack for years. All of us love it and tonight I made it for only the second time. I think the reason I don't make it very often is because I would sit and eat all of it.
Somehow even though I might possibly be coming down with a cold or the flu, it still tasted great!

1  carton soft cream cheese, softened
1-2 stalks green onion, chopped
1/4 of a med size green bell pepper, chopped
1/4 of a med size red bell pepper, chopped
12 cup chopped walnuts

Mix all ingredients together and shape into a ball. Serve with your favorite crackers.

Parmesan Crisps with Pancetta and Roma Tomato Salsa

I think Guy Fieri is quickly becoming one of my favorite Food Network chefs. I have tried a few of his recipes and they are always so yummy. Tonight I tried one of his appetizer recipes and it was very easy to  make. It kind of looks like a "mini taco" when it's done, although it's hard to tell from this picture because there are 7 of them on the plate.The outside is basically a parmesan "shell" and it's filled with tomatoes, basil, olive oil and pancetta.

Here is the Guy Fieri recipe link if you want to try this recipe.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/parmesan-crisps-with-pancetta-and-roma-tomato-salsa-recipe/index.html

Texas Won Tons

My sister in law introduced me to Texas Won Tons a couple of years ago. Ever since then, I have been making these for my family and they love when I make them. You can add as much or as little jalapeno as you like. Our family likes things very spicy, so I add quite a bit!

Ingredients:
Won Ton Wrappers
1 block cream cheese, softened
Diced jalapenos (from the can)
Jalapeno Jelly (bought at the grocery store next to the regular jellies. I buy Reese Brand)
Vegetable Oil

Mix together cream cheese and jalapenos. Place a small amount in the middle of a won ton wrapper. Fold wrapper over from corner to corner, creating a triangle. Seal edges with water.
Heat vegetable oil in skillet until very hot. Drop a few won tons in at a time and fry until golden brown. Remove from oil and drain on a paper towel. Serve warm with jalapeno jelly to spread on the top.

Crock Pot Meatballs

I'm sure many of you already have made or have tasted these crock pot meatballs. They are a pretty standard recipe that everyone seems to know and love. I decided to post it anyway, just in case someone wanted something for an easy appetizer that is always a hit. The ingredients sound like they wouldn't go together, but they really do and they taste GREAT!

1 bag frozen meatballs (any brand will work, even turkey works, but just make sure it's original flavor)
1 large jar grape jelly
1 jar chili sauce (this is sold by the ketchup and the seafood cocktail sauce in most stores)

Place frozen meatballs, chili sauce and jelly in a crock pot. Turn the crock pot onto high. Cook for approx. 3-5 hours or until heated all the way through. Stir occasionally to mix the jelly and chili sauce together. Enjoy!