Chipotle Vegetable Dip

My best friend was visiting from Colorado, so I had a few friends over to hang out and enjoy some TexMex. We drank two bottles of tequila worth of margaritas (oy!) and had a fantastic time. Neither the BFF nor I like traditional TexMex sides, we both detest beans, so I decided to make a spicy dip to go with our chicken fajitas, chips, guacamole and queso. Feel free to adjust the chipotles to your taste, I used three and it had quite a nice kick.  I served it with fresh cut bell pepper, cucumber, carrots and broccoli, but any dip worthy vegetable will do.

Chipotle Vegetable Dip

16 ounces sour cream
2 to 3 chipotles in adobo
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon salt
Juice from one lime

Combine all ingredients in a food processor, process until smooth. Serve with fresh cut vegetables.

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Greek Goddess Dip

This dip is amazing. And amazingly easy to make, basically toss everything into the food processor and let it whirl, it doesn't get any simpler than that.  I was able to use fresh herbs from my mom's garden, along with some from the grocery store (parsley hasn't been so successful so far.)  This dip is bursting with fresh herbs and the Greek yogurt provides a great tanginess.  I served it with cucumber, bell pepper, carrots, celery and pita chips.  Any fresh veggie would work well with this dip, but I went with a simple assortment for my dinner party.  This recipe is from the NY Times.

Greek Goddess Dip

½ cup packed fresh dill
½ cup packed fresh parsley
⅓ cup packed fresh basil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 ½ tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Pinch kosher salt, more to taste
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup crumbled feta cheese
¾ cup Greek yogurt
Raw chopped vegetables or pita chips, for serving

Process the dill, parsley, basil, garlic, lemon juice and salt together in a food processor until finely chopped. Drizzle in the olive oil through the feed tube with the processor running. Add the feta and process until smooth, stir in the yogurt. Serve with fresh vegetables and pita chips.

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Creamy Dill Vegetable Dip

This dip is so easy, I may never use a dip packet ever again. I usually just mix together a ranch dressing packet with a couple cups of sour cream and call it a day. Instead, fresh dill is the star of this incredibly simple dip. It was a huge hit, not a drop of dip was left by the end of the evening. At one point, the whole platter was on my couch between two friends and they polished off all the veggies and scooped out every last bit of dip. I always serve cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots and celery with my dips. Always. So I decided to change it up this time. I served broccoli, radishes and snap peas, along with my standard carrots and celery. I will say, I missed having the cucumber, which would pair nicely with this dip.

Creamy Dill Vegetable Dip

1 cup sour cream
½ cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon fresh dill, minced
2 teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon garlic salt

Stir together the sour cream, mayonnaise, dill, parsley and garlic salt. Refrigerate for at least an hour. Serve with fresh chopped vegetables of your choice.

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Best Queso Ever

I am quite mad at myself. I have had this recipe bookmarked for at least for nearly five years. FIVE. I could have had the best ever queso for the last five years. I always default to Velveeta+Rotel for queso. It's easy and good. But it isn't great. This queso is great. This queso is amazing. I will never make the Velveeta variety ever again. And this is nearly as easy. Everyone loved it. And I ate way too much of it. Thanks to Confections of a Foodie Bride for another amazing recipe.

Best Ever Queso

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon diced onion
1 jalapeno, seeds and stem removed, diced
12 ounces white American cheese, shredded
4 ounces Colby Jack cheese, shredded
¼ to ½ cup half and half
2 roma tomatoes, seeded and diced

Heat the oil over medium high heat in a large sauce pan. Add the onion and jalapeno, sauté until soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium low, add the cheese and ¼ cup of the half and half. Stir until melted. Stir in the tomatoes and any additional cream to thin it to your desired consistency.

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Artichoke Bruschetta

This appetizer takes all the deliciousness of artichoke dip and makes it into a convenient two bite appetizer. Three delicious cheeses (does cream cheese count as a cheese anyhow?) broiled until golden brown with chopped artichokes sprinkled through.  I love serving bruschetta at a dinner party, it is a crowd pleaser and quite easy to assemble and serve.  I usually prepare the topping in advance, then just bake right before the guests arrive.  I think these may be my new favorite.

Artichoke Bruschetta

1 (8-ounce) package of cream cheese, softened
½ cup mayonnaise
1 (14-ounce) can of artichoke hearts (whole, halves, or quarters), drained & chopped
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
dash hot sauce
1 teaspoon garlic salt
French baguette loaf of bread, cut at an angle into ⅓-inch slices

Beat the cream cheese until smooth, stir in the mayonnaise, artichokes, parmesan, mozzarella, hot sauce and garlic salt. Preheat the broiler to high, spread a tablespoon of the artichoke mixture onto each baguette slice. Arrange the slices on a baking sheet and broil for 2 to 3 minutes. Serve hot.

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Bruschetta with Mozzarella and Tomatoes

I have been making this appetizer for years. I think I made it for the first dinner party I ever hosted, which occurred back in 1999 while I was still in college. I had just moved into a downtown loft and I was so excited to have a few friends over for baked ziti. My love for entertaining hasn't waned and I have served these quite a few times over the years.  The tomatoes and basil were fresh from my mom's garden.  Sometimes I will through the bruschetta under the broiler for a minute or two before serving to melt the cheese a little, but they taste great warm or cold.  I have also added a splash of balsamic to add a little kick.

Bruschetta with Mozzarella and Tomatoes

1 large bunch of basil (about 1/8 pound), coarse stems discarded
½ pound mozzarella, chopped fine
2 tomatoes (½ pound total), seeded and chopped fine
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 baguette, cut diagonally into ½ inch slices
1 garlic clove, halved

Chop the basil fine and in a bowl stir it together with the mozzarella, the tomatoes, and salt and pepper to taste, toss with half of the olive oil. Brush the baguette slices with the remaining olive oil and rub each with the garlic clove half. Lay the baguette slices in a single layer on a baking sheet and broil for 2 to 3 minutes, until just starting to brown. Spoon the tomato mixture onto the oiled sides of the toasts and serve.

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Shrimp Scampi Bites

I love serving shrimp as an appetizer at parties. They cook up quickly and are usually a crowd pleaser. I decided to take traditional shrimp scampi and adapt it to make an appetizer. All that is really needed for the conversion is a toothpick inserted into each shrimp. I harvested fresh parsley from my mom's garden, her garden provided so much for my dinner party.  I peeled the shrimp, but left the tail on, but you could peel the entire shrimp if you prefer.

Shrimp Scampi Bites

2 pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined
¼ cup butter, melted
4 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
juice from one large lemon or two small lemons
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Arrange the shrimp in a single layer in a glass baking dish. Stir together the butter, garlic, salt and pepper. Toss the shrimp with the butter mixture. Bake for 5 minutes, remove from the oven, flip the shrimp and pour the lemon juice and half of the parsley over top. Bake for 5 to 8 minutes more, top with the remaining parsley and serve with toothpicks.

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Hot Artichoke Dip

I am not a huge spinach artichoke dip fan. I know a lot of people love it, but it just doesn't work for me and I am not quite sure why. Miss F is a sucker in Costco, nearly every sample we try, she wants to buy, doesn't matter what it is. Last visit, she was desperate for Veggie Chips. They came in a single industrial size bag, so I had to be sure she would eat them. She said she liked them more than Chili Cheese Fritos, so I went ahead and bought them. She ate then twice and was over it. But they worked great with this dip. Too bad I still have a ton left. She is not going to sway me our next trip to Costco, I will remain strong. I also served it with sliced baguette.

Hot Artichoke Dip

1 (8 ounce) block cream cheese, softened
1 cup mayonnaise
1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
2 green onions, sliced thin
½ cup grated Parmesan
1 cup shredded mozzarella
Dash hot sauce
Dash Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with a mixer until smooth, beat in the mayonnaise. Add remaining ingredients and stir together until combined. Transfer the dip to a pie plate or shallow gratin dish. Bake in a preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes until the top is golden brown and the dip is bubbling. Serve hot with crackers, tortilla chips, crostini or veggies.

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Roasted Shrimp Cocktail

I love shrimp cocktail, the more horseradish the better. I think of it as the cheaper version of my most favorite appetizer, oysters on the half shell. I love chilled shellfish and it makes for an easy presentation at a party. I stored the serving dish in the refrigerator prior to the party starting, but it would also be beautifully presented over crushed ice. This platter was actually a wedding gift and is called a shrimp server. And nine years later, I finally used it to serve shrimp. I guess shrimp server is a fancy way to say chip and dip set.  This is Ina Garten's recipe for shrimp cocktail and it really doesn't get any better.

Roasted Shrimp Cocktail

2 pounds (12 to 15-count) shrimp
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons horseradish
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
dash or two of hot sauce
1 fresh lemon for garnish

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Peel and devein the shrimp, leaving the tails on. Place them on a sheet pan with the olive oil, salt, and pepper and spread them in 1 layer. Roast for 8 to 10 minutes, just until pink and firm and cooked through. Set aside to cool.

For cocktail sauce, combine ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, horseradish, lemon juice and hot sauce in a bowl and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes before serving. Salt to taste.

Serve the shrimp with the cocktail sauce and lemon wedges.

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Cranberry and Brie Crostini

These little crostini are the perfect way to used some leftover cranberry sauce. I prefer to make my cranberry sauce, but C prefers the cranberry jelly log from a can.  In fact, next year he wants to cook Thanksgiving so he can have heat n serve rolls and canned cranberry.  His grand plan is to only serve stuffing, gravy, rolls and the cranberry log.  I am not sure how he is going to accomplish this without roasting a turkey, but I would love to seem him try.  Maybe not on Thanksgiving day, but for some other Sunday dinner.  I would love to see what he comes up with.  I loved the cranberry with the brie so much, that I will replace the apricot with cranberry sauce next time I make baked brie.

Cranberry Brie Crostini

1 baguette, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ pound Brie, warmed
1 cup cranberry sauce

Slice the baguette into ½" slices. Brush baguette slices lightly with olive oil and place on a foil covered cookie sheet. Broil the slices for 1 to 2 minutes, just until a light golden brown.

Place the brie on a microwave-safe plate and microwave until cheese begins to melt and is warmed through, try it for 30 seconds at a time, it melts quickly. Spread a tablespoon of brie on each crostini. Top with a teaspoon of cranberry sauce.

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Southwest Eggrolls with Jalapeno Ranch

I first had these at a baby shower years ago and my friend shared her recipe. I decided to make some changes to the recipe to mix it up a bit, the biggest change being the addition of tomatoes via Rotel.  These are a great snack and i can even tolerate the beans in them, normally I am not a fan.  After I made them, I realized I wanted to make another change next time: avocado!  These would be great dipped in queso, guacamole or the old standby of jalapeno ranch.

Southwest Egg Rolls

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon garlic powder
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can Rotel, drained
1 cup frozen corn
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 jalapeno seeded and finely chopped
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese
1 package Egg Roll wrappers

Boil the chicken in water seasoned with chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Once the chicken is fully cooked, let it cool and shred it.

In a large bowl, stir together the chicken, beans, Rotel, corn, onion, jalapeno and cheese. It is easiest to roll the egg roll when the wrapper is turned so it looks like a diamond. Place a heaping tablespoon of the mixture close to the bottom corner of the wrapper. Fold the bottom flap up and then the 2 side flaps in. Brush cold water on the remaining edges of the wrapper to seal and roll to finish. Be careful not to over-fill and make sure to tightly roll the egg rolls.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the egg rolls on a greased cooking rack overtop of a cookie sheet (it is best not to cook directly on a cookie sheet). Spray the tops of the egg rolls with cooking spray. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until the egg rolls turn golden.

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Apricot Baked Brie

I got this recipe from one of my mom's neighbors years ago. She also makes the same thing with honeycup mustard instead of apricot preserves for something more savory than sweet. This is one of my easy go to appetizers for a party. It has just a few ingredients and has very little to prep. I could eat the whole thing myself, easily.  I adore brie, how can you not?  And since you are eating it with fruit, it is a little healthy, right?  At least that is what I tell myself.

Apricot Baked Brie

1 wheel of Brie
¼ cup apricot preserves
1 sheet of puff pastry
Apple and pear slices, grapes, crackers

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a glass baking dish with no-stick cooking spray. Top the wheel of brie with apricot preserves and wrap with the puff pastry. Place the brie with the puff pastry seam down in the baking dish. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until pastry is browned. Serve with apples, pears, grapes and crackers.

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Recipe Swap: Ham and Swiss Double Pinwheels

A Taste of Home Cooking hosted a gameday and tailgating recipe swap this week.  This recipe comes from Life and Kitchen, but I didn't make it for gameday.  Instead, I figured this would be fantastic toddler food.  And I was right.  I omitted the green onion since I was making it for a two year old.  Finley was excited to help make her "hammy cheesy rollups" and was even more excited to eat them.  She ate three for lunch.  I will send some of the leftovers in her lunchbox today.  So whether you are making these for the watching football set or watching Sesame Street set, I recommend them highly.  They remind me of my friend Shelley's Sausage Swirls.  I submitted Lance's Hot Crab Dip to the recipe swap, I hope whoever made it enjoyed it as much as I do.

Ham and Swiss Double Pinwheels

¼ pound cooked ham, cut into pieces
1 ounce cream cheese, softened
1 can (8 ounces) refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
½ cup shredded Swiss cheese

Heat oven to 350°F. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray. In food processor bowl with metal blade, process ham and cream cheese until smooth and well blended. Unroll dough into 1 large rectangle; press into 13×8-inch rectangle, firmly pressing perforations to seal. Spread ham mixture over rectangle. Sprinkle with Parmesan and Swiss cheeses. Starting with both short sides of rectangle, roll up both toward center. With serrated knife, cut into 16 slices; place cut side down on cookie sheet. Bake 13 to 17 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet. Serve warm.

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Crab Rangoon

When I was in college, one of the places in the dining hall was Kim Son. It was average Chinese food at best, but you always got a crab Rangoon with your entree. The lady working the counter liked me and always said "more crab puff?" To which I always replied, "yes, please!" I always had at least three. And I would have been totally happy just eating those for dinner. C was out of town on a fishing trip, so I knew I could bake all the bread I wanted and cook lots of seafood. I imagine he would freak out just a teeny bit if he smelled crabmeat frying up in our kitchen. This recipe is amazingly simple. I dipped the crab Rangoon in Thai Sweet Chili Sauce, which was the perfect complement of spice and sweet to the rich crab.

Crab Rangoon

1 brick of cream cheese, softened
1 pound of crab meat, picked free of shells
32 wonton wrappers
Oil for frying

Gently fold the crab meat into the softened cream cheese, making sure to distribute the crab meat evenly. In a small saucepan, heat 2” of oil over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, prepare a small bowl with water in it. Spoon a heaping teaspoon of the crab mixture into the center of the wonton wrapper. Dip your finger in the water bowl and brush it around the edge of the wonton wrapper. Pinch the wonton wrapper to for a cross at the top, sealing with your wet fingertips. Fry the wontons in the oil until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on a wire rack over a cookie sheet. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving or else the filling will be too hot. Serve with Sweet Thai Chili Sauce.

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Corn Blinis with Chipolte Cream

I first made these blinis for a dinner party years back. The recipe has been stored on my computer for years and I have not a clue where it came from, some random Google search I am sure. While I have made the blinis before, I hadn't served them with the Chipolte cream prior. Just a note, the cream is spicy, but I love the heat when paired with the mild corn blini. When I have made them in the past, I just served them with plain sour cream and a cilantro garnish, which works well for people who don't like the spice of the adobo. This recipe is perfect for the summer, especially if you are able to use fresh corn. I miss Silver Queen corn from Maryland so much, the Texas corn is good, but it isn't as delicious as the corn from my home state.

Corn Blinis with Chipolte Cream

1 cup sour cream
4 to 5 chipolte peppers in adobo sauce, minced
1 ½ cups boiling water
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar
½ cup flour
2 large eggs
¾ cup milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled, plus more for the skillet
1 cup of corn kernels

Combine the sour cream and chipoltes in a small bowl, set aside.

Combine the cornmeal, salt and sugar in a medium bowl and gradually add the boiling water, stirring to combine. Sift the flour over the mixture and mix to form a firm paste. Let stand for 10 minutes to cool. Add the eggs one at a time, then the milk. Add the melted butter, stirring, and mix well. Add the corn, mixing well. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Heat a large nonstick griddle over medium to medium-high heat. When it is hot, add a little butter and swirl it around to coat the griddle, being careful not to burn the butter. Add about 2 tablespoons of batter to make each blini (should be about 2 ½ inches wide) and cook 2 to 3 minutes, until slightly puffed and crisp on the bottom. When they are lightly browned on one side, turn and cook for 1 to 2 minutes on the other side.

To serve, place the blini on a plate. Smear them lightly with the chipolte cream. Serve immediately.

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Sun Dried Tomato Dip

This recipe is based off Ina Garten's recipe for Caramelized Onion Dip. I had a bunch of sun-dried tomatoes from Costco from making two recipes for the recipe swap:  Spicy Artichoke and Sun Dried Tomato Pasta and Chicken with Artichokes and Feta.  I was having my girl friends over for wine and appetizers, this was just perfect.  And as an added bonus, I got to use the fresh basil from my plant on my stoop.  It has really taken to the Houston heat and I cannot keep up with the amount of leaves it has been producing.

Sun Dried Tomato Dip

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
½ cup sour cream
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon minced fresh basil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Place the cream cheese, sour cream and mayonnaise in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat until smooth. Add the tomatoes and mix well. Stir in the basil. Add salt and pepper; taste for seasonings. Serve at room temperature.

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Crab Dip

I first had this at brunch the day after Zane and Karen's amazing wedding.  I asked for the recipe straight away, I couldn't get enough of the creamy, crabby goodness.  His brother Lance had made it and the secret recipe was actually from Phillips.  I doubled the crab meat from the original recipe.  I actually halved the other ingredients and still used a pound of backfin crab meat.  Heaven.

Crab Dip

1 cup crab meat, cleaned and picked free of shells
1 8 oz. package cream cheese
½ cup sour cream
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon parsley
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon Old Bay
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Allow cream cheese to come to room temperature and soften. In a large mixing bowl, combine softened cream cheese, sour cream, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp. parsley, dry mustard and Old Bay. Stir in ¾ cup of the cheddar cheese and the mozzarella cheese. Mix well. Gently fold in crab meat by hand until evenly distributed throughout mixture. Be careful not to break apart the meat. Pour mixture into lightly greased gratin dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheddar cheese and parsley. Bake at 350°F for 20-25 minutes or until top is golden brown and bubbling.

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Caramelized Onion Bruschetta

I adapted the caramelized onion dip recipe to transform it into a simple appetizer. The onions can be made in advance and warmed in the microwave before assembling. This is a really easy recipe to make and who doesn't love sweet onions?

Caramelized Onion Bruschetta
makes 36

2 large Vidalia onions
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces goat cheese
1 baguette

Cut the onions in half and then slice them into 1/8-inch thick half-rounds. (You will have about 3 cups of onions.) Heat the butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions, cayenne, salt, and pepper and saute for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 more minutes until the onions are browned and caramelized.

Slice the baguette into ¼” slices and toast under the broiler for 1 to 3 minutes, until just browned. Cool.

Spread goat cheese onto each toast and top with a heaping spoonful of the caramelized onion mixture. Sprinkle with fresh ground pepper and serve.

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Sausage Swirls

The first time I ever had these, I had been at my friend Shannon's house for a pool party. We had been swimming all day and her friend Shelley arrived with these amazing bites. I couldn't get enough of them. They are always a huge hit at parties and are ridiculously easy. I made these for a morning playgroup and they were gobbled up in no time.  I was amazed how easy they were when Shelley shared with me how she made them.

Sausage Swirls
makes three dozen

1 pound of spicy breakfast sausage
1 package of refrigerated crescent rolls

Roll out the crescent roll dough and press together to form one large rectangle.  Spread the uncooked sausage all over the dough, leaving a 1/4" border at the top.  Roll up the dough, starting at the long side of the rectangle, working up to the 1/4" border at the top.  Refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Cut the refrigerated log into 36 equal slices.  Arrange on a baking sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until sausage is cooked through and the dough is golden brown.  Serve.

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Artichoke Parmesan Dip

I made this for my dinner party and it was a definite hit! I think anything with artichokes makes for a tasty meal, but surprisingly, I don't like spinach and artichoke dip. It must be a mayonnaise thing...

Artichoke Parmesan Dip
printable recipe

1 cup sour cream
1 can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 teaspoons parsley

Stir all ingredients together to combine. Refrigerate for one hour before serving. Serve with vegetables, crackers or baguette slices.

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