Cheese Ball Three Ways

This is another recipe that my sister makes from www.marthastewart.com It is always a favorite with our family. The recipe makes a ton, so she has frozen it and used it for two separate parties weeks apart! They are very festive looking too!

Ingredients

Base Recipe:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3 packages cream cheese (8 ounces each)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
5 dashes hot sauce (such as Tabasco)
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

Cheddar and Cranberry:
8 ounces sharp orange cheddar cheese, finely shredded
2 tablespoons store-bought chutney
3/4 cup dried cranberries, finely chopped
Water crackers, for serving

Roquefort and Walnut:
6 ounces Roquefort cheese
1 shallot, minced (about 1 tablespoon)
2 teaspoons brandy (optional)
1 cup toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped
Vegetable chips (such as Terra Chips Sweets & Beets), for serving

Goat Cheese and Scallions:
8 ounces goat cheese
2 tablespoons finely chopped scallions
1/3 cup fresh curly-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 English cucumber, cut into 1/8-inch-thick slices, for serving

Directions
Put butter, cream cheese, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, salt, and pepper into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until combined. Divide equally among 3 medium bowls.

Stir cheddar cheese and chutney with base mixture in the first bowl. Form into a ball. If not using immediately, refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze up to 1 month. Roll cheese ball in cranberries to coat before serving. Serve with crackers.

Stir blue cheese and shallot with base mixture in second bowl; add brandy, if desired. Form into a ball. If not using immediately, refrigerate up to 3 days; freeze up to 1 month. Roll in walnuts to coat before serving. Serve with chips.

Stir goat cheese and scallions with base mixture in remaining bowl. Form into a ball. If not using immediately, refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze up to 1 month. Roll in parsley to coat before serving. Serve with cucumber slices.

Ham & Cheese Buns

This looks like the perfect party/tailgate appetizer! Yummy!

2 TBSP dried minced onions
1 TBSP prepared mustard (I used honey dijon)
1 tsp poppy seeds
1 stick melted butter
1 dozen dinner rolls or 2 dozen party rolls (I used King's Hawaiian Sweet rolls - 2 pkgs)
1/2 lb ham
1/2 lb thinly sliced swiss cheese

Preheat oven to 325. In a small mixing bowl, mix onion, mustard, poppy seeds, & melted butter. Leaving the dinner rolls intact, slice them open horizontally so that you have one solid top and one solid bottom. Place the bottom half on a baking sheet. Line bottom half of rolls with cheese slices & ham. Return the top part of the rolls & drizzle butter mixture evenly over top.Cover w/ foil & bake for 20 min. Use a sharp knife to separate the little sandwiches. Serve immediately.

Can be made ahead of time & refrigerated or frozen. Just thaw overnight and add 5 more min onto baking time.

Simply Hummus

Another thing I wanted to try immediately with the new food processor is hummus. I am obsessed with it and my favorite kind is Sabra Hummus. I think I did pretty good to recreate it - thanks to the Cuisinart! I plan on trying variations of it in the future, I saw a recipe the other day for Curry and Black Bean Hummus that both looked good! Stay tuned - I will post if I try them!

Ingredients:

2 cans reduced sodium garbonzo beans (drained, reserve liquid)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper (if you like it to have a little kick)

Directions:

Throw it all into the magical food processor and blend until smooth. Add the reserved liquid from the garbonzo beans if you want to play with the consistency. Serve with veggies or Stacy's Pita Chips, my favorite. So easy, healthy and delicious!

Festive Feta Spread

Trisha makes this dip for Bunco and it is awesome and it is from Weight Watchers, so it is good for you!

Link to Recipe

Ingredients:

7 oz roasted red peppers, packed in water, drained
1 pound(s) 1/3 less-fat cream cheese, two 8-oz blocks, softened, cut up
4 oz reduced-fat feta cheese, crumbled
1 large garlic clove(s), peeled
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
3 Tbsp dill, fresh, chopped
1/4 cup(s) dill, fresh, whole sprigs
10 1/2 oz baked low-fat tortilla chips

Instructions:

Slice off a 1 1/2-inch piece of roasted pepper to use for garnish; wrap and refrigerate. In a food processor, combine remaining roasted peppers, cream cheese, feta cheese, garlic and black pepper; process until smooth. Add chopped dill; pulse until evenly distributed.
Scrape mixture into a serving bowl; cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour (or up to 5 days) to firm up slightly and for flavors to blend.
To serve, smooth surface of dip with a spatula. Arrange dill sprigs on top in a circular fashion to form a “wreath;” cut reserved piece of roasted pepper into tiny “berries" and place on wreath. Or create any other decorative pattern you desire. Yields about 3 tablespoons of spread and 8 chips per serving.

Notes:
This recipe can be cut in half to serve 8, but it keeps so well (up to 5 days refrigerated) that it makes sense to make the whole batch to have on hand for unexpected holiday guests. Serve with pita wedges, whole grain crisp breads or crackers and/or raw vegetables. (The dip alone is 2 POINTS values for 3 tablespoons.)

Krista's Shower Menu

I hosted Krista's shower this weekend and we had a great turnout and good food. A few people had asked for recipes of some of the things that either Krista and I made or that other people had brought! Below are the links to sites where we found the recipes. A couple of them were things where we didn't have a recipe, but they are super easy.


Beer Chese in a Bread Bowl - Mom made this!


Winter Spiced Sangria - I made six batches of this throughout the night, so it was definitely a crowd favorite.


Ham and Guyere Thumbprints - Krista and I made these and altered the recipe slightly. Instead of using a pastry bag, we spooned the dough into the mini-muffin pan. I think they turned out great! Best when served warm.


Hot Roast Beef Party Sandwhiches - Mom made these - always a favorite!


Sausage Balls - described as a sausage hushpuppy, whatever, love them.


Bacon Wrapped Dates - my personal favorite. Can eat these for a meal.


Mini Salami Puff Sandwiches - we used a tiny cookie cutter and these turned out super-cute - very easy.


Pecan Pie Muffins

Peanut Butter-Filled Brownie Cupcakes - Mom made these and they were delicious.

Three-Cheese Mini Macs - Holly gave me this recipe - she always makes it for the kids at parties and it is a big hit. The adults like it too!

No recipes here, just threw these together:

Tomato, Mozzarella and Basil Toast

Ingredients:

1 skinny french loaf

Tomatoes and Mozzarella salad from Kroger Olive Bar

Fresh Basil, chopped

Directions:

Cut bread into 1/4 inch pieces. Cut tomatoes and cheese to fit on toast. Sprinkle with Basil. Bake at 350 until toasted.

Bruschetta with Goat Cheese, Fig, and Prosciutto

Ingredients:

1 skinny french loaf
Fig spread (jam, jelly, preserves)

1 package Prosciutto

1 small package of Goat cheese
Fresh rosemary

Directions:
Cut bread into 1/4 inch pieces. Spread fig jam on toast. Top with goat cheese, prosciutto and top with a few sprigs of rosemary. Bake at 350 until toasted.

Brie in a Puff Pastry with Roasted Garlic Onion Jam

Pretty self explanatory! Jessica made this and used frozen puff pastry, a small round of brie and Stonewall Kitchen Roasted Garlic Onion Jam. She topped the Brie with the jam, wrapped it in the puff pastry and baked it at about 350 degrees until golden brown.

Artichoke Dip

1/2 c mayo
1/2 c sour cream
1 c shredded parmesan cheese
1 (14 oz) can of artichoke hearts (drained and chopped)
1/2 c minced red onion
1 T lemon juice
salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400. Mix mayo, sour cream, cheese, and onion in a bowl. Add in artichoke hearts, lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Put mixture in a shallow dish and bake for apx. 20 minutes or until slightly brown on top. Serve with King's Hawaiian bread broken into pieces.

**If you are doubling, DO NOT double the onion or the lemon juice. Also, buy two of the loaves of bread when you double the recipe.

Spinach Dip Crisps

Becca brought this to Alex's party last weekend and they were a big hit!

INGREDIENTS

1 box (9 oz) Green Giant® frozen chopped spinach
24 wonton skins (about 3 1/4-inch squares; from 16-oz package)
1 can (7 oz) Old El Paso® chopped green chiles
1/3 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise or salad dressing
3/4 cup finely shredded Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheese blend

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Cook spinach as directed on box. Drain; set aside to cool.
2. Place 1 wonton skin in each of 24 ungreased regular-size muffin cups, gently pressing skin into bottom and up side of each cup (points of wonton skin will show above cup edge). Bake 7 to 10 minutes or until top 1/4 inch of wonton skins are golden brown.
3. Meanwhile, squeeze all excess water from spinach; place in large bowl. Stir in green chiles, mayonnaise and 1/4 cup of the cheese; mix well.
4. Spoon about 1 tablespoon spinach mixture into each wonton cup. Sprinkle each with 1 teaspoon remaining cheese. Bake 5 to 7 minutes longer or until cheese is melted and filling is hot. Remove from muffin cups; serve warm.

From the Pillsbury website: Stephanie Lau-ChenMountain View, CA Bake-Off® Contest 42, 2006

Black Bean Salsa

Sounds easy enough!

1 can each garbonza beans, black beans and corn (drained).
1 can diced tomatoes
1 4-1/2 oz. can green chilies
1 cup chopped green and chopped purple onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro (leaves only)
1-1/2 tsp cumin
6 T olive oil
1/4 cup lime juice

salt, pepper, tobasco sauce to taste

Beer-Cheese Spread

Elizabeth just made this for her Keeneland tailgate last weekend and brought some extra to work today - it was delicious! Note the good idea of how to use the leftover cheese spread - Grilled Beer Cheese Sandwiches. We just had it with celery and carrots!

Yield Makes 5 cups
Ingredients



1 (2-lb.) block sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
1 small onion, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 (12-oz.) bottle amber beer, at room temperature
Salt and pepper to taste
Garnish: thyme sprig



Preparation



1. Beat together first 5 ingredients at low speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until blended. Gradually add beer, beating until blended after each addition. Beat at medium-high speed 1 minute or until blended and creamy. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and chill 2 hours. Garnish, if desired. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator up to 2 weeks.
Note: For testing purposes only, we used Abita Amber Beer. This spread can be frozen up to 1 month; thaw overnight in refrigerator.



Grilled Beer-Cheese Sandwich: Spread 1 tsp. softened butter evenly on 1 side of 2 bread slices. Place bread slices, buttered sides down, on wax paper. Spread 1/4 cup Beer-Cheese Spread onto 1 side of 1 bread slice. Top with remaining bread slice, buttered side up. Cook sandwich in a nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat 3 to 5 minutes on each side or until golden brown and cheese is melted.



Therese Halaska, Portage, Wisconsin, Southern Living, OCTOBER 2007

Bacon and Tomato Salad

Holly said she makes this a lot as a side with burgers (she doesn't do the sauce and bread unless I am serving as an appetizer). They use the leftovers by sauteing them and putting them on top of pasta). Holly has brough this over as an appetizer before and it is amazing! It is a great twist on the traditional bruschetta in my opinion!

Ingredients

3 pounds tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
12 basil leaves, torn
1 small red onion, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3/4 pound sliced bacon
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
3/4 teaspoon Cajun spice mix
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, minced
Dash of hot sauce and crusty bread, for serving

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 450°. In a bowl, toss the tomatoes, basil, onion, olive oil and vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Let stand for 15 minutes.


• Set a wire rack on a baking sheet and arrange the bacon slices in a single layer on the rack. Bake the bacon in the upper third of the oven for 15 minutes, turning once, until golden and crisp-chewy. Let cool, then break into small pieces.


• In a small bowl, whisk the mayonnaise with the mustard, curry powder, Cajun spice mix, lemon juice, garlic and hot sauce.


• Sprinkle the bacon over the tomato salad and serve the mayonnaise and bread on the side.

Recipe by Laurent Tourondel, featured in Food & Wine magazine, June 2005

Crescent Rolls with Bacon and Cream Cheese

Crescent rolls, real bacon pieces, cream cheese and black pepper.

Flatten out the rolls and spread cream cheese, bacon and pepper. Roll in a long tube and cut into one inch pieces. Bake in the oven on 350 for about 10 mins or until they are golden. Easy as can be – and Rachel likes to call them little pieces of heaven.

Jalapeno Popper Spread

I have only made this once, but it is really good and really does taste like a Jalapeno Popper! Elizabeth also tried it and thought it would be good to spread on a bagel - I agree!

PREP TIME: 10 Min
COOK TIME: 3 Min
READY IN: 13 Min
YIELD: 4 cup (32 servings)

INGREDIENTS

* 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
* 1 cup mayonnaise
* 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies, drained
* 2 ounces canned diced jalapeno peppers, drained
* 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS

1. Stir together cream cheese and mayonnaise in a large bowl until smooth. Stir in green chiles and jalapeno peppers. Pour mixture into a microwave safe serving dish, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
2. Microwave on High until hot, about 3 minutes.

FOOTNOTES

*
Baked Variation
*
If you would like to brown the cheese, bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for about 30 minutes.

Allrecipes.com

Spinach and Feta Pita Bake

I think this looks like a good recipe to try!

PREP TIME: 5 Min
COOK TIME: 12 Min
READY IN: 17 Min
YIELD: 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

* 6 (6 inch) whole wheat pita breads
* 1 (6 ounce) tub sun-dried tomato pesto
* 2 roma (plum) tomatoes, chopped
* 1 bunch spinach, rinsed and chopped
* 4 fresh mushrooms, sliced
* 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
* 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
* 3 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 pinch ground black pepper to taste



DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Spread tomato pesto onto one side of each pita bread, and place them pesto side up on a baking sheet. Top with tomatoes, spinach, mushrooms, feta cheese, and Parmesan cheese. Drizzle with olive oil and season with pepper.
3. Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven or until pita breads are crisp. Cut into quarters and serve.

Allrecipes.com