Sandy's Yummy Mexican Appetizer

I really had no other name to call this. Sandy's Festive Dip....Sandy's Cream Cheese Avocado Dip...wait...what? It's not even a dip. I have no clue what IT is...I just know that it's super tasty!

My cute little friend Paula had us over for a pool party and she was making Street Tacos so a few of us brought over Mexican appetizers. I brought Jaime's To Die For Dip (which my cousin Jana seems to think it's called Jana's To Die For Dip, yeah right, she stole it from us), to be blogged later. And my other friend Sandy (who just moved to Canada :( I am so sad!), brought this appetizer. I had never had it before and I couldn't get enough of it. It has slices of cream cheese, who couldn't LOVE it, right??? Super easy to make.

All you do is slice cream cheese, then top with sliced avocados and then pour your favorite salsa over the top and OLE, it's party time.

PF Chang's Chicken Lettuce Wraps

If you've ever dined at P.F. Changs, you most likely have tried this. I've always been a fan of this dish and decided to make it at home. It's simple, easy, low carb and a MUST TRY. It's delish. The sauce is out of this world and we loved eating it! 

Ingredients:

2 T of sesame seed oil 

2 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped up well (I used my Cuisinart)

1 cup of water chestnuts

2/3 cup of mushrooms (use canned mushrooms)

3 T of chopped onions

1 teaspoon minced garlic

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Special Sauce:

1/4  cup of sugar (I used 6 packets of Splenda to cut down the calories)

1/2 cup of water

2 T soy sauce

2 T of rice wine vinegar

2 T ketchup

1 T lemon juice

1 teaspoon of sesame seed oil

1 T of hot mustard

2 teaspoons of water

1-2 T of garlic and red chili paste (use more if you like heat)

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Stir Fry Sauce

2 T soy sauce

2 T light brown sugar

1 teaspoon of rice wine vinegar

Make the special sauce and place in refrigerator until you are ready to use. Make stir fry sauce and set aside. Cook chicken and let cool. Once chicken is cool, dice it up finely (use the processor if you have one) Dice up the mushrooms and water chestnuts (I used the food processor, saves LOTS of time).  Once the mushrooms and water chestnuts are diced up, it's time to start cooking. In a large pan, place sesame seed oil until hot and then add chicken, mushrooms and water chestnuts. Add chopped onions and garlic. Add stir fry sauce to the mix and cook on medium low heat for about 8 minutes.  Once the mix is nice and hot it's time to assembly. Add mix to a lettuce cup and then add your special sauce, top with rice noodles or crispy Asian noodles if you want extra crunch. - Enjoy!

Oven Fried Parmesan Zucchini Spears

Growing up, we had a Fry Baby and then one year my mom upgraded to a Fry Daddy. Oh how I loved to fry all kinds of morsels in that thing. Nowadays they have all kinds of fry "contraptions". In fact Paula Deen has, not one, but TWO fry baskets built right into her counter. I would love to get myself a fryer but I risk gaining 30 lbs with that sucker so I opt not to fry anything in my house. I made Parmesan chicken fingers in the oven a while back so I figured doing that to any type of veggie would work just as good and it did. This zucchini was delicious. They were really crunchy and had about a million less calories than their fried counterpart. I didn't have any marinara sauce so I whipped me up some spicy creamy dip. It was okay but next time I will serve these with marinara for sure.

Oven Fried Parmesan Zucchini

Zucchini

1/2 cup Bread Crumbs (I used whole wheat)

1/2 cup Parmesan

2 tsp Oregano

1 tsp Salt or to taste

1/2 tsp Pepper or to taste

1 or 2 Eggs

Cut your veggies up, into spears or circles, whatever you prefer.

Lightly beat an egg and put in a shallow bowl. Mix together your breadcrumbs, parmesan, oregano, salt and pepper and place in a shallow bowl.

1. Dip your zucchini into the egg.

2. Roll your zucchini in the breadcrumb mixture.

3. Place onto a greased cooking sheet. Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes.

Smoked Salmon Spread

This time of year just makes me giddy. Okay, so does winter, summer and fall, but spring has sprung and that means showers...bridal showers, that is. And baby showers, and anniversary parties and...I could go and on and on. I'm a sucker for cute quaint parties. I love a party in any way, shape or form especially when there is food involved. I have my go to favorites but I have been trying some new ideas lately. When I need a quick, easy and tasty appetizer, I always turn to the internet and the first person I look to is the Barefoot Contessa. Ina Garten's style is exactly what I love. It's classy yet quick and easy. I saw this salmon spread and had to try it. Not only was this fabulous and will definitely be served at my next tea party or bridal shower, but this spread is so versatile, it can be served on bagels for a morning or afternoon snack for your entire family to enjoy. I used fresh lemon and I just don't think you can do any better than a fresh squeezed lemon, especially with any type of seafood. You have to whip up a batch of this...you won't be disappointed!

Smoked Salmon Spread

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon minced fresh dill
1 teaspoon prepared horseradish, drained
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 pound (4 ounces) smoked salmon, diced

Cream the cheese until smooth (my cream cheese was really soft so I just gave it a really good stir). Add the sour cream, lemon juice, dill, horseradish, salt, and pepper, and mix. Add the smoked salmon and mix well. Chill for several hours...overnight is even better. Serve with cut veggies, bagel chips, crackers or crusty bread.

Brie with Warm Honey and Toasted Almonds

This is one of my favorite appetizers to make for a party...it's simple, easy and oh so tasty. I buy the brie from Costco but you can get it from Sam's Club or Trader Joe's...I use the Baby Brie wheel. I buy a small container of honey at Trader Joe's and heat the honey up in the microwave. I buy sliced almonds and toast them in the oven. Place the brie on a platter, pour the warm honey over the brie (the warm honey actually softens the brie so you can cut into easily) and then sprinkle with toasted almonds. I serve this with water crackers, multi-grain crackers or you could serve it with baguettes. Any way you serve it, it's a hit at parties!

Goat Cheese and Tapenade Spread

I found this recipe at blog called Sweet Peas and Pumpkins. She's a Mommy Blogger and posts recipes on her blog. My cousins came into town and we had people over so I needed to whip up a quick appetizer. I remembered this recipe and tried it out. I LOVED it! This is seriously easy folks. I will be honest, it did get mixed reviews but the majority liked it. It has a pretty strong olive taste, but I love that so this is on my appetizer list of favorites.

Goat Cheese and Tapenade Spread

1 - 8oz package of reduced fat cream cheese
1 - 4oz package of goat cheese

1/4 - 1/2 c of prepare tapenade (Trader Joe's if you can find it)

Let the cheeses sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes to soften. Mix cheese and tapenade in a bowl. Place in the refrigerator until firm. Serve with crackers or vegetables. Maybe even some crusty bread would be good.

Barefoot Bloggers Savory Palmiers

So I joined this online blogging group called the Barefoot Bloggers. They post a couple of recipes a month. All recipes are from Ina Garten, and you have to make the recipes and post your results. Well I finished my first recipe today and I'm so excited. Not only were they super easy but they were good too. And they turned out sooo cute! I have to say, I'm pretty impressed with myself. These would be a perfect party appetizer. I put mine in the freezer for a couple of hours before I was ready to cook them. These are great because you can freeze them ahead of time and save yourself some time right before your party. When you take them out of the freezer, you need to let them thaw a tiny bit. I tried to slice them and they just kept crumbling on me so letting them thaw is very helpful. Also, one thing I would do differently, I would put more filling in them. It didn't seem like enough filling, so maybe double up on the cheese or something.

Savory Palmiers

1 package frozen puff pastry, defrosted

1/4 cup prepared pesto

1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese

1/4 cup finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained

1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

Kosher Salt

Light flour a board and carefully unfold one sheet of puff pastry. Roll the pastry lightly with a rolling pin until 9 1/2 x 11 1/2 inches. Spread the sheet of puff pastry with half the pesto, then sprinkle with half the goat cheese, half the sun-dried tomatoes, and half the pine nuts. Sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt.

Using the long ends, fold over about an inch and then fold over again maybe another inch or so and then fold the whole thing together. This might sound confusing but check HERE for better instruction on how to do this.

Repeat for the second sheet of puff pastry using the remaining ingredients. Cover both rolls with plastic wrap and chill for at least 45 minutes.

Cut the prepared rolls of puff pastry into 1/4 inch thick slices and place them faceup 2 inches apart on sheet pans lined with parchment paper. Bake for 12 minutes, or until golden brown in a preheated 400 degree oven.

Steak Quesadilla w/ Black Bean and Avocado Salsa

Here's another great recipe from Whitney at Rookie Cookie. This was really easy to make and was quite tasty. There are a few things I would do differently next time though. Scott wanted the grill taste so the next time we'll throw the steak on the bbq instead of cooking it in the pan. Also, being the critic that he is, Scott suggested that we cook them in a pan next time so that we can really brown the outside of the tortilla almost to the point of crunchy. These are spicy so if you want to tone the spice down, mix the pepper jack cheese with some colby or monterrey jack. And the salsa...YUMMY! Great on the quesadilla but even better with chips or right out of the bowl with a spoon.

Steak Quesadilla

1 strip steak (8 ounces and 1 inch thick) (I used thin cut sirloin)
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
3 teaspoons olive oil
4 flour tortillas (10-inch or burrito-style)
1 1/2 cups grated pepper jack cheese (6 ounces)
1 medium red onion, halved and thinly sliced (I didn't have this and I regret it now)

Rub steak with oregano; season with salt and pepper. In a 10-inch skillet, heat 1 teaspoon oil over high. Add steak to skillet, and cook, turning once, until browned and still rare, 2 to 3 minutes per side. (Steak will cook a little longer in the quesadillas during baking.)

Transfer steak to a cutting board; let rest 5 minutes before slicing 1/4 inch thick.Preheat oven to 425 degrees with racks in upper and lower thirds. Brush one side of each tortilla with remaining 2 teaspoons oil. Place 1 tortilla, oiled side down, on each of two baking sheets. Dividing evenly, layer with half the cheese, then onion and steak, ending with remaining cheese.

Top with remaining tortillas, oiled side up. (I just folded mine over). Press lightly to seal.Bake, turning over once (with a wide spatula), until lightly browned and crispy, about 7 or 8 minutes per side. Transfer to a cutting board; cut each quesadilla into 6 triangles. Serve with black bean avocado salsa.

Black Bean Salsa

1 can (15 1/2 ounces) black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped

2 plum tomatoes, cut into 3/4-inch pieces (I didn't have plum tomatoes so I used little grape tomatoes, it was really good)

1 avocado, halved, pitted, peeled, and cut into 3/4-inch pieces

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Coarse salt and ground pepper

In a medium bowl, combine black beans, cilantro, tomatoes, avocado, and lime juice; stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

Best Deviled Eggs Around

If anyone has ever been to a Guill Picnic, then they have tried Valerie's Deviled Eggs. I must say they are by the far the best deviled eggs I have ever tasted...and I've tried many as I'm a huge fan of the deviled egg. This recipe also calls for Miracle Whip, which, I know many of you don't like, but please just try it...you will be surprised! This recipe may sound simple but it's HUGE on taste. It's easy and good...what's not to love?

Here's my mom with Luke...isn't she cute. I think all my family is cute!

Deviled Eggs

Dozen Eggs

Miracle Whip

Mustard

Dash Apple Cider Vinegar

Salt

Pepper

Fried Crispy Bacon, chopped

Paprika

Boil eggs. Cut in half. Remove yolk. Mash yolks with fork well. In bowl, combine yolks, add miracle whip until creamy. Add a small amount of mustard and dash of vinegar. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add chopped bacon. Mix well. Fill egg white with yolk mixture and sprinkle with paprika.

Note: This is a to taste recipe....sorry. But just think, you keep to keep licking the bowl till you get it right.

If I get better measurements next time I make these, I'll post them.

Isn't my happy face so...well, you know...HAPPY?

He's happy because he knows he's so darn yummy!

Jaime's Green Sauce

Okay, so I cannot tell you guys enough how much Jen and I both love Home With Mandy's cooking blog. I found this recipe...it's called Ninfa's Green Salsa. I've been dying to make it but couldn't find green tomatoes. And it didn't help the situation when Jen went to the Carolinas and didn't bring me any back either (Jen, I will never let you live this down). Finally, I found some green tomatoes at the local farmers market down the street from my house. They were organic Heirloom Tomaotes and they cost me $5.00 a lb...OUCH...but it was totally worth it. My friend Allison Day came over and helped me make it. It was phenomenol. Everybody ate it up so fast, I didn't even get a picture of the final result so I had to borrow the top photo of the salsa from Mandy (thanks for your permission). Seriously you guys, this is a keeper! Actually this post is probably just plain torture because it's not tomato season and I hate to do this to you guys but this salsa was amazing. Jen sent me a link on where to order green tomatoes (as if that's going to make up for her not bringing me any), and I think I'm going to order some...you can check it out here. I want to make this salsa again and I want to make Jen's Fried Green Tomatoes. Try this one out FOR SURE! Since we don't live in Texas and I'm sure no one that reads this, other than Mandy and my cousin Maureen, I'm renaming this "Jaime's Green Sauce"...I love to steal people's recipes.

Jaime's Green Sauce

3 medium-sized green tomatoes, coarsely chopped (you can substitute yellow if you can’t find green ones, but never use red)

4 tomatillos, cleaned and chopped

3 jalapenos, stemmed and coarsely chopped

3 small garlic cloves

3 medium-sized ripe avocados, peeled, pitted and sliced

handful of cilantro

1 tsp. of salt

3/4 cup of sour cream

This is the first time I've ever worked with tomatillos and they were really easy. Just peel the outer paper off and rinse under water to remove any sticky stuff.

Combine chopped tomatoes, tomatillos, jalapenos and garlic in a saucepan and heat on medium high.

Use a potato masher to mash up the tomato mixer a little bit to help the whole thing get started.


The mixture will come to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring often. After 15 minutes remove from heat and let cool slightly.


While that is cooling, cut up your avocado and add it along with the cilantro and salt to the food processor.


Mix that until smooth.

Add the tomato mixture to the avocado mixture and mix that until combined and smooth.
Pour the mixture from the food processor into a bowl and mix in the sour cream.

Add the avocado seeds to the mixture if not serving right away to keep the sauce from turning brown. This sauce was good warm but even better cold.


This sauce was amazing! We ate it with chips but Mandy suggested eating it with chicken or poured over enchiladas...mmmm, yum...enjoy!

Spinach Feta Crescent Rolls

The perfect addition to a warm bowl of soup or better yet, your favorite salad. I make the mix and keep it in the fridge and whenever I need a snack, I bake 2 or 3 of them at a time. Always warm, always fresh. This recipe is so easy and so fun to make!

My little sister Crystal gave me this recipe and we love it! All my favorite ingredients all wrapped up in heavenly crescent rolls and baked to perfection.

1 package of Feta
6 ounces of room temp cream cheese
1/4 cup of Mayo
one box of frozen spinach, unfrozen and drained of all liquids
crescent rolls (the good kind)

Place all ingredients in a bowl.


Mix well.

Place in store bought crescent rolls.

Bake according to crescent roll instructions or until golden brown.

Enjoy!

Mexican Dip

I had a ton of people at my house this weekend and we did Mexican Food night. We were running late so I busted out with the old "go to" dip when I need a quick appetizer. I'm not sure where or when our family first started making this dip but every single person in my family tries to claim this dip as their own....even Jana! So today, it's just the "Mexican Dip" and not Jaime's Famous Mexican Dip...unless of course you really want to call it that because it's really my dip and no one else's. Whatever it's called...it's AWESOME and pretty tasty. Try it out...it'll be gone before you know it!

Mexican Dip

2 packages cream cheese, softened

2 cans Hormel chili NO BEANS (I have no idea why there are 3 in the pic)

1 jar salsa

Monterey Jack or Colby Cheese or both, shredded

In a 13x9 pan, spread the cream cheese evenly.


Pour the chili over the cream cheese smoothing it out evenly.

Pour the salsa over the chili, smoothing it out evenly.

Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top.

Bake in the oven at 350 for 20 minutes or so or until cheese is all bubbly and melted.