Jalapeño Bacon Cheeseball

These is such a delicious and easy to make appetizer.  In my opinion it's perfect like this with the amount of jalapeños, but if you are afraid that it might be too spicy for you, go ahead and cut down on the jalapeños.

INGREDIENTS:
2 (8oz pkg) cream cheese, softened
1 cup crumbled cooked bacon
6 jalapeños, seeded and finely chopped
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 green onions, finely sliced (a little less than 1/2 cup)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin
1 tsp worcerstershire sauce
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped (you can use pecans)

In a bowl mix together the cream cheese, salt, cumin, worcerstershire sauce, and garlic.  Add half the jalapeños (about 3/4 cup), half cup bacon, cheddar cheese, and green onions.  Mix well, and set aside.

In a large plate mix together the walnuts, half cup bacon, and the rest of the jalapeños.  Spread these ingredients on the plate and then add the cheese mixture in the center.  Shape it into a ball and coat it with the jalapeño-nut-bacon mixture.

Cover the ball with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for about an hour.  Serve with ritz crackers.  Enjoy!

Easy Salsa

Super easy and quick to prepare.  You are going to LOVE this salsa!

INGREDIENTS:

2 cans (14.5 oz) whole canned tomatoes

1-2 jalapeños

1 bunch of cilantro

1 garlic clove (or 1 tsp minced)

salt to taste

1-2 tomatoes (finely diced)

1 bunch of green onions (finely sliced)

Throw the first five ingredients in a blender and blend well.  I suggest you start out with one jalapeño and then taste and see if it's spicy enough for your liking, if not, add more jalapeños.  When the spiciness level is right for you, pour salsa in a bowl.  You could actually just eat your salsa like this, but I like to add the diced tomatoes and green onions at this point to make the salsa more chunky.  If you do not have green onions on hand, white or yellow onions finely chopped will work just as well.

Note**  If your salsa ends up more spicy than you would like (when you first blend it), just add an extra can of tomatoes.

Avocado Green Salsa (Salsa Verde con Aguacate)

 This salsa is absolutely delicious!  Perfect for chips or to accompany any of your favorite Mexican dishes.

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 lbs Tomatillos

1-2 Fresh Jalapeños

1 small onion, quartered

1 bunch of cilantro

1 garlic clove

salt

2 avocados

Remove the husk (leaf) from the tomatillos and wash them.  In a sauce pan boil the tomatillos along with the jalapeños and onion. Make sure you don't overcook the tomatillos or they will break apart and you will have a hard time getting them out of the pan. Just cook them until they change color.  Let the tomatillos, onion, and jalapeños cool and then pour them in the blender with a little bit of the water. Add salt, garlic and cilantro and blend. Cut open the avocados and remove the pit.  Add the avocado pulp to the green salsa mix.  Blend once more.  The salsa will be thick and creamy at this point, just perfect!  Enjoy!!!

Note:  This salsa will keep for about 4-5 days.

Garlic Herb Potato Wedges with Copy Cat Chick Fil A sauce

I found this recipe a couple of years ago on Pinterest and gave it a try.  Since that very first day, it has become one of our favorite ways to bake potatoes.  Recipe courtesy of "About Food."  

Don't forget to pair it with this amazing copy cat chick fil a sauce (one of our favorite places to eat when on the road).  The recipe is easy, fast and delicious!

INGREDIENTS FOR POTATOES:

• 4-6 medium russet potatoes, scrubbed and rinsed
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed fine
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt

Cut each potato into 4 equally sized long wedges.  Place in a bowl and incorporate the rest of the ingredients.  Mix well to make sure all potato wedges are covered.

Place potatoes (skin side down) on a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil.  Bake for 35 minutes at  425 degrees farenheit.  Enjoy!

Copy Cat Chick Fil A Sauce

2 tbsp bbq sauce
4 tbsp honey
2 tsp lemon juice
1 cup mayonnaise
4 tsp mustard, prepared

Whisk all ingredients together and enjoy!

Pizza Rolls

I still don't understand the fact that people went crazy over these on Eric's birthday party because they're so easy to make and nothing really fancy. But I guess they're really good! So here's the recipe:

What you'll need:

- Pillsbury crescent rounds (each package comes with 8 so get as many as you and your family will eat)
- Tomato sauce
- Shredded mozzarella cheese
- Pepperoni (I cut these into tiny little pieces)
- Dry basil

Instructions:
Open up the dough and spread tomato sauce (don't exaggerate). Spread cheese, then pepperoni then roll the dough and cut it (it comes sort of pre-cut so it's really easy). Arrange the rolls in the pan (I sprayed mine with olive oil spray to make it really easy to remove the rolls out of the pan). Spread more cheese and basil on top of each roll. Bake as directed in the package.

That's it! Super easy!

Crunchy Asian Pasta Salad

1	box Betty Crocker® Suddenly Salad® classic pasta salad mix (We have liked the Greek flavor the best, if you can find it... I have also used off brands)
1	package (3 oz) Oriental-flavor ramen noodle soup mix
3	tablespoons sugar
3	tablespoons vegetable oil
2	tablespoons white vinegar
2	tablespoons water
1	tablespoon soy sauce
3	cups coleslaw mix
1	cup snow pea pods, strings removed, cut diagonally into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2	cup sliced almonds, toasted
1	can (15 oz) mandarin orange segments, drained (I leave these out & add sliced black olives) Empty Pasta mix into 3-quart saucepan 2/3 full of boiling water. Gently boil uncovered 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta; rinse with cold water. Shake to drain well. In large bowl, stir together seasoning mixes from pasta mix and soup mix, sugar, oil, vinegar, water and soy sauce. Add pasta, coleslaw mix, pea pods, almonds and oranges; toss to combine. Just before serving, coarsely crush dry noodles from soup mix; stir into pasta mixture. Serve immediately, or refrigerate.

Sinful Bread

I made this bread one night with a recipe called Mushroom Soup.
It was truly delicious. I couldn't get enough of it.
Unless you have a large group, I would recommend cutting the recipe in half.

Sinful Bread

***

2 loaves French Bread

1 cup parmesan cheese (grated fresh)

I cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup minced onion

***

Combine ingredients. Split French bread horizontally, spread mixture and sprinkle with paprika (if desired... the above picture is minus the paprika). Broil to crisp up.

***

Enough for 2 loaves of French bread.

Nachos

These are not the typical nachos with the melted cheese and jalapeno slices. This is my version of nachos, try it...you'll like them.

INGREDIENTS:

Tortilla Chips

1 lb ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped

salt

Refried Beans (beans take a while to cook, so do this in advance)

Fresh salsa (Get recipe here)

Guacamole (Get recipe here)

Sour cream

***

To cook the meat: In a pan, begin cooking the meat, add salt. When meat is almost done, add the chopped onions and jalapenos, finish cooking and set aside.

To cook beans: All you need is dry beans, water and salt. Wash beans and place them in a pot with enough water (water evaporates pretty fast so make sure you add enough from the start), add salt. It will take about two hours to cook the beans unless you are using a pressure cooker (if you do, the process is much faster). When the beans are soft, you are ready to mash them. You can add a little bit of olive oil to the pan where you'll mash the beans but you don't have to. Begin scooping out the beans from the pot and put them in the pan. Make sure you add enough juice from the beans so that the refried beans don't turn out dry.

Once you have all the food ready, you can begin serving your nachos. I personally like to dish up mine like in the picture above: chips, beans, meat and then salsa, guacamole, and sour cream on top. My husband on the other hand likes to dish everything on his plate but the chips because he likes the chips really crunchy. Enjoy!!

Rosemary Roasted Cashews

Ingredients:
1 1/4 pounds cashew nuts
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped FRESH rosemary leaves (dried just wont work on this one!)
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon melted butter

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Place the nuts on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes until they are warmed through. Meanwhile, combine the rosemary, pepper, sugar, salt and butter in a large bowl. Toss the warm nuts with the rosemary mixture until the nuts are completely coated. Serve warm.

Mango Veggie Salsa

I have been a search for a mango salsa recipe that I really like and finally found it! My brother cut all the veggies and mango and I think he was a little worried since he had never heard of a fruit in a salsa. I also wasn't sure about how the beans would go, but it really complements the sweet mango. It turned out a hit!


Ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves, finely minced
1/4 cup lime juice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground pepper
2 mangoes, peeled and diced
1 red bell pepper
1/2 bunch of green onion, sliced
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained


Directions:

Whisk olive oil, garlic, lime juice, salt and pepper together in large bowl. Add remaining ingredients and toss everything together.

Serve with chips, with your favorite barbecue meat or chicken, on burritos, in a salad... etc., etc.


(served with spicy baked snapper)

Bacon Appetizer Crescents

Years ago, my mom gave me the Kraft Philadelphia brand book titled "Cheesecakes Appetizers & More." I really like the book because it has some really good cheesecake recipes...and appetizers. I've made these mini crescents only a couple of times, once for a baby shower and recently for a house warming party. Both times, they were the first thing gone! Everyone loved them!

***

INGREDIENTS:

1 pkg (8 oz) PHILADELPHIA cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup bacon bits or 8 slices bacon, crisply cooked, crumbled

1/3 c KRAFT 100% grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 c thinly sliced green onions

1 Tbsp milk

2 cans (8oz each) refrigerated crescent dinner rolls

***

MIX cream cheese, bacon, Parmesan cheese, onion and milk until blended

***

SEPARATE dough into 8 rectangles; firmly press perforations together to seal. Spread each rectangle with 2 rounded tablespoons cream cheese mixture

***

CUT each rectangle in half diagonally; repeat with opposite corners. Cut in half crosswise to form 6 triangles. Roll up triangles, starting at short ends. Place, point sides down, on ungreased cookie sheets.

BAKE at 375 *F for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve immediately

Salsa Fresca (Fresh Salsa)

INGREDIENTS:

1 small onion, finely chopped
6-7 roma tomatoes, finely diced
3 jalapenos, seeded and finely chopped
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
2 limes, juiced
salt to taste

Mix all ingredients and serve with chips. Pretty easy huh!

Note: the salsa will taste even better if you let it sit for a bit.

Mock Sushi Sandwiches

I made these for my kids and it was a hit! They love sandwiches but I get tired of the same old every day. These are healthy and so tasty, a perfect way to change it up.

Ingredients:

Tomato and Basil sandwich wraps

Cream Cheese (I used whipped cream cheese spread)

Green Leaf lettuce

Your favorite sandwich meat - thin cut

Thinly sliced Tomato and/or any other favorite sandwich toppings

(pepperchinis, avocado, bacon bits, etc.)

Directions:

Spread thin layer Cream Cheese over wrap. It doesn't take much, maybe a tablespoon.

Add toppings and lettuce across the 1/2 of the wrap, stopping about 1 1/2 inches from top.

Add sandwich meat across entire wrap, stopping at about 2 inches from the top. (I used turkey on one half and roast beef on the other)

Tightly roll all ingredients together and slice about 2 inches thick.

Serve and Enjoy!

Cheese and bacon appetizers

These are so delicious and so easy to make! My mother-in-law gave me the recipe and it will go great with your Christmas buffet.

2 cups grated cheese

1/2 cup cooked, crumbled bacon

2 small cans (1/2 cup) chopped black olives

8 (1/2 cup) green onions, finely sliced

2 t. Worchestershire sauce

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 lb. cocktail loaf rye or Pumpernickel bread (I used a loaf of french bread last time and it worked great)

Preheat oven 375. Arrange squares of bread tightly together on cooking sheets. Mix other ingredients together and spread over bread. Bake about 6 minutes.

Pakora

This recipe was given to me by my cousin Nashma. It is a Pakistani appetizer and it's delicious. I remember eating it at her house whenever I would visit, and since I hadn't eaten it in years, I decided to try and make them myself.

You will need a special flour for the batter called "Besan Flour" or "chickpea flour," which you can find at an Indian store. Lucky for me, there are several Indian stores in the Salt Lake area so it was not hard to find.

While at the Indian store, the owner recommended I buy "Pakora Masala" (spices for Pakora). Now, my cousin did not really include that on her recipe, but I decided to add it anyway (they are delicious either way). I used very little, probably about a teaspoon of it, and skipped the cumin and dry cilantro since I was adding this (plus this mix of spices already has cumin).

This is what the the small box of ground spices looks like. It is a blend of spices that includes: Coriander, salt, chilli, dry mango, cumin, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom seeds, etc. Remember, it's not really necessary to have all these spices, cumin and dry cilantro are fine to use on the recipe.

Ingredients:

Besan Flour
Green onions-chopped
Seeded jalapeno (s)-chopped
Tomato-diced
Fresh cilantro-chopped
Salt to taste (you don't need to much)
Dry cilantro
Cumin
1 egg
Finely diced potatoes
Water

Mix all the veggies and then start adding the flour a little at a time, mix well. Add water as needed, a little bit at a time because you do not want your dough/veggie mix to be runny. You want to make sure that the dough/veggie mix will not fall apart, so if it's starts holding together then you are ready to fry the pakora.

Drop teaspoon fulls of dough into hot oil, and cook both sides. I cooked one first just to see if it needed more salt or not. If the oil is at the right temperature, it really won't take long for them to start getting a golden/brown color. Place cooked pakoras over some paper towels to remove any excess oil. Serve warm (I think they taste best warm) with yogurt sauce.


Sauce Ingredients:
Plain yogurt
Fresh cilantro
Salt
Jalapenos

Place all ingredients in blender and mix well. Keep refrigerated.

Hawaiian Ribs

I found this recipe in the cookbook "Favorite Brand Name All-New Best-Loved Recipes of all time" (highly recommend the book). The book has great ideas so I decided to try out this recipe. As you will see in the ingredients, the recipe calls for ginger, but I didn't have any so I substituted the ginger for a little "allspice" and "crushed black pepper." I've never really used ginger in cooking so I don't really know it's taste...but the sauce turned out really good without it.

Ingredients:

1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple in juice, undrained

1/3 c apricot jam

3 tbsp French's Classic yellow Mustard

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

2 tsp grated peeled fresh ginger

1 clove garlic, minced

3 to 4 pounds pork baby back ribs*

*If baby back ribs are not available, substitute 4 lbs pork spareribs, cut in half lengthwise. Cut spareribs into 3-4 rib portions. Cook 20 minutes in enough boiling water to cover. Grill ribs 30-40 minutes or until no longer pink near bone, brushing with portion of pineapple mixture during last 10 minutes.


Combine crushed pineapple with juice, apricot jam, mustard, vinegar, ginger and garlic in blender or food processor. Cover and process until very smooth.


On oiled grill. Grill ribs over medium heat 40 minutes or until ribs are no longer pink near bone. Brush ribs with portion of pineapple sauce mixture during last 10 minutes of cooking. Cut into individuals ribs to serve. Serve remaining sauce for dipping.

Green Salsa

This salsa is very tasty! It's great for a variety of dishes or just eat it with chips.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs tomatillos

3-5 Fresh Jalapenos (depends on how spicy you want it)

1 bunch of cilantro

1 garlic clove

salt

Preparation:

Remove the husk (leaf) of the tomatillos and wash them. In a sauce pan boil the tomatillos along with the jalapenos. Make sure you don't overcook the tomatillos or they will break apart and you will have a hard time getting them out of the pan. Let the tomatillos and jalapenos cool and then pour them in the blender with a little bit of the water. Add salt, garlic and cilantro and blend. Enjoy!!! (Tomatillos can be found at your regular grocery store)