Arte's Salsa

When we were invited to Arte and Eddie's to watch the fight, Eddie mentioned he was making tri-tip and Arte would make her salsa.  Kurt asked her if she'd show me how to make it (I love the texture!) and she agreed.  I was prepared to be chopping for a while, but she threw it all in the blender and pureed it.  So yummy and fresh!

Here's what she threw in:
3-4 medium, firm, roma tomatoes
juice of 1-2 limes
1/2 white onion
some salt
5 jalapenos, whole with stem chopped off (this proved to be a bit hot for me, especially when you got a seed!)
1 can (yellow) El Pato
dash salt, to taste
some garlic, if you want
and a bit of cilantro (about 1/5 of the bunch or 2-3 Tbsp. fresh)

We didn't chop a thing, except maybe to get the tomato and onion into chunks.

LOVE!  This rivals, if not beats, the fresh stuff at Chevy's.

Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts

Kim gave us this naughty little recipe one New Year's Eve.  I'm warning you: your blood pressure will spike just smelling them while they cook.  But, mmmmm.....they're great appetizers.

Drain a can of whole water chestnuts.
Wrap each with a piece of bacon and secure with a toothpick.
Sprinkle (or drench) each piece with Worcestershire sauce, to taste.
Broil until bacon is nice and crispy. 
That's it.  Enjoy!

Spinach Dip

Ingredients

• 2 (16 ounce) loaves King's Hawaiian® Sweet Bread
• 1 (1 ounce) package leek soup mix
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts, chopped
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained, but not cooked
• 1 dash Worcestershire sauce

Directions

1. Mix together the leek soup mix, mayonnaise, sour cream, water chestnuts, frozen spinach and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.
2. Slice off top of King's Hawaiian Bread. Hollow out the inside - leaving about 1-inch thick shell. Cube removed bread and second loaf into 1-inch chunks. Fill loaf with dip. Surround the loaf with bread cubes when ready to serve.

Annie's Fruit Salsa and Cinnamon Chips

Ingredients
2 kiwis, peeled and diced
2 Golden Delicious apples - peeled, cored and diced
8 ounces raspberries
1 pound strawberries
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons fruit preserves, any flavor

10 (10 inch) flour tortillas
butter flavored cooking spray
2 cups cinnamon sugar

Directions
1.In a large bowl, thoroughly mix kiwis, Golden Delicious apples, raspberries, strawberries, white sugar, brown sugar and fruit preserves. Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 15 minutes.
2.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
3.Coat one side of each flour tortilla with butter flavored cooking spray. Cut into wedges and arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Sprinkle wedges with desired amount of cinnamon sugar. Spray again with cooking spray.
4.Bake in the preheated oven 8 to 10 minutes. Repeat with any remaining tortilla wedges. Allow to cool approximately 15 minutes. Serve with chilled fruit mixture.

Nutritional Information
Amount Per Serving Calories: 457 Total Fat: 5.9g Cholesterol: 0mg

Pumpkin Dip

A great staple of many Waggoner Elementary staff meetings.

1 cup canned pumpkin (or more to taste)

1 (8oz.) block of cream cheese

2/3 small container of Cool Whip

1/2 cup of sugar

dash of vanilla

cinnamon and nutmeg to taste

Let cream cheese soften. Add all ingredients together and mix with hand mixer until fluffy. Great to make the night before. Serve with graham cracker sticks, fresh fruit, nut breads or whatever!

Goat Cheese Torte

This impressive appetizer can be made 2 to 3 days ahead.

Prep: 30 minutes Chill: 4 hrs. to 3 days

From: Country Gardens Fall 2006 Of Food and Friends by Kate Carter Frederick

Ingredients

2 (8oz.) pkgs. cream cheese

8 oz. goat cheese

1/4 cup unsalted butter

 

1 (3oz.) pkg. dried tomatoes (not oil-packed -1 1/2 cups)

3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil (actually, you can skip this step and buy the sun dried tomatoes in a jar with oil)

3 cups loosely packed basil leaves

1/2 cup walnut piece, toasted

1/2 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

for garnish: basil leaves, finely shredded Parmesan cheese, and /or chopped toasted walnuts (optional)

Baguette Crisps (see recipe, below) or strong crackers

Directions

    Let cream cheese, goat cheese, and butter stand for 30 minutes at room temperature. In a food processor, combine cream cheese, goat cheese, and butter. Cover and process until smooth and creamy. Transfer to a medium bowl; set aside. Wash processor bowl and blade.

   
    In the food processor, pulse tomatoes until coarsely chopped. (The next part is the the step I skip if I buy the tomatoes with oil.) With processor running add the 3 Tbsp. olive oil in a steady stream until tomatoes are finely chopped and oil is Incorporated. Transfer to a small bowl; set aside. Wash processor bowl and blade.

    In the food processor, pulse basil leaves until coarsely chopped. Add 1/2 cup walnuts and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese; pulse until incorporated. With processor running, add 1/3 cup olive oil in a steady stream. Mixture should be pasty but not too packed.

    Line a 6-inch spring form pan with 3-inch sides or a 1 1/2 quart souffle dish with plastic wrap, extending plastic wrap over edges of pan or dish.(I use a 5" spring form and a tiny ramekin for my family when I'm taking this to a party.) Spread 3/4 cup of the cheese mixture evenly into the bottom of the pan or dish. Top with half of the basil mixture, spreading evenly. Top with another 3/4 cup of the cheese mixture, spreading evenly. Spread all of the tomato mixture over the cheese mixture; then spread another 3/4 cup of the cheese mixture over tomato mixture. Spread with the remaining basil mixture, and then with remaining cheese mixture.

    Cover and chill for at least 4 hours or up to 3 days. To serve, invert dish onto a serving platter, remove sides and bottom of the spring form pan, or remove souffle dish and remove plastic wrap. Garnish with fresh basil sprigs, additional Parmesan cheese, and/or chopped walnuts, if desired. Serve with Baguette Crisps. Makes 20 appetizer servings.

Baguette Crisps

Ingredients

1 c. extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp. minced garlic

2 loaves baguette-style french bread

Directions

In a small bowl, combine 1 cup extra virgin olive oil and 1 tablespoon minced garlic. Cover and let stand to develop flavor, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 deg. Slice 2 loaves baguette-style French bread diagonally into 1/2 -inch-thick slices. Brush olive oil generously on both sides of slices. Sprinkle lightly with kosher or course salt. Place slices on baking sheets. Bake 10 to 13 minutes or until crisp and golden. Let cool on rack. Store in airtight containers. Makes about 80 slices.

Cream Cheese Fruit Dip

I love this for quick gatherings and something different.

1 pkg. (8oz.) cream cheese, softened (can use fat free)

1 container (8 oz.) strawberry or any flavored yogurt (nonfat is great here, too)

*Mix cream cheese and yogurt with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Refrigerate.

* Serve with assorted fresh fruit. Makes 1 2/3 cups.

Baked Brie

Here is it from Thimbleanna I first had this when a neighbor brought it to a New Year's Eve gathering. Then, again, at a Super Bowl party. So, I guess, it's pretty universal where you have people together that like CHEESE!

You will need:
1 package frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 Small wheel Brie Cheese (the one pictured here was perfect for the four of us, but I used a bigger size for my book group)
1 small jar apricot preserves
1 bag slivered almonds

You can trim, or not trim your brie. I like to trim it.
The package of pastry should have two sheets in it. Place one sheet on top of the other one and roll them out into a 14 inch square.

Take the cover of the Brie and press it lightly onto the puff pastry. This will give you a guide for placing your ingredients.

Sprinkle a layer of almonds onto the puff pastry.

Spoon some apricot preserves onto the almonds. We made the layer about 1/4 inch thick.

Place the Brie wheel on top of the apricot preserves.


Pull the corners of the puff pastry up around the Brie. Trim off excess dough and then put a bit of water on your fingers and then onto the dough to help seal the seams.




Flip the brie pastry over and place seam side down onto a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Brush the top of the pastry with an egg wash (one egg whisked with a tablespoon or two of water) and place some decorative cutouts (from the leftover puff pastry) onto the brie.

Finish by brushing the entire puff pastry with the egg wash. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 25 minutes. To keep from browning too much, we tented aluminum foil over the Brie for the first 15 minutes. After 25 minutes, I thought it could use a little more time, so I bumped the temperature up to 400 degrees and kept an eye on it for another 5 to 10 minutes. I really don't think 25 minutes is quite long enough to get the brie nice and soft.
Remove from oven and Viola! Serve with crackers while still warm. This is YUMMY, Yummy!!! I promise, you will love it.

Artichoke Dip

A treat from a tupperware party!

1 can chopped green chilis

1 can drained artichoke hearts

1/2 c. mayonnaise

1/2 c. parmesean cheese

Heat it all in the microwave and stir to blend.