Alcohol Free Pub Cheese (Spreadable Cheese)

November 9, 2020 by

Have you planned your Thanksgiving yet? I am an early planner, I love planning a big fun meal. We usually eat Thanksgiving dinner in the late afternoon and instead of serving lunch first I put out fun appetizers and snacks. Cheese ball is always popular but my husband’s favorite is always a spreadable cheese. I used to purchase it premade but after making it I have to say it’s now my favorite too! My husband smokes all our cheddar so of course I used that but if you are just using unsmoked cheese it will still be amazing!
I wanted an alcohol free recipe since we don’t drink it and the only alcohol I keep around is for vanilla extract. All the recipes I came across used beer so I ventured out to make an alcohol free recipe. I think the sweetness of apple pairs really well with the cheddar. A dash of liquid smoke and paprika make it just a little more smoky.
While this does keep for a couple weeks in the fridge you may want to hide it if you’re making it for a holiday appetizer!

This comes together in a zip. Pulse the garlic and cheeses until they look crumbly

After adding the additional ingredients make sure it is processed until smooth.

Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks, Holiday Recipes Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Crispy Baked Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings

April 29, 2020 by

These chicken wings have a super crunch factor. Have you ever had a frico? It’s like a cheese crisp. These are basically coated in that crisp crunchy cheese! No frying necessary!

Can you see the crunch?!

Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks, Chicken / Turkey Tagged With: , , ,

Crispy Baked BBQ Chicken Wings

April 29, 2020 by

Baked and crispy don’t always go hand in hand. But these really deliver!
Baking powder and cornstarch really help give the crunch factor.
You can make them as spicy as you like by adding more chipotle powder too. I like using ancho powder more, as it gives flavor without heat.

Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks, Chicken / Turkey Tagged With: , ,

GOUGERES

January 20, 2020 by

Gougeres are the savory version of choux pastry. They are as fun to say as they are to eat!
If you haven’t made choux before, read this post before making them. They are basically made the same, just with some savory additions.

They can be served plain (all though.. nothing is “plain” about a gougere!) or you can fill them with savory fillings, like chicken salad for a tea party, or with a charcuterie board…

GOUGERES

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon salt (I like using fine sea salt)
1 cup water
1 cup flour
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup grated cheese (I like smoked cheddar or gruyere)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Bring the butter, salt, and water to boil over medium heat in a small saucepan. Stir frequently and keep a close eye. You want the butter to melt and you also don’t want the water to boil long as you don’t want to let the water evaporate.
With pan still on the heat stir in the flour and beat with a wooden spoon to completely incorporate the flour.
Keep stirring vigorously until the dough sticks to itself and pulls away from the sides of the pan (kind of like when bread dough clings to itself when beaten with a dough hook).
Transfer to a mixing bowl and let cool for a few minutes. You can break the dough up to help it cool faster as well.
Add the eggs, a couple tablespoons at a time, beating until incorporated after each addition. Dough should take almost if not all the eggs and be glossy and very smooth when ready and will hold it’s shape when piped or scooped. Fold in pepper and cheese.
Pipe or scoop onto silicone or parchment lined baking trays. (I used approximately 1 Tablespoon choux per gougere.)
Wet your finger to smooth down any tips before baking.
Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Don’t open the oven until the end of the cooking time to keep their shape.
When golden and crisp, remove from oven and pierce with a paring knife to allow the steam to escape. (I usually do this in the side where it won’t be visible.)

Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks, Bread, Quick & Muffins Tagged With: , , ,

Chinese BBQ Pork

December 30, 2019 by

When I was a kid my Mom would often make “Chinese” food for New Years.  More often than not it was egg rolls (which are totally still a comfort food for me!) they may not have been the most authentic but we didn’t care.
I still make Chinese food for New Year’s and this is one of my families favorites.  Also known as “Char Siu Pork” but for us Americans you probably just know it as BBQ Pork.  It’s so easy! Makes a great appetizer sliced and served with hot mustard and sesame seeds and don’t forget the red sauce! or chop up to make BBQ Pork Fried Rice.  It’s also good as an entree served with brown rice or Chinese noodles and stir fried veggies.
You can make this with Pork Butt (also called Pork Shoulder) which will be more juicy because of the fattier cut, or you can use Pork Loin for a leaner version.  It will be dryer but the long marinade helps with that some.
I’ve made it with and without the food coloring and honestly it just isn’t the same without. It will not affect the taste if you want to leave it out though.

CHINESE BBQ PORK
3-4 lbs Pork Butt or Loin
1 Tablespoon Hoisin Sauce
1 cup low sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon 5 spice
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon red food coloring, optional

In a medium bowl combine the hoisin, soy sauce, 5 spice, brown sugar, garlic powder, and red food coloring (if using).
Cut the pork into long strips about 3-4 inches thick.
Place in a ziptop bag with the marinade and chill for at least 6 hours or up to overnight.
Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Line a baking sheet with foil and a rack.  Remove the pork from the marinade and place on the rack.   Bake for 1 hour, flipping over after 30 minutes.

Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks, Asian, Pork Tagged With: , ,

Oven Dried Tomatoes

October 16, 2019 by

As soon as I know frost is coming I pick all the tomatoes on our plants and our kitchen has trays sitting around with green tomatoes in varying shades of ripeness.  Not too many this year, since I handed the garden responsibility over to our 12 year nature girl and let her run with it.  (and she doesn’t love tomatoes so those weren’t a priority!)  If you are like me you’ll have a large amount ready at one time and scramble to put them all to use before they go bad.  This is the perfect solution. If you’ve ever wondered if you could make your own sun-dried tomatoes this is your answer!
A few tips: Be sparing with the salt, the long baking time will intensify the flavor and saltiness.
Use smaller tomatoes like plum size or romas if available.  Larger tomatoes like beefsteak will take a really long time to dry out.
To put them to use: Eat on toasted bread, dice up and add to scrambled eggs, to bread doughs, on pizzas, in a pesto, anywhere you want an intense tomato flavor punch!

OVEN DRIED TOMATOES

Tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
sea salt
Olive oil

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place tomatoes on it, cut side up.  Sprinkle sparingly with salt.
Bake at 250 degrees until they seem fairly dry.  Length of cook time depends on size of tomatoes, plum tomatoes take about 4 to 6 hours for me.
Let cool then pack in a jar and cover with olive oil.  Store in the refrigerator for months even.

Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks, DIY / How to...

Sourdough Crackers

April 11, 2019 by

My husband and girls love crackers.  I love making them homemade crackers since they are so much healthier!  I don’t make them every week but when I do they just love them! Animal crackers are definitely cuter but simple squares are so quick and easy.

These are surprisingly quick and easy to make, especially if you have a sourdough starter and are always looking for fun things to make with it.  You can make your own, I purchased mine from King Arthur Flour and have been really happy with it.  If you don’t want to dabble with sourdough you can find my wheat thin recipe here.
I buy all of my spices from Savory Spice Shop now, they are always great quality and if you think buying spices from spice shop is more expensive than a grocery store you might be surprised!
I love serving crackers and cheese ball for holidays, maybe because that’s what my mom always did!

 

3 SEED WHOLE GRAIN SOURDOUGH CRACKERS
1 cup white whole wheat flour (whole wheat pastry flour is a good choice too)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt (plus extra for sprinkling on top if desired)
1 cup sourdough starter, unfed/discard
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon poppy seeds
1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds
1/2 teaspoon flax seeds
1 teaspoon dried green onion flakes (or dried parsley or chives)
1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil (plus extra for brushing top of crackers)

Mix together all ingredients until well combined to make a smooth dough.
Divide dough dough in half and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Spray a silicone mat or parchment paper with nonstick spray and roll out dough as thin as possible, try for around 1/16 inch.
Trip edges and cut into 1 1/4 inch squares with a pizza wheel cutter or knife. (or cut into shapes).
Sprinkle with additional sea salt if desired.
Transfer mat or parchment to a baking sheet and prick each cracker a few times with a fork if desired.  This just reduces bubbles, my kids kind of like when it bubbles though!)
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.  Repeat with second half of dough.
Store in an airtight container for a week, or freeze for longer storage.

Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks, Holiday Recipes, Sourdough

Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings

February 1, 2019 by

If you’ve never had Chinese five spice it isn’t a hot heat, more of a numbing heat from the szechuan peppercorns.  Totally addictive and just my kind of heat.  While we may not be football fans if it’s a reason to make these delicious bites I’m in!  You can buy 5 spice all ready made but I added my recipe to make your own.  If you want some extra spice you can double the 5 spice used in the recipe.  And because these are double fried they are super crunchy and you can even do the first fry a day ahead and just do a quick fry before serving.

SALT AND PEPPER CHICKEN WINGS

2/3 cup flour
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon five spice powder*
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2/3 cup water
3 pounds wings or wing drumettes
Oil, for frying
Green onions, sliced
Kosher salt and black pepper

Heat 2 inches of oil in a deep pot and heat over medium high heat to 350 degrees.
Line a baking sheet with paper towels and place a wire rack upside down on top of the paper towels.  Set aside.
Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, 5 spice, salt, and water in a medium bowl until smooth.
Add chicken and toss to coat.
Work in batches to fry the chicken (don’t overcrowd your pot or the oil temperature drops too much) until chicken is cooked through to 165 degrees.
Drain on prepared rack when done.  When done raise the oil temperature to 375 degrees and re fry all the chicken. (You can do the first fry the day before even and do the second fry before serving.)
Drain chicken and sprinkle with additional salt, pepper, and green onions while hot.

DIY Chinese Five Spice Blend:
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon fennel seed
2 star anise pods
1 teaspoon szechuan peppercorns

Combine all in a spice blender.  Store in an airtight glass jar.

Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks, Asian, Chicken / Turkey

Irish Cheddar Crackers

March 3, 2017 by

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February 15th.  I love February 15th.  Don’t get me wrong, Valentine’s day is great.  But the day after is my day.  To deck the halls with as much Irish cheer as I can! Every year we have a big Irish dinner in celebration of my Dad who was incredibly proud of his Irish heritage.  I was only 19 when he passed away and this is my way of celebrating him and his love of life and all things Irish.
I love making appetizers before any holiday meal, they help take the stress off of getting dinner done on time and since everyone ends up in the kitchen anyways, it gives them things to munch on.
I made a chalkboard fabric runner for our counter so I can write what things are around them.  Easy and super handy.  If you want more Irish recipe ideas, read here.

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IRISH CHEDDAR CRACKERS

1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter
1 cup (4 oz) shredded Irish Cheddar
2-3 T ice water

In a med bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.  Cut the butter in with a pastry blender until pea sized clumps remain.
Add cheese and 2 T of the water and mix just until dough comes together, adding more water a tablespoon at a time until it comes together.
Divide dough in half and wrap each piece in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/4 inch thickness.
Cut into rounds (I used a 2 1/2″ cutter) and place on greased baking sheets 2 inches apart.
Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes until barely browned.

Recipe adapted from The New Irish Table by Margaret M. Johnson

 

Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks, Irish

Baba Ganoush (Roasted Eggplant Dip)

June 14, 2016 by

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I don’t like eggplant… at all.  Or so I thought.  Enter Baba Ganoush.  None of the weird eggplant texture and all smoky, roasted flavor thanks to the long roasting time and smoky spices.  We eat hummus frequently and this is a nice way to mix it up a little bit.  My favorite way to eat it is with cucumber slices but flatbread is good too.  Especially Naan.
And this is actually better made ahead of time, so it’s perfect to make a day or two ahead of time.

Baba Ganoush (Roasted Eggplant Dip)

1 medium eggplant
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 garlic cloves
2 T lemon juice
1 T olive oil
1 T plain yogurt (low fat is fine)
1 T tahini paste
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp cumin

Pierce the eggplant 6-8 times and place in a glass baking pan.
Roast at 375 degrees for 45 minutes, then turn over.  Continue baking for 45 more minutes.
Wrap pan with foil and set aside for 15-20 minutes.
Remover outer peel and any larger clumps of seeds in the middle.  Don’t worry about getting all the seeds, but the more seeds that are left in, the more bitter the dip will be.
Break up the eggplant and spread out in the pan. Sprinkle with salt and mix in.
Place in a fine sieve and let drain for 15-20 minutes.
Place in a blender with remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.
Chill (overnight is best) and serve.
If desired, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with additional paprika.
Serve with pita bread, pita chips, or cucumber slices.



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Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks