Reuben Dip

Reuben Dip

8 oz package of cream cheese

1/2 C mayo

2 T ketchup

1 T creamy horseradish

1 T dill pickle relish

2 C grated swiss cheese

2 oz deli-sliced pastrami, chopped

1/2 C sauerkraut, chopped

1/4 C sliced green onions

Toasted baguette, sliced for serving. 

Preheat the oven to 375. Combine the cream cheese, mayonnaise, ketchup, horseradish and relish in a mixer and mix until combined and smooth; transfer to a large bowl.  Stir in the swiss cheese, pastrami and green onions. Spread dip in a 1 quart baking dish and bake until browned and bubbling.  About 20 minutes.  Serve with bread.

*We needed 2 baguettes plus some crackers to finish off the dip.  

**It doesn't look amazing, but it tastes so good. It's going to replace the famous artichoke dip in the appetizer line up for sure!

*Recipe from a torn out magazine paper I've had for over 4 years...in other words, no idea.

Ricotta Cheese & Magic Sauce

Ricotta Cheese

4 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon salt

Add ingredients to a 4-quart pot.  Attach a thermometer to the side of the pot (making sure that it doesn't touch the bottom of the pan).  Bring to a very gentle boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula to prevent scorching.  (Do not stir once the temperature reaches 170, it will become grainy.)  

Meanwhile, line a sieve or fine mesh strainer with a few layers of cheesecloth and place it over a deep bowl or pot.

Once curds begin to separate from the whey (liquid temperature will be between 175 and 200 degrees), remove from heat.  Gently spoon or ladle the curds into the cheesecloth-lined strainer.  You may need to gently gather the cheesecloth at the top to help the curds drain.   

Let curds sit in cheesecloth to drain liquid 15 to 30 minutes.  Keep in mind the ricotta will thicken in the fridge, so don't drain it too much, or it will end up dry. 

Magic Sauce

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon fresh oregano leaves
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
2 medium cloves of garlic, smashed into a paste
1 well-crumbles bay leaf
Pinch of red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon + fine grain sea salt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Gently warm the olive oil over medium-low heat in a skillet or pan, until it is just hot.  When hot remove from heat.

While the oil is heating, lightly pound the rosemary, thyme, and oregano in a mortar and pestle.  Stir the paprika, garlic, bay leaf, red pepper flakes, and salt into the oil.  Then add the bruised herbs and lemon juice.

You can use this now, but know the oil just gets better as it ages over a few days.  Keep it in a refrigerator for up to a week/ten days-ish.  It thickens up when cold, so if you need it in a liquid state, place it in the sun or a warm place for a few minutes.

**Both recipes and the idea for the sandwich, once again, come from Breanna. Both the ricotta and the magic sauce can be used in so many different ways, but here, toasted french bread was topped with ricotta, roasted asparagus, a fried egg and magic sauce.  So delish!

Roasted Garlic White Bean Hummus

 Roasted Garlic White Bean Hummus

1 whole head of garlic
3 T olive oil (maybe more to change for consistency preference)
1 can white or  cannellini beans, rinsed and drained (15 Oz.)
1 whole small lemon, juiced
½ t cumin
salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Slice the head of garlic in half horizontally to expose the cloves. Drizzle with a little olive oil and wrap in foil. Bake 30-40 minutes or until fragrant and cloves are golden in color. Then remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Into the bowl of a food processor, pour in beans, lemon juice, cumin, salt and pepper. Squeeze both halves of the roasted garlic head into the food processor. The roasted cloves should pop right out. Turn machine on and drizzle in 3 Tablespoons of olive oil, processing until desired consistency has been reached. Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking-more salt, more cumin, more lemon juice, etc.
Spoon onto serving platter. Top with another drizzle of olive oil, pine nuts and parsley, if desired. Serve with pita bread, vegetables or crackers. Also delicious on a sandwich or wrap.

*From laurenslatest.com ...check it out for beautiful pics of the process.
**This is so light, fresh and yummy! I always make a double batch for a gathering (The gingerbread house ladies love it!)....just beware, you'll smell a little garlicy the next day! :)

Caponata

Caponata
2 medium eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (to yield 4 cups)
¾ cup Newman’s Own Balsamic Dressing
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, medium diced
¼ cup pine nuts
¼ cup roughly chopped golden raisins
1 teaspoon hot chili flakes (or more if you want more heat)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
½ cup water
1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)
1 baguette sliced slightly on the bias (looks prettier that way)

In a large bowl add the eggplant and ½ cup of dressing. Stir to coat and let marinate for 10 minutes. Meanwhile in a large saute pan caramelize the onion with 2 tbl olive oil until deep golden, about 10 minutes over medium heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the pine nuts, chopped raisins, and chili flakes. Saute and stir to combine. The gentle heat of the chili flakes should release possibly causing a sneeze, or two. Cook that for about 3 minutes then add the eggplant, sugar, cinnamon, and cocoa and continue to saute until the eggplant starts to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in the thyme, tomato paste, water, and remaining ¼ cup dressing. Cover the pan with a lid and reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Continue to cook, covered, for 15 minutes. The eggplant should give up some of it’s moisture so that it just starts to loose it’s shape. Add the salt and carefully taste for flavor.

**Once again, Hans is out of town, Gray had his wisdom teeth out, Chloe fell asleep at 5:30, Rock and Tru are at friends and Josie is happy with a slice of baguette with butter...so it's another meal on my own (MOMO) and I'm thrilled!  I've been wanting to try this recipe for a while and knew I would receive resistance.  I adore eggplant. Adore.  And this made a delightfully, sweet, spicy, creamy, nutty meal for me and I'd make it again in a heartbeat (but maybe add a few more pine nuts). I made half the recipe and had left overs. Even if I took it as an appetizer, I'd probably half it.  Would be delightful served along side some hummus, tomatoes and fresh mozzarella and anything else served on sliced baguette.
**From Not Without Salt.
**Mitzi...this is what you missed out on when you said you didn't like eggplant ;)

Apple Sandwiches

 peanut butter and granola

 yogurt and bananas

 ham and cheese

 Nutella and pretzels

 spinach and bacon

Apple Sandwiches

Slice apple 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch thick horizontally.  Core apple slices, to make nice apple circles.  Dip in pineapple juice to reduce browning. Blot dry with a paper towel.  Add whatever combinations sound good to create a sandwich.

other ingredient ideas:

-marshmallows
-raisins
-chocolate, white chocolate, peanut butter or cinnamon chips
-ritz crackers
-cheez whiz
-coconut
-sliced nuts
-chicken salad
-any fruit
-sliced deli meat
-different cheeses
-beets and goat cheese (ok, it's for the grown ups, YUM!)

**I have loved apples with peanut butter for a long time, then one day I dipped it into granola and was in heaven!  Then a friend asked me to come up with a fun after school snack idea for a church idea night. This is what I did.  The kids liked all of my samples, but somehow the 5 spinach leaves stayed on the plate while the apple and bacon were gone...hmmm.

Laurie's Layered Greek Dip

Laurie's Layered Greek Dip

1-8oz Chives &onion Cream cheese spread
1-8oz Hummus
2 cucumbers -peeled and diced
3 tomatoes - diced
1 can Olives - sliced
1 -4oz Feta cheese - crumbled
1/4 cup Green Onions- chopped
1/4 - 1/3 cup Greek Salad Dressing

In a medium sized mixing bowl, place diced tomatoes, drizzle with Greek salad dressing and set aside.
Spread Chives & onion cream cheese on serving tray.
Place the following in order over cream cheese layer - hummus, cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, feta cheese and onions.

The recipe says to serve with pita chips, but I like the Multigrain cracker/chips at Costco better.
**Served this at Mother's Day lunch....it was the hit of the day! So yummy!

Cranberry Guacamole

Cranberry Guacamole

1 T fresh lime juice
2 T honey
1 minced jalapeno
1 C chopped cranberries
¼ C chopped red onion
4 ripe avocado
2 T fresh cilantro
salt and pepper
Serve with tortilla chips or pita chips.

**You can make this whatever ratio you like.  Also good with more cranberries and less avocado.

Baked Brie with Apples and Cranberries

Baked Brie with Apples and Cranberries

1/2 C chopped apple         
1/4 C sliced natural almonds
1/4 C dried cranberries     
1 T packed brown sugar
1/4 t cinnamon         
1 T butter melted
1 round ( 8oz) Brie cheese (about 4 inches in diameter)

Coarsely chop apple.  Combine apple, almonds, cranberries, brown sugar and cinnamon, mix gently.  Stir in butter just until ingredients are moistened.  Carefully cut rind of brie off top exposing cheese.  Then carefully cut brie in half horizontally.  Place rind side down on baking sheet, covered in parchemnt.  Spoon half of apple mixture onto bottom half of brie, spreading evenly.  Top with remaining brie half, the side up that has had rind removed.  Spoon remaining apple mixture over top.  Bake 12-15 minutes or until cheese is soft and just begins to melt.  Serve with bread and assorted crackers.  So good during holidays! Very festive!

* I always double the recipe and buy the big brie from Costco.
**Picture before being baked.

Chili Con Queso Dip

Chili Con Queso Dip

1 t olive oil             
1/2 C chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced         
1 8oz block of cream cheese
1 (15 oz) can petite diced tomatoes 
1 (7oz) can chopped green chilies
1 t chili powder
6 oz of Velveeta cubed         
cilantro sprigs             
Tortilla chips

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Add onion and garlic, saute 4 minutes.  Add cream cheese and stir until melted.  Add tomatoes including liquid, chilies and chili powder.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Add velveeta, reduce heat and simmer until cheese melts, stirring consistently.  Garnish with cilantro.  You can keep it warm in a crock pot, fondue pot or an electric chafing dish.