Pimento Cheese Crisps

I found this recipe over the summer and made them for a party.  Then in December, my church used the same recipe for our big Christmas party, and I realized how great these would be for the holidays!  They are similar to the cheese straw recipe I posted 3 years ago, but spicier and easier to make (since you don't have to squeeze the dough through a cookie press).  I've made them several times now, and they always turn out great!

Picture from:  The Runaway Spoon

Pimento Cheese Crisps
(from The Runaway Spoon)
Ingredients:
1 (4-ounce) jar diced pimentos
8 ounces sharp cheddar
½ cup (1 stick) cold butter
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon sweet paprika
Dash of cayenne pepper
A generous pinch of salt
A few grinds black pepper
½ cup chopped pecans

Directions:
Rinse and drain the pimentos and place them on paper towels. Pat them dry and then leave them for 10 – 15 minutes to air dry.

Grate the cheese and the cold butter together in a food processor. Switch from the grating blade to the metal blade, then add the flour, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, paprika, cayenne salt and pepper. Process until the dough just begins to come together and looks moist and grainy. Add the pecans and process until the dough begins to pull away from the sides and form a ball. Add the pimentos and pulse a few times until the dough is a ball.

Dump the dough onto a piece of waxed paper, scrapping out all the pimento pieces from the bowl. Knead the dough a few times just to incorporate and distribute the pimento pieces. Cut two more lengths of waxed paper, divide the dough into two portions and place each portion on one waxed paper length. Form each onto a log and roll tightly, pressing in to form a nice solid log. Twist the ends like a candy wrapper. Refrigerate the logs for at least an hour before baking, but you can refrigerate them for two days or freeze them for 3 months.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350° and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the rolls from the fridge and slice into medium-thick wafers, about 1/4 inch each. Place on the baking sheet with a little room to spread and bake until golden around the edges and firm on the top, about 10 – 12 minutes. Cool on the pans for a few minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool.
Makes about 3 dozen

Balsamic Vinegar Reduction - from Jeff

Jeff made a wonderful balsamic vinegar reduction last year for a Christmas party, and I thought it would make a great last-minute Christmas recipe since it only requires a few ingredients.  I've always loved balsamic vinegar, but I'm not sure that I'd had a reduction before.  The consistency is  more like a syrup.  He used it as a topping for slices of brie - it was amazing! 

Balsamic Vinegar Reduction
Ingredients:
1 bottle of balsamic vinegar (the better the vinegar, the better the reduction)
Powdered sugar to taste

Directions:
Heat the vinegar in a sauce pan on high.  As soon as it starts to boil, turn down the heat to medium.  Stir and watch closely as the vinegar cooks (some recipes say to whisk the entire time it cooks).  It should cook down to 1/3 of its original size and become much thicker.  Be careful that you don't burn the vinegar on the bottom of the pan!  Once it gets to the right size/consistency, add a little powdered sugar to taste.  Jeff says that you may want to stop cooking it just before you think it's actually thick enough as it will continue to firm as it cools (if it firms too much, reheat it for a minute and add a small bit of water).

The reduction can be served on fruit, caprese salads (tomato/mozzarella/basil), or on cheeses.  If served with cheese, it would be easiest to serve the reduction in something that pours easily (think creamer or gravy boat) next to your block of brie or other cheese.  If you prepour the reduction, it may get too sticky.

Sun-dried Tomato and Spinach Torta

This is a recipe from my church's annual Christmas Countdown event.  This year's food was just as good as always!  I really liked this appetizer, and the colors make it perfect for Christmas.

Sun-dried Tomato and Spinach Torta
(from Southern Lady Magazine)
Ingredients:
4 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1 cup toasted pine nuts
1 (3-ounce) jar prepared pesto
Garnish: chopped sun-dried tomatoes

Directions:
In a large mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, feta cheese, and garlic powder. Beat
at medium speed with an electric mixer until well combined. Divide cream cheese mixture in half.
Combine one-half cheese mixture and spinach; set aside. combine other half with sun-dried tomatoes.
Line an 8 inch cake pan with plastic wrap. Spread spinach mixture in bottom of pan. Top with sun-dried
tomato mixture; refrigerate for 1 hour.
Invert onto serving dish and remove from pan. Carefully remove plastic wrap. Cover sides of torta with
pine nuts. Spread pesto on top of torta. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Garnish with sundried
tomatoes. Serve with crackers.

Baked Brie Bites

Photo from: Plain Chicken

I finally had some time to try some new recipes recently!  This is one of my favorites - not only is it really tasty, but it's also REALLY easy!!  I found it on pinterest, and it was originally posted on Plain Chicken.  It's easy to throw together right before you have people over because it doesn't take much prep work.  This is a great way to serve cheese because you don't need a knife or crackers.  And, since it's sweet, you could definitely serve it as a mini-dessert!

Baked Brie Bites (from Plain Chicken)
Ingredients:
mini phyllo tarts (from the freezer section)
Ile de France brie, cubed
brown sugar
chopped pecans
honey

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.
Place a cube of brie in each phyllo tart. Sprinkle each tart with approximately 1/2 tsp brown sugar. Top with approximately 1/2 tsp chopped pecans and a dollop of honey. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until brie is melted. (use more or less of each ingredient according to your preference)