Sun-dried Tomato Spread

Last night I got together with some of my favorite friends for a clothing swap!  Several times a year we all go through our closets and gather clothes that we don't wear very much - then we get together and swap them around.  It's a great way to clean our closets and add new things at the same time!  My friend, BLC, from The Company She Keeps is always one of the hostesses with me.  Check out her blog The Clothes She Kept to see more pieces from her closet. 

Since I'm on Spring Break, I decided to try making a few new dishes.  This is one that I found on Pinterest from the Taste of Home website.  There's a lot of mayonnaise in the recipe; since I'm not a big mayo fan, I only used half as much as was called for in the recipe.  It was a big hit - and it makes TONS, so it's great for a big party!

Sun-dried Tomato Spread
Ingredients:
2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened (I used one regular and one fat free)
2 cups mayonnaise
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 jar (7 ounces) oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped
2/3 cup chopped roasted sweet red peppers
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Italian cheese blend
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
Assorted crackers

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese, mayonnaise, onion and garlic until blended. Stir in tomatoes and red peppers. Stir in the mozzarella cheese, Italian cheese blend and 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese.

Transfer to a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 18-22 minutes or until edges are bubbly and lightly browned. Serve with crackers. Yield: 28 servings (1/4 cup each).

Warm Crab Dip - from Gretchen

My friend, Gretchen, made this dish recently to bring to a cookout.  It was such a big hit - everyone kept going back for more (especially me!).  It makes a great appetizer for any meal and would be a wonderful dish for a late Fall football party.

Warm Crab Dip
Ingredients:
2 (8oz) packages of cream cheese, softened
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup mayo
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 tsp lemon juice
1 chopped green onion
1 lb flaked crab meat

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish with nonstick spray.  In a bowl, mix cream cheese, mayo, mustard, lemon juice, and 3/4 cup of the cheddar cheese until smooth (I usually add more cheddar.)  Stir in the green onion and crab meat. Pour into the casserole dish and top with the remaining cheddar.... (again, I add more).  Bake in oven for 30 minutes.  Serve with crackers.

Crunchy Ramen Noodle Slaw - from Julie

My friend, Julie, brought this wonderful slaw to a cook-out that our Sunday School class had recently.  It reminded me of one of my favorite side dishes that we used to have in the Tri Delt house in college.  I had forgotten how much I missed it!  This is perfect to take to cookouts and barbecues.  You can always change it up and use romaine lettuce instead of the cabbage/slaw mixture if you'd rather have a bigger salad.
 
Slaw
4 cups shredded cabbage
1 pkg. Ramen noodles (crushed) – Chicken flavored
¼ cup slivered almonds (toasted)
¼ cup sunflower seeds
½ cup sliced green onion

Mix all ingredients together and toss with dressing

Dressing
¼ cup oil
2 Tbs. sugar
2 Tbs. cider vinegar
¼ cup chopped green onion
Seasoning packet from noodles (chicken)

Buttery Soft Pretzels

Photo courtesy of allrecipes.com

I had been thinking about trying to make homemade pretzels and found this great recipe on allrecipes.com.  I made it this weekend when Kent and I were watching some football games.  It made a great snack!  I had only worked with yeast one other time, but it wasn't difficult at all.  These are so fun to make and taste even better than ones you can buy at the mall or ballpark!

Buttery Soft Pretzels
Ingredients used to make the dough:

4 teaspoons active dry yeast (you can buy packages on the baking isle)

1 teaspoon white sugar

1 1/4 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)

5 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

 

Ingredients used for cooking the pretzels:

1/2 cup baking soda

4 cups hot water

1/4 cup kosher salt, for topping

Directions:

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, mix together flour, 1/2 cup sugar, and salt. Make a well in the center; add the oil and yeast mixture. Mix and form into a dough. If the mixture is dry, add one or two tablespoons of water. Knead the dough until smooth, about 7 to 8 minutes.  (I kneaded it on a baking mat but was not able to use every bit of the flour - they still turned out great!) Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). In a large bowl, dissolve baking soda in hot water.

When risen, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a rope and twist into a pretzel shape. (Make a U shape and then cross the ends of the rope.) Once all of the dough is all shaped, dip each pretzel into the baking soda solution and place on a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt. (I brushed each pretzel with melted butter before I salted them - yum!)

Bake in preheated oven for 8 minutes, until browned.

Fried Pickles

If you have ever been to AJAX with me in Oxford or to Mudtown with me in Birmingham, you know that I love fried pickles! Kent and I have now made them three times and think we've come up with a pretty good recipe. If you haven't tried fried pickles before, you are missing out! They are great with sandwiches (like a Monte Cristo) and hamburgers or hotdogs.

Fried Pickles
Ingredients:
1 large jar of hamburger dill pickles
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1 cup of beer
1 tbsp. cayenne pepper
1 tbsp. paprika
1 tbsp. black pepper
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. garlic salt
3 dashes hot pepper sauce
Vegetable oil for frying

Directions:
Combine flour, beer, cayenne pepper, paprika, black pepper, salt, garlic salt, and hot pepper sauce in a medium mixing bowl. Drain the pickles and pat them dry with paper towels. Then place them in the batter. Turn them in the batter and let the pickles sit for about 5 minutes. While the pickles are absorbing some of the batter, begin heating vegetable oil on the stove (to about 350 degrees). When the oil is ready, use tongs to place some of the pickles in the batter. Let them cook for about four minutes - until they are golden. Do not let them get too brown - they will burn! It will take several batches to cook all of the pickles. When they are ready, serve them with the spicy dipping sauce.

Spicy Dipping Sauce
Ingredients:
1/4cup ketchup
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon brown mustard
2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon hot sauce
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
The juice of 1/2 lemon

Directions:
Combine all ingredients. Serve.

Banana Bread - from Melissa

I was so glad when Melissa sent me this recipe. Banana bread is wonderful because it can be used for so many occasions. It is great to make and have around on a weekend when you will have company staying because it can work for breakfast, dessert, or a snack. It's also an easy item to transport, so you can take it to Sunday School or work for breakfast or even to a tailgate party in the fall!

Banana Bread Recipe
Ingredients:
3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar (can easily reduce to 3/4 cup)
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

Method:
No need for a mixer for this recipe. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). With a wooden spoon, mix butter into the mashed bananas in a large mixing bowl. Mix in the sugar, egg, and vanilla. Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in. Add the flour last, mix. Pour mixture into a buttered 4x8 inch loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour. Cool on a rack. Remove from pan and slice to serve.

Buffalo Chicken Wings

This is another great tailgating recipe! We love making these on Saturdays while we're watching football! Homemade chicken wings are usually much larger than wings served in restaurants - so you can definitely make a meal out of them!

Baked Chicken Wings - Recipe by Alton Brown

Ingredients:
Whole chicken wings

Method:
Place a 6-quart saucepan with a steamer basket and 1-inch of water in the bottom, over high heat, cover and bring to a boil.
Remove the tips of the wings and discard or save for making stock. Using kitchen shears, or a knife, separate the wings at the joint. Place the wings into the steamer basket, cover, reduce the heat to medium and steam for 10 minutes. Remove the wings from the basket and carefully pat dry. Lay the wings out on a cooling rack set in a half sheet pan lined with paper towels and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Replace the paper towels with parchment paper. Roast on the middle rack of the oven for 20 minutes. Turn the wings over and cook another 20 minutes or until meat is cooked through and the skin is golden brown.

Kent's Buffalo Sauce
Ingredients:
For hot wings - equal parts butter and hot sauce
For mild wings - substitute tomato sauce for some of the hot sauce

Method:
Mix the ingredients together and drizzle over the wings.
(To get different flavors, try adding garlic or honey)

White Bean Dip with Pita Chips

This dip is a great appetizer (and works well for tailgating too!) It's super easy (seriously, anyone can make it) and has a lot of flavor. I've been making it for years. I took it to Thanksgiving one year, and it was a big hit!

White Bean Dip

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons plus 1/3 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 1/2 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste

1 1/4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

1 (15 oz) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves (loosely packed)

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from about 1/2 lemon)

1 garlic clove

Method:

In a food processor, combine the beans, parsley, lemon juice, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Pulse on and off until the mixture is coarsely chopped. With the machine running, gradually mix in 1/3 cup of oil until the mixture is creamy. Season the puree with more salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a small bowl and serve the pita toasts warm or at room temperature alongside. The pita wedges and bean dip can be made 1 day ahead. Make sure to keep the bean dip refrigerated if you're not serving it immediately.

Pita Wedges - Cut 4 slices of pita bread into 6 or 8 wedges. Arrange the pita wedges evenly over a large baking sheet. Brush the pita wedges with 2 tablespoons of the oil, then sprinkle with the oregano and 1 teaspoon each of the salt and pepper. Bake for 8 minutes at 400 degrees, the turn the pita wedges over and bake until they are crisp and golden, about 6 minutes longer.

Notes - This dip can easily be changed around - use different herbs, use chick peas instead of cannellini beans, or serve it with warmed pita wedges instead of crisp pita chips. There are a lot of ways to give it different textures and flavors!

Ham and Cheese Rolls

This is a great dish for football parties! It might be hard take to a tailgate since it is best served warm - but it would be wonderful when having guests to your house. I even made these for dinner one night, and then Kent and I took the left-overs for lunch the next day.

Ham and Cheese Rolls
Ingredients:
1 lb. deli ham, sliced
1 lb. Swiss cheese, sliced
1 pkg. cooked dinner rolls
1 stick butter
1 1/2 tbsp. poppy seed
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tsp. mustard
1 tbsp. minced onions

Method:
Split rolls in half. Place a slice of ham and a slice of cheese on each roll - replace top. Place in 13x9 inch baking dish. Melt butter and add all remaining ingredients except poppy seed. Pour over rolls and sprinkle with poppy seed. Cover with foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. For crusty rolls, remove foil.

Possible alterations:
1) Instead of pouring the mixture on top of the rolls, you could mix the ingredients to create a paste and spread it on the inside of the rolls.
2) You could also use bagels instead of rolls to make it perfect for a brunch!

Gran's Cheese Straws

Even though I love my grandmother's oatmeal cookies (see previous post), her most famous recipe is her Cheese Straw Recipe. She made these for more weddings, showers, and parties than I could ever count! She always made them when we were coming to visit. And my mom would make them whenever my brother or I got sick - they always made us feel better! In college, I started making them for my friends and taking them to the Grove. It is such a wonderful southern recipe - great for wedding/baby showers and tailgating!

Gran's Cheese Straws
Ingredients:
3 sticks of Parkay
1 lb sharp cheddar cheese (Craft Gold - Cracker Barrel)
Pinch of salt
4 cups of sifted flour

Method:
Finely grate the cheese (my family uses a wheel grater because it grates the cheese so finely and makes it soft enough to combine with the butter. Using a mixer (preferably a stand mixer, I burned out the motor in my hand-held mixer because the dough gets so tough) combine the grated cheese and butter completely. Add the salt and begin adding the flour very slowly - in very small amounts. Once everything is incorporated, spoon the mixture into a cookie press. Using the disc that has a ridge on top and is flat on the bottom, squeeze the mixture through the cookie press in long lines on a cookie sheet. Then bake for about 10 minutes (or until golden brown) at 400 degrees. Once they cool, use a spatula with a sharp edge to cut them into large pieces and serve!

Texas Caviar

It's football season which means it's time for tailgating food! Texas Caviar is one of the easiest dips to make for a large group of people. I always made it for the Grove! And it works well for family gatherings as well.

Texas Caviar

Ingredients:

2 cans of black-eyed peas

2 can of black beans

1 can of yellow corn

1 can of shoepeg corn

2 cans petite diced tomatoes (or fresh tomatoes)

1 green (or red or yellow) bell pepper (chopped)

1 red onion (chopped)

1 bunch of green onion (chopped)

1 jalepeno pepper (chopped and seeded)

1/2 bunch of cilantro (chopped)

-------------

1 lime

salt/pepper

1 bottle of Zesty Italian Dressing

Method:

Drain all canned items. In a very large container, mix all canned and chopped ingredients listed above the line. Then squeeze a lime over the ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste. Then pour about half of the bottle of dressing over the mixture. Stir everything together well. It tastes best if you refrigerate it for a few hours before serving. Then serve with tortilla chips!

One of the best things about this recipe is that you can leave out any ingredients that you don't like and add in almost anything! You can also alter the amounts of any of the ingredients to get specific flavor combinations. Leftovers taste great over grilled chicken.