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Deviled Eggs: Four Ways

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Deviled Eggs 4 Ways.jpg

One of the most popular posts on our site has been the Classic Deviled Eggs post from Easter last year.   M and I got a good laugh after Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s Eve and Superbowl Sunday because we would get so much traffic from Pinterest for the Deviled Eggs post.  I think we have only thought about having deviled eggs around Easter time, but we are so glad for to learn  there are hardcore deviled egg fans year-round!   I have been thinking of how I could expand on the original post to show more versions of deviled eggs.

Herb and Crumb

I personally love classic deviled eggs and had never ventured outside of my favorite recipe.  When I received this month’s Cooking Light, I was excited to see they had 12 different types of deviled egg recipes.  I knew I had to try some new recipe variations!

In one day, I made four of the 12 types, adapting them slightly based on ingredients I had on hand.  (I was quite impressed that I could make four types without buying any more items!):

  • Pickle Jalapeño
  • Pimiento Cheese
  • Herb and Crumb
  • Wasabi Ginger

The results (well, besides Matt and I being stuffed with eggs) were delicious.  My favorite of the four was the Herb and Crumb,  while Matt’s was Pimiento Cheese.   I predicted that would be his favorite since we are always making up this Pimiento Cheese Dip I shared with you last month.

Easter is the best time to make deviled eggs because of all the extra hard-boiled eggs from decorating eggs.   When my sisters and I were younger, we loved decorating eggs.  Since there was four of us, my mom had to make a lot of eggs so we could get our fill of coloring.   What did we do with all that extra eggs?   Deviled eggs and egg salad sandwiches of course!  We hope everyone has  a great Easter Weekend!

Pimiento Cheese .jpg

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Hard-Boiled Eggs
 
Ingredients
  • 12 eggs
Instructions
  1. Gently place the eggs in a large saucepan and cover with cold water (water level should be 1-inch above the eggs.)
  2. Place saucepan on stove-top, set to high and bring to a boil. Once boiling, remove saucepan from heat, cover, and let stand for 10 minutes.
  3. Fill a large-sized bowl with ice cold water while the eggs are sitting.
  4. After the 10 minutes, take eggs out of hot water with a slotted spoon and place in the ice water gently; let sit for 5 minutes.
  5. Store in refrigerator or use immediately

 Pickle Jalapeño Deviled Eggs

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Pickle Jalapeño Deviled Eggs
 
Ingredients
  • 12 hard-boiled eggs
  • 3 tbsp. mayonnaise
  • 3 tbsp. 2% Greek yogurt
  • 1½ minced sweet gherkins
  • 1 tbsp. minced pickled jalapeño
  • 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
  • ¼ tsp. kosher salt
  • ¼ tsp. fresh cracked pepper
  • Thinly sliced gherkins, for garnish
Instructions
  1. Peel eggs and then slice length wise. Take out the yolks of the eggs and place them in a medium sized bowl. With a fork, mash the egg yolks until all the large chunks are gone.
  2. Add in remainder of ingredients except for garnish and stir with a rubber spatula. Mash mixture on the side of the bowl to smooth out any lumps.
  3. Prepare a pastry bag with a large star tip (I used Wilton’s 6B). Take egg yolk mixture and add it to the pastry bag, then twist the top portion closed to push the eggs into the bag further.
  4. Pipe the yolks into the egg whites by applying pressure to pastry bag and lifting up slowly and releasing the pressure as the egg white fills with yolk. Top each egg with sliced gherkins.

 Pimiento Cheese Deviled Eggs.jpg

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Pimiento Cheese Deviled Eggs
 
Ingredients
  • 12 hard-boiled eggs
  • ¼ cup chopped pimientos, drained
  • ¼ cup light mayonnaise
  • ½ tsp. hot sauce
  • ½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • ¼ tsp. kosher salt
  • ¼ tsp. fresh cracked pepper
  • ¾ ounce reduced fat shredded cheese
  • 2 tbsp. pecans, toasted and chopped, for garnish
Instructions
  1. Peel eggs and then slice length wise. Take out the yolks of the eggs and place them in a medium sized bowl. With a fork, mash the egg yolks until all the large chunks are gone.
  2. Add in remainder of ingredients except for garnish and stir with a rubber spatula. Mash mixture on the side of the bowl to smooth out any lumps.
  3. Prepare a pastry bag with a large star tip (I used Wilton’s 6B). Take egg yolk mixture and add it to the pastry bag, then twist the top portion closed to push the eggs into the bag further.
  4. Pipe the yolks into the egg whites by applying pressure to pastry bag and lifting up slowly and releasing the pressure as the egg white fills with yolk. Top each egg chopped toasted pecans.

 Herb and Crumb Deviled Eggs.jpg

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Herb and Crumb Deviled Eggs
 
Ingredients
  • 12 hard-boiled eggs
  • 2 tbsp. panko bread crumbs
  • 1 tsp. butter
  • ¼ cup light mayonnaise
  • 3 tbsp. light sour cream
  • 3 tbsp. chopped green onion
  • 1 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp. lemon juice
  • ¼ tsp. kosher salt
  • ¼ tsp. fresh cracked pepper
Instructions
  1. In a small fry pan, melt the butter and add the panko bread crumbs. Stir until toasted.
  2. Peel eggs and then slice length wise. Take out the yolks of the eggs and place them in a medium sized bowl. With a fork, mash the egg yolks until all the large chunks are gone.
  3. Add in remainder of ingredients except for toasted panko breadcrumbs and stir with a rubber spatula. Mash mixture on the side of the bowl to smooth out any lumps.
  4. Prepare a pastry bag with a large star tip (I used Wilton’s 6B). Take egg yolk mixture and add it to the pastry bag, then twist the top portion closed to push the eggs into the bag further.
  5. Pipe the yolks into the egg whites by applying pressure to pastry bag and lifting up slowly and releasing the pressure as the egg white fills with yolk. Top each egg with the toasted panko breadcrumbs.

 Wasabi Ginger Deviled Eggs

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Wasabi Ginger Deviled Eggs
 
Ingredients
  • 12 hard-boiled eggs
  • ¼ cup light mayonnaise
  • 2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro, plus 2 tsp. for garnish
  • 4 tsp. grated ginger
  • 4 tsp. wasabi paste
  • 4 tsp. lime juice
  • 2 tsp. toasted sesame seeds, for garnish
Instructions
  1. Peel eggs and then slice length wise. Take out the yolks of the eggs and place them in a medium sized bowl. With a fork, mash the egg yolks until all the large chunks are gone.
  2. Add in remainder of ingredients except for garnishes and stir with a rubber spatula. Mash mixture on the side of the bowl to smooth out any lumps.
  3. Prepare a pastry bag with a large star tip (I used Wilton’s 6B). Take egg yolk mixture and add it to the pastry bag, then twist the top portion closed to push the eggs into the bag further.
  4. Pipe the yolks into the egg whites by applying pressure to pastry bag and lifting up slowly and releasing the pressure as the egg white fills with yolk. Top each egg with toasted sesame seeds and chopped cilantro.

 

Pickle Jalapeno

Source- Adapted slightly from Cooking Light, April 2014

Wasabi Ginger.jpg

And here’s a bonus version- the classic recipe for Deviled Eggs for all those leftover Easter Eggs!

Deviled-Eggs.jpg

Click Here!

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Taco Dip

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Taco Dip

It’s been awhile since my last post and I decided to dive back into things with an easy recipe.  I’m far too often guilty of trying to come up with new and creative (and often complicated) recipes whenever we have guests visit.  However, with the birth of baby N, there are just not enough hours in the day to make every recipe that I would like to make.  I’ve come to the realization that it’s perfectly acceptable most of the time to just stick with easy, classic recipes.  This recipe for taco dip can be whipped up in no time at all!  If you are on the search for an easy recipe to add to your menu for this Super Bowl Sunday, this one has your name all over it (in cheese!)

taco dip

K actually posted this recipe for taco dip back in 2011, but we are trying to redo any of our old posts that did not have pictures or just have really bad pictures.  If you search through some of our archives, you can definitely see some of these photos for yourselves (I’m looking at you blurry iPhone photos of burnt lamb sliders…I’m not going to even link to it I’m so embarrassed.)  One of the many side benefits of working on our blog is that it has definitely honed our photography skills.  While I definitely still need to learn a lot more, blogging has definitely served as a catalyst to learn much more about photography.

taco dip

I accidentally bought the multi-grain version Tostitos scoops at the grocery store, however I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked them.  Serve this dip with any type of tortilla chip you prefer.  You could also mix up this recipe a bit by adding more layers…diced green chills, sliced black olives, or black beans would all be interesting options to add.

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Taco Dip
Author: 
Prep time: 
Total time: 
 
Ingredients
  • 8 oz. block of light cream cheese
  • 16 oz. light sour cream
  • 1 packet of taco seasoning (or try 2 tablespoons homemade taco seasoning)
  • 1 jar of salsa
  • Shredded iceberg lettuce
  • 2 small or 1 large tomatoes chopped
  • Shredded Mexican cheese
  • Tortilla chips
Instructions
  1. Allow the cream cheese to come to room temperature. Once the cream cheese is softened, combine with sour cream and taco seasoning until smooth (you can mix it together by hand or mix with an electric stand mixer using the paddle attachment.) Spread the mixture out onto a 9×13-inch or an 8×10-inch pan evenly. Let it set by refrigerating it for an hour.
  2. After an hour or right before you are ready to serve it, use a spatula to spread the jar of salsa evenly over the top of the cream cheese/ sour cream mixture. Next, put the shredded iceberg lettuce on top (you can use as much as you want, I put on about 1½-2 cups), followed by the chopped tomatoes. Finally you sprinkle the shredded cheese on top of everything until it is well covered (about 1½ cups).

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Hummus and Whole Wheat Pita Chips

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Hummus

When I first started out working in New York City, I lived in Hoboken, NJ with one of my college roommates.  I had grown up on homemade hummus, but my food processor at the time was one of those mini-prep food processors handed down from my mom.  Making hummus in this mini-prep was impossible and messy!  We started to buy Sabra hummus and Stacy’s pita chips at the grocery store because of the ease and we soon became addicted!  We would eat an entire container for dinner some nights.

Pita Chip Dipped in Hummus

Before Christmas, my boyfriend Matt returned from a business trip in Israel, he too has discovered the love for hummus and pita chips.  When we went to visit my family, my mom had made homemade hummus and whole wheat pita chips.  With a mouthful of hummus and pita chips Matt asked, “why haven’t you ever made this for me?”  Truthfully, I forgotten about how delicious and easy to make homemade hummus was.  Now that I had a large-sized food processor there were no more excuses.

I have been making a batch of hummus and pita chips every weekend since we have come home.  The first batch I made was too garlicky, the second batch was a little too dry, but by the third batch I had perfected the recipe.  Here it is to share!

Hummus and Whole Wheat Pita Chips

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Hummus
Author: 
 
Ingredients
  • 2 cloves of garlic, inside green stem removed*
  • 4 tbsp. chickpea water (the liquid from the chickpea can)
  • 2 cans of chickpeas, rinsed thoroughly
  • ⅓ cup tahini
  • 6 tbsp. lemon juice, freshly squeezed (about 2 lemons)
  • 2 tsp. Kosher salt
  • 10 splashed of hot sauce (I used Franks, so if using a more concentrated hot sauce start with less)
*When you slice a piece of garlic in half lengthwise, you will see a green stemlike thing. Pull it out and throw it away. I always thought that this was some sort of kitchen myth so I stopped doing it awhile ago. I learned from David Lebovitz taste test post that if you aren't cooking the garlic, the green germ inside makes your dish bitter. Since we aren't cooking this garlic get those green centers out. Batches 1 and 2 of my hummus had the centers in them ,and the third batch did not. I could taste the difference!
Instructions
  1. Cut garlic in half to remove the green centers.
  2. Next cut the cloves into even sized pieces and throw them into the bowl of your food processor. Turn the food processor on and break the garlic up into smaller pieces.
  3. Add chickpeas, 2 tbsp of chick pea water, tahini, lemon juice, salt, and hot sauce. Process for about 30 seconds, add in additional 2 tbsp of water, food process again until desired thickness.

 Hummus and Pita Chips

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Whole Wheat Pita Chips
Author: 
 
Ingredients
  • Whole wheat pocket pitas
  • 2-4 tbsp olive oil
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly cracked pepper
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with non-stick silicone mats or parchment paper.
  2. With a bread or serrated knife take a pita and cut into 8 equal triangles (like a pizza.) Take each triangle and peel into two pieces (using pocket pitas). Repeat for all pitas.
  3. Starting with 2 tbsp. of olive oil in a small bowl use a pastry brush to brush each side of the pita with olive oil. Use additional olive oil as needed.
  4. Spread the pitas out on two baking sheets and sprinkle with kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper.
  5. Bake 1 sheet at a time for 8 minutes, turning pitas halfway through and baking an additional 4-5 minutes until golden brown
  6. Repeat for second batch, let pitas cool and store in a airtight container until serving.

Source- Both Hummus and Pitas are adapted from Ina Garten

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Mini Pretzel Dogs

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Pretzels Dogs

I am a huge fan of both hot dogs and homemade pretzels.  Although I have never ordered a pretzel dog from Auntie Anne’s, they have always intrigued me.  A football classic around this house is hot dogs cut into fourths and wrapped in crescent rolls, i.e. pigs in a blanket.  When I saw recipes for pretzels dogs on a few blogs, I knew trying out mini pretzel dogs was in order.

Wrap Dough around Hot Dog

These mini pretzel dogs are made with Nathan’s Skinless Beef Franks wrapped in a perfect homemade pretzel.  I prefer Nathan’s hot dogs because they taste great.  Plus, they are from New York so it always makes me happy to see them over here in California.  I added some cheese to the insides of half the pretzel dogs to test it out.  The results were amazing!  To do this, I made a lengthwise slit in the hot dog and folded some pieces of of deli American cheese in there.

Cheese Dogs

I had got the idea to add cheese from a dinner that we made on occasion growing up (and one that I still dream about!)  My mom made us homemade meals practically every night so she absolutely hates when we rave about the “Crescent Roll hot dog” dinners we used to have.  Her eyes are probably rolling right now as she reads this.  A Crescent Roll Hot Dog is when you take a full hot dog, make a lengthwise slit in the middle, stuff a folded half piece of American cheese, roll it in crescent roll dough and bake it together.  It’s very similar to how I make pigs in a blankets nowadays, except with a whole hot dog and the addition of cheese.  What can I say- it was the 80’s and early 90’s!

Cheesy Mini Pretzel Dogs

These pretzel dogs were so good!  I served them warm with deli mustard to dip.  Although these are best fresh from the oven, I froze the other half of them for Superbowl Sunday and I am going to reheat them at 350 degrees F for 10-12 minutes until they are heated up again.

Mini Pretzels Dogs and Mustard

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Mini Pretzel Dogs
 
Ingredients
For Pretzel Dough
  • 1½ cups warm water (110-115 degrees F)
  • 1 tbsp. granulated sugar
  • 2¼ tsp. active dry yeast (or one packet)
  • 22 oz. AP flour (about 4½ cups)
  • 2 tsp. salt
  • 2 tbsp. butter, melted and brought back to room temperature
For Boiling Mixture
  • 14 cups of water
  • 1 cup baking soda
For Assembly
  • 8 pack of hot dogs, cut into fourths for 32 hot dog pieces
  • 1 large egg beaten with 1 tsp. water
  • Pretzel salt or course salt
  • 4 slices of American Cheese (optional)
Instructions
  1. In the bowl of your mixer (with dough hook attachment) add warm water and sugar. Sprinkle the yeast on top of the the water and let sit for 5 minutes.
  2. Once the yeast is foamy, add in the flour,salt, and melted butter. Mix on low until the dough is combined. Take the speed up to around medium and mix the dough until it is smooth and easily pulls away from the sides of the mixer bowl. Knead for an additional 4 minutes at medium speed.
  3. Coat a separate large bowl with some canola oil. Take dough ball from mixer bowl, scraping dough off the sides of the bowl if needed and place in oiled bowl. Turn to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set bowl in a warm draft free place for 1 hour.
  4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. If using parchment paper spray with cooking spray to prevent sticking.
  5. Once the dough has risen, turn out on a lightly oiled surface. Divide dough evenly into 32 pieces. This is done easily if you divide dough in half and then divide each half into halves, continuing until there is 32 equal sized pieces.
  6. Take one dough ball and roll out 12-18 inch piece rope. Take hot dog piece and starting at the end of the hot dog, wrap the dough around the hot dog so that it is completely covered in dough (like a cocoon or mummy). Make sure to seal ends and where ever the dough is touching so that it stays connected and completely sealed during baking. Unlike Pigs in a Blanket you are covering the entire hot dog with dough. Repeat for all dough and hot dog pieces.
  7. *to add cheese- take hot dog pieces before wrapping and make a slit lengthwise making sure to not cut through the hot dog all they way. Take a piece of American cheese and divide it up into 8 pieces. Take one of the pieces and gently fold it so it is around the same size as the slit made in the hot dog. Stuff the cheese into the slit and then wrap hot dog piece with dough like above directions.
  8. In a large pot add 14 cups of water and 1 cup of baking soda. Bring to a boil.
  9. Once the water comes to a boil, gently drop a few wrapped hot dogs into the pot and let cook for 30 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and line up on baking sheet, leaving about one inch in between each. Repeat for all wrapped hot dogs.
  10. Take the egg beaten with 1 tsp. of water and gently brush boiled pretzels with the egg mixture. Top with course salt.
  11. Bake each cookie sheet separately for about 12-14 minutes until golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.

Source- slightly adapted from Joy The Baker 

Mini Pretzel Dogs

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Mexican Pinwheels

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Mexican Pinwheels Dipped in Salsa

With the Super Bowl in a couple of weeks and it being award season, it is most certainly appetizer time!  We had a chance for both the San Francisco and the New England football teams to play in the Super Bowl for another Sister City Super Bowl showdown, but that didn’t happen this year.

If you thought my spinach artichoke dip was easy, wait until you try this one.  My mom made these for us growing up a few times and when I moved off on my own, it was one of the recipes she typed up for me.  I have a college binder with all the original recipes I used when I first started cooking on my own.  Every time I would come home to visit my mom she would give me another collections of recipes that I loved growing up or that I needed to try.  Luckily now that we all follow blogs and have similar cookbooks, we share recipes all the time.  I still keep these recipes in the original binder even though I have switched over to fancier Martha Stewart binders for my other recipe collections.

Mexican Pinwheels

There are only five ingredients in this recipe: flour tortillas, cream cheese, a can of chopped black olives, a can of chopped green chiles, and chopped onion.  Also, the only thing you really need to do is chop an onion because you can buy the olives and green chiles pre-chopped!  Oh yeah, oh yeah!  The perfect dipping sauce for this?  Salsa!  I basically live off of Tostitos Salsa in medium heat.  I put it on everything from baked potatoes to scrambled egg whites.  These probably would also pair well with sour cream or guacamole!

Pinwheels

What do you need to do to make them?  Follow the easy recipe below!

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Mexican Pinwheels
 
Ingredients
  • 2 blocks of reduced-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1- 4 oz. can of chopped green chilies, drained
  • 1- 4 oz. can of chopped black olives, drained
  • ½ onion, finely chopped
  • 12-14 flour tortillas
Instructions
  1. In a medium sized bowl, mix together cream cheese, green chilies, black olives, and onion. Stir it all together so that it is all mixed together and evenly distributed.
  2. Take a pile of flour tortillas and place them between 2 paper towels. Microwave them for about 20 seconds, to soften them so they are easier to roll.
  3. Take a tortillas and spread about 3-4 tbsp. of the cream cheese mixture on the tortillas. Roll the tortillas up like a jelly roll, tight enough so there isn't any gaps but not too right that you are squeezing the cream cheese out.
  4. Once rolled set seam side down on some laid out plastic wrap. Continue for the rest of tortillas until you use up all of the filling. When done rolling the tortillas, tightly wrap up the rolls in the plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 2 hours or more.
  5. Once chilled, take tortilla rolls out and slice them in ½-3/4 inch slices, tossing out the ends (or eating.) Continue with remaining tortillas.
  6. Serve with salsa.

Looking for more game day recipes?  Check out our 2013 Super Bowl Recipe Round-Up and the appetizer section of the 2S2C Recipe Index!  We’ll also be sharing a few more favorite game day appetizer recipes over the next week!

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Spinach Artichoke Dip

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Spinach Artichoke Dip

It is football playoff season and you know what that means…appetizers!  I have several great recipes for appetizers to share with you this month leading up to Super Bowl weekend.  Matt and I have been toughing it out for you the last couple of weekends and have had a few meals of just appetizers so I could share these with you. It’s been real tough… you’re welcome!  We are going to start this Superbowl party off with one of my all-time favorite dips, the spinach artichoke dip.

Chips and Spinach Dip

There was a time period that this was one of those appetizers I would always order off a restaurant’s menu.  In college, two of our local bars had the most amazing spinach artichokes dips.  They both had a cream cheese base with big chunks of artichoke hearts and not too much spinach.  Served with either slices of toasted french bread or tortilla chips, I could not get enough of these dips!

I have played around with several recipes over the years trying to recreate the creaminess and thickness that the dip had from those bars.  I think I have come really close with this recipe.  I have brought this dip to several different parties and it is always gone within minutes.

Creamy Spinach Artichoke Dip

The best part about this dip (besides the dip itself!) is that it is so easy to put together and it can be done ahead of time. I am one of those people who goes frantic an hour before I am hosting a party so I have learned to serve things I can make ahead.  This helps me actually enjoy the party I am throwing.  It can be put together the day before and once it is constructed, you just cover the casserole dish with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake it.

When I am making the dip for just Matt and myself,  I either make half the recipe or split the dip into two dishes and freeze one.  The leftover dip can be reheated and enjoyed again.  It is a very forgivable dish.  Serve it with tortilla chips, toasted French bread slices, crostini, pita chips, and or veggies.  Goooo football teams to be determined and even more so, bring on the appetizers!

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Spinach Artichoke Dip
 
Ingredients
  • ½ cup light sour cream
  • ½ cup light mayonnaise
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • ¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 -14 oz. can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
  • 1- 10 oz. package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry
  • 2 -8 oz. packages ⅓ less fat cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 2 cup part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded and divided
  • ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. In a large bowl combine sour cream, mayonnaise, garlic, pepper, artichokes, spinach, and cream cheese.
  3. Add in 1½ cup of the shredded mozzarella and ¼ cup of the shredded Parmesan to the dip mixture.
  4. Take dip mixture and spread out into an oven-safe 1½-quart casserole pan or baking dish.
  5. Sprinkle with remained mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
  6. Bake for 30 minutes or until bubbly.
  7. Serve with tortilla chips, toasted French bread slices, crostini, pita chips, and/or veggies.

Source– Adapted from Cooking Light

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Shrimp Scampi with Garlic Toasts

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 Shrimp Scampi with Garlic Toasts

Another food tradition we enjoy in our family is serving lots of appetizers on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.  It can be a bit hectic to prepare these apps with a full house so I am always looking for shortcuts to cut down on prep times.  Campbell’s asked us to share a holiday recipe using one of their skillet sauces or slow cooker sauces.  I decided to try out their Scampi Skillet Sauce to make an appetizer: Shrimp Scampi with Garlic Toasts.  This appetizer dish offers all the flavor of traditional shrimp scampi on a bite-size baguette…perfect for holiday entertaining!

shrimp scampi skillet sauce

I tested this recipe out with some guests that dropped by and it was approved by all (including the kids!)  The baguette slices can be toasted and rubbed with garlic ahead of time.  You could also clean and chop up the shrimp to have it all ready to be sautéed.  Whether you are planning your Christmas menu or looking ahead to New Year’s Eve, definitely consider adding this appetizer to your holiday!

Shrimp Scampi with Garlic Toasts

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Shrimp Scampi with Garlic Toasts
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
 
Ingredients
  • 1 french baguette
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 pound thawed shrimp, peeled, de-veined, and with tail removed
  • 1 package Campbell's Scampi Skillet Sauces
  • ¼ cup parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 lemon, sliced (optional, for garnish only)
Instructions
  1. Preheat over to 350 degrees (F). Cut baguette into thin slices and place on baking pan. Bake for five minutes on each side or until lightly golden
  2. Remove toasted baguette slices from oven and rub both sides with cut garlic, then set aside.
  3. Rinse shrimp and pat dry with paper towel.
  4. Pour olive oil into large skillet pan and heat to medium high.
  5. Meanwhile, chop shrimp into small pieces. Once oil is hot, add shrimp to pan, and cook until shrimp turns pink
  6. Once shrimp is cooked, turn heat to low and and add Campbell's Scampi Skillet Sauce. Cook until thoroughly warmed.
  7. Remove shrimp from oven, and spoon shrimp mix on top of garlic toast.
  8. Place on serving tray, sprinkle with chopped parsley, and garnish with lemon slices and.

 

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Disclosure: This post brought to you by Campbell’s Dinner Sauces. Weekend-worthy dinners with only weekday-level effort needed! Learn more at http://www.campbellsauces.com/

Recipe Redo- Lighter Jalapeño Poppers

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Lighter Jalapeno Poppers

Have I ever mentioned that I love jalapeño poppers? I absolutely love this jalapeño popper stuffed chicken recipe and make it all the time. My love for jalapeño poppers started with the frozen ones you get at the grocery store. I have an older post with a link to my favorite recipe for jalapeño poppers, but I realized the other day when I was trying to get the recipe that the link was broken. I guess it’s the perfect time for my recipe redo! I even spiffed up the recipe with the addition of turkey bacon… Mmmmm.

I find the hardest part about this recipe is taking the seeds and ribs out of the jalapeño. I have been burned by jalapeños before so I am very cautious when working with them now. Other than that, the filling and baking is real easy and make a great appetizer! They come out crisp on the outside and gooey and delicious on the inside. I didn’t make a dip to go with them this time because I don’t think they need anything. But if you insist on having a dip, chop up some scallions, mix it with some light sour cream, and add a little salt and pepper to taste. Dip away! Not only are these lighter jalapeño poppers healthier then the store-bought kind, they put them to shame in the taste department.

Gooey Jalapeño Poppers

 

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Recipe Redo- Lighter Jalapeño Poppers
Author: 
Recipe type: Appetizer
 
Ingredients
  • 6 jalapeños, halved, seeds and ribs removed
  • ½ cup reduced fat shredded cheddar
  • 4 oz. reduced fat cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 4 scallions, finely chopped
  • 2 pieces crisp cooked turkey bacon, crumbled
  • ½ cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup panko bread crumbs
  • 3 egg whites
Instructions
  1. Preheat broiler to high. Place a wire rack on a foil covered baking sheet. Place jalapeños, opening side down on wire rack. Broil for 2 minute until they begin to char. Let cool as you put together filling
  2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
  3. In a medium bowl, mix together cheddar, cream cheese, scallions, and turkey bacon. Fill cooled jalapeños with filling.
  4. Place egg whites in a bowl and whisk until foamy. In two separate bowls add bread crumbs and whole wheat flour.
  5. Dip jalapeños in whole wheat flour and shake off excess flour. Then dip jalapeño in egg whites and then panko crumbs. Place opening side up on wire rack. Be careful not to lose filling. Repeat for all 12 halves.
  6. Bake for 20 minutes and then let cool a few minutes before serving.

Jalapeño Popper

Source– Adapted from Rocco DiSpirito’s Now Eat This! 150 of America’s Favorite Comfort Foods
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Tex-Mex Pimiento Cheese Dip

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Tex-Mex Pimiento Cheese Dip
This Tex-Mex Pimiento Cheese Dip is seriously amazing, I mean make 3 times in the same week kind of amazing.  When we served this dip at our family lunch over Fourth of July, it was gone within minutes of coming out of the oven.  My mom made more of the pimiento cheese dip the next day because we had enjoyed it so much the day before.   Then, I made a half batch when I got home to take more photographs of the dip since I didn’t get one of the dip baked at the party.   The pimiento cheese dip is easy to pull together and can be made ahead of time.
Tex-Mex Pimiento Cheese Dip with Tortilla Chips

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Tex-Mex Pimiento Cheese Dip
 
Ingredients
  • ½ cup Greek Yogurt (0% Fat)
  • 6 oz. reduced fat cream cheese, softened
  • ¾ cup roasted red pepper, diced
  • 2 small or 1 large jalapeño peppers, ribbed, seeded and minced
  • 2-3 scallions, chopped
  • ¼ cup minced fresh cilantro, plus 1 tablespoon
  • 8 oz. of shredded pepper jack cheese
  • 8 oz. of shredded cheddar cheese
  • ¼ tsp. red pepper flakes
  • Salt and pepper, to your liking
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. In a medium bowl combine Greek yogurt, cream cheese, roasted red peppers, scallions, ¼ cup cilantro, shredded cheddar, shredded pepper jack, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.
  3. In a 2-quart oven-proof casserole dish spread the dip out evenly.
  4. Place in oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until cheese is bubbly and dip it hot.
  5. Top with remaining 1 tablespoon of chopped cilantro and serve with tortilla chips
  6. To make ahead of time-Do steps 2-3 and put plastic wrap over it and place in the fridge.

Source– Slightly adapted from Annie’s Eats

Tex-Mex Pimiento Cheese Dip Close-up

Tomato and Herb Bruschetta

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I have been obsessed with tomato bruschetta for as long as I can remember.   I have a very clear memory of stealing some of my mom’s bruschetta she had made for company we were having over.  I snuck a few slices of French bread with bruschetta to the pool side, dipped my feet in the pool, and ate the stolen goods.  I think I was about 10-12 years old at that point.  What can I say…I have always had a mature pallet.  For most of my childhood birthdays, I requested surf and turf, making sure my mom got me my own lobster.   That’s what you get when your mom is a great cook and you are born a true foodie.

The other day when I was making my first homemade French bread,  I knew I needed to make some fresh tomato bruschetta to go with it.  Tomato bruschetta is really the best in the summer when you can use fresh tomatoes, making it a great summer appetizer.

Tomato and Herb Bruschetta

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Tomato and Herb Bruschetta
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Recipe type: Appetizer
 
Ingredients
  • 3 ripe tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoons fresh chopped basil
  • 1 tsp. chopped garlic
  • ½ tsp. dried oregano
  • 1 tsp. balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tsp. olive oil
  • 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • French bread
Instructions
  1. Cut, seed and chop tomatoes. Place in a bowl and mix in basil, garlic, oregano, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Serve with fresh French bread or toasted French bread.
  2. To toast French bread slice bread in ½ inch slices. Brush both sides with olive oil and place in an 350 degree oven. Toast 5 minutes on both side until bread is crispy. To add a hint of garlic to toasted French bread cut a piece of garlic in half and rub the toasted bread with garlic.

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