Category: TAILGATING

TEX MEX CHICKEN PINWHEELS

TEX MEX CHICKEN PINWHEELS
2 chicken breasts cooked and shredded or 2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 cup grated jack cheese
1 can shopped corn, drained well
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained well
1 can ROTEL original tomatoes, drained well
1 bunch green onions, sliced thin
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper
6 slices bacon, cooked crisp
6 10 inch burritos
Salsa for serving

  • In a large mixing bowl combine the cream cheese and sour cream with an electric mixer until smooth.
  • Season with salt and pepper to taste and blend again.
  • Fold in grated cheese until well blended.
  • Fold in vegetable mix, chicken pieces and crumbled bacon.
  • Divide mixture among the tortillas, spreading it out evenly and short of the far edge.
  • Roll up tightly and secure with toothpicks.
  • Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 2 hours.
  • Remove from the refrigerator and slice into rounds.
  • Serve with Salsa.

VAMPIRE SLAYER ARTICHOKE BREAD

OMG This appetizer replaces any entree – it’s ooey, gooey, cheesy and literally melts in your mouth all the while tantalizing your taste buds from the very first bite!

VAMPIRE SLAYER ARTICHOKE BREAD Adapted from Crumb
2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, minced fine

14 ounce can artichoke hearts, drained REALLY WELL and chopped small
1 cup shredded Face Rock Vampire Slayer Cheddar cheese
½ cup shaved Parmesan cheese
¼ cup sour cream
1 bunch green onions, finely minced
1 package Seattle Sourdough Ciabatta rolls
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
  • Preheat broiler, and line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil.
  • In a large skillet set over medium-high heat, melt the butter until foamy.
  • Add garlic and green onions sauteing until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
  • Remove from heat, and stir in artichoke hearts, mozzarella, cheddar, Parmesan and sour cream until combined.
  • Slice the bread lengthwise.
  • Place the bread halves on the prepared baking sheet, cut side up, and spoon the cooled cheese and artichoke mixture over top.
  • Lightly salt and pepper to taste.
  • Broil until cheese is melted and bread is hot.
  • Cut each half into pieces and serve right away, while the cheese is still nice and melted.

REUBEN TORTILLA PINWHEELS

Here’s what I made for St. Patrick’s Day!
REUBEN TORTILLA PINWHEELS
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup Russian Salad Dressing
1/2 cup sauerkraut, rinsed and drained REALLY WELL
8 ounces QUALITY Swiss or Gruyere cheese (shredded)
3/4 pound thinly sliced corned beef
8-9 inch flour tortillas

  • Mix together cream cheese and Russian dressing until smooth and creamy.
  • Add in sauerkraut and blend well.
  • Spread one side of a tortilla with cream cheese mixture ALMOST all the way to the edges.
  • Sprinkle with a layer of grated cheese.
  • Layer a few slices of corned beef on top of the cheese.
  • Roll up tortilla tightly.
  • Repeat with remaining ingredients, laying rolled tortillas on a plate.
  • Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
  • Remove from refrigerator and slice into rounds and serve.

BACON PICKLE FRIES

BACON PICKLE FRIES – yields 12 “fries”

12 pickle spears
12 strips of bacon
1/4 cup ranch dressing

  • Preheat oven to 425°.
  • Wrap each pickle spear in bacon.
  • Place the bacon-wrapped pickles on a baking sheet, seam side-down.
  • Bake until the bacon is cooked through and crispy, 12-15 minutes, turning halfway.
  • Serve warm or at room temperature with ranch.

Linking to FULL PLATE THURSDAY at Miz Helen’s Cottage.

BEET PICKLED DEVILED EGGS

A few years ago I saw an article on Chinese Tea eggs. They were so beautiful and intrigued me enough that I wanted to make some. Well I never quite got around to it, but then hubby asked for some deviled eggs and my brain went into overdrive. I decided to create the same affect with pickled beets.


PICKLED DEVILED EGGS
1 dozen eggs, hard boiled
1 jar pickled beets
1/8 + cup mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
Sweet Hungarian paprika

  • Boil eggs as normal. Rinse under cool water.
  • Drain beets, retaining juice.
  • Gently crack eggs all over.
  • In a medium skillet heat water and beet juice together.
  • Add eggs and simmer 20 minutes, gently rolling eggs periodically.
  • Remove from heat.
  • Remove eggs from pan and drain on paper towels.
  • Remove shells.
  • Slice open eggs and scoop out yolks.
  • Mash yolks with salt and pepper.
  • Add mayonnaise, vinegar and horseradish and blend well.
  • Fill eggs.
  • Sprinkle with paprika and serve.

I save the pickled beets to use with 1000 Island dressing on my Crab salad.

MOZZARELLA CHEESE STICKS

MOZZARELLA STICKS
12 egg roll wrappers
12 string cheese
avocado or cocnut oil
Marinara sauce

  • Start in the corner of the egg roll wrapper and roll cheese half way.
  • Fold in at the corners
  • Brush remaining open edges with water and continue rolling until well sealed.
  • Heat 1/2 inch of oil to 375˚.
  • Fry sticks a few at a time until golden brown all the way around.
  • Drain on paper towels.
  • Serve with marinara.

Submitted to FULL PLATE THURSDAY @Miz Helen’s Country Cottage.

CRAB PUFFS

PUFFS recipe from Martha at Seaside Simplicity

1/2 cup water
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
  • Heat oven to 425°.
  • In a medium saucepan heat water and butter until boiling.
  • Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup and level off.
  • Stir in flour and salt.
  • Cook over medium heat until mixture leaves sides of pan in a smooth compact ball, about 2 minutes, stirring vigorously.
  • Remove from heat.
  • Add eggs one at the time, beating vigorously until smooth and glossy. Do not under-beat! Drop by teaspoons full onto parchment paper lined cookie sheets.
  • Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.
  • Once puffs are cooled completely split and stuff with crab salad when ready to serve.
This recipe makes about 20 puffs.
CRAB SALAD
8 ounces Louis Kemp Crab, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1/3 cup minced red onion
salt and pepper
mayo (about 1/4 cup)
  • Mix crab, celery, onion, salt and pepper together until well blended using enough mayonnaise for desired consistency.
  • Place a large scoop of crab salad in each puff.

Submitted to FULL PLATE THURSDAY @Miz Helen’s Country Cottage.

TEX MEX BLT’S minus the lettuce

These little delights are perfect finger foods for ANY football party or get together with lots of people. They have just enough kick to spark everyone’s appetite for more.  The shells get crispy and the cheesy filling gets gooey and they are soooooo easy to assemble while looking like you spent hours in the kitchen.

You can also vary the flavors for some extra alternative flavor.  Use your imagination and make up your own combinations.

TEX MEX BLT’s minus the Lettuce 
3-4 packages phyllo pastry cups – thawed
1 pound bacon, cooked well and crumbled into very small pieces (very fine ground beef/shredded beef)
1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese  (today I used a Jack and Skellig Sweet Cheddar combo)
1/2 cup medium Cheddar cheese
1 cup mayonnaise (not Low-fat)
1 can Rotel original, drained REALLY well (when I use shredded beef I trade this for a 4 ounce can of diced jalapenos that I chop very fine)

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Blend the mayonnaise and cheeses together.
  • Fold in the tomatoes and bacon.
  • Scoop evenly into the cups (this will fill about 36).
  • Place on baking sheet and bake for 15-18 minutes or until starting to brown and get bubbly.

NOTE:  These shells are pretty small so cut any larger chunks of tomato into smaller pieces to make them easier to fill. I did a couple second run through in my mini food processor.

COWGIRL KISSES with RASPBERRY CHIPOTLE SAUCE

COWGIRL KISSES
8 ounces cream cheese
2 tablespoons Foothill Salad Seasoning
1 slice bacon per pepper
Jalapeno Peppers
Raspberry Chipotle Sauce (see below)

  • Mix cream cheese and Foothill Salad Seasoning until well blended.
  • Clean and remove seeds from peppers.
  • Fill peppers.
  • Wrap each pepper with a slice of bacon.
  • Bake or grill over low heat until bacon is crisp.
  • Serve with raspberry chipotle sauce.

RASPBERRY CHIPOTLE SAUCE
1 cup Raspberry Jam
2 tablespoons diced chipotle peppers
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons apple cider or rice wine vinegar

  • Whisk all ingredients until well blended.
  • Chill until ready to serve.
  • Warm before serving.

TORTILLA ROLL-UPS

These are sooooooooo versatile!  you can mix and match flavors anyway you like. I’ve also made them with pepperoni and Italian seasoning with a hint of tomato paste in the cream cheese mixture for that Italian feel. Or with crumbled bacon and cheddar cheese – YUMMY! In my haste I did not get a picture of the finished plate and they went fast!

TORTILLA ROLL-UPS
8 ounces sour cream
8 ounces cream cheese softened
7 ounce can roasted chiles, drained well
1 small can chopped olives
1 bunch green onions, minced
1/3 pound ham, chopped fine
flour tortillas

  • In a small food processor blend together the cream cheese, sour cream, green chiles and olives until smooth.
  • Fold the minced ham and minced green onions into cream cheese mixture. If mixture appears thin, chill for 1 hour before filling tortillas.
  • Cut rounded ends of each side of the tortillas.
  • Spread 4 tablespoons of ham mixture on each tortilla leaving 1/2 inch along one edge.
  • Roll up each tortilla ending on the dry edge.
  • Lay side by side on a plate.
  • Cover loosely with saran.
  • Chill overnight.
  • Slice into 1/2 inch rounds just before serving.

BUFFALO CHICKEN PULL APART BREAD

I found this recipe for Buffalo Chicken Pull-Apart Bread on Facebook, you know one of those that they show you in video form in 30 seconds or less AND looks really scrumptious?  I was thinking of making it as an appetizer when our son and family are here at Christmas time, but needed to test it first. Well, it was HUGE success and I now make it more regularly.

Well, this recipe did not disappoint.  I made some of my homemade Farmhouse Buttermilk Dressing to go with it and the combination was addicting! Instead of an appetizer we added a salad and made it a meal.

BUFFALO CHICKEN PULL-APART BREAD
2 packages Pillsbury pizza dough (I used 1 recipe of my homemade pizza dough)
2 cups chicken, cooked and shredded (I used original recipe Costco Rotisserie chicken)
1 cup Buffalo sauce (I used Frank’s Original Hot Sauce)
1/4 cup scallions, chopped (I used more, about double – we like onions)
2 1/2 cups grated pepper jack cheese (I used regular jack cheese)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 jalapeno, sliced (OPTIONAL – I didn’t use)
Ranch dressing for dipping (I used a batch of Farmhouse Buttermilk Dressing)

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • In a bowl toss together the chicken, buffalo sauce, green onions and half the cheese.
  • Roll out dough and cut into 3×3 inch squares (about 30 squares total). **SEE NOTE
  • Brush each square with the melted butter.
  • Top each square with a spoonful of chicken mixtures and then a sprinkling of the remaining cheese.
  • Brush loaf pan with butter.
  • Stack each square on top of each other in your loaf pan with the chicken side up.
  • Brush top of bread with remaining butter.
  • Top with remaining cheese.
  • Bake 40-50 minutes until golden and set.

NOTE:  The original recipe had you doing each square one at a time, but I found it much easier to do them all at once and then stack them in the loaf pan while it was standing on end for a more even and less messy build.

SHARING with FOODIE FRIDAY and TASTY THURSDAY.

CHILI DOG CASSEROLE

CHILI DOG CASSEROLE
1 Jiffy Corn muffin mix
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 package Ball Park ALL beef hot dogs
1 can chili with beans
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • Spray 8×8 baking dish with non-stick spray.
  • Prepare muffin mix batter per package instructions adding the garlic powder, chipotle chili powder and brown sugar to the batter.
  • Pour half the batter into the baking dish.
  • In a skillet over medium high heat, brown hot dogs on all sides.
  • Lay hot dogs on top of batter in a single layer. I like to chop them into small pieces, but that is optional.
  • Spread chili evenly over the hot dogs.
  • Sprinkle 3/4 of the onions over the chili.
  • Spread 3/4 cup of the cheese over the onions.
  • Spread remaining batter over cheese.
  • Bake 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
  • Sprinkle remaining cheese and onions on top and serve.