Manchego-Stuffed Dates

12/22/2023

These are so simple and easy to make, but taste extraordinary! Such a great way to entertain during the holidays when dates are easy to find! If you want to assemble these a couple of days in advance you can, but wait for the honey and paprika until just before serving.

Manchego-Stuffed Dates

Ingredients

12 Medjool dates, split with pits removed
1/2 fennel bulb, sliced thin
4 - 6 oz. Manchego cheese
2 Tbsp. spicy honey
sprinkle of paprika

Makes 12 dates

Julienne fennel into very thin strips; you could even shave the fennel with a very sharp vegetable peeler or use a mandolin. You will need 12 slices of celery.
Thinly slice cheese into 12 slices roughly the same size as the celery. Stuff each date with a slice of celery and a slice of Manchego and set on a platter.
Drizzle stuffed dates with honey and sprinkle with paprika. Serve immediately.

Monte Cristo Sliders

12/22/2023

This recipe makes a lot of sliders to feed a crowd, but can be halved or quadrupled to make as many as you need. They're full of classic Monte Cristo flavors with a crispy, buttery coating to mimic that deep-fried flavor. Enjoy at your next party!

Monte Cristo Sliders

Ingredients

2 packages Sweet Hawaiian dinner rolls (12 rolls per package)
24 slices deli turkey
24 slices deli ham
2 sticks butter
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup dijon
1/4 cup raspberry jam
24 slices havarti, or other mild cheese
powdered sugar, for garnish

Serves 24
Cook time: 30 minutes

Melt butter in small sauce pan or in microwave, add Worcestershire sauce to butter. Pour 1/4 melted butter in bottom of two disposable aluminum pans. Keeping rolls together (do not pull apart), slice down the middle to create two "sheets" of tops and two "sheets" of bottoms.
Place bottoms in pan with butter. Spread mayonnaise and mustard on bottoms and shingle on half the cheese, top with turkey slices, and then shingle on remaining cheese. Spread the tops with the raspberry jam and close sandwiches up. Pour remaining melted butter over tops; then cover with parchment paper and wrap with aluminum foil. Place a dish or tray just large enough to cover the rolls on top (some thing that will fit inside of the aluminum pan....possibly another disposable aluminum pan) and then place a heavy item like a cast iron skillet or cans of tomatoes, or even a brick wrapped in foil to press the sandwiches down. Sandwiches can be cooked immediately or stored in refrigerator for a few days until needed.
When ready to serve, preheat oven to 350 and bake hot browns, covered, for 25 minutes; uncover and let cook another 5 minutes. Allow to cool for a few minutes, then remove carefully to platter. Slice hot browns according to scored marks for rolls and you'll have 24 individual Monte Cristo sliders. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve immediately.

Crab Dip in Endive or Tomatoes

12/22/2023

These are as simple as they are delicious! Easy to make and a real-crowd pleaser, these stuffed tomatoes (I also like to use endive and keep the dip in a container in the center of a platter filled with endive leaves so everyone can dip their own) are made with lump crab....but if you're feeding a crowd feel free to use crab claw.

Crab Dip in Endive or Tomatoes

Ingredients

4 head endive or 15-20 cocktail tomatoes
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 small red onion, minced
1/4 cup mixed herbs (such as parsley, tarragon, basil, thyme, etc.), chopped
1 lb. lump crab meat, picked over and drained

Serves 15-25

Cut the root end off the endive so the leaves are roughly the same size. Combine mayonnaise, lemon juice, red onion, herbs, and salt and pepper. Gently fold in crab meat.
Refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve dip in bowl and let guests scoop it out with endive themselves.

Roast Pecans

12/19/2023

My grandparents always roasted up pecans for the Christmas holidays and eating them takes me back to their kitchen. They're an easy little snack to make that will get eaten up before they go bad (theoretically they could last a few weeks though)!

Roasted Pecans

Ingredients

2 cups pecan halves
4 Tbsp. butter, melted
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
1 Tbsp. garlic salt
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper, optional

Serves 4-6
Cook Time: 30 minutes

Preheat oven to 300.
Toss all ingredients together, making sure pecans are evenly coated. Toast for about 30 minutes, be careful not to let your pecans burn. Allow to cool to room temperature on paper towels so any excess butter can drip off.
Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

Baked Brie with Dried Fruits

12/13/2023

This is an easy and elegant starter. It's warm brie topped with honey-drizzled dried fruits. The combination of dried fruits and nuts listed below is my favorite, but feel free to switch it up to you favorite, seasonally, or just whatever you have on hand. It's a great way to buy you some time for the finishing touches for dinner, or just a fantastic snack to have with a glass of wine. Enjoy!

Baked Brie with Dried Fruits

Ingredients

1/4 cup honey, divided
1/4 cup dried mission figs, stemmed and chopped
1/4 cup dried apricots, chopped
1/4 cup shelled pistachios, chopped
1/4 cup pecans, chopped
8-oz round brie

Serves 4-6
Cook time: 10 minutes

Preheat the oven to 375.
Place the honey in a microwave-safe dish. Microwave for 30 seconds to soften.
In a small bowl, combine the dried figs with the nuts. Add half of the honey and mix well to coat the nut mixture.
Place the round of brie in a small cast iron skillet or oven-safe dish. Using a small knife, coat the brie with the remainder of the honey. Top the brie with the fig and nut mixture.
Serve with crackers.

Candied Pepper Canapés

12/12/2023

These quick little treats are sure to please a crowd and tide the over until it's time to eat. I use candied hot peppers I preserved from my summer garden, but if you don't have any pepper jelly will do just fine and look great!

Candied Pepper Canapes

Ingredients

1 pack phyllo cups (approx. 15 cups)
4 oz. goat cheese
2 Tbsp. sour cream
8 oz. candied peppers

Servings: 4-6

Whip cream cheese and sour cream together until smooth. Using a bag with a snipped end, pipe mixture into the bottom half of each phyllo cup. Top cream cheese mixture with a dollop of candied peppers. These can be made up to 24 hours in advance and refrigerated, just bring to room temperature before serving.

Honey Sriracha Chicken Meatballs

11/27/2023

These are great for entertaining and can be made days in advance, then reheated in your slow cooker a few hours before serving. I would recommend reheating your sauce on the stove before putting the slow cooker - it just helps things heat up more quickly. This is a huge recipe, but can easily be scaled up or down to fit your needs. Pictured with Mushroom Tartlets and Holiday Cheeseball.

Honey Sriracha Chicken Meatballs

Ingredients

Meatballs

6 lb. ground turkey
1 head of garlic, minced
2 onions, minced
3 cups bread crumbs
2 eggs
1 cup cilantro, chopped
1 Tbsp. salt
3 Tbsp. olive oil
3 Tbsp. Sriracha
Honey Sriracha Sauce
6 1/2 cups water, divided
1/2 cup Sriracha
2 cups soy sauce
1/3 cup minced garlic
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup honey
1/2 cup corn starch

Serves 50
Cook time: 2 hours and 30 minutes

In a medium sauce pan, combine 6 cups of water, sriracha, soy sauce, garlic, sugar, and honey and stir. Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat. Whisk together the 1/2 cup corn starch and remaining 1/2 cup of water until dissolved. Add to sauce pan and stir until bubbly and thickened. Remove from heat and set aside
In a large bowl combine the turkey, garlic, onion, bread crumbs, eggs, cilantro and salt. Form into 1" balls (approx. 120). Set aside on a baking sheet.

Heat a large sauté pan on medium high heat, add olive oil and brown the meatballs for 1-2 minutes rolling them in the pan. Then place them in slow cooker.

Alternately, you can put them on a greased baking sheet and bake at 400 until they are 165 inside (roughly 20 minutes). Then place in slow cooker.

Pour the honey sriracha sauce over the meatballs. Cook on high 2 hours; give a stir about every thirty minutes to make sure all the meatballs are coated in the sauce.

Mushroom Tartlets

11/27/2023

These are the easiest and most delicious finger food I've got! I used to make them for tailgates all the time, but they are just as good at the holidays. It's a big recipe, but can easily be scaled up to down to meet your needs. Don't forget (like I did) to sprinkle with a little parsley to brighten them up before serving. Pictured with Holiday Cheeseball and Honey Sriracha Meatballs.

Mushroom Tartlets

Ingredients

4 packages phyllo shells (15 pieces per package)
8 Tbsp. butter
16 oz. Cremini mushrooms, chopped
1 tsp. salt
8 cloves garlic, grated
1 cup cream
1 cup parsley, chopped

Makes approx. 60
Cook time: 20 minutes

Melt butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add mushrooms, cook until they give up their moisture, then add salt. Add garlic and cook one more minute.
Stir in cream and continue to cook until thickened.
Divide between phyllo shells and sprinkle with parsley.

Holiday Cheeseball

11/27/2023

This is my favorite cheeseball to have around the holidays. It's made with white cheddar, studded with dried cranberries and scallions, and rolled in toasted pecans. The recipe below is for a crowd and makes up to 3 large or 60 small cheeseballs - it can easily be scaled to a smaller size though. Pictured with Mushroom Tartlets and Honey Sriracha Meatballs.

Holiday Cheeseball

Ingredients

24 oz. cream cheese, softened
24 oz. white cheddar, shredded
3 cups dried cranberries
1 1/2 cups scallions, chopped
3/4 cup parsley, chopped
3 cups toasted pecans, chopped
60 pretzel sticks or lollipop sticks, optional

Makes approx. 60 mini cheeseballs or 3 regular cheeseballs

Beat 1/3 cream cheese with a paddle attachment until smooth; gradually add in 1/3 of each: cheddar, cranberries, scallions, and parsley scraping the sides of the bowl often. Repeat process 1/3 at at time with remaining ingredients.
Shape cheese mixture into at least 60 balls, rolling in your palms. Roll each cheeseball in toasted pecans and refrigerate for a several hours to harden up. Using either a pretzel stick or lollipop stock, skewer each cheeseball so they resemble lollipops in shape, if not appearance.

Avocado Deviled Eggs

10/10/2023

These Halloween deviled eggs are a fun twist on a classic! Expect yours to look a little more green - the coloring didn't come out well in the picture. To get the marbled effect on the yolks I cracked the shells on the boiled eggs and soaked in them in water dyed purple with food coloring for a few days - they came out looking amazing!

Avocado Deviled Eggs

Ingredients

18 eggs
2 avocados
1/2 cup sour cream
2 Tbsp. mayonnaise
2 limes, juiced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
salt & pepper, to taste

Makes 36 deviled eggs
Cook time: 10 minutes

Place eggs in a large sauce pan and bring to a boil; boil, turn off heat and let eggs sit in pot for 10 minutes. Remove from hot water with a slotted spoon and put in ice water to stop the cooking. Shell eggs and slice lengthwise.
Scoop the yolks out and combine with avocados, sour cream, mayonnaise, lime juice, cilantro, salt, and pepper. Place mixture in zip-top bag, snip the end off and fill eggs with mixture.