Hot Artichoke Dip

No those are not my purple fingernails : ) A big thanks to Connie427 at www.food.com for the picture .... it's not even a picture of the same recipe, but close enough to give you the idea. I really need to bust out the camera some more.

This recipe has been in the Bassett family for longer than I have, Blaine's mom serves it at parties and it's always a hit. I made a feeble attempt to have a party yesterday (thank you four friends who came!), and this was the first and only dish to disappear.

Hot Artichoke Dip

1 6oz jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped (or a big ol' handful of artichoke hearts from the big ol 24 oz jar you got at Costco....!)
1/2 C Parmesan Cheese
1/2 C Sour Cream
1/2 C Mayo
1 T diced pimentos (by the olives usually in an itttttty bitty jar)

Combine, heat covered 30-60 minutes in crockpot or low oven till hot. Serve with tortilla chips or crusty bread

Spinach Artichoke Dip

• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach - thawed, drained and squeezed dry
• 1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a 7x11 inch baking dish.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese and mayonnaise until smooth. Mix in the artichoke hearts, spinach and Parmesan cheese. Season with garlic and lemon juice. Spread evenly into the prepared baking dish.
3. Bake covered for 20 minutes. Remove the cover, and let the dish bake uncovered for 5 more minutes, or until the surface is lightly browned.

I served this with tortilla chips.

Greek Seven Layer Dip

Picture and recipe from www.ourbestbites.com

Made this yummy appetizer yesterday, loved it! And the best news is that you can print a coupon out for hummus and get it free at Smith's! Woot. Hey maybe there is a market for a recipe blog that is also a deal blog...hmmm. Anyway, this is a fun twist on seven layer dip, and supposedly it is better for you than refried beans, sour cream, and cheese : )

1 8oz package cream cheese, softened ( I used low-fat)

1 tsp dill weed or Greek Seasoning (salt free) - I just used the dill

3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

2 tsp lemon juice

1 1/2 C hummus (really easy to make yourself if you don't want to buy it)

1 c seeded, diced cucumbers

1 c seeded, diced tomatoes

1/2 c chopped Kalamata olives

1/3 c chopped green onions

1/2 c crumbled feta cheese (oh. my. gosh. I totally forgot to put this in mine. That is so lame)

1/8 c minced fresh parsley

With an electric mixer, combine the cream cheese, seasoning, garlic and lemon juice until light and fluffy. Spread in the bottom of a pie plate or a small, shallow baking dish. Then spread a layer of hummus. In order, create layers by sprinkling the cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, onions, Feta, and parsley. Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least two hours. Serve with pita chips, fresh veggies, and/or flatbread.

I have to admit I just shed a tear typing this recipe and realizing I forgot to add feta. So lame. Everyone loved this dip! I was afraid the flavors would be too bold for some, but it got an enthusiastic thumbs up from all! Also, I bought the kalamata olives at an olive bar in the grocery store and five minutes after I put them, in their fancy container (clearly marked $8/lb) Blaine called in from the other room "hey! You weren't saving those olives for anything were you?". He was totally feeding them to our children. Apparently he thinks it is normal for me to buy fancy olives in fancy containers to feed to the riffraff who would probably prefer cheez-its. Sigh. So clearly mark your olives ladies and gents. Maybe lock them up.

And don't forget the feta. Ugh!

Happy New Years!

Bread Dip

Every once in a while when I feel like I am getting too skinny for my own good (haaaahahahahaha) I put some olive oil and salt in a dish and dip bread in it, it's so good! Yesterday though I wanted to ramp up the compexity of my simple little dip. I stumbled across this recipe and I loved it! I couldn't take a picture of it without it looking really weird, so I used the recipe from allrecipes, which also looks kind of weird : )

Enjoy

Olive Oil Bread dip

1/4 cup olive oil
5 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon crushed dried oregano
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
Directions
1.Pour the olive oil onto a salad plate. Use a garlic press to press the garlic cloves onto five different spots on the plate. Drizzle the balsamic vinegar over the oil and garlic. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and oregano. Season with black pepper.

Mall Pretzels

We made these last night and they were so yummy! they tasted just like the Pretzel maker ones, except i didn't have any salt like theirs so we made the cinnamon ones.
Here is the link if you want to read the reviews, they gave some good tips
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Mall-Pretzels/Detail.aspx


Mall Pretzels

recipe image
Rated: rating
Submitted By: Jeannie Yee
Photo By: Allrecipes
Prep Time: 30 Minutes
Cook Time: 20 Minutes

Ready In: 3 Hours
Servings: 12
"Those big, soft pretzels rolled in coarse salt are yours to bake at home with basic bread ingredients you probably already have in your pantry."
Ingredients:
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/8 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F
/45 degrees C)
3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup bread flour
2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45
degrees C)
2 tablespoons baking soda
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons coarse kosher salt
Directions:
1. In a large mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast, brown sugar and salt in 1 1/2 cups warm water. Stir in flour, and knead dough on a floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover, and let rise for one hour.
2. Combine 2 cups warm water and baking soda in an 8 inch square pan.
3. After dough has risen, cut into 12 pieces. Roll each piece into a 3 foot rope, pencil thin or thinner. Twist into a pretzel shape, and dip into the baking soda solution. Place on parchment covered cookie sheets, and let rise 15 to 20 minutes.
4. Bake at 450 degrees F (230 degrees C) for 8 to 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Brush with melted butter, and sprinkle with coarse salt, garlic salt or cinnamon sugar.

Tips from Reviews-
-Knead dough until it is smooth and looses elasticity.
- i didn't really roll mine, it was more holding it in the air and stretching it out.
- after you dip the pretzel in the water, dab on a paper towel for a half a second to get off excess water
- bake on upper middle rack so the bottoms won't burn.
- I didn't use parchment paper, just sprayed my cookie sheets real well and they were fine.

Avacado Feta Salsa - Repost

I am coming to accept that no respectable recipe blog posts recipes without pictures. And also I have an iphone which makes posting pictures a zillion times easier. So, I commit to no longer post recipes without pictures, and as I make recipes that were on the site before I will repost them with the picture. They will not be cute pictures. Sorry. Go look at Ralphie's blog after you are here to get your cute picture fix.

This salsa sure is a crowd pleaser! And if you are buying feta anywhere besides Costco you are paying way too much - - they have a big old block of it for cheap!

Avacado Feta Salsa

• 1-2 tomatoes chopped
  
• 1 ripe avocado - peeled, pitted and chopped
• 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon snipped fresh cilantro (I used more about 1/3 C)
  
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano ( I used dry!)
  
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon red or white wine vinegar (used red)
  
• 4 ounces crumbled feta cheese

Mix all ingredients together and chill for up to 6 hours. Yum!

Homemade caramel in 15 min

We had this at our super saturday and it was amazing, so I thought i would share.

1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup Karo Syrup
1 stick butter or margarine
2 cups brown sugar

Melt butter over med/high heat, add syrup and brown sugar and bring to a boil, boil 1 min. add milk, bring to a boil, remove from heat.

Slice up apples and pour lemon juice on the top so they don't turn brown, then just dip in the caramel. You can add a little extra by having nuts or chocolate sprinkles to dip in too. This was so good, everyone loved it.

7-Layer dip or Taco Casserole

My friend makes this and serves for dinner. I never thought of 7-layer dip as a maindish, but it was fabulous!

7-layer dip:

1 lb ground beef
1/2 package taco seasoning
1 can refried beans
1 c. sour cream
8 oz. cream cheese
1 can diced tomatoes
salsa (I replaced the tomatoes and salsa with a can of Rotel)
1 container guacamole (I make mine homemade)
mozzarella
black olives
Tortilla chips or wraps

Brown 1 lb ground beef and drain.
Add about 1/2 pkg taco seasoning (no water, though).
Meanwhile, spread 1 can refried beans into 9x13 pan.
Ground beef goes on top of that.
Mix together 1 c. sour cream with 8 oz cream cheese and then spread on top.
Next goes on 1 can diced tomatoes (drained) plus some salsa (as desired).
Then 1 container of guacamole
Top with mozzarella and sliced olives.

Bake 350 for 30min.

I like to serve with Hint of Lime chips, but my hubby likes to scoop his out into a tortilla for a burrito.

Fruit dip

I was at a baby shower the other day and they had this really yummy, light, fluffy fruit dip. I asked Sarah how to make it and she said it was just light cool whip mixed with a little thing of yogurt. Isn't that crazy? It was the best fruit dip I've ever had and I didn't even have to feel guilty because it had so few calories. I can't remember the flavor of yogurt she said she put in it, but mentioned you could try any flavor. Easy easy!

Parmesan Fondue

Fondue is a tricky thing, at least cheese fondue is. It often turns out too thick and clogs your throat even before it gets a chance to clog your arteries! Either that or it calls for exotic cheeses that cost a fortune or wine, etc. Anyway, I found a great and simple recipe last night and it turned out great!

I got this recipe on www.allrecipes.com

Parmesan Fondue

• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, cubed
• 1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large saucepan, cook and stir the milk and cream cheese over low heat until cheese is melted. Stir in Parmesan cheese and garlic salt; cook and stir until heated through. Transfer to a fondue pot or mini slow cooker; keep warm. Serve with bread cubes.

There were four of us and I halved the recipe and still had plenty to spare (though we were being crammed with good food from every angle, so it wasn't that the fondue wasn't de-lish!). I added a little onion powder and pepper and substituted minced garlic for the garlic salt (buy that thing at Costco I tell ya). Also it was a little thick so I added maybe 1/4 C milk extra.

I served with
Red Pepper strips
Cubed french bread
apples
broccoli

bag the broccoli and go with more bread and apples ! Oh and don't freak if you don't have a fondue pot. I somehow lost the cord of mine so we just ate it from the pan on the stove and it was good, just a little hot!

Lake Ralphie Dip

I have two similar recipes for chip dips that are both very good, so I took the best of both worlds and made a mega good dip. I'll give the two individual recipes, then my conglomeration.

Lake Powell Dip (from Winder Family Cookbook)

1 Can black olives (chopped)
1 small can diced green chiles
4 green onions (chopped all)
2 tomatoes
1-1/2 T oil
1 tsp white vinegar
1 tsp garlic salt

mix together and serve with tortilla chips


Ralphie's Famous Salsa (From Ralphie's house)
1 bunch green onions chopped
1 bunch cilantro chopped
1 can of corn drained
1 can black eyed peas drained and rinsed
1 large tomato chopped
2 avacados chopped
1 packet italian seasoning
1/4 C oil
14 C water


Lake Ralphie Dip
4 Green onions chopped
1 can black olives
1 can black eyed peas
1 can corn
2 avacados
3 tomatoes (or more, can't go wrong here)
some garlic salt
splash of white vinegar
bunch of chopped cilantro
1/4 C oil
1/4 C water
splash of lemon juice
salt

Can't go wrong. Run with it.