Fresh Summer Salsa

We visited relatives that have a pool AND their own Wheaten terrier, so we had a pretty nice summer afternoon hanging out in the pool and watching the crazy dog cousins run a million laps around the water. Twilly is totally wiped out now and will probably nap for the rest of the day.

I decided to make my favorite summer recipe (or maybe #2 fav behind tomato pie?) for a post-pool snack. I usually make this all the time when I have a successful tomato growing summer, but my tomatoes were only in pots this year and got all dried out before producing many tomatoes. Good thing there are plenty of farmer's markets around with beautiful heirloom tomatoes.

1-2 nice tomatoes, chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 lime, juiced
2 mild or hot peppers, finely chopped (I used 1 banana pepper and 1 jalapeno from the farmer's market)
kernels from 1 or 2 ears of corn (uncooked)
1 handful cilantro, chopped
salt & pepper

Once everything is chopped up, combine it all in a bowl and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste and add more lime as needed. Sometimes I add garlic if I feel like it needs something else. And you can always add chopped fruit (peach, mango, watermelon, blueberries, grapes...) or avocado. It will keep for a few days in the fridge.

Roasted Parmesan Green Beans

It's way too hot out to have the oven on at 400, but I went ahead and did it anyway to make these tasty parmesan-coated green beans with garlic mayo sauce. I actually made one smallish batch, finished them off, and then wanted more and still had leftover dip - so I turned the oven back on and make another round.

They are worth a even-hotter apartment. It looks like it's about to rain, so hopefully it will cool down soon!

Roasted Parmesan Green Beans with Dipping Sauce
From Buns in My Oven 

2 big handfuls green beans, rinsed & trimmed
1/4 cup or more Parmesan cheese, grated
1 tbsp olive oil
sea salt

1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Preheat oven to 400. Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. In a bowl, toss the green beans in olive oil and cheese. Spread them out on the baking sheet and sprinkle with a little sea salt. Roast for about 20-25 minutes, turning mid-way if you want. (I didn't.)

To make the dipping sauce, mix up the mayo, mustard and garlic powder in a small bowl or ramekin. I'm going to make it this way next time I make fries or chicken fingers - I've made a lot of mayo & mustard dips and never thought of adding garlic powder. It's very good. :)

Queso Dip

There are tons of variations on queso dip - here's the one I usually make if I'm not doing the slightly less classy but very delicious Velvetta and salsa version! If you want to mix it up, you can add corn, black beans, chopped jalapeños or different types of salsa or hot sauce.

Queso Dip

5 oz cream cheese, chopped into 1" pieces

1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded (pretty much any mild cheese will be good)

1/4 cup tomatillo salsa

1/4 cup milk

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp veg oil

In a medium saucepan, fry up the garlic and cumin in the vegetable oil until fragrant. Drop in the cream cheese and let it soften a little before adding in the cheese, salsa and milk. Keep stirring until it's all integrated and smooth. I keep mine pretty thick but you can add more milk or salsa to thin it out.

I don't usually top it with anything, but you can see in the picture that this time I spooned some more salsa and a few roasted cherry tomatoes on top. You can also throw some cilantro on there, 

Baked Brie with Oats & Apple Topping

This is basically a quick version of baked brie + apple crisp! I was very impressed with this idea, and it makes a great snack.

Baked Brie

Adapted from Half Baked Harvest

16 oz brie (1 round or a couple wedges)

1 cup oats

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 cup pecans (or pecan pieces)

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 apple, cut into 1" pieces

Preheat the oven to 350 and butter a baking dish or cast iron skillet. In a bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, pecans and butter. Mix in the apples. Place the brie in the skillet and top with the oats mixture. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the apples are softened and the topping is a little browned. Serve with crackers or just eat with a spoon.

Cheesy Jalapeños

These are like those fried jalapeño poppers but homemade and better. I made them gluten-free for Linda by using cornmeal for the breading.

The recipe that these are pretty loosely based on calls for cutting a slit in each jalapeño and actually stuffing them with the cheesy filling but the first time I made these I didn't read the directions and had sliced all but one in half before I saw that. So I did the last one the "right" way, but I liked the halved ones better.

Cheesy Jalapeños

Adapted from Epicurious (from a 2008 recipe from Gourmet)

8 fresh jalapeños

1 cup cheese, shredded (I used gouda the first time, mozzarella the second, both good.)

1/2 cup cream cheese

1/2 tsp paprika

1 egg, beaten

1/2 cup cornmeal

2 tsp oregano

1/4 cup frying oil (veg or safflower)

Christmas Tree Cheese Ball

Merry Christmas!!

Christmas Tree Cheese Ball

Idea from Betty Crocker - check that one out for their version

Make your favorite cheese ball recipe (I don't use a recipe - I like cheese balls with cream cheese, cheddar cheese, Worcestershire sauce, chili pepper and a little horseradish.)

Shape like a cone and chill. Before serving, decorate with toasted nuts, parsley and dried cranberries or other dried fruit. It's basically an art project so just be crafty. A few of the commenters on the Betty Crocker recipe even cut star tree toppers out of cheddar cheese.

Serve with crackers, pretzels or fresh veggies!

Pig Candy Devils on Horseback

Linda got a new job!! 

I had made normal Devils on Horseback (bacon-wrapped dates, sometimes stuffed with cheese, big '70s appetizer) for our Halloween party and I still had a lot of leftover dates. For a special new job treat I decided to upgrade with some brown sugar and chili pepper because pig candy is delicious. 

2 dates for each slice of bacon
brown sugar
chili pepper
toothpicks

Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip

In addition to Peanut Butter Pie, I was also responsible for bringing an appetizer to Mother's Day at my sister's.  My go-to appetizers are my mom's cheese ball and my paternal grandma Laverna's olive nut spread, which some day I'll post, but I wanted to do something different. My girl Raleigh (Rae's sister-in-law-to-be) planned to make a hot caprese dip, and I thought I'd compliment it with another hot dip.  Spinach Artichoke Dip it was, but I couldn't find a recipe I liked.  There were a couple good candidates including some interesting ones with Alfredo sauce, but I wanted to use mostly ingredients on hand.  Will all this in mind I did something I am still new to; I looked at a bunch of recipes and from them made my own.  Turned out pretty well with no major critiques from Momma D.  I served it with toasted mini pitas.

Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip
1 (10 oz) box frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1 can artichoke hearts, chopped (doesn't have to be a fancy jar)
1 cup shredded mozzarella
8 oz cream cheese 
2/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup mayo
1/3 cup grated Parmesan 
2 teaspoons garlic 
1/2 teaspoon salt

Scallion Pancakes

Twilly and I are out porch-sittting in the crazy nice weather! Actually, he is lying down right now, but every time a human or dog walks by he jumps up and wants to run away and become that human or dog's new friend instead of ours. 

I've made scallion pancakes a few times, but I think I've used a different recipe every time. I'm not really sure if I've liked any version much better than any other - what you're going for is nice flaky layers, and I've gotten that every time. I'm posting a combo of the different versions I've tried, which is what I made this time. I like to make a big batch of smallish pancakes and freeze them, frying them up as needed. This time I was a genius and started eating them with a runny fried egg on top, with Sriracha and soy sauce. It's pretty much perfect. I think I had it for breakfast three times that week.

Ricotta Cake

This is a lot like a normal pound cake but with a delicious secret ingredient - ricotta! The ricotta flavor is definitely noticeable but it's hard to guess what you're tasting. I made this loaf to bring to a morning meeting at work, and it was all gone by the end of the meeting. I love pound cake, and this is a surprisingly great variation.

Ricotta Cake

Slightly adapted from Sweet Bites

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

2½  teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

¾ cup (1 1/2  sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1½  cups fresh whole-milk ricotta

1½  cups granulated sugar

3 large eggs (at room temperature)

1 vanilla bean

1½  teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Feta & Chive Biscuits

You wouldn't think that I'd be in the mood for fluffy buttery biscuits after the amount of cookies I've been downing these days, but I was - and these biscuits are, not surprisingly, amazing. They're very easy to make and perfectly flavorful. I do think it's time to eat some salad now, though. But I also made a banana upside-down cake for later!

Feta & Chive Biscuits
Slightly adapted from Joy the Baker

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
3/4 cup unsalted butter, cold & cut into cubes
1 egg, beaten
3 tbsp cold water
3/4 cup sour cream, cold
1/3 cup chopped chives
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 egg, beaten for the egg wash
topping: coarse sea salt, cracked black pepper, smoky paprika

Cranberry Maple Cornbread

Last winter I learned how amazing fresh cranberries are for baking - I made those crumb bars and Michelle made great blondies. However, I didn't start using them until the very end of their season! 

This is the second time I've made this amazing skillet cornbread this month. I love cornbread, and this recipe, from Cookie + Kate, is my new favorite.

Today I've been watching Frontier House, one of those PBS series where families "go back in time" and live as authentically as possible in a certain time period. They use cast iron skillets! You can make this cornbread in a normal baking dish as well, though. My directions are written for baking it in a skillet, but you could easily adapt it for a baking dish. Speaking of adapting, this is the cornbread recipe I'll be using for future adaptations!

Frontier House!!

CRANBERRY MAPLE CORNBREAD

Slightly adapted from Cookie + Kate

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1 1/2 cup cornmeal
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tbsp coarse salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 eggs
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries
2 tbsp sugar (normal or turbinado) to top, optional

Baked Apples for Dessert

I spent a couple weeks in a mountain village when I studied abroad in Ecuador, and one of my favorite things about living there was preparing dinner with a couple different local women. The town, Principal, was "famous" for its apples, so we ate apples all the time - people would always give me them because I was a random white girl. One night for dinner we made baked apples for dessert, and I still think it's pretty much the ideal simple dessert.

 We scooped the core out, filled it in with sugar, topped them with butter and poured sparkling wine on top. Then they're roasted in the oven (or wrapped in foil over a fire) until the apples soften. 

Principal, Ecuador - close to Cuenca

The way I've done that kind of apple dessert since then is pretty much the same, but I haven't tried the sparkling wine on top again. My favorite topping is peanut butter! I also like sprinkling cinnamon on top or smushing a marshmallow on top of the butter.

BAKED APPLES FOR DESSERT

Adapted from the kitchens of Ecuadorian ladies

Per person/apple 

1 apple

2-3 tbsp sugar

thin slice of butter

Nasi kuning (Indonesian Yellow Rice)

This version of yellow rice would make a great side dish or quick lunch. I got the recipe from an Indonesian cooking book that I bought on sale at Half-Price Books!

I haven't been cooking many new recipes lately - I've actually been using previous blog posts to cook some favorites, like Honey Wheat Bread, Pierogie Pizza, and Breakfast Quesadillas (not that you need a recipe). Too busy reading Game of Thrones for much fancy cooking. I did make these chocolate oatmeal cookies, but I didn't write them up. They were good!

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NASI KUNING
From Indonesian: Exotic Dishes from Empal daging to Nasi goreng for Creative Cooking

1 tbsp vegetable oil 

1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground coriander 
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 3/4 cups long-grain rice
2 cups coconut milk
1 cup water
4 curry leaves (or 1 tsp curry powder)
1 cinnamon stick

Muhammara (Roasted Red Pepper Dip)

I came across this recipe while reading food blogs (no surprise there). I can't remember the exact place where I found it, but I found a similar recipe on the The Bojon Gourmet. We spread this dip on eggplant, bagels, jalapeno bread, etc. There are endless ways to consume it and it has such a unique flavor.

3 roasted red peppers

1 hot pepper, seeds removed (I used a Ho Chi Minh pepper and my hands are still burning)

1/2 cup lightly toasted walnuts
1 scant cup breadcrumbs
4 cloves garlic
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp ground cumin
1 pinch cayenne powder
1 tsp za'atar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

To roast your own red peppers: Halve the peppers and remove the seeds. Place the peppers, cut side down, on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes until the peel is blackened and the peppers are softened. After they are done baking, place them immediately into a ceramic bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil. In about 5-10 minutes when the peppers are cool enough to handle, pull off the thin, papery peel. (Directions courtesy of Laura who taught Brit and me how to do this)

To make the dip: Place all ingredients except olive oil in a food processor and process until smooth. Then add the olive oil slowly until you reach the desired consistency.

This is my breakfast of a bagel, some muhammara, a fried egg, and some jalapeno hot sauce (while reading Game of Thrones).

Chocolate-Dipped Potato Chips

When my mom, sister & I were in Frederick, MD, last weekend we wanted to buy a bag of chocolate-covered potato chips in this cute candy shop, but they were so expensive!! 

Well, we made them for my uncle's 52nd birthday party (along with both a pecan pie and a tomato pie that each filled their own huge baking sheet), and here's the recipe: melt chocolate, dip chip, let set. Salty and sweet!

Nutella Swirled Banana Bread

This banana bread is special. It's really more like a cake. Actually, I might throw some cream cheese frosting on this and call it a birthday cake next month.

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NUTELLA SWIRLED BANANA BREAD

From Sugar Plum Blog 

2 1/3 cups all purpose flour  
1 teaspoon baking powder 
1 teaspoon baking soda 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1 1/4 cups mashed ripe banana 
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 
1/2 cup granulated sugar 
1/2 cup packed brown sugar 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
2 large eggs 
1/2 cup Nutella 

Strawberry Scones!

So, I know strawberries aren't in season yet, BUT Meijer was having a crazy sale last week at $1 a package. I couldn't resist... so I got seven.

They typically freeze really well, and I make breakfast smoothies a lot, so Mark and I will pretty much be set on strawberries for a month or two. The containers are practically taking up half of the freezer.

I love making scones. They're surprisingly easy to make, and can be acceptable as a breakfast item, too. The recipe I found called for a cup of chopped strawberries, but hardly put a dent in the container. Following a quick Google search I found a recipe that uses Greek yogurt, so I went with that. You can see on the Chobani web site here.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup strawberry Greek yogurt (I used vanilla and it worked fine)

• 2 c all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting work surface

• ¼ c sugar plus 2 T for sprinkling

• 2 t baking powder

• ½ tsp baking soda

• ¼ tsp kosher salt

• 4 Tbsp cold unsalted butter cut into ¼-inch cubes

• 1 c chopped fresh strawberries

Peanut Butter and Honey Kettle Corn

I was very impressed by idea of mixing honey and PB with popcorn when I saw this recipe on Warm Vanilla Sugar. I figured the only way to make it better was to make it with kettle corn! But if you're using microwaved or air popped popcorn, you can stick with normal popcorn and I'm sure it will still be amazing.

PEANUT BUTTER AND HONEY KETTLE CORN

Adapted from Warm Vanilla Sugar

~1/2 or 3/4 cup popcorn kernels + 1 tbsp veg oil + 2 tbsp sugar + 1 tbsp salt = ~5-6 cups popped kettle corn

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 tsp vanilla

Baked Buffalo Chicken Rolls

By far the hardest part of this very simple recipe was finding egg roll wrappers at Giant Eagle today - turns out they keep them between the carrots and parsnips in the refrigerated produce section. My sister loves buffalo chicken, so I'm making these easy egg roll-type wraps to snack on during the Oscars. 

For more traditional egg rolls that are still baked instead of fried, try Michelle's veggie ones.

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BAKED BUFFALO CHICKEN ROLLS

From Stay for Dinner (check it out for good step-by-step pics) 

Makes 12-14 rolls

12 egg roll wrappers
1 cup cooked and shredded chicken
1/2 – 2/3 cup Frank’s Red Hot sauce
1 cup crumbled blue cheese
1 cup broccoli slaw or cole slaw (dry)
blue cheese dressing, for serving

If you're starting raw chicken, cook it - I boiled 2 boneless chicken breasts with a bay leaf for about 15 minutes. Cool until you can shred it with a couple forks or your fingers. Give some to your dog before it becomes too spicy. In a bowl, mix the chicken and the hot sauce until all chicken is saucy.

Preheat the oven to 400. Prepare a baking sheet by covering with parchment paper and putting a wire rack on top.