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Appetizers

The Veggie-Loving Cowboy’s Caviar (Recipe)

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The Veggie-Loving Cowboy's Caviar
You just gotta love irony, don’t you? Here I am, an avid cook/baker, and food blogger and one of my husband’s favorite things I make doesn’t even require a minute of cooking time.

Doesn’t even need a good nuking!

The boy loves Cowboy Caviar like it’s his job. I try to make some up as often as common sense and reason dictate (in spite of the fact he’d eat it every week, left to his own devices).

The cool thing about Cowboy Caviar is you can go all “free kitchen spirit” and throw in your own favorite flavors – as long as you stay reasonably close to the proportions and remember that everything does need to be able to ride on a tortilla chip.

The recipe below is how I made this particular batch – I honestly don’t think I’ve made two ever exactly the same. If this is too much jalapenos for you, cut the amount. The same goes for the salt – if you’d like more, add more – if you want less, add less. Just go slowly with the salt because you don’t want to overpower all the flavors going on.

Cowboy Caviar is a favorite “go to” recipe for Summer lunches and suppers but it’s also IDEAL for busy times of the year, like the holidays and Christmas when we’re (quite honestly) too busy to even think about cooking!

As I’m serving Cowboy Caviar, I like to drizzle a little extra EVOO on top – makes it shiny and, what can I say, I’m crazy about the flavor.

Pictured: My beloved Pioneer Woman bowls my daughter Brittany gave me for my birthday. They’re two of a three part set that are just gorgeous. They’re available in most Wal-Marts, as well as online.  Click here to find where you can buy them online.

The Veggie-Loving Cowboy's Caviar

Empire Bacon Mayo: Hold On to Something, Bacon Lovers

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Bacon Deviled Eggs with Empire Bacon Mayo

Bacon Deviled Eggs

The April Eat. Feed. Love. Taste Club Box included a jar of bacon-liciousness, Empire Bacon Mayo. One of the recipes included in the box was Bacon Deviled Eggs, which I made, like the very next day. They were out of this world.

The Empire Bacon Mayo is also great on sandwiches, of course, and gives a whole new meaning to BLTs and, as you’d imagine, egg salad sandwiches.

Empire Bacon Mayo
Empire Bacon Mayonnaise
Speaking of egg salad sandwiches, the beauties pictured here (if you have any left, that is) could go on to another life as egg salad.

I often say that a cook is only as good as the ingredients he/she uses. If you want to make the kind of meals that people will be talking about for weeks and even months – you have to arm yourself with the best ingredients you can round up.

But there’s more to it.  It’s all about catching people (and even yourself) off guard and mixing things up. Everyone loves originality – especially when it involves bacon! This mayo is simply wonderful and, quite frankly, is a lot of fun to use.

See Empire Bacon Mayo for more information. You can find the Bacon Deviled Eggs recipe on Eat. Feed. Love. Just click the link!

Bacon Deviled Eggs with Empire Bacon Mayo

Bacon Deviled Eggs with Empire Bacon Mayo

Read my April Eat. Feed. Love. Taste Club Box Review to find out how you can save 20% on this delicious mayonnaise!

Jalapeno Peppers Stuffed with Cream Cheese

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Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers

Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers, About to Go Into the Oven

Back when I could eat all the gluten and wheat my little heart desired, Jalapeno Poppers from Arby’s were an absolute addiction.

Truth is, I was always beyond obsessed with Arby’s in every way possible – unfortunately I haven’t been able to eat at one for over a year and a half (they’re surprisingly one of the worst restaurants at providing gluten free options).

Anyway, I’ve now come up with a couple of ways to satisfy my cravings. I could conceivably fry stuffed jalapeno peppers, using gluten free flour and cornmeal – and they’d be fantastic – but my favorite way to satisfy that delicious cream cheese meets jalapeno heat craving is simply to bake them.

It’s easy, delicious, and much healthier than frying them.

Jalapenos and Asiago

Jalapenos and Sargento Medium Asiago “Tastings”

This isn’t any sort of product placement or plug, I just simply LOVE Sargento’s “Tastings” and highly recommend them. They’re the ideal size for keeping on hand in the refrigerator. I always use them up without any being wasted. I always have Asiago and Parmesan in the fridge and mix it up with other varieties as well.

I also list Philadelphia Cream Cheese in the ingredients below – again, I’m not trying to sound like a commercial. It’s simply one of the brands I’m insanely loyal to.

These stuffed jalapeno peppers make delicious appetizers and would be beautiful for game day, Christmas, or any time you want a little pop and personality with your meal.

Gluten Free Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers

12 large Jalapenos
4 oz Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened
4 oz grated Parmesan, Asiago, or Romano cheese (each works beautifully)
2 TBS chopped Italian Parsley
Salt and Pepper to taste

  1. Pre-Heat oven to 425 degrees.
  2. Going lengthwise (top to bottom, the length of each pepper) – slice off the top quarter of each jalapeno. Scrape out the seeds. You’re making little vessels that you’ll fill with the cheese mixture.
  3. Finely chop up the removed thirds from six of the peppers (use all of them if you can take the heat!).
  4. In a mixing bowl, combine: the reserved chopped pepper, cream cheese, grated Asiago (or Parmesan or Romano) cheese, finely chopped parsley, and salt/pepper.
  5. Fill the peppers with the cheese mixture and arrange on a baking sheet. As you can see in the picture at the top, I use Parchment Paper Pre-Cut Baking Sheets (something I’ve fallen completely in love with – they make clean up SO much easier) – but you can certainly make these without parchment paper.
  6. Bake 15 minutes.

I served mine with store-bought Sweet Chili Sauce and never regretted the decision for a single second. However, they are outrageously delicious on their own and actually don’t require any sauce.

Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers

Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers, About to Go Into My Mouth!

Bacon-Wrapped, Cream Cheese Stuffed Jalapenos Recipe (with a Vegetarian Option)

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Bacon Wrapped Cream Cheese Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers

Bacon. Cream Cheese. Jalapenos.  Enough said, right?

These oven-baked little beauties are as delicious as they are easy to make. They’re also easy on the budget – something else we’re all looking for these days.

14 jalapeno peppers
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
7 bacon strips
berry sauce or ranch dressing (optional)

First of all, be careful when working with jalapeno peppers. If you want to be entirely safe, use disposable gloves. Handling the inside of a jalapeno can burn your skin – and if you transfer the oils to your eyes…. AGONY! Take extra precautions and don’t touch your face, whatever you do.

Can you tell that this gal has been there, done that?

For Bacon-Wrapped/Cream Cheese-Stuffed Jalapenos

  1. Cut a slit in the peppers – lengthwise (pictured above). Remove the seeds and membranes and discard.
  2. Spread about a teaspoonful of softened cream cheese into each pepper.
  3. Cut bacon strips in half and partially cook in a skillet. You want them to be pliable, so be sure not to overcook them.
  4. Wrap each cheese stuffed pepper with bacon and secure with a toothpick.
  5. Place in an ungreased baking dish and bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 20 – 30 minutes.  The longer you bake the peppers, the milder they’ll taste. If you have plenty of peppers to spare, I’d suggest testing one after 20 minutes, then (if that’s too hot) again at 30 minutes.  They’ll actually be fine cooked for 45 minutes.

Serve either by themselves or with a little dish of ranch dressing.  The bacon wrapped jalapenos drizzled with Ranch dressing are extra pretty and taste fantastic. The ranch helps tone down the heat of these little guys.

Vegetarian Alternative? Just skip the part about wrapping the peppers in pork shawls. Place them in the oven, as is.  Either serve plain or use a simplistic berry sauce like the one described below the picture.

Cream Cheese Stuffed Jalapenos with Berry Sauce Drizzled Over Them

For the vegetarian (or baconless) version, I like to make a really simple little “Berry Sauce.” For the peppers shown here, I heated 4 TBS Red Pepper Jelly and 1 TBS Raspberry Preserves until I achieved the consistency I needed for drizzling.  You can combine basically whatever fruit preserves you have on hand with red pepper jelly – I just prefer the sweetness of raspberry preserves.  Drizzled across the top, it makes an already impressive and pretty dish even more so.

This method creates a sauce that will thicken FAST, so drizzle asap. If it begins to get too thick to drizzle.. which it will… sit your bottle in a cup of hot water.

Cream Cheese Stuffed Jalapenos

 

If you’re feeling adventurous, here’s a Copycat Recipe for Arby’s Bronco Berry Sauce from Top Secret Recipes!

Kale Chips: Simple Recipe for a Healthy Snack You’ll Love

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Kale

Kale, Waiting for the Chips to Drop

I’m a HUGE fan of kale – in smoothies, salads, pasta dishes, soups.. basically anywhere and everywhere I can sneak it in. One of my favorite ways to enjoy the tasty, inexpensive, and nutritious vegetable is Kale Chips. Even though I love kale madly, when I first heard about the concept of Kale Chips, I can’t say I was overly enthusiastic (or hopeful).

Fortunately, I was pleasantly surprised and have made Kale Chips countless times since.

You’ll love the simplicity of the recipe and… I promise.. the flavor.

What you’ll need for the Kale Chips:

  • Start with a beautiful bunch of curly kale (like the one pictured above). Wash the leaves and pat them dry.
  • 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 – 2 teaspoons Rachael Ray’s pink Himalayan Salt (or Kosher salt, table salt, sea salt… the pink Himalayan’s simply my own personal favorite)

Pre-Heat the oven to 350 degrees. After the kale has been washed and dried, cut the leaves into pieces. The size is up to you, but I generally aim for “Dorito” size or a little smaller.

VERY IMPORTANT: Cut around the thick spine that runs down the length of the leaves. I’ve yet to find any use for these spines. I throw them out in the yard for rabbits, racoons, and possums. They’re a hit with the critter crowd.

Put the prepared kale in a large bowl and add the tablespoon of EVOO.  When you see the impressive amount of kale and the comparatively small amount of EVOO, you’ll probably think, “She’s nuts, it’s going to take a lot more than this!” – but once you add the oil and (using your hands), coat the leaves, you’ll find that the tablespoon is sufficient.

Lay the pieces of kale on a large baking sheet, in a single layer – make sure no one’s riding piggy back on anyone! Evenly salt each piece.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes. Be sure to keep a close eye on them – they’ll burn without a moment’s notice.

These delicious kale chips will amaze you. They’re so good! The crispiness, the hint of saltiness, and the unexpectedness of them will make them popular with everyone, even kids.

Fun Ways to Enjoy Kale Chips:

  • I like to keep healthy snacks at the end of the kitchen bar – someplace everyone can enjoy a quick and tasty snack. Kale chips are ideal.
  • When watching tv, we all get the munchies, don’t we?! Kale chips are tasty and fun to eat.
  • Take them along on car trips to keep French fries from tempting you on the road.
  • They’re a delicious, healthier option to traditional salad or baked potato toppings.

As with everything you make in the kitchen, be sure to experiment with different flavors and additions. Along with the salt, you could also add white sesame seeds, paprika, cayenne pepper, black pepper (I love black pepper on kale chips), garlic, or even Parmesan cheese. The possibilities are endless.  When getting creative, though, I’d highly recommend just doing a few at a time the first time through.

Kale Chips

Kale Chips: Not the prettiest girl at the dance, but what a personality!

You can find quite a few Kale Cookbooks (Amazon link) on Amazon. This superfood is a lot more versatile than most people think!

Fresh Salsa Verde Recipe

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Salsa Verde on a CedarLane Sweet Corn Tamale

Salsa Verde is Delicious on SO Many Different Things

You’ll frequently see salsa recipes and salsa love on this food blog. Why? This food blogger is, how do you say, freaking obsessed with salsa. I mean, seriously, there are so many variations and each tastes fresh and fabulous.  What’s more, salsa can be as healthy as you want it to be. Mediterranean cooking is known to be incredibly healthy and some of the main components of a Mediterranean Diet are right there in salsa: Tomatoes, garlic, peppers, onions..

Nutritional expert Joy Bauer even suggests using salsa as a substitute for creamy dressings on sandwiches.  Been there, done that, and called it Heavenly. I even replace salad dressing with salsa a most of the time – it ups the vegetable ante while keeping out unwanted fats and calories.  I can’t wait to find tons of ways to enjoy the extraordinary Salsa Verde recipe below.

It’s from KRUPS, no wonder it’s a knock-out.

Fresh Salsa Verde Recipe from KRUPS

1 1/2 pounds tomatillos, husks removed
1 Serrano chili, more or less, optional
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
1/2 cup freshly chopped cilantro leaves
1 cup chopped white onion

Rinse the tomatillos under cold water. Put them in a pot and cover them with water. Bring to a boil, over medium heat. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered, until their color has changed and they are cooked and soft but not falling apart, about 10 minutes.

Add the tomatillos to the blender along with the chili, the garlic clove and a teaspoon of salt. Puree until smooth. Stir in the chopped cilantro and onion. Taste for salt and add more, if necessary. Pour into a serving bowl.