Pomegranate Guacamole

I'm a guacamole addict and while you may think of guacamole as a summer thing, I think of it as a year round thing. In fact, pomegranate guacamole is my favorite especially around the holidays. The red and green colors just pop and are so festive. I think its a perfect holiday appetizer because its light and fresh and is the perfect contrast to all those heavy delicious holiday meals that we love.  

Pomegranates are in season right now which makes them easily accessible, but they can be quite a pain for those who lack patience such as myself. Trying to dig out all of the seeds can be especially frustrating and time consuming, not to mention pomegranates stain your hands bloody red. So here is a little trick...check out the section of your grocery store where they have pre-cut fruit to see if they have ready to eat pomegranate seeds. Yes, it might be a little more expensive but if you've ever tried to de-seed a pomegranate before, I think you would agree that its worth it. Otherwise, goodluck.

Ingredients:

•  3 avocados
• 1 cup pomegranate seeds
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/2 of a red onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1/2 jalapeno, deseeded and diced
• 1 tsp salt 
• 1 tsp pepper

Recipe:

•  Halve and pit the avocados. Spoon avocado into a bowl.
• Add 1/2 of the pomegranate seeds, lime juice, red onion, garlic, cilantro, jalapeno, salt and pepper to the avocado. Stir gently.
• Place guacamole in a serving bowl and add rest of the pomegranate seeds on top. 
• Serve with chips

Game Day Nachos

A quick snack was needed for game day/sunday fun day so I decided to whip up some nachos since I'm the nacho queen.  I shared my cheese recipe below. It's super easy. I use it for a lot of different recipes including mac and cheese. I'm a cheese lover. Can you tell? Put down the velveeta people and try out my recipe. You'll thank me later. 

Ingredients:

• 1 bag shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 block gruyere cheese (its a little bit on the expensive side but SO worth it)
• 1-1/2 cup whole milk
• 3 tbsp butter
• 3 tbsp flour
• chips
• your favorite nacho toppings: salsa, sour cream, olives, tomatoes, jalapeño 

Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Melt the butter in a sauce pan 
• Whisk in the flour
• Gradually add milk and stir until there are no clumps
• Add cheese. I didn't measure exactly how much cheese I used. One bag of shredded cheese and half the block of gruyere should be enough, but add as much as you like.
• Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray
• Spread out the chips evenly on the baking sheet
• Pour cheese over the chips
• Bake the chips for about 5-8 mins
• Enjoy the nachos with your favorite toppings

Kielbasa (Brown Sugar Glazed)

I found my new go-to party recipe thanks to Pinterest.

It makes the perfect appetizer..and a delicious one at that.

I could have eaten the entire batch myself. 

Oh..and did I mention its easy to put together!?!

Throw it in the crockpot, get the rest of your party together, and you're ready to go!

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. fully cooked kielbasa sausage, cut into 1" pieces
• 1 cup brown sugar 
• 1 cup  applesauce
•  2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard 
• 1-1/2 tbsp minced garlic

Recipe:

• Combine the kielbasa with brown sugar, applesauce, garlic, and mustard in a crockpot.
• Cover and cook on high for 2-3 hours until heated.

Bacon Wrapped Tater Tots

Today I was looking through my pictures and came across the one below.

 I made this appetizer months ago and it was a huge hit. I can't believe that I forgot to post it.

It's nothing fancy....

(the original recipe doesn't call it "tasty trashy taters" for nothing..)

It's not healthy...

(it's fried, oozing with cheese, AND wrapped with bacon and sugar...)

But it sure does taste good thanks to the salty bacon and sweet brown sugar! 

In my opinion salty and sweet is the best combo.

This would be PERFECT for the next time the man in your life invites all his buddies over.

Not to be sexist, but this just screams man food for me.

It's probably because my boyfriend loves anything that is wrapped in bacon haha. 

I'll certainly be saving this recipe for football season.

Football, beer, and trashy taters...

Sounds good to me!

Recipe Source: The Chew

Ingredients:

• 1/2 bag tater tots (thaw to room temperature)
• 8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese (cut into tiny blocks-about 1/4 inch)
• frank's hot sauce
• 16 ounces of bacon strips (cut strips in half)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar

Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Line a cookie sheet with foil.
• Create an assembly line to make the tater tots:
• First, cut a small whole in the tater and place a cube of cheese in the opening.
• Dash tater with hot sauce. 
• Wrap the tater with bacon and secure with a toothpick.
•  Roll the bacon bundle in brown sugar. 
• Place on baking sheet. 
• Repeat with each tater.
• Bake for 10 minutes. 
• Flip tater tots over and bake for a remaining 5-10 minutes.

On another note, this is my first week co-hosting Tasty Tuesdays over at Anyonita Nibbles.

Link up below!
 

Caprese Dip

Don't you love it when you have a craving for something and all the ingredients are already in the fridge? This happened yesterday when I went to go make some dip for the superbowl. I've been seeing caprese dip recipes all over pinterest and have been dying to try it! I'm so glad I finally had all the ingredients! Needless to say I loved it. It honestly tasted like white pizza. It was so yummy and easy to make!

Recipe Source:  US Masala

Ingredients:

• 2 cups sliced tomato
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 block of cream cheese (8oz)
• 10 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp of grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup roughly chopped basil
• salt and pepper
• a pinch of dried oregano
• olive oil 
• french bread

Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place the sliced tomato on the baking sheet. Drizzle  with olive oil and sprinkle with pepper and salt.
• Bake for 12 minutes. Take out of oven and set aside.
• Mix cream cheese, garlic, mozzarella, 1/4 cup of parmesan, basil, and oregano together until well combined
• Place the tomatoes on the bottom of a baking dish. Top tomatoes with the cheese mixture. Sprinkle the top with the remaining Parmesan cheese
• Bake for 20 minutes and serve with french bread.

Superbowl Party Recipes

Getting ready for Superbowl Sunday?! I'm a little bummed that my home team didn't make it this year, but that doesn't mean I still can't enjoy the food and fun! These are some of my favorite recipes from the year. They are awesome party recipes and perfect for game day. Links are below for the recipes! (Bigger pictures are included with the original posts!)

Left Column of Pictures (From Top to Bottom)
Cream Cheese and Chili Mexican Dip
Pizza Dip
Corona Ritas (if you want to kick you beer up a notch!)
Mini Taco Cups
Loaded Baked Potato Dip
Oreo Cookie Stuffed Brownies

Right Column of Pictures (From Top to Bottom)
Jalapeno Popper Wonton Pockets
Baked Mozzarella Sticks
Buffalo Chicken Queso
Three Layered Mexican Dip 
French Dip Bites
Oven Baked "Fried" Pickles
Baked Jalapeno Poppers 

Don't forget my awesome football cupcakes too!!
 

Update and Cranberry Jalapeno Dip

Well I am back!!! It has been almost 3 weeks since I wrote up a post. I've missed my blog! So much has happened these past few weeks. Don't worry, I've had my share of fun too! Overall, it was a great month. It was so nice to have a few days off last week to spend time with my family and friends. I ended the week in Stowe Vermont to celebrate my friend Sarah's birthday. It was beautiful up there!

 We even ended up going to the Ben and Jerry's factory which was so much fun!

While we were there, we got to sample Jimmy Fallon's icecream: Late Night Snack. It is a vanilla based icecream with a caramel swirl and get this...chocolate covered potato chips...WHAT?! I know that sounds crazy but it totally works. Its just like chocolate covered pretzels...the salty and sweet combo is amazing.

On Thanksgiving I tried this new dip. It is delicious and it is PERFECT for the holidays. The cream cheese balances perfectly with the sweet and tangy cranberries. Don't be afraid of the spice! Even though it has jalopenos in it, it is not spicy at all. As a heat lover I may even try to add another jalopeno in it to give it a kick.

I loved this dip so much that I'm planning on making it again for Christmas. You'll want to make this for your next holiday party. Everyone will LOVE it.

Source: www.instructables.com

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces fresh cranberries
• 4-5 green onions, chopped 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced
• 1/2 cup sugar 
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• fresh lemon juice from one lemon
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 (8 oz) package cream cheese
• crackers or tortilla chips for serving

Recipe:

• Pulse the cranberries in a food processor until coarsely chopped.
• Add the green onions, cilantro, jalapeno, sugar, cumin, lemon juice and salt to the cranberries. Pulse until combined.
• Transfer the cranberry mixture to a bowl and refrigerate for a few hours so flavors can blend together.
• Serve the cranberry mixture on top of cream cheese with your favorite crackers.

(Note: You'll probably have more cranberry mixture left over. I made extra because its so good I can eat it on its own..almost like a cranberry salsa..yum)

Caprese Skewers with Balsamic Reduction

Between GFC and my email subscribers I've hit well over 100 followers. When I started this blog, I completely underestimated the sense of community that can exist in the cyber world. I've met so many nice people, and I'm looking forward to meet more of you. Thanks to all :) This has definitely been a crazy year and I'm so glad that I made the decision to start this blog and document it. All these recipes are connected to memories with family and friends which is nice to reflect back on from time to time. 

I made these skewers for a family party this weekend. The recipe was all over pinterest so I thought that I would try it out. It is pretty basic and can be made ahead of time which is helpful when things are busy. The balsamic reduction which I drizzled on top is a tad tricky, but I think I have the technique down. I didn't get a picture of the balsamic reduction but it has the same look and texture as maple syrup. I drizzled it over the entire platter right before I served it.

Ingredients:

• Tooth picks
• Cherry tomatoes
• Basil
• Mozzarella Balls (Try to get the tiny ones)
• 1 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tsp brown sugar

Recipe:

• Cut basil into small pieces
• Place tomato, basil pieces, and mozzarella balls on a toothpick. I decided to put 2 tomatoes, 2 pieces of basil, and one mozzarella ball on a toothpick, but you can choose to put on whatever you like based on your taste. Repeat until you have the desired amount of skewers.
• Place balsamic vinegar and brown sugar in a sauce pan over medium-high heat.
• Bring to a boil.
• Simmer for about 3-4 minutes. 
• Take sauce pan off the heat (it will continue to thicken after you take it off the heat).
• Wait for balsamic reduction to cool. 
• Once you are ready to serve, drizzle the balsamic reduction over skewers. 

This website gives you a good visual of what the balsamic reduction should look like throughout the process: Cook Think

Baked Jalapeno Poppers

I love game day! Don't fool yourself, its not because I'm a huge football fan. I love game day because of the food....that's really it. Ok...and the beer too....and hanging out with friends. Really, I like everything about game day except the game...hahah.  I'm one of those people that pretend to like sports, but have no idea of whats going on. For example, yesterday I was trying to prove to my brother that I liked football and I told him that touchdowns were 12 points. He laughed at me. For those of you who are as football stupid as me..touchdowns are actually 6 points...oops.

Whether you are a football fan or not, here is an amazing and easy recipe for jalopeno poppers. They are delicious! The best part is that there is no messy breading involved. All you have to do is throw them in the oven and bake them. Stuffing the peppers can be a little tedious, so you can even stuff the peppers a day before the game.

Recipe Source: Kraft Recipes

Ingredients:

• 18 fresh jalapenos (the recipe will actually make 36 jalapeno poppers because you'll be cutting the jalapenos in half)
• 4 oz cream cheese
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 2 tbsp finely chopped onion
• 2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro

Recipe:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Cut jalopenos in half, and remove all the seeds and veins. This is where all the heat is so make sure you clean them out really well.
• Combine cream cheese, cheddar cheese, bacon, onion, and cilantro.
• Spray a baking sheet with non stick cooking spray.
• Stuff each jalopeno with the cream cheese mixture and place on baking sheet.
• Bake for 10 mins.

Jalopeno Popper Wonton Pockets

Today was one of those days where I was craving food ALL DAY LONG. Its probably because I spent most of the day on pinterest. Note to self: Pinterest is always a bad idea when you're hungry.

I found the following recipe and altered it a little bit to make it more like a jalopeno popper pocket. It's delicious!! In the near future, I think I may try the same technique and make homemade crab rangoons with it.

This recipe makes 8 wontons.

Recipe Source: Heart Mind & Seoul

Ingredients:

• 4 ounces light cream cheese
• 2 tbsp chopped canned jalapeno pepper
• pinch of paprika
• 8 wonton wrappers 
• non-stick cooking spray
• sweet chili sauce

Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Mix together cream cheese, chopped jalapeno pepper, and paprika 
• Spray a cupcake tin with non stick cooking spray
• Press a wonton wrapper into the bottom of each cup
• Fill each wonton wrapper with a spoonful of cream cheese mixture
• Fold wonton wrapper edges into the middle of the cup to create a pocket
• Spray the top of each wonton pocket with non stick cooking spray
• Bake for 10 minutes
• Serve wonton pockets with sweet chili sauce

Homemade Baked Mozzarella Sticks

Sometimes I surprise myself. I knew that these mozzarella sticks would probably be delicious but I had no idea they would be AMAZING. My mom said it was the best thing I had ever made...EVER. I honestly thought they were way better than any mozzarella sticks I've had at a restaurant. These mozarella sticks aren't even fried!! AKA you can eat twice as much.... Ok maybe not, but I still did haha.

Recipe Source: Skinny Taste

Ingredients:

• 12 sticks mozzarella cheese sticks
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 4 tbsp flour
• 10 tbsp Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
• 10 tbsp panko crumbs
• 4 tsp parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp dried parsley
• non stick cooking spray
• tomato sauce

Recipe:

• Cut all cheese sticks in half to make 24 pieces.
• Place cheese in freezer. 
• Place the beaten egg in one bowl, and the flour in a second bowl.
• Combine italian breadcrumbs, panko crumbs, parmesan cheese, and dried parsley in a third bowl.
• To make mozarella sticks, place each frozen cheese stick first in flour bowl, then in egg bowl, then in bread crumbs bowl. Repeat this process with all the cheese sticks. Once the cheese sticks are coated, place on a baking sheet with wax paper.
• Note: You will have extra breadcrumbs, flour, and egg mixture left over. 
• Place mozzarella sticks in freezer for about 20 minutes, or until frozen. 
• When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Spray a baking sheet with non stick cooking spray. Place frozen mozarella sticks on tray. Spray tops of mozarella sticks with cooking spray.
• Bake for about 4 to 5 minutes. Flip mozzarella sticks and bake for an additional 4 to 5 minutes.
• Serve with your favorite tomato sauce.

Easiest Dip Ever! Cream Cheese and Chili Mexican Dip

I have been making my mexican three layered dip forever. Cream cheese on the bottom, chili in the middle, and shredded cheddar cheese on top. Its simple and easy! I blogged about it here. Someone asked me if it was the easiest dip that I had ever made. I thought it was, until I made this dip today. 

This dip has only TWO ingredients in it. Beat that! All you have to do is simply mix the ingredients together and heat it for 5 minutes. This dip is definitely going to be my new go to recipe, and I am sure my friends will not be disappointed.

I added some chili powder and red pepper flakes for an extra kick. If you happen to not like spicy food or you don't have any spices on hand, this dip would taste delish just with chili and cheese on its own.

Recipe Source: The Girl Who Ate Everything

Ingredients:

• 6 ox cream cheese
• 15 oz can of chili (I used Hormel with beans)
• 2 tsp red paper flakes
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• tortilla chips

Recipe:

• Place chili and cream cheese in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 3 minutes.
• Mix ingredients together until cream cheese and chili is combined and add spices
• Microwave for an additional 2 minutes
• Serve with chips

Buffalo Chicken Queso

  

I love anything with buffalo hot sauce in it. When we had this dip in Portsmouth, I knew I had to recreate it at home. I absolutely love cream cheese dips because they are so easy! This one is unique because it actually has shredded chicken it! 

Ingredients:

• 1 (8 oz) package cream cheese
• 1 cup shredded chicken 
• 1/2 cup buffalo sauce
• 1-1/2 cups mozzarella cheese
• Tortilla chips

Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Mix together cream cheese, chicken, buffalo sauce, and 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.
• Spray a baking dish with non stick cooking spray. 
• Place cream cheese mixture in dish.
• Top cream cheese with remaining mozarella cheese.
• Bake for approx 15 minutes.
• Serve with tortilla chips.

Fourth of July in Portsmouth NH

I hope everyone enjoyed their day off yesterday for the holiday! I was slightly sad that Fourth of July was in the middle of the week this year, but it broke up the week perfectly. Its kinda nice knowing that tomorrow is the weekend already!!

Usually Dan and I end of going away for the fourth and make a long weekend out of it. Since we only had a day off this year, we decided to take a day trip instead. We met a couple of our friends up in Portsmouth New Hampshire for the day. Portsmouth is beautiful! It is right on the harbour and has tons of fun shops and resturants.

We started the day off by having lunch at a Mexican resturant called Poco's right on the harbour. We were able to sit on the roof deck so we had a perfect view of the water and the tug boats (which Dan was pretty excited about...I was more focused on the food but don't tell him that).

To drink I tried the Pink Lady Mojito...a mojito with grapefruit vodka..delicious!

 

For an appetizer we had the buffalo chicken queso. This was definitely a hit. It tasted like it was made with cream cheese, chicken, mozzarella cheese, and buffalo sauce. It was so creamy and delicious that I've decided to try to recreate it this weekend. Fingers crossed that it comes out just as good!!

For my lunch I had scallop tacos. The scallops were fresh and delicious. They were served with a mango salsa and rice and beans. YUM! 

We spent the rest of the day walking around, going into shops, and checking out the harbour. It was such a beautiful day! We lucked out with gorgeous weather.

And of course we stopped for ice cream. I tried the salted caramel chocolate pretzel icecream. It was a caramel based ice cream with actual pretzels in it. While I think this has the potential to be an awesome flavor, I wasn't that impressed with this particular ice cream. It was more caramel flavor than anything. 

We also went to the redhook brewery for a tour. While the tour was pretty short, the free samples made it worth it! My favorite was the pilsner and wit.

I thought some of their beer tap handles were pretty cool. My favorites were the garden house and grill tongs. 

We ended our day on a boat tour around the harbor. It was the perfect ending to our day!