French Onion Dip

 From my favorite, Alton Brown.

 

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups diced onions
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups sour cream
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:
In a saute pan over medium heat add oil, heat and add onions and salt. Cook the onions until they are caramelized, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Mix the rest of the ingredients, and then add the cooled onions. Refrigerate and stir again before serving.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/onion-dip-from-scratch-recipe/index.html?oc=linkback

Rosemary Pecans

Recipe from Real Simple.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups pecan halves
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary

Directions: 
Heat oven to 375° F. Melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir in the sugar, cayenne pepper, and ½ teaspoon salt. Add the pecans and toss to coat. Transfer the pecans to a rimmed baking sheet and arrange in a single layer. Bake, stirring occasionally, until toasted, 10 to 12 minutes. Add the rosemary and toss to combine. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Jack-o-Lantern Cheese Ball

Perfect for Halloween, recipe courtesy of Cooking Channel.

Ingredients:

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
3 tablespoons minced onions
1 teaspoon jalapeno, minced (without seeds, unless you want it spicy, then include the seeds)
2 teaspoons cumin
2 tablespoons prepared salsa (your favorite kind will do)
1 nice-looking stem of a bell pepper (reserve the pepper for another use)
12 Doritos, original flavor, crushed
Black bean chips, for serving

Directions:
Put all ingredients into the bowl of a mixer, and blend thoroughly. Form into a pumpkin-like shape, and refrigerate until firm, about two hours. Before serving, roll the cheese ball in crushed Doritos. Arrange the cheese ball on a plate, and press the bell pepper stem into the top — it should like a mini pumpkin stem.

You can serve the pumpkin as-is, or break off pieces of black bean chips to form a Jack-o’-lantern face. The chip pieces should adhere to the pumpkin cheese ball if you gently press them onto it, but you can also stick them on using a very small daub of the cheese ball mixture on the back of the black bean chip features; this will act like glue. Serve the cheese ball with black bean chips, crackers or crudites.

Sour Cream and Roasted Red Pepper Dip

Recipe courtesy of Weight Watchers.

Ingredients:
15 oz roasted red peppers, packed in water, drained (about 2 cups)
1 cup(s) fat-free sour cream
1/2 cup(s) basil, fresh
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground, or to taste

Directions:
In a blender, combine roasted peppers, sour cream, basil and garlic powder; puree until smooth. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

Greek-Style Grilled Feta

Recipe from my Grilling and More cookbook. The original recipe is for 8 servings (3 slices per serving) - I made 8 slices total, so will reflect that in my recipe. Also, I bought a Mediterranean flavored feta, which already had spices mixed into it. If using regular feta, sprinkle oregano and garlic or black pepper on top of the feta before cooking.

Ingredients:
1 package (8 oz) feta cheese, sliced in half horizontally
8 (1/4 inch) slices small onion
1/2 green pepper, thinly sliced
8 slices (1/2 inch) French bread

Directions:
Spray 2 14-inch-long sheets of foil with nonstick cooking spray. Cut feta into 8 slices. Place onion slices in center of foil and top with feta slices. I put 4 on each piece of foil. Sprinkle with pepper slices (I put 3 small pieces on each).

Seal foil by bringing the two long sides of foil together above the food. Fold down the foil in a series of locked folds, then fold the short ends up and over again. Press folds firmly to seal the foil packet.

Place the foil packets on the grill upside down and grill on covered grill for 15 minutes. Turn packets over, grill another 15 minutes. Place pieces of bread on grill for about 1-2 minutes per side.

Open packets carefully and serve atop slices of bread.

5 Layer Dip

A truly delicious dip, original recipe from Ellie Krieger. I was unable to find ripe avocados day of - so I added the Nonfat Sour Cream to the mix, which I think should be there even with the avocados! I also used jarred salsa instead of the fresh tomatoes used in the original. The original also doesn't use the oven, but I put the dip in the oven to melt the cheese and to ensure the dip was warm when my guests arrived.

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (15.5-ounce) can black beans, preferably low-sodium, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon minced chipotle pepper in adobo
4 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups corn kernels (10-ounce box frozen corn)
1 cup sour cream
1 cup jarred salsa (I used Tostitos)
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallion
3/4 cup shredded extra-sharp Cheddar

Directions:
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook until they soften, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 2 minutes more.

Put half of the onion mixture into a food processor with the black beans, chipotle pepper, 2 tablespoons of the lime juice, cumin, water and salt. Puree until smooth. Set aside.

Add the corn to the skillet with the remaining onion mixture and cook for about 3 minutes.

Spread the black bean dip into the bottom of an 8 by 8 glass baking or serving dish. Top with the corn mixture, spreading it out to form a single layer over the beans, repeat with the sour cream, then the salsa. Top with cheese. Put in oven at 350 degrees for a few minutes til cheese melts. Sprinkle sliced scallions on top and serve.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

A wonderful Cooking Light recipe that I first tasted at Justin's Aunt's house over Xmas and made for Justin's birthday party this past weekend!

Ingredients:
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 (8-ounce) block 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
1 (8-ounce) block fat-free cream cheese, softened
1/2 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry
1 (13.5-ounce) package baked tortilla chips (about 16 cups)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine 1 1/2 cups mozzarella, sour cream, 2 tablespoons Parmesan, and next 6 ingredients (2 tablespoons Parmesan through spinach) in a large bowl, and stir until well-blended. Spoon mixture into a 1 1/2-quart baking dish. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup mozzarella and 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown. Serve with tortilla chips.

Baked Ravioli Canapes

No picture...oops!

Ingredients:
30 fresh or frozen cheese ravioli
1/4 cup nonfat or low-fat Italian salad dressing
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1 1/2 teaspoons salt-free Italian herb seasoning mix
1 cup bottled low-sodium marinara sauce for dipping, warmed.

Directions:
1. Cook the ravioli as the package label directs, omitting the salt and oil. Drain in a colander and rinse under gently running cold water until cold. Drain and place 1 inch apart on parchment paper-lined baking sheets.

2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Mix the bread crumbs and seasoning mix together in a small bowl.

3. Lightly brush the top of each ravioli with dressing, sprinkle with the bread crumbs, turn, and repeat on the other side.

4. Bake the ravioli for 4 minutes, turn, and bake until crisp, 4 to 5 minutes longer. Serve with the sauce for dipping.

Cheesy Spinach Coils

Next time I try these, I might try puff pastry instead of the pizza dough, which got a bit rough and hard to eat in my opinion. Also would be good dipped in tomato sauce, mmm.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed

1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon cayenne

1 (10-ounce) package refrigerated pizza dough

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a small nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, add the onion, and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Scrape into a medium bowl and add the spinach, cheese, lemon juice, nutmeg, and cayenne and mix well.

2. Press the dough into a 12-by 14-inch rectangle. Cut in half crosswise and spread each half with half the spinach mixture. Roll up, starting from the long side, and press the edge of the dough to the roll to seal. Pinch each end of rolled dough. Cover and refridgerate for 30 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Cut each roll crosswise into 12 slices, and place the coils cut side down on a baking sheet.

4. Bake until the dough is cooked, 15-18 minutes.

Chimichurri

Ingredients:

1 bunch flat leaf parsley
8 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 lemon wedge (juice of)
1 tablespoon diced red onions
1 teaspoon dried oregano (optional)
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt


Directions:

Pulse parsley in processor to chop. Add remaining ingredients and blend.

UPDATE:
I made Chimichurri again with a new recipe, and it was vastly improved, in my opinion.


Ingredients:
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
2 tightly packed cups parsley (preferably Italian)
3 teaspoons best quality dried oregano
2 teaspoons best quality dried thyme
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
1/2-1 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
3/4 cup red wine vinegar plus 1 tablespoon water
3/4 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
1) In a food processor or blender, grind the garlic and the herbs.
2) Grind the bay and the peppercorns in a spice grinder, and add to the herb mixture with the crushed red pepper and vinegar.
3) Add the olive oil and gently mix to blend; DO NOT OVERPROCESS. Sauce should be slightly thickened.
4) Let stand several hours or refrigerate and serve at room temperature.

Yield 2 cups.