Horshradish Cheddar and Smoked Turkey Quesadillas with Dill Mustard Aoili

This was a midnight snack the other night that turned out SOOO good! Wow. There is really nothing Mexican about this quesadilla at all. The flavors were so different and yummy. I love to get my sliced meats and cheese at Basha's because they have Boar's Head, and I havent found any other meats or cheeses that taste better. The Boar's Head horshraddish cheddar is really good. Its got a kick to it that will clear out your sinuses!! I made up the mustard aioli based on things I like on sandwiches with turkey and cheddar, mustard, mayo and pickles.

2 12-inch flour tortillas
8 slices of horseraddish cheddar cheese
4 slices of turkey lunch meat
1 Tbsp mayo
1/2 tsp mustard
1/2 tsp dill pickle relish
chopped fresh dill (just a little)

Place the 2 cheese slices onto each tortilla, on one side. Top with turkey, then remaining cheese slices. Grill on a griddle heated to high heat, until crispy on each side and the cheese is melted inside. While the quesadillas are cooking, make the aioli dip. Mix the mayo, mustard, relish and fresh dill. Split into 2 portions and serve with the quesadillas.

Queso Fresco Quesadillas

Living in AZ, we eat a lot of Mexican food. I bet at least 3 meals a week are Mexican inspired. I bought some yummy tortillas at Ranch Market here in Mesa, so I decided to make some quesadillas. These are different. Usually I make them with cheddar cheese and green chilies and refried beans if I have them. Tonight I decided to try something a bit lighter. With Queso Fresco cheese and fresh chives and cilantro, this is a fresh change to the normal quesadilla.

Queso Fresco Quesadillas

2 flour tortillas
1/2 cup crumbled queso fresco cheese
1 Tbsp chopped fresh chives
1 roma tomato, thinly sliced
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp chopped cilantro
salsa and sour cream for serving

Preheat a cast iron skillet to Medium heat. Place 1 tortilla on skillet. Sprinkle crumbled queso fresco all about tortilla. Then sprinkle with chives and place tomato slices on top. Season with salt and pepper. Dont be shy with the S&P, queso fresco needs a lot of flavor. Place remaining tortilla on top and cook until cheese is melted. Flip and cook another 3-4 minutes, or until both sides are crisp and the cheese is all melted. Cut into wedges and serve with sour cream and fresh salsa.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

This is a really great dip that I started making back when I got my first crock pot when I was in college. This recipe is from a crock pot cook book that I had at the time. It was a great book with a ton of great recipes. I somehow lost that book over the years, but this recipe has survived. The picture really does not do this justice at all.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

16 ounces of cream cheese, room temp
1 large bag of frozen chopped spinach
1 10 ounce can of artichoke hearts
1/4 cup half and half or whipping cream
1/2 cup salsa
1/2 cup monterey jack cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
seasonings to taste (salt, pepper, garlic powder)

Let the spinach thaw. Squeeze out as much of the water in the spinach as you can. Roughly chop it up even more. Chop the artichoke hearts. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl till well combined. Transfer to a crock pot and heat on low heat until hot and all the cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve with melba toast, crackers, corn chips or sliced baguette.

Ham and Cheese Rice Balls

I know this sounds like a funny thing, rice balls...especially ham and cheese rice balls. Well, this turned out so well! Definitely a keeper in my book. I was looking for another way to use up leftover rice and this came to me. I had made some cheesy scallion white rice the other night and had a ton leftover. So I decided to add some goodies to it and form it into balls and bread it and fry it up! Oh my, they were so yummy! I first just ate them plain and they were yummy. When I reheated the leftovers, I dipped them in ranch dressing and it was YUMMY! I think they would go so well with chive basil cream. These are filling and satisfying. My kids both loved them and I cant normally get them to eat rice and ham, so that was nice. They reminded me of the Croquettas you can find in Spain. You could add anything to these. I was thinking chopped spinach would be great with ham and cheese, or you can use any leftover meats and veggies you have in the fridge. Kind of like fried rice, these are so versatile! The rice I started out with already had a lot of Cheddar cheese and scallions in it, so season it accordingly. If you are using plain white rice, it will need more salt and pepper to pep it up, if the rice isn't already seasoned.

Ham and cheese Rice Balls

2 cups leftover cooked rice, refrigerated (my rice already had 1/2 cup Cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup parm cheese and 1/2 cup chopped scallions added to it)
1/2 cup minced ham (I just used lunch meat)
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp Louisiana hot sauce, or any hot sauce would do
salt and pepper to taste
1 egg beaten
1 tbsp water
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs

In a large bowl, mix the rice with the ham and soy sauce. Season with plenty of salt and pepper and any other spices you like. Form the rice into little balls. In a small bowl, whisk the egg with the hot sauce and water. Pour enough oil into a skillet to be 1/2 inch deep. Heat on medium heat until hot. Season the bread crumbs with some salt and pepper. Dip the rice balls into the egg mixture, then roll into bread crumbs. Fry in oil until golden brown, a couple minutes on each side. Serve hot either plain, or with a favorite dipping sauce...ranch dressing, chive basil cream, marinara.

Holiday Treat Boxes

This year for Christmas, Im giving out these cute little boxes of home made holiday goodies. I found these little boxes at Walmart in a pack of 6 for $9. They each come with 4 compartments, plus matching tissue paper and a to/from sticker. They are made by Martha Stewart and I just love them! In these ones, I did Cinnamon Roasted Almonds, Saltine Toffees, White Chocolate Holiday Bark and Spiced Chili Pecans. These cinnamon roasted almonds taste like the ones you can get at the fair. Sooo yummy and sugary. And the spiced pecans are great too, really savory with a kick.

Cinnamon Roasted Almonds (original recipe from allrecipes.com)

• 1 egg white
• 1 teaspoon cold water
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
  
• 4 cups whole almonds
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg white, water and vanilla until very foamy and frothy. Pour in the almonds and mix until well coated. In a smaller bowl, mix the sugars, cinnamon and salt together, pour over the almonds and mix until all coated well. Spread onto a baking sheet and bake for 1 hr, stirring every 15 minutes.


Spiced Chili Pecans (from allrecipes.com)

• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 cups pecan halves
• 1 tablespoon chili powder

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. In a medium bowl, mix butter, Worcestershire sauce, red pepper, salt and garlic powder. Mix in the pecans and mix until well coated. Then mix in the chili powder and toss until coated. Spread onto a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 45 minutes, stirring every 10-15 minutes, watching closely so the spices dont burn.

White Chocolate Holiday Bark

Here is another holiday treat that is super quick and easy to throw together. Seriously, it took all of 5 minutes to make from start to finish. I got this recipe from Good Things Catered Her recipe has golden raisins but I didn't have any so I used semi sweet chocolate chips instead. It was so yummy. These are so pretty when they are cut up. A perfect addition to your treat gift giving.

White Chocolate Holiday Bark

16 ounces good white chocolate, chopped
chopped walnuts
dried cranberries
chocolate chips

In a microwave safe dish, add the white chocolate and microwave for 30 seconds. Take out and stir until the dish no longer feels warm. Then microwave and stir in 15 second intervals, until smooth and creamy. Pour onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Spread out. Top with nuts, cranberries and chocolate chips, pushing everything down into the white chocolate to adhere it. Let cool for 2 hrs at room temp, or 30 minutes in the fridge. Break or cut into the sizes you want.

Saltine Toffees

Wow I cant believe I haven't posted since Nov 19! Ive just been so busy. I have several pics taken, and I just need to write out the blog entry and get them posted! Here is a quick one that is so good! These are called Saltine Toffees. I actually got this recipe off a message board I frequent, called The Nest. This recipe was going around a few months back and I bookmarked it. I have no idea who posted the original recipe, so if its yours, let me know and I will edit my entry!

Saltine Toffees

1 package of saltine crackers
1 stick of butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
chopped nuts of your choice (I used almonds) about 1/2 cup
1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips or pieces

Line a baking sheet with tin foil. Place crackers onto baking sheet. On Medium low heat, melt butter and brown sugar. Dont stir it until its all melted. Then stir to combine and keep stirring until its bubbly and carmelized, about 3 minutes. Spoon the buttery sugar goo all over the crackers, then top with chopped nuts. Bake in 400 degree oven for 5 minutes, then take out and immediatly sprinkle chocolate chips over all the crackers. Let cool, then store in air tight containers.

Antipasti skewers

Here is another easy and quick appetizer to whip up. For these, its just a cherry tomato, a slice of salami cut in half and a chunk of Mozzerella cheese. I served them with a store bought pesto for dipping. They would also be great with an olive on them too!

Good times and finger foods

I have to apologize to my readers and fellow bloggers about my lack of blogging lately. I really did think that as Fall arrived, Id be on a fall baking and blogging spree. Its just not the case. I have been so busy with other things that arent nearly as fun as cooking. I promise that soon I will be back on the bandwagon.

Last week, we had dinner at a good friends house and they introduced us to these yummy gems. I think these are one of the best appetizers Ive ever had. I made them tonight for my family and we ate them up in about 5 minutes. I was wishing Id made more. But in all actuality, Im glad I didnt, as these are fattening and full of everything we dont want to be eating too much of. I got this recipe from my good friend, Beth. She got it from recipezaar.com and the original recipe is here. Beth served it to us with a yummy honey mustard sauce that is so easy to whip up and just perfect with this dish.

Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts with Honey Mustard dipping sauce (adapted from recipezaar.com)

For the chestnuts:

3 cans sliced water chestnuts
1 lb bacon
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar

Mix the soy sauce with the brown sugar and whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Marinate the water chestnuts in the soy sauce mixture for at least an hour. Cut the bacon in half crosswise. Take 3 slices of marinated chestnuts and wrap a half slice of bacon around each stack of 3. Secure with a toothpick. Place in a large baking dish that is sprayed with cooking spray. Bake at 400 degrees for 35 minutes.

For the dipping sauce:
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup mustard

Whisk the honey with the mustard until well combined. Serve immediately.

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

I love carving pumpkins and toasting the seeds. Here is my simple recipe.

1 1/2 cups pumpkin seeds, cleaned and rinsed
1 Tbsp olive oil
course salt to taste
paprika
pepper

In a small bowl combine the pumpkin seeds and oil, toss to coat. Add lots of salt and a dash of pepper and paprika. Spread onto a foil lined cookie sheet and bake in 300 degree oven for 20 minutes. Watch them carefully so they dont burn. I usually stir them once or twice while cooking.

Mummy Dogs

I thought these were really cute when I saw them on Picky Palate. I searched online and found that people made these with either refrigerated crescent dough, or bread stick dough. Just cut the dough to make long thin strips that are easy to wrap around the hot dogs. I used crescent dough, and they were really yummy. Sam loved these because he could help me cut the dough and wrap it on the hot dogs. Definitely a fun thing for kids.

1 package of Pillsbury crescent rolls
8 hot dogs

Roll out the dough and press the seams to create 4 rectangles. Cut each rectangle into 8 strips. Use 4 strips per hot dog and wrap the dough around in both directions. Make sure there is a spot that can be the "face". Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes, or a nice golden brown. Use mustard and ketchup to make little eyes on the mummy faces.

Crispy Polenta with Cinnamon and Syrup

I love polenta. I just discovered it recently and I was so bummed that Carl didnt like it at all. I tried it several ways and he wasnt keen on any of it! Bummer! It looks like I have to add Polenta to the growing list of things that I only make when he is gone, or when I am up late at night alone, craving a midnight snack.

I love polenta sliced up and fried in olive oil until its crispy on the outside, but creamy on the inside. Then sprinkled with some cinnamon a pat of butter and some maple syrup....YUMMY!

Crispy Polenta with Cinnamon and Syrup

Sliced cold polenta about 1/2 inch thick
1 Tbsp olive oil
a dash of cinnamon
1 Tbsp Maple Syrup

Heat olive oil on medium high heat in a cast iron skillet until hot and almost smoking. Fry polenta slices for several minutes on both sides until golden and crispy. Drizzle syrup onto a plate, top with crispy polenta slices. Sprinkle cinnamon over the top and dab with a pat of butter. Enjoy.