Mediterranean Dip

 This recipe, from my friend Heather, is one I've been enjoying and making for many years and I decided it was time for me to officially share it here on the blog!   Heather is a talented cook and I always looked forward to her signing up to bring the treats for book group.  She makes the most amazing baked goods ever, but this savory dip is what I'd get really excited about.   It's a lot of chopping, but otherwise super easy to throw together and it tastes absolutely amazing.  It's meant to be an appetizer served with pita chips or fresh veggies, but we will serve it with some grilled chicken and fresh fruit or some lentil soup and a Greek salad and make it a big part of a delicious Mediterranean dinner! 

Click here for printable recipe.

 

Yield: (1) 12-14 inch round plate of dip

FOR THE CILANTRO PESTO:
Don't love cilantro?   Make it with basil instead.  😋

1½ cups fresh cilantro (it was about 2 bunches)
2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup olive oil, divided
1/4 cup pine nuts (or whatever nuts you happen to have)
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

FOR THE DIP:

2 containers (10-ounces each) hummus
1 batch cilantro pesto (see above)
1/2 English cucumber, diced
1/3 cup red onion, diced
1/2 cup banana peppers, chopped
1/2 cup sliced black or kalamata olives (I prefer black)
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup  sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil, chopped

12-14 - inch round platter or small cookie sheet 

DIRECTIONS: 

FOR THE CILANTRO PESTO:  In a blender or food processor, combine the cilantro, garlic, about half of the olive oil,  and  nuts.

Oops...I accidentally added the Parmesan cheese too, then tried to scoop it out. 

 Pulse repeatedly until a coarse paste forms, scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go. With the blender/processor running, add the remaining olive oil in a steady stream and process until smooth.

Transfer the pesto to a bowl and stir in the Parmesan.

(If storing for later use, drizzle with a thin film of olive oil, cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pesto, and store in an airtight container.)

TO ASSEMBLE THE DIP:  

 

 

Spread a layer of hummus on a serving platter.

Spread the cilantro pesto over the top of the hummus.

Layer evenly with cucumber, red onion, banana peppers, olives, feta, and oven-dried tomatoes as desired.

Garnish with an additional few tablespoons of minced fresh cilantro. Serve with pita chips or fresh veggies (we like cucumber slices and carrot sticks).

  Enjoy!

Read more...

Crab Dip or Crab Alfredo sauce

For the last week I've been wishing that there was something I could do for Lara and her family. If I were still in her town then I would be bringing her family dinner, but then I realized that I can bring her virtual dinner! Lara asked me to be a part of this blog last year to help her out. Sorry I've been a slacker, but I promise that I will do a better job to help keep this blog going and not give Lara more things to worry about. So without further ado...

Whenever I have a social gathering at my house I love to make various dips. One of my favorites is a warm crab dip. This recipe is rather special to me because it is the recipe that my mom has been using for years and every year during the holidays we would make this. So now it has become one of my traditions as well, but not just for the holidays. It's always popular with my guests and people are constantly asking me for the recipe. The great thing about this dip, is that if you make it a little thinner by adding more cream or milk then voila...you have a crab alfredo sauce for your pasta!

Click here for printable recipe.

Posted by Jen.

The Ingredients:
1/4 c butter
1/4 c flour
2-3 c milk
1/4 c Parmesan cheese
1 tsp garlic powder
dash pepper and nutmeg
dash Tobasco sauce (oops forgot to put it in the picture)
14 oz pkg of imitation crab meat, finely chopped

The Directions:
First make a white sauce. (check out the tutorial for making a white sauce here). Melt the butter in a large pan, then sprinkle in the flour. Stir together until the flour is cooked into the butter.Turn temperature up to med high and add a cup of milk at a time, stirring constantly so that it doesn't lump up. As it gets thicker, add more milk until the desired consistancy.Mix in the Parmesan cheese, and spices. At this point you have a basic Alfredo sauce that would be great over pasta. (just add a little more Parmesan cheese and garlic to taste if that's your thing). But we are not stopping here, so add the chopped crab.
Mix well. Add more spices to taste. This is actually better served the next day. So let it cool and then put in a microwave or oven safe bowl and place in the fridge overnight. The following day just add a little more milk or cream (it will be quite thick!) and heat all the way through. You can heat it in the microwave or my mom actually sprinkles more Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs on top and heats in in the oven. Serve with solid crackers as this is rather thick. Triscuits are great, Ritz are not. Or serve with toasted baguette/french bread. If you happen to have left overs, or just want to make this a pasta dish, simply add more milk and make the sauce thinner. Pour and mix into cooked pasta.

Read more...

Christmas Tree Veggie Pizza

Day 22's savory holiday recipe is the perfect combination of funky, fresh, and festive and is sure to be a hit at any holiday party!   Thanks Jen!

Vegetable pizza a treat?! My boys certainly don't think so. But I have to admit that I feel like I've had a bit too much sugar lately and my body is in need of some good vegetables. So this is definitely a treat for me. This is easy to make and so fun to serve at a holiday party. In fact, I recently had people at a party asking me if this was going to make it on the blog. Even though it's not coated in chocolate, people will still gobble it up and ask you for the recipe.

Recipe Inspiration:  Pillsbury magazine dated in 2005

Click here for printable recipe. 

Posted by Jen.

The Ingredients:1 tube crescent rolls
1/2 pkg (4 oz) cream cheese, softened*
1 box garlic/herb soft cheese *
1/2 medium red pepper
1/4 yellow pepper (not pictured)
1/2 c fresh broccoli, finely chopped
1/4 c sliced or shredded carrots
1/4 c chopped cucumber

*you may use an 8 oz container of herbed/flavored cream cheese spread in the place of these.

The Directions:
Take out the tube of dough and do not unroll it. Cut it into 16 equal thin slices. (I cut it in half and then in half again to better make equal slices)
Place slices cut side down on baking pan lined with parchment paper. First start with the top, then put two underneath, then three, then four, then five. Place the final slice on the bottom middle to be like the trunk. Make sure they are slightly touching. Bake in 375 degree oven for 10-12 minutes or until it is a golden brown. Slide onto a wire rack to cool completely. When cool, slide onto your serving platter.While baking, cream together the cream cheese and the herbed cheese. (or just make sure the herbed flavored cream cheese is spreadable). I personally added a tiny bit of dill and a Tbsp of ranch dressing to my spread as well. It depends on what kind of dip flavor you like for your vegetables.
Spread cheese mixture onto cooled crescent rolls.
Cut out a yellow star shape out of the yellow pepper. Finely chop the rest of the pepper. Cut the red pepper into long slices. Finely chop the cucumber, broccoli, and carrots. Arrange the star on top of your "tree" and then string your "garland" red pepper back and forth. Finely chop the rest of the red pepper when you're done with the "garland". Sprinkle chopped vegetables all over but not covering your special designs. If desired you can use chopped almonds to cover the base to be like the trunk.
Serve immediately or loosely cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours.

Once the holidays are over, you can make this anytime by just unrolling the crescent dough and pinching the perforations together. Bake the same as above or until golden. Cool. Then add the creamed cheese and chopped veggies.

Don't miss a single recipe at Recipe Shoebox.  Sign up on the right for free email updates!

Read more...

Avocado and Pomegranate Chip Dip

Welcome to the Recipe Shoebox's goodie-a-day Holiday Baking series.  Come back daily through December for a new holiday recipe! 

Okay, okay...I know this isn't technically a goodie recipe, but it's so good, so different, and so Christmasy looking that I just couldn't resist sharing it here.  Avocados and pomegranate may sound like such a weird combination, but the creaminess of the avocados actually complements the tart juiciness of the pomegranate seeds in an unexpectedly yummy way.  Every time I've served this it has disappeared quickly, so you may want to save out your portion before serving to everyone else! ;)

Click here for printable recipe. 

Posted by Lara. 

The ingredients:


2 ripe avocados, diced small
1 large tomato, diced small
1 Tbs. finely chopped onion
1/4 tsp. ground coriander
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
3/4 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. lemon juice
seeds of one pomegranate
1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped

Directions:
Combine all ingredients and stir gently.  Serve with tortilla chips.
Enjoy! 

Don't miss a single recipe at Recipe Shoebox.  Sign up on the right for free email updates. 

Read more...

Deviled Egg Eyeballs

Deviled eggs are such a great appetizer to have at dinner parties anyway, but  when you make them into spooky looking eyeballs,  then you've got a must-have for your Halloween party. They're not too hard to make in the first place, but you could  put your kids to work helping you pop out the yolks or stirring in the food coloring to make it even easier.  

By the way... Unlike the deviled eggs in this clip from  the movie "Toys" with Robin Williams, these eggs only look spooky.    :)

Click here for printable recipe. 

Posted by Jen. 


The Ingredients:
6 hard boiled eggs
1/4 c mayonnaise
1-2 tsp yellow mustard
salt/ pepper to taste
black olives
red and blue food coloring
toothpick
piping bag

The Directions:
Slice your hard boiled eggs in half lengthwise. Scoop (or pop) out the yellow yolk into a small bowl.
Mash up the yolks with a fork and then add mayonnaise and mustard. Blend well to make as smooth as possible. Add salt and pepper according to your tastes. You may also want to add more mayonnaise or mustard depending on your taste. Add a couple drops of blue food coloring and mix well.
Spoon your yolk mixture into a piping bag and cut off a hole at the end. (it should be big enough for the thick mixture to come out, but small enough so you can control the amount coming out. Trust me, it's much easier to pipe the yolk mixture into the eggs than it is to scoop it with a spoon! And if you try to use a ziploc baggie, this mixture is so thick that the baggie may burst while piping. Um, so I have had it burst...a few times. Until I learned my lesson and used a piping bag)Pipe the egg yolks into the cavities of the egg whites.
Cut your olives into slices. You can choose to leave them round and have round black eyeballs in the middle, or cut smaller pieces of olive to represent the iris. I think that if you used the round slices it would be awesome to also add in some red pimento or red bell pepper to have red eyeballs. Place your olives in the middle of the yolk.
Squeeze a little red food coloring onto a plate or even a spoon to use. Take the tip of your toothpick and dip it in the food coloring. Now draw red squiggle lines to make it look like the eyes are blood shot.
Or if you just want to make regular deviled eggs, don't add the food coloring or olives. They're still just as tasty.

Click here to see a menu of all of our Halloween recipes in one place and be sure to stop by Recipe Shoebox every day this week for more fun Halloweeny recipes! 

Read more...

Bugs in a Blanket (Halloween)

Bugs in a blanket are cute as can be,  super easy to make, and kids love them. These are great finger foods to have at a Halloween party or just for fun we eat them year round.   I let the boys help make the bugs.

Click here for printable recipe.

Posted by Jen.

The Ingredients:


1-2 rolls of pie crust OR 1-2 tubes of crescent rolls
package of hot dogs
Chow Mein noodles
sour cream or ranch dressing
ketchup

The Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees (or whatever the crescent roll tub says.)
Unroll dough. Cut hot dogs in half and measure out cuts in dough so that you will have a portion of the hot dog sticking out.

Roll up hot dogs in dough. If using pie crust, only roll half way, so that way you can get two hot dogs halves out of each section of dough. Make sure that you have a "head" peeking out.

Bake in oven for 10-12 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Insert chow mein noodles for legs and antennae. You can dot mustard or ketchup for eyeballs of the bugs. Let the children be creative. (Although these will be warm)
To make the spider dip, pour your ranch dressing or sour cream into a dish or shallow bowl. Put some ketchup into a sandwich baggie and snip a tiny hole at one corner. Then gently pipe a spiral starting in the middle of the bowl.

In order to make the spider web, take a toothpick and start at the center, gently drag it across the piped ketchup spirals. Now you have a spider web! (note, you can do this with frosting too)

Enjoy! 


Don't miss a single recipe at Recipe Shoebox.  Sign up for free email updates on the right. 

Read more...