Shrimp Appetizer

Delicious and easy appetizer to throw together.  Love making this for holiday parties. 

1 lb large shrimp peeled and deveined
2 garlic cloves finely minced
1 Tbsp cilantro finely chopped, plus more to garnish
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 Tbsp olive oil divided
1 English cucumber
1 fresh lime
Homemade or store bought guacamole

Place shrimp in a large mixing bowl and pat dry with paper towels. Add minced garlic, 1 Tbsp cilantro, 1 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper and 1 Tbsp olive oil. Stir well to combine.

Heat a large heavy pan over medium/high heat with 1 Tbsp olive oil. Once oil is hot, add shrimp in a single layer and sauté 2 min per side or until cooked through. I put in a bowl after cooked and squeezed the lime juice and sprinkled chopped cilantro over the cooked shrimp, stir to combine.

Divide the avocado mix over 20-22 cucumber slices. Place a shrimp on top of the guacamole/cucumber slice. Squeeze more fresh lime juice on top, serve.

Cowboy Candy

Our garden always produces an abundance of jalapeno peppers and I never know what to do with them all!  I found this recipe on pinterest and thought I’d give it a try.  It’s supposed to be good on hamburgers, hot dogs, as a relish, on cream cheese with crackers etc.  If you know of other uses for cowboy candy, let me know!  Some of our jalepenos had turned red so I have a nice mix of red and green peppers in mine. 

If you’ve never canned before, typically I wash my canning jars, lids and bands in the dishwasher on sanitation wash the morning before I want to can.  Then I fill my canner with water and put jars, lids and bands in the water and start heating.  By the time I am ready to fill my jars, they have been sitting in boiling water for quite a while.  Then that water is nice and hot and doesn’t take too long to heat back up to a boil once the jars are filled and ready to go.

Ingredients: 
3 pounds jalepenos
2 cups cider vinegar
6 cups white granulated sugar
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon celery seed
3 teaspoons granulated garlic (I used garlic powder)
1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

Directions:

Make sure you wear gloves while you are cutting your jalepeno peppers.  I have learned this the hard way, especially with 3 pounds of peppers!!  Slice the stems off and discard.  Slice the peppers into about a ¼ inch round.  Set aside.

In a large pot bring the rest of the ingredients to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Add the pepper slices and simmer for 4 minutes.  Use a slotted spoon to transfer the peppers into clean, sterile canning jars.  Fill to ¼ inch of the upper rim of the jar.  Turn the heat back up under the pot and boil the syrup for 6 minutes.

Use a ladle to pour the syrup over the jalalpenos.  Insert a knife to release any trapped air.  Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean damp towel and fix on new lids and tops.
 
Place jars in a canner, cover with water by 2 inches.  Bring the water to a full boil and boil for 10 minutes for half pints and 15 minutes for pints.  After 10 minutes use canning tongs to transfer jars to a cooling rack.  Leave to cool for 24 hours.
 
Says to let mellow for 2 weeks to a month.  I haven’t eaten these yet as they are in the canner processing as I type!  J  I will definitely keep you posted as to how they turn out!

Enjoy!  

Crispy Baked Chicken Wings

Being gluten and dairy free means that there are some foods that I can never order at a restaurant.  Chicken wings are one of those foods.  Most restaurants deep fry their chicken wings in a fryer that is also used to deep fry breaded foods.  Which means the gluten from those other foods will get on anything that is put into the fryer. 

I am not a huge chicken wing fan, but when you haven’t been able to have a certain food for over 2 years, it starts to sound like the best food in the world!!

So a search began to find a chicken wing recipe I could make at home and bake in the oven to keep it a little healthier.  I stumbled across this recipe on Bon Appetit (it has to be good, right?) and gave it a whirl.  I made about 30 wings with it and left a few without the sauce for the kids.  Both girls gobbled these up and asked when we could have chicken wings for dinner again.  My husband also said they were good and definitely something to make again.  That’s a winner recipe in my book!

Ingredients:

Wings

30ish chicken wings & drumettes

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon salt

½ tsp black pepper

Sauce

We love Red Hot but any hot sauce of your choosing

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place a wire racks inside 2 baking sheets.  Coat chicken wings with the oil, salt and pepper in a bowl.  Place coated chicken wings on the racks in rows with space in between.  Bake until wings are crispy, about 45-50 minutes. 

When the chicken wings are done toss in your sauce of choice until the wings are coated.  If you are not dairy free, serve with blue cheese and fresh veggies of your choice.  I made a dairy free ranch to go with ours.

Chopped Mexican Salad with Roasted Peppers, Corn, Tomatoes & Avocado

I found this recipe in a Fine Cooking Fresh magazine from 2008.  Nothing needed to be adjust for gluten/dairy free diet and it tastes amazing!  This is salad is a great side salad to any grilled meat.  We've served it with ribs but it could also be used as an appetizer and eaten with tortilla chips.  Even my 8 year old gobbled this up!

Make sure you give yourself some time, the corn and peppers need to roast in the oven for 20 minutes.

Ingredients:
2 large orange peppers
2 ears fresh corn (you can used canned corn if you are short on time)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small clove garlic
3 Tbsp lime juice
3 Tbsp orange juice
2 tsp finely chopped shallot
1 Tbsp honey
3/4 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and finely ground (I just just used cumin powder)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 large firm ripe tomatoes, cored, seeded and cut into a small dice
1 small jicama, peeled and cut into small dice (I left this out b/c the jicama I bought tasted off, would add next time)
2 large firm ripe avocados, peeled, pitted and cut into a small dice
1 can 15 oz black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:

Roast the peppers and corn:  Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Line cookie sheet with aluminum foil.  Cut the peppers in half lengthwise and remove the stem, seed core, and ribs.  Put the pepper halves on the baking sheet, cut side down.  Husk the corn and put the ears on the baking sheet.  Drizzle the oil over the peppers and corn and rub it around to coat them evenly.  Sprinkle the corn with salt and pepper.  Roast in the oven until the peppers are soft, slightly shriveled and browned, about 20 minutes.  Rotate the corn occasionally as it roasts.

When the vegetables are done, let them rest until cool enough to handle.  Scrape away the pepper skin and cut the flesh into 1/2 inch dice.  Cut the corn kernels away from the cob.

Make the vinaigrette:  Mince and mash the garlic to a paste with 1/4 tsp salt.  In a medium bowl, whisk the garlic paste with the lime and orange juices, shallot, honey and toasted ground cumin.  Slowly add the oil in a thin stream, whisking until well blended.  Season to taste with black pepper and more salt and honey if you like.

Assemble the salad:  Place peppers, corn, tomatoes, jicama, avocados, and place beans in a small platter or other wide shallow serving dish.  Sprinkle with the chopped cilantro.  You can allow each guest to pour the vinaigrette on their own plate or drizzle the vinaigrette over the salad platter before serving, which is what I did.

Buffalo Cauliflower "Wings"

Not being able to eat fried foods can be hard sometimes.  I didn't eat it all that much but not ever being able to eat it - unless I make my own - can be a bummer.  Occasionally I will get a craving for something fried and spicy.  These buffalo cauliflower wings hit the spot.  They aren't breaded and fried, but sautéed in a pan.  So good.   

Ingredients:

1 head of cauliflower

1/2 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce

1/4 cup sriracha

1 Tbsp unsalted butter (I used vegan butter)

olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.  Rinse the cauliflower and remove the woody stem and leaves at the base.  Drizzle olive oil onto the whole cauliflower, underside as well.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes on the lined baking sheet.  

Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes.  

While the cauliflower is cooling, combine the hot sauce, sriacha and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Stir until butter is melted, cook on low until sauce simmers.  Remove from heat.  

Separate the cauliflower into large florets.  Place 1-2 Tbsp olive oil into a large skillet over medium heat.  When the oil is hot, add the cauliflower florets and pan fry for 5 minutes without stirring.  

Pour the hot sauce into the skillet with the cauliflower - the sauce will sizzle and thicken.  Stir gently to coat the cauliflower in buffalo sauce.  

When the cauliflower is fully coated and the sauce has reduced slightly, turn off the heat serve. 

This would be great as an appetizer at a party.  We used it as a side dish with pork chops.  

I drizzled mine with a dairy free ranch dressing.  I'll post that recipe soon.  

Enjoy!

Glazed Pineapple and Sausage Bites

I love the combination of pineapple and some sort of ham or sausage.  When I stumbled across this recipe at Susannah's Kitchen I knew I wanted to give it a try.  I had to change the ingredients for mine a little bit because I didn't have teriyaki sauce at home and didn't feel like buying a whole bottle for 3 Tbsp.  Feel free to go to her site to find her original recipe.  And this is such a versatile recipe - you really can use whatever sauces you have in your house.

So here is what I came up with.

Ingredients:
1 package turkey kielbasa sausage
16 oz can pineapple chunks, save the juice
1 Tbsp soy sauce or coconut aminos (if you are going for gluten free go with the coconut aminos or gluten free soy sauce)
1 Tbsp sweet chili sauce
1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 Tbsp pineapple juice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut kielbasa into 1/2 inch pieces.  Skewer the pineapple and sausage together with toothpicks.  Place the appetizers in a shallow baking dish and set aside.

In a small bowl combine remaining ingredients to make the glaze.  Drizzle the sauce over the kielbasa bites.

Bake for 15-20 minutes and serve warm.

Enjoy!

Pickled Green Tomatoes

I love our garden this year.  I started all of our tomato plans (17 of them!) by seed back in February.  They are all non GMO and only being sprayed/fertilized organically.  Unfortunately, my large bonnie best tomatoes got a fungus this year that was making the tomatoes become damaged on the vine when they turned red.  I've been treating them and hoping that I can kill the fungus so the rest of our growing season will be okay.  Jury is still out on that!

I was not about to throw in the towel and lose all the tomatoes from 4 plants.  I saw on Facebook how someone made picked green tomatoes.  Genius!  When these tomatoes are green they are still healthy!  I cut off all the large green ones and decided to do some canning!

The recipe I followed came from Homesick Texan.  I pretty much followed his recipe exactly.

Ingredients:
2 pounds green tomatoes (about 4 or 5 depending on size), thinly sliced
1 jalapeño chile, stems removed, sliced
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon peppercorns
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 teaspoon dill seed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup white vinegar
1 tablespoons sea salt

Special equipment
2 wide-mouth pint jars or 1 wide-mouth quart jar, sterilized (boil jars & lids for 10 minutes)


 Directions:
Evenly distribute the sliced green tomatoes, sliced jalapeños, cumin seeds, peppercorns, celery seed, dill seed and garlic into the jars. In a saucepan, bring to a boil 1 cup of water, the vinegar, and sea salt. Pour the boiling vinegar mixture into the jars leaving a bit of head space. Cover with lid and fasten with rings. Allow to cool and then refrigerate. They will be ready after 4 hours and will last for 1 month in the refrigerator.

This is my first batch.  I didn't pack the tomatoes in tight enough.  This was 2 very large green tomatoes.

My second batch turned out much better.  This was probably 2 large tomatoes and two smaller ones.  I really filled the jar up as much as a I could.

These are so delicious.  They are good on their own, just out of the jar.  For lunch the other day I put it on a turkey sandwich.  Yum!  These would be awesome on a burger.  Or laid out on a plate as an appetizer for a party.  I am sure using green cherry tomatoes would be great as well.  The vinegar taste is a little strong (which I like) but if you don't, just reduce the amount of vinegar a bit.

Enjoy!

Antipasta Appetizer

These were so easy to make and so fun to eat!  And who doesn't love a kabob?  :)  Great for a party and easy for guests to serve themselves.  Even my 6 year old thought these were great!  (Which totally gave me a new lunch idea for my girls!)

Ingredients: (any antipasta foods you'd like, but what I used is below)

cherry tomatoes

baby dill pickles

marinated mozzarella balls

salami

marinated artichoke hearts

marinated mushrooms

extra large tooth picks

Directions

Put 3-4 ingredients on the tooth pick.  My favorite combination was the cherry tomato, cheese ball, salami and pickle.  If I was to make these again I might do them all like that.  But it's always nice to have a variety.   :)

Enjoy!

Pancetta Crisps with Goat Cheese and Pear

I found this recipe about a month ago.  This is the second time I've made it and it has been a real crowd pleaser.  And it is super easy which is always a bonus!  My pancetta was thinner and cooked a little too much this time so be careful when it's in the oven.  I think the cooking time of 8-10 minutes is too long.

Ingredients:
12 thin slices pancetta, about 1/3 lb
2 pears
2 oz crumbled goat cheese
Freshly cracked pepper
Honey

Directions:
Arrange pancetta slices in a single layer on an aluminum foil lined baking sheet.

Bake at 450 degrees for 8-10 minutes.  (Start checking at around 6-7 minutes)  Transfer to a paper towel lined wire rack using a spatula.  Let stand 10 minutes or until crisp.

Slice and core pear.  I slice mine a little thicker so they are sturdy.  Arrange on a serving platter.  Top evenly with pancetta and goat cheese.  Sprinkle with pepper and drizzle with honey just before serving.

Enjoy!

Grilled Nectarines with Blue Cheese, Honey & Black Pepper

Grilled fruit is so delicious.  Nectarines, pineapple, grapes, peaches....so good!

We had some nectarines sitting in the fruit bowl and I really needed another side to go with dinner.  I had the meat and a salad but I didn't have any potatoes or rice.  I saw the nectarines and thought, I could grill them!  I searched for a recipe online that would work with what I already had on hand and I found this one from Food Network.  Score!

I only used 2 nectarines since we have a family of 4.  Each person gets one half of the nectarine.

Other ingredients you'll need:
Olive oil/vegetable oil
Honey
Blue cheese crumbles
Crushed black pepper

Directions:

Heat the grill.  Brush both sides of the halved/pitted nectarine with oil.  Place face down on grill and cook for 2-3 minutes.  Flip over and finish cooking until almost soft.  (I over cooked mine a little bit but they still tasted great!  Don't worry about overcooking - just don't burn them!)

Place nectarines on a platter with cut side up and place a dollop of cheese in the center of each nectarine.  Drizzle with honey and fresh black pepper on the top.  I left the black pepper off for the kiddos.  

Enjoy!

Watermelon Salsa

I had never even heard of watermelon salsa until a friend of mine had it for her children as a snack one day.  My children love salsa and they love watermelon.  We had to give this a try.  If you don't like watermelon or cilantro, this recipe is not for you.  My husband who doesn't like watermelon tried this and said, "You need to add something else, all I can taste is watermelon."  Lol, it is called WATERMELON SALSA!!  :)

Both of my girls love this as do I.  We had this last night and my oldest daughter is already asking me to make this again.  It's very refreshing and quick to make.  A great way to use up some fresh watermelon!

Ingredients:
3 cups chopped watermelon
1 cup chopped cilantro
2 jalepenos, chopped
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup red onion chopped (I added a little more)
1/4 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients together and chill in refrigerator until you are ready to eat.  Serve with tortilla chips.

Thanks for a great recipe Kristine!

French Onion Soup

• 
  
• (Please excuse the photo, under the broiler it bubbled and made a bit of a mess of the white dish.  
• I promise it's delish!)
• 
  
• When we were in Amsterdam I had this wonderful French Onion soup for lunch.  It was probably the best French Onion soup I've ever had.  When we got home we had a ton of onions from our CSA boxes so I thought, when you have a ton of onions, you make onion soup!  ;)
• 
  
• This was a very nice soup and easy to throw together.  I had everything on hand except for the baguette and the Gruyere cheese.  Served with a salad and you have a great week night meal.  I found this recipe on allrecipes.com but made a few small changes.  My changes are shown below.  
• 
  
• Ingredients:
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 large red onions, thinly sliced
• 2 large sweet onions, thinly sliced
• 1 (48 fluid ounce) can chicken broth
• 1 (16 ounce) can beef broth
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tsp dried parsley
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 4 thick slices French or Italian bread
• 8 slices Gruyere or Swiss cheese slices, room temperature
• 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, room temperature
• 4 pinches paprika

Directions:

Melt butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir in salt, red onions and sweet onions. Cook 35 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are caramelized and almost syrupy.

Mix chicken broth, beef broth, red wine, parsley, thyme, bay leaf and Worcestershire sauce into pot.  Simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to low, mix in vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Cover and keep over low heat to stay hot while you prepare the bread.

Preheat oven broiler. Arrange bread slices on a baking sheet and broil 3 minutes, turning once, until well toasted on both sides. Remove from heat; do not turn off broiler.

Arrange 4 large oven safe bowls or crocks on a rimmed baking sheet. Fill each bowl 2/3 full with hot soup. Top each bowl with 1 slice toasted bread, 2 slice Gruyere cheese and 1/4 of the mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle a little bit of paprika over the top of each one.

Broil 5 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. As it softens, the cheese will cascade over the sides of the crock and form a beautifully melted crusty seal. Serve immediately!

Homemade Ranch Dressing

This is not the best photo in the world but it is definitely one of the best dips I've had! It's very creamy and flavorful and the best part - you almost always have these ingredients in your house. I found this recipe on allrecipes and you can definitely add more or less of different ingredients to suite your tastes. I made it as is and it was just right for me.

Ingredients:
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon dried chives
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. I'd recommend longer to let the flavors blend. I cut the top of a pepper off and scooped out the insides and used that to serve the dip in. Nice and colorful and one less dish to wash! ;)

Spaghetti with Scallops, Olives & Capers

My eldest daughter had earned (by behaving appropriately) the treat of going out to dinner. We still needed a few things from the store so I made a mad dash to Whole Foods around 6:00 in the evening - before we were going out to eat.

They had a ton of things to sample out that night. The girls had apples, chips, shrimp salad and this scallop, olives & capers dish. They loved it! The lady working there was so nice she ended up giving us 4 little cups for the girls to eat! I couldn't believe they ate scallops and liked them. So of course, I bought the ingredients I needed to make the dish right then and there! Great marketing Whole Foods! ;)

I served mine over spaghetti noodles but you could serve it as an appetizer or as a side dish. Both girls chowed this down when I made it. Definitely give it a try!

Ingredients:
1 pound small scallops
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 cup chopped kalmata olives (I used black and green mixed)
1 T capers
1 jar spaghetti sauce (I used the 365 organic from Whole Foods)
Cooked spaghetti if you choose to serve it over noodles

Directions:

Heat skillet over medium heat. Once hot put olive oil in the pan and coat the bottom of the pan. Place scallops (blot dry first) in the skillet. Let sear for 3 minutes or until they are opaque about 1/4 or 1/2 way up. Don't shake the pan - just let them sizzle. :)

Once they are opaque about 1/4-1/2 way up flip all of them. Add olives and capers. Cook for 2-3 more minutes. Depending on how you are serving this will determine how much spaghetti sauce you use. I used about half a jar but if you serving this alone I'd only use about 1/4 of the jar. Pour sauce in and stir gently to combine and warm through.

I served over spaghetti noodles with garlic bread and a salad.



This was enough for our family of 4. If you have a larger family definitely double the recipe!

Enjoy!

PW's Pico de Gallo

I love Pioneer Woman, although I don't have time to read her blog as much as I'd like anymore. I do occasionally still check out her recipes though. I've made her pico de gallo several times and it is definitely a keeper. Quick, easy, and fresh ingredients. Yum, yum!

Ingredients:
5 whole plum roma tomatoes (I usually just use whatever tomatoes I have on hand)
1/2 large onion
3 whole Jalapeno Peppers (I used one jalepeno with seeds and it was perfect. Almost on the verge of too spicey for me. You'll need to judge how much heat you like)
Cilantro
1 Lime
Salt To Taste

Directions:

Chop jalapenos, tomatoes and onions into a very small dice. Next, chop up a nice-sized bunch of cilantro. Just remove and discard the long leafless stems before chopping. No need to remove the leaves from the stems completely. Place all of these ingredients together in a bowl and give it a good stir.

Squeeze the juice of half of one lime into the bowl. Add salt to taste and stir again. Serve with tortilla chips.

Enjoy!

Layered Taco Dip

Yum. I love taco dip. I have two recipes that I like to make and decided to combine them to create a new one. You can warm this in the oven for a little while if you like but I just left it at room temperature. Feel free to add/change any of the ingredients to suit your tastes. That's what I did! :)

Ingredients:
1/2 package taco seasoning mix
1 can refried beans
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
16 ounces sour cream
1 jar salsa
1 tomato, chopped
1 bunch chopped green onion
1 small can sliced black olives
2 avocados, lime juice, salt - to make guacamole - or you can buy store bought
1 bag shredded cheddar cheese, or 2 cups
tortilla chips

Directions

Spread refried beans in a 9x13 baking dish. Combine sour cream, cream cheese and the taco seasoning. I kept adding a little of the seasoning and tasted it until I had the flavor I wanted. Spread the sour cream mixture over the beans.

I made the guacamole with 2 avocados, lime juice and salt. Again, I just tasted it as I went and until I was happy with the consistency and flavor. Spread guacamole on top of the sour cream mixture.



Add sliced black olives and chopped tomato.



I didn't use a whole jar of salsa. I would say I ended up using about half of the jar. I bought a thicker salsa, Pace Picante I think so it wouldn't make the dip watery.



Then add shredded cheese to cover. Sprinkle the top with chopped green onion. Serve with tortilla chips.



Enjoy!

Pioneer Woman's Pineapple Shrimp

I had some shrimp in the freezer I wanted to use so I went looking for a new recipe to try. I found this Pineapple Shrimp recipe on Pioneer Woman's website. It's been a while since I made something of hers and it looked easy - two great combinations!!

We liked this recipe although I would recommend adding a few of the optional ingredients. I added red pepper flakes but next time I would add some chopped jalapeno to add some spice as it was on the sweet side. I also would omit the sugar - the pineapple juice I think is sweet enough!

Ingredients:
1 pound (to 2 Pounds) Peeled, De-veined Jumbo Shrimp
1 can (about 20 Oz.) Pineapple Chunks (or 1 Whole Fresh Pineapple)

Marinade:
½ cups (to 1 Cup) Teriyaki Sauce
2 whole (to 3 Whole) Green Onions (sliced)
3 Tablespoons Garlic, Chopped, to taste
1 Tablespoon (to 2 Tablespoons) Sugar (optional)
Pineapple Juice (reserved From Can If Using Canned Pineapple)
1 dash Lemon Juice
1 dash Kosher Salt
_____
Optional Ingredients
Lime Zest
Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
Minced Fresh Ginger
Jalapenos Seeded And Chopped

Directions:

In a bowl combine teriyaki sauce, green onions, garlic, sugar, pineapple juice, lemon juice and salt (and any other of the optional ingredients of your choosing, to taste). Mix these together well and set aside.

Wash, then peel and de-vein the shrimp (unless they’ve already come that way). Stir peeled/de-veined jumbo shrimp into the marinade and marinate at least a couple of hours.



Skewer pineapple chunks with the shrimp and grill until done, about 1 to 2 minutes per side on a very hot grill. I broiled mine for the same amount of time. The shrimp I had were medium so I had to cut the pineapple chunks so they would fit in between the shrimp.



Flip again and cook until brown to just slightly blackened.



We had this for dinner but I also think this would be great as an appetizer for a party. I served mine with rice and a salad. I took the marinade and boiled it on the stove and then drizzled it over the rice.



Enjoy!

Texas Cranberry Chutney

You can also serve the chutney over warm brie, chicken, turkey or pork tenderloin.

I found this cranberry chutney recipe in a Southern Living Easy Entertainment magazine and thought it would be a nice appetizer for the holidays. Being red and all. :) I served mine over cream cheese and with crackers. I've never had a chutney before but I have to say this was pretty good. Really, anything served over cream cheese is good!

Ingredients:
2 (8 oz) cans crushed pineapple (I only used one can b/c that is what I had)
1 (16 oz) can whole berry cranberry sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp salt
1-2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced (I used one but thought it could use another)
3 green onions, chopped

Directions:

Drain pineapple well; pat dry with paper towels. Stir together pineapple and next 4 ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat, and bring to boil.



Reduce heat to low, and simmer, stirring often, 5 minutes or until thickened. (I cooked mine for about 10 minutes b/c it wasn't getting thicker)
Remove from heat, and stir in peppers and green onions. Serve immediately or cover and chill for up to 2 weeks.



Enjoy & Merry Christmas!

Margaret's Reuben Dip

My friend Margaret makes this awesome dip and gave me the recipe a few years ago. Jordan's favorite sandwich is a Reuben so this dip is a favorite in our house. It's a great appetizer for a party - especially during the holidays! I promise if you make this for your next party, everyone will love it!

Ingredients:
3 blocks of cream cheese, room temperature
1 pint sour cream
1 cup mayo
1 package shredded Swiss cheese
1 large jar of dried beef, minced (you can find this next to the canned tuna in the grocery store)
2 or 3 cloves of garlic, minced (I used the minced garlic you can buy in the store)
1 bunch of scallions, minced
1 large bread bowl, hollowed out to make a dish for the dip to bake in
More cubed bread or crackers/chips, whatever you like for dipping

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl.



Put as much as you can into the bread bowl. Be careful not to fill it to high as it might bubble up as it bakes. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for about an hour or until it's melted and slightly brown on top. Sometimes I need to bake for a little longer than an hour - depending on how deep the bread bowl is. This bread bowl baked for 1 hour and 20 minutes.



I try to use a low fat or fat free version of the cream cheese or mayo (usually the cream cheese) because if you use the full fat version of all of them it tends to be pretty heavy. This recipe does tend to make a lot so you might have enough to make 2 bread bowls.

Enjoy!