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My sweet friend Sarah sent me this amazing queso recipe. If you haven't noticed, we eat a lot of Mexican food at our house, so we had this finished off in no time. It would be great to snack on this while watching a football game. You could also serve it as a sauce over your favorite Mexican dish.
The recipe calls for a block of white American cheese, but I couldn't find a block of it, so I ended up using individual slices of white American cheese, and that worked just fine; it probably melted faster than the cubes would have.
Feel free to cut the recipe in half depending on the size of your crowd.
Queso Blanco Dip
1 1/4 (1.25) lb block white American cheese, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/4 cup diced green chiles
10 pickled jalapeno slices, chopped
1 oz picked jalapeno juice
2/3 cup milk
1/2 cup cold water
Pinch of cumin (optional)
Toss all ingredients into a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 5 minutes, stopping to stir after every minute. (The mixture might seem too liquid-y during the first few stirs, but it will come together nicely when all the cheese has melted.)
Serve immediately as a dip with tortilla chips.
Store leftovers in refrigerator. Reheat in microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until creamy and hot.
There was a big article in our newspaper's food section yesterday on how pimento cheese is the hot food trend of 2011. My parents have always liked it, but the looks of it always scared me off. So orange. Somewhat creamy but lumpy. Specks of red. I never wanted any part of that.
I'll tell you, though, that it's really good--definitely better than any store-bought pimento cheese. I'm glad I branched out. My dad recommends eating it on white bread with a slice of tomato, but it's great as a dip with some crackers. If you like it creamier, add a couple more tablespoons of mayo. Try it yourself!
Pimento Cheese
1 lb sharp cheddar, grated
1 (4oz) jar diced pimentos, drained
4 Tbsp mayonnaise
1/2 Tbsp mustard
2 Tsbp cider vinegar
1 Tbsp sugar
Combine all ingredients. Refrigerate at least an hour before serving.
I recently discovered Framed, a really fun food blog with gorgeous pictures. She had this great idea for macaroni and cheese cupcakes, and since we needed a good comfort meal last week, we happily tried it out.
I'll tell you this: The macaroni and cheese recipe itself is good and very simple, but it's not outstanding. It's the individual servings that make this dish so fun. If you have a favorite mac and cheese recipe, go ahead and whip it up, and then bake it in the muffin tin; if you don't have a favorite mac and cheese recipe, try out one of mine--like this fancy Caramelized Onion Macaroni and Cheese or Biz's favorite Creamy Mac and Cheese.
We tried it out in a regular sized muffin tin with paper liners, and we also sprayed mini-muffin tins and just spooned the mixture in there. Wouldn't mini mac and cheese cups be the perfect appetizer for your next dinner party? When your guests see this to snack on before the main meal, they'll feel relaxed and at home. You should try them!
Macaroni and Cheese Cupcakes
8oz elbow macaroni
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 eggs
1 cup milk
salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese for sprinkling
Preheat oven to 400. Line a muffin tin with paper or foil liners (or coat well with cooking spray). Cook the macaroni in boiling water until done; drain and immediatly return to the pot. Add cheese and stir briefly until melting. In another bowl, mix beaten eggs into milk, and then pour mixture into macaroni. Mix well. Ladle macaroni mixture into muffin tins, sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top, and bake for 20 minutes. Cool slightly before serving. Recipe yields 1 dozen regular-sized cupcakes.
These are so good. My sister usually makes them when I come in town or at Christmas, and I can easily eat most of them. I made them last week for a bridal shower, and they were really easy. You can make them into cookie shapes or cheese straws. They are so delicious and buttery. Thanks again to Plain Chicken--my main recipe source!
Queso Cookies
2 sticks butter, softened
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 can Ro-Tel, drained (or the store brand diced tomatoes and chiles)
Preheat oven to 350. Mix the cheese and butter together. Add the flour, salt, cayenne and tojmatoes, and stir until it becomes a ball.
For cookies, form the dough into marbles and press with a fork. For straws, roll out the dough into a rectangle that is 1/4" thick, andcut the dough into 2"x1" rectangles using a pizza cutter. Poke four holes in the top of each cheese straw with a fork.
Bake on a lightly sprayed cookie sheet for 20 minutes. Cool and then serve. Makes 3-4 dozen.
I'm starting to believe that you can create anything with Pillsbury products. We love their pizza crust and have experimented with different uses for it, and now here's yet another delicious way to use their cresent rolls. This would be an excellent appetizer for any get-together, and it was really quick. (Of course, I already had cheese, bacon, green onions, Ranch, and crescent rolls, so that made it even easier.) The hard part is not eating all of them and thus making them into a meal. Enjoy!
Bacon Cheddar Pinwheels
1 can crescent rolls
1/2 cup (2 oz) shredded Cheddar cheese
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/4 cup green onions, finely sliced
2 Tbsp Ranch dressing
Preheat oven to 350. Unroll dough and separate into two triangles; pinch seams together. Spread Ranch over each triangle to edges, and cover each with green onions, bacon, and cheese. Starting with the short side, roll up each rectangle, and press edges to seal. With a serrated knife, cut each roll into 8 slices. Place cut-side-down on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 12-17 minutes, or until edges are golden brown. Remove immediately from cookie sheet, and serve warm.
One of my favorite things on a Saturday morning is mindlessly watching Food Network shows, and last weekend I was lucky enough to catch Tyler's Ultimate. He's was making the ultimate soup and sandwich, and his sandwich was a grilled cheese, apple, and bacon sandwich. Umm, yes please. I had to make it that afternoon.
This was honestly delicious. This could easily be a Saturday afternoon (or laid back Sunday night or Friday night or whenever) staple. Tyler's recipe called for country-style white bread, but I just used by regular wheat bread, and he also said to generously spread Dijon mustard on the bread before starting to assemble the sandwich, but I forgot to do that.
You HAVE to try this. It's so good!
Grilled Cheese, Apple, and Bacon Sandwich
4 slices of bread
6oz sliced Cheddar cheese
1 1/2 Tsbp butter
6 slices bacon, cooked to desired doneness
1/2 green apple, thinly sliced
(Dijon mustard, if desired)
Heat griddle or large skillet over medium-low heat. Assemble sandwich: if desired, spread Dijon mustard on bread. Top with slices of Cheddar, 3 pieces of bacon, apple slices, and additional Cheddar. Place the remaining bread on top, and spread the outsides of the bread with butter. Cook until cheese is slightly melted and bread is browned. Flip the sandwich and continue to cook until cheese is thoroughly melted and bread is golden brown.
YUM. These muffins are amazing! Biz and I were lucky enough to be invited to the LSU/Auburn game two weeks ago at Auburn, and we brough these to contribute to the awesome tailgate where we were. (Of course, LSU was unlucky enough to lose, but that's a different story.) This recipe is from my sister, who has perfected it, and now we're all lucky enough to learn from her. I promise--you want these for your next breakfast, brunch, tailgate, or whenever. You'll love them!
Sausage and Cheese Muffins
1 lb. hot ground pork sausage
1/2 - 1 small onion, chopped
3 cups all-purpose baking mix
1 (10.75 oz) can condensed fiesta nacho cheese soup
1 1/2 cups (6 oz) shredded Cheddar cheese
3/4 cup water
Cook sausage and onion in a large skillet over medium to med-high heat, stirring until it crumbles and no longer pink. Drain and cool.
Preheat oven to 375. Combine sausage, baking mix, and shredded cheese in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the mixture. Stir together the soup and water; add to sausage mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Spoon until lightly greased muffin tins, filling to tops of cups. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned.
Happy Birthday, Bizzuck!
Since today is Biz's birthday, I don't have any new recipes to contribute, but I will highlight some good ones I've already posted--the ones Bizzuck requested for his birthday dinner. He chose the Pesto Chicken Panini Sandwich, the Creamy Mac and Cheese, and of course, Texas Sheet Cake. That can attest to how delicious they are!
I'll be back with a new recipe soon. We're off to celebrate tonight!
When Bizzuck told me recently that his favorite food was macaroni and cheese, I knew it was time to search for another good recipe. Found it! Thanks, AllRecipes!
We loved how creamy this macaroni and cheese is, and I loved that this particular recipe won't break the bank. Sometimes, the fancy macaroni and cheese recipes can get pricey when you have to buy 3 ounces of this fancy cheese and 3 ounces of that expensive cheese. This recipe isn't putting on airs. It uses Velveeta. And it is delicious.
When you're making it, you may wonder, like Biz did, where the rest of the macaroni is. Don't worry; the ratio is perfect after it's baked. I hope you like it as much as we did.
Creamy Mac and Cheese
1 1/2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni, cooked according to package directions
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 cups milk
8 oz American cheese, shredded (I used the four-cheese Mexican blend)
8 oz Velveeta, cubed
1/4 cup seasoned dry breadcrumbs
Preheat oven to 400. Spray a casserole dish with cooking spray. In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Blend in flour, mustard powder, and pepper until smooth. Slowly stir in the milk, beating out any lumps. Add the cheese and Velveeta, stirring constantly until smooth.
Drain the cooked noodles and stir into cheese sauce. Transfer the mixture into the casserole dish, and sprinkle with breadcrumbs over the top. Cover the dish, and bake fro 20-25 minutes or until the sauce is thick and bubbly.
Oh, man. This is so good--so good, in fact, that Bizzuck deemed it Thanksgiving-worthy, and that's really saying something. Sixteen ounces of white cheddar cheese? Yes, please.
I love caramelized onions, too, but they almost got lost in all of the cheesy goodness (and so much eggs and milk at the end--it all tasted incredible, but I wonder if it would be okay still to cut some of that out). Those would probably be my only complaints.
Oh, wait--I gained three pounds, too.
The Ritz cracker crumbs add such a good crunch, and I cannot tell you adequately what the pecan topping does to this. You want your first bite to have a few chopped pecans. Believe me: you want it. Once again, Southern Living knows what it's doing. Forget seconds; we were going back for thirds.
Caramelized Onion Macaroni and Cheese
1 (8oz) package uncooked elbow macaroni
2 Tbsp butter
2 large onions, hlaved and thinly sliced
1 tsp sugar
1 (16oz) block white Cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 sleeve Ritz crackersk, finely crushed
6 large eggs
4 cups milk
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp butter, melted
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Cook macaroni according to package directions and set aside. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add sliced onions and sugar. Cook, stirring often, for 15-20 minutes or until onions are caramel-colored.
Layer half of the cooked macaroni, half of the onions, half of the cheeses, and half of the cracker crumbs in a lightly greased 13x9-inch baking dish. Layer with remaining macaroni, onions, and cheeses. Whisk together eggs, milk, salt and pepper; pour over macaroni. Stir together remaining cracker crubs, 2 tablespoons of melted butter, and pecans. Sprinkle evenly over macaroni.
Bake at 350 for one hour or until browned and set. Let stand at least 10 minutes before serving.
