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This is based on the recipe for Paula Deen's Monster Mash, but I don't think we should limit it to just Halloween. This dip has a place at your party table all year long. It's extremely easy, and it was really good! I liked it better when it was hot instead of when it had gotten to room temperature.
I let myself feel okay about eating huge quantities of this dip because I used fat free cream cheese, shredded cheese made with 2% milk, and organic fat-free black beans. Surely that cancels out the bag of chips we ate along with it.
It makes quite a bit, too, so you can save any leftovers (or in my case, what wouldn't comfortably fit into the 8x8 dish), and spread it in some tortillas with shredded chicken for a delicious soft taco later in the week.
Black Bean Dip
4 oz cream cheese
2 (20.5 oz) cans refried black beans
1 (10 oz) can diced tomatoes and green chiles
2 cups (8 oz) shredded Mexican blend cheese
1 Tbsp taco seasoning
Tortilla chips, for serving
Preheat oven to 325. Lightly spray a 2-quart baking dish. Cut cream cheese into small cubes and place on bottom of dish. Combine beans, tomatoes, taco seasoning, and 1 cup of the shredded cheese, and spoon into the baking dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.
Remove from oven, and stir so that the cream cheese is combined with the other ingredients. Turn on the broiler. Top dip with the remaining cup of shredded cheese, and broil until the cheese has melted and is slightly browned. Serve hot with tortilla chips.
Let me recreate for you a conversation I had with Erica, one of my very closest friends, during our freshman year in college.
Me: Ooh, I love carrot cake!
Erica: You look like you'd love carrot cake.
Me: Why?
Erica: I don't know...
Me: Is it because I'm a redhead?
Erica: YES!
Whatever the reason, I do love carrot cake, and I couldn't wait to make these carrot cake cookies from Everyday Cooking for Two. And I'm happy to report that they're everything I'd hoped they would be. And more. With cream cheese icing.
Now, I goofed on the icing. I was trying to make it healthier. (As if it matters--seriously. It's cream cheese icing. Who am I kidding?) I tried using 2 1/2 tablespoons of applesauce instead of 2 1/2 tablespoons of butter, so the consistency is all wrong. There are little lumps of powdered sugar that don't look appetizing.
But if you could taste them, you wouldn't care.
If I were really worried about making them healthier, I would have added the 1/3 cup of raisins that the recipe calls for, but I didn't have any at the house, so I didn't; you can. Also, the original recipe says that baby carrots had less taste than regular carrots, so I used regular carrots. It took me almost 3 carrots to reach 3/4 cup.
You should make these as soon as you can. The recipe made 21 cookies for me, but it depends on the size of the cookies. These would be awesome for a holiday treat or for an everyday treat.
Carrot Cake Cookies
Icing
4 oz cream cheese, softened
2 1/2 Tbsp butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1 cup powdered sugar
Cookies
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 egg yolk
3/4 cup all-purpose flour (I used whole wheat)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1 tsp salt
1 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup grated carrot
1/3 cup raisins
Preheat oven to 350, and spray two cookie sheets with cooking spray. Finely shred carrots and set aside.
Make the frosting first. Cream together softened cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add the vanilla and lemon juice, and continue to mix. Slowly add the powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Refrigerate until needed.
In a large mixing bowl combine the stick of melted butter with the brown sugar, white sugar, and egg yolk. Whisk or beat together. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, ginger, and salt. Mix together well, and slowly combine with the butter/egg mixture. Add the shredded carrot, the oats, and the raisins. Mix well.
Spoon onto cookie sheets in 1"-diameter dough balls. Flatten them slightly with your fingers.
Bake in preheated oven for 8 minutes; then rotate the pans, and bake for 8 more minutes. Remove from oven and let rest on the cookie sheet for a couple of minutes before removing them to a cooling rack. When cooled, frost with icing.
We LOVED these burgers! I don't eat a lot of red meat, but I couldn't get enough of these. I think the sauce is what made them extra good. It was really spicy just to taste it on its own, but it was perfect with the burger on both sides of the bread (and as a dipping sauce for the fries).
This was a Southern Living recipe. It called for chili sauce, and I wasn't positive what that meant, so I got a jar of sweet chili sauce in the Asian foods section of the grocery store. I should also note that this is probably my first burger, ever, without cheese on it. I didn't even miss it. The recipe says you can top the burger with grilled pineapple slices and grilled red onion, and I'm sure that would be great, but both of us ate our burgers with the bread, the meat, and the sauce. Simple and delicious.
The bottom line is that we'll definitely make these again. I can't recommend them enough.
Sweet and Savory Burgers
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp garlic powder
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1.5 lbs ground chuck (80/20)
1/4 cup chili sauce
1/4 cup jalapeno jelly
Hamburger buns
Combine the first five ingredients, and pour them in a shallow dish. Shape the ground chuck into five patties, and set the patties in the soy sauce mixture to marinate. Make sure both sides of the patties are dipped in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for four hours.
Combine the chili sauce and jalapeno jelly, and set aside.
When ready, grill the burgers over medium high heat for 6-7 minutes per side, or until cooked to desired doneness. Smear pepper jelly mixture on both sides of the bun, and garnish burger with grilled pineapple and grilled red onion, if desired.
I really liked these! This were really good served with salsa and sour cream. If you're going to the trouble to make them, you might as well make several sheets of them, and that's fine because they reheat beautifully. I was able to get 11-12 empanadas per sheet of puff pastry, and I cut them into circles with a water glass. I'm sure a biscuit cutter is more proper, but you use what you have. Similarly, I used a beer bottle to roll the puff pastry dough into the a bigger rectangle because I didn't have a rolling pin. I've since received one. (Thanks, Amanda.)
To speed up the process, you can also make the filling the day ahead. I made the filling with my favorite, Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken, but you could use any shredded or ground meat--beef, pork, turkey, or deer (if you live in my neck of the woods). The recipe calls for a can of black beans, but I didn't even use half of it.
This is the perfect party appetizer or tailgate food, and they're nice and filling. You should try these!
Chicken and Black Bean Mini Empanadas
4 sheets Puff Pastry dough
1 egg
1 Tbsp water
1/2 lb cooked shredded salsa chicken
1 Tbsp Philadelphia Cooking Creme Southwest Blend
1 small red bell pepper, diced (I used one from a jar)
2 tsp dried minced onion flakes
1 tsp taco seasoning
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (I used the 4 cheese Mexican blend)
1/2 (15oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Thaw the puff pastry sheets at room temperature for 40 minutes or until they're easy to handle. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or spray with cooking spray. Stir the egg and water with a fork in a small bowl.
Heat a skillet over medium heat, and combine the chicken, bell pepper, taco seasoning, and Cooking Creme until warm. Remove from heat, and stir in the cheese and half the can of black beans.
Unfold one sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface, and roll out into a 16"x12" rectangle. Cut into 12 (2.5") rounds. Put 1 teaspoon of the chicken mixture on each round. Wet the edges of the round; fold over and press the edges with a fork to seal. Place the empanadas on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining sheets of puff pastry. Brush empanadas with egg wash.
Bake for 18 minutes or until golden. Serve with salsa and sour cream.
In this month's Food Network Magazine, there are recipes for different dinner pockets. Just like Hot Pockets, these were nice and tasty, but they're better because you can control the ingredients that go into them. In the magazine, they suggest broccoli-cheddar pockets, shredded chicken pockets, and picadillo pockets. We went with good ol' ham and cheese.
These were so easy because the recipe only calls for refrigerated bread dough. The can that I had expired in April, so instead of wagering a precious sick day over a $3 can of bread dough, I opted for the two new cans of crescent rolls that I had. I think they were even better than they'd be if I'd followed the recipe.
I'm putting the recipe like it calls for in the magazine, but if I use two cans of crescent rolls again, I'll definitely make more filling next time. Also, change it up to make it how you like it--I always use whatever cheese we have, which usually ends up being the Mexican four-cheese blend. If you want to splurge on some gruyere, be my guest!
Ham and Cheese Hot Pockets
1 (11oz) tube refrigerated French bread dough (or 2 cans crescent rolls)
1 cup (about 4 oz) grated cheese
1 cup (about 4 oz) deli sliced ham
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp grated nutmeg
Pinch of cayenne pepper
All-purpose flour, for dusting
Cooking Spray
1 large egg
Preheat oven to 425. Mix the cheese, ham, mustard, nutmeg, and cayenne in a bowl until combined. Squeeze the mixture together with your hands to make it compact. Spray a baking sheet lightly with cooking spray.
On a floured surface, roll out the dough. (If using bread dough, cut the dough into four pieces, and roll out each piece into a 6"x8" rectangle. If using crescent rolls, cut the dough into 8 pieces.) Divide the filling evenly among each dough rectangle. Fold the two shorter sides of the dough over the filling, stretching the dough to cover. Fold the two longs ides of the dough to form a packet; pinch the edges to seal.
Place the pockets seam-side-down on the prepared baking sheet. Beat the egg and one tablespoon of water in a small bowl; brush the pockets with the egg wash. Bake until golden-brown, or about 15 minutes.
