Who would guess that it is this EASY to make cheese crackers (PRESERVATIVE FREE) at home? And, FAST too!
I made this batch of cheese crackers with gluten free flour--but, if you don't need GF...swap unbleached all-purpose flour!!
They are delicious!!! Cheesy, crunchy, and get a tiny zing (like store cheez-its) from the red pepper flakes. But, don't worry--they're NOT spicy!
HOMEMADE CHEESE CRACKERS
INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups of Sharp Cheddar Cheese (get a block of GOOD cheese and shred it yourself--pre-shredded cheese has preservatives in it!!)
1/4 cup salted butter, cut into pieces
3/4 cup "cup4cup" Gluten Free flour (or same amount of un-bleached all-purpose flour)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (crushed fine!)
1 tbsp. milk
INSTRUCTIONS:
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
Put cheese, butter, flour, salt, and crushed red pepper into your food processor or blender (I used my Blendtec blender) and pulse until you have chunky, course crumbs.
Add the milk and pulse until the dough comes together.
Flour your surface and roll the dough out to about 1/8" thickness. (It might seem a bit dry--that's ok!)
Use a pizza cutter (or knife) to cut the dough into small squares, place the squares on a baking sheet leaving a small space between pieces. (I used a spatula to gently remove them from the countertop.)
Use a toothpick or a skewer to make a hole in the center of each piece.
Bake approximately 12-15 minutes until the crackers are lightly browned.
Remove to a wire rack to cool. (They get crunchy when they're cool!)
Enjoy!!!
**I bet Super Sharp Cheddar or even Parmesan cheese would be good in these too! If you try a different cheese be sure to let me know how they turn out!!!
This is the PERFECT party hors d'oeuvre for your "Bacon Loving" Friends & Family!!
Salty, Sweet, Creamy, Crunchy...this two bite treat covers it all!
Use YOUR favorite cheese or use a variety of cheeses!
Cheese Stuffed Bacon Wrapped Dates
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 lb. thinly sliced bacon
1 pkg. pitted dates
Your choice of cheese: feta, goat, parmesan, cream cheese, blue (I used Feta)
INSTRUCTIONS:
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
Cut bacon in half.
Open the dates at the place where the pit was removed and stuff with cheese.
Wrap the dates with bacon and place on the baking sheet with the seam side down.
Bake for 15-25 minutes or until cooked to preference. (I like mine crunchy and well done!
But, we did leave some a bit more rare.)
Drain on paper towel.
Add fancy toothpicks for serving!
ENJOY!
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| everything "p" |
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, appetizer...I could eat this any time!
One of these is a MEAL! It contains all of the food groups--hehe!!!
Ok...maybe add a side of broccoli or some other vegetable so the kids don't get spoiled!
They are HUGE and super filling! and, really, really, REALLY good!
TWICE BAKED BACON & CHEESE POTATOES
INGREDIENTS:
8 large baking potatoes, scrubbed well!
Olive oil
1 1/2 sticks salted butter
1 lb. bacon, cooked crisp! then crumbled.
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup milk
1 bunch green onions, chopped small
Salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS:
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
Rub the potatoes with olive oil, place on baking sheet.
Bake for 1 hour or until you can pierce them easily with a fork.
Lower oven heat to 375 degrees.
When potatoes are cool enough to handle, slice them in half lengthwise.
Carefully scoop out most of the inside of the potatoes into a large bowl. Be sure to leave enough of a "shell" to hold the mixture that you are going to put back in.
Return the shells to the baking sheet. Set aside.
Mash the insides of the potatoes with the butter, sour cream, 1 cup of the cheddar cheese, milk, and most of the onions (save some for the tops!)
Add salt & pepper to taste, then fold in most of the bacon (saving some for the tops!)
If the mixture seems too dry, add in a bit more milk or sour cream.
Fill the shells with the mixture, top with remaining cheese, onions, and bacon and return to the oven until the cheese is melted and browned and the potatoes are warmed through--about 15 minutes.
ENJOY!!!
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| everything "p" |
This meatball recipe is SO versatile!
Make mini appetizer meatballs your party guests will LOVE!
OR
Add your favorite stir fry veggies and rice, and it's a meal!
Make this recipe work for YOU!!
ASIAN MEATBALLS (appetizer or dinner)
MEATBALL INGREDIENTS:
2 pounds lean ground beef
2 tsp. sesame oil
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
2 large eggs
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup green onions, chopped (be sure to include GREEN part!)
2 tbsp. soy sauce (I like Kikkoman Gluten Free/Preservative Free!)
SAUCE INGREDIENTS:
2/3 cup Hoisin Sauce (there is one without Preservatives!)
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. ground ginger
IF MAKING MEATBALLS FOR DINER:
stir fry vegetables--carrots, snow peas, water chestnuts, etc.
cooked rice
INSTRUCTIONS:
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
Put all meatball ingredients into a large bowl, mix until combined.
APPETIZER: shape into 1" balls. (about 40 meatballs)
DINNER: shape into 2" balls. (about 20 meatballs)
Place on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.
1" APPETIZER SIZE: Bake 10-12 minutes
2" DINNER SIZE: Bake about 18-20 minutes
Bake either size until meatballs are browned on the outside, and cooked through on the inside.
SAUCE:
While the meatballs are baking, stir/whisk together all of the sauce ingredients.
The sauce does not need to be cooked, so there are MANY OPTIONS:
APPETIZER: put meatballs into a crockpot and pour sauce over them.
put meatballs on a plate with the bowl of sauce next to them.
DINNER: put sauce into a wok pan, add vegetables,
cook until vegetables are crisp/tender then
add 10-12 meatballs. (2-3 meatballs per person.)
Coat meatballs with sauce. Serve with, or over rice.
I put the other 1/2 of the meatballs into the
freezer and just make the sauce the next time
for a FAST dinner! IF you need ALL 20 MEATBALLS
for dinner--double the sauce, add your veggies,
cook until crisp/tender, then pour over
the meatballs.
ENJOY!!!
Yesterday I realized I needed to cook something with the potatoes that have been in my pantry for awhile...but, Friday is a "no cook" day for me, soooooooo, I MADE CHIPS!
I typically don't buy chips from the store but, when I need to use up some potatoes, we get a special treat!!
SUPER SIMPLE, NO FUSS POTATO CHIPS
INGREDIENTS:
Potatoes, scrubbed well (however many you want to use up. Just a few potatoes will make quite a few chips!)
Oil for frying (I use either Vegetable or Peanut oil)
Fine Salt
INSTRUCTIONS:
Heat a few inches of oil in a deep pan/pot (I use my wok pan!) over Medium-High heat.
While the oil is heating, use a mandolin to slice the potatoes VERY, VERY thin! I leave the skin on--no need to peel them! (Beeeee careful, that blade is SUPER sharp! My finger is in a band-aid today!! Ouch! Tip: Use that little thing that comes with the mandolin to hold the potato when you start getting to the end!!)
To check the oil temperature, put one slice of potato in there. It typically takes 4-5 minutes to cook a batch of chips when the oil is at the right temperature. You may have to do the "single slice" test a few times to get the temperature right.
After getting the oil to the correct temperature, put about 25 slices in. (Don't overcrowd) Tip! It's better to separate the slices as you put them in or you'll have a big clump of potatoes in the oil that are very hard to separate!!
Set your timer for 4 minutes. Turn the chips every so often so they cook evenly. We like them a bit more brown so I typically go about 5 minutes and then start to pull them out.
Use a flat strainer (like in the first picture) to remove the chips from the oil, let them drain a few seconds on the side of the pan/pot before moving them to a paper towel lined baking sheet to drain/cool.
I scatter them on the baking sheet and sprinkle salt on them while the next batch is frying, then when it's time to pull the batch out of the oil, I lift up the paper towel and move the cooling ones off to the side to make room for the new batch (like the 2nd picture).
Sprinkle the chips with salt, and that's it! SUPER SIMPLE, HUH!! Continue with the rest of the sliced potatoes. I think I did 5 or 6 batches yesterday and had to move them to a bowl to make room for more on the baking sheet!
After they are completely cooled, put them into a zip lock bag to store. Trust me--You won't need to store them for very long!!!
Enjoy!!!
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| homemade kettle corn! |
ingredients:
1/4 cup vegetable oil (or peanut oil, or ghee!)
1/2 cup popcorn kernels
1/4 cup sugar (white for kettle corn, brown sugar for a more caramel flavor!)
instructions:
heat oil (or ghee) in a large, heavy bottomed pot over medium-high heat.
stir in popcorn kernels and sugar. cover pot with lid.
listen for the first kernels to pop! when they do, shake the pan on the burner (continuously, or it will burn).
turn the heat down, when you hear a pause (a few seconds) between pops, it's almost done!
remove the pot from the heat and continue to shake until popping stops.
pour the popcorn onto a baking sheet lined with parchment.
break up large pieces and sprinkle with salt.
enjoy!!!
