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Archive for the ‘Appetizers’ Category

Spicy Pepper Bruschetta

Posted in Appetizers, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 3, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

With the Super Bowl just a few days away I am putting the final touches on my game day menu.  When I think of the perfect menu for the big day I just think of lots of wonderful and delicious finger food.  No one has time to sit at a table with a fork and knife and eat like civilized adults.  The Big Game is all about watching the game and having great food within hands reach.  I am adding a few new additions to my annual game day menu and one of them includes Spicy Pepper Bruschetta.

I was in the local grocery right before Christmas and I was in there at just the right time where the workers were handing out yummy samples.  This particular day I happened to sample the Spicy Pepper Bruschetta.  I took the recipe card thinking I would make this as an appetizer for Christmas, but I made so many appetizers for that night I thought I would save this recipe for another special day.  So the special day came sooner than I thought, the day where my Giants are going to the Super Bowl.  Of course, I had to do a dry run and make this recipe before the big day.  I wanted to make sure my guests were going to enjoy these. I think they will LOVE them, because I know I did.

I adapted the recipe based on what ingredients I had on hand.

What is on your Super Bowl game day menu?

Go Giants!

Spicy Pepper Bruschetta
Photo and Recipe by: The Comforting Cook
Recipe Adapted: Publix Apron Simple Meals
Serving:  12 slices

Spicy Pepper Bruschetta

Spicy Pepper Bruschetta

Ingredients:

  • ½ baguette sliced
  • 2 links cured chorizo sausage (3.5 ounce), coarsely chopped
  • 6 ounces manchego cheese, coarsely chopped  I completely forgot to add this when I made them)
  • 2 cloves minced garlic
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil (divided)
  • ½ cup sweet pepper bruschetta topping  I used Gia Russa Sweet Pepper Bruschetta mixture)

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.  Cut bread into 12 slices.

Places 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a bowl and take a pastry brush and coat both sides of the bread with olive oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper on each side of the bread.  Bake 4-5 minutes or until toasted. Remove from oven when done and let rest.

Place the remainder of the olive oil in a pan on medium and cook garlic for 1-2 minutes until garlic is golden.  Stir in chorizo and bruschetta topping; cook for 2 more minutes.  Remove from heat and let stand for 3-4 minutes to cool.

Top bread with chorizo and bruschetta mixture, along with the cheese.

Enjoy!

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Deconstructed Potato Skins

Posted in Appetizers, Side Dishes, tagged , , , , , , , on October 10, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

Who doesn’t like potato skins? They are definitely one of our favorite appetizers when we go to dinner.  Potatoes, cheese and bacon are the ultimate comfort food. I have to admit I have never thought of making potato skins at home.  Not sure why, I guess I think of it more like bar food, so I just order it as a treat when I am out for dinner.  I was craving potato skins tonight, but I didn’t have any baked potatoes.  But I did have Simply Red Potato Wedges.   So I made a deconstructed version of potato skins. I took my recipe for roasted potatoes and just kicked it up a notch by adding cheese and bacon.  They turned out so good.  My version of potato skins went great with my homemade sloppy joes. I think these deconstructed potato skins are great as a side dish or an appetizer on Sundays while watching football.  We have leftovers so we will definitely be eating these while watch a full day of football.  Go Giants!!!!

What is your favorite potato dish?

Plus, Simply Potatoes wants you to win a year’s worth of FREE Simply Potatoes products. Click here for your chance to win! Good Luck!

Deconstructed Potato Skins:
Recipe and photo by: The Comforting Cook

Deconstructed Potato Skins

Deconstructed Potato Skins

Ingredients:

  • 1 package of Simply Potatoes- Red Potato Wedges
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ¾ teaspoon Mrs. Dash garlic & herb seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • 5 pieces of cooked bacon

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees

Place package of Simply Potatoes in an oven proof pan, I like to use a cast iron pan.  Then add the next five ingredients.  Place in the oven.  Cook for about 45 minutes or until potatoes are tender and get brown and crispy.  Be sure to mix the potato mixture every 15 minutes so they don’t stick to the pan.

When potatoes are tender and crispy take pan out of oven and pour cheese and bacon on top.  Put pan back in the oven until the cheese completely melts over the potatoes.

Deconstructed Potato Skins

Deconstructed Potato Skins

Enjoy!

Disclosure: As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program I received a free bag of Simply Potatoes.

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Homemade Grown-up Sloppy Joes

Posted in Appetizers, Main Course, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on September 24, 2011 | 1 Comment »

One of my favorite comfort foods is sloppy joes.  Not sure when I discovered sloppy joes, probably in my 20’s when I was living on my own.  I never had this sandwich filled with awesomeness as a kid.  I was really a deprived child when it came to food like this.  Don’t get me wrong, I was lucky enough to be blessed with many wonderful Italian meals as a kid, but I definitely missed out on some regular typical kid food like sloppy joes.  I remember many nights stuffing my face with sloppy joes and tater tots while I was alone in my apartment being homesick for my family.  These sandwiches have definitely gotten me through some tough times.

My new thing lately is to check out cookbooks from the library. My husband and I are obsessed with Guy Fieri from the Food Network.  So we checked out his latest cookbook.  In his book I found a more adult version of the same great sandwich that brought me comfort for so many years.  Guy’s version of sloppy joes is so good and definitely has some spice and kick to it. I have to admit we don’t care for jalapeno peppers so we omit that from most of his recipes and we did so in this recipe as well.  I know this recipe looks like a lot of ingredients, but it really doesn’t take long to make.  I made the full recipe and froze the rest for easy week night meals.

When I made these sloppy joes, I didn’t have tater tots, but I did have a bag of sweet potato fries.  I decided to spice those up as well.  Check out my recipe for Spicy Sweet potato fries here.

What is your all-time favorite comfort food?

Homemade Grown-up  Sloppy Joes
Adapted recipe and photo by The Comforting Cook
Original recipe by Guy Fieri
Serves 8

Homemade Grown-up Sloppy Joes

Homemade Grown-up Sloppy Joes

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
  • 1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 1 pound ground pork
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 1/4 cup red wine
  • 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 tablespoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard
  • 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
  • 1 1/2 cups tomato sauce
  • 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 8 Rolls

Directions:
Prepare the sloppy joes: In a large saute pan over medium-high heat, combine the canola oil, bell peppers and onion; cook for 5 minutes. Add the beef and pork; cook thoroughly, breaking up the meat as it browns. Add the garlic.

Depending on the amount of residual grease, you may need to drain some of the fat from the pan. Deglaze with the red wine, then stir in the remaining sloppy joe ingredients (except the rolls) and season with 1 tablespoon each salt and freshly ground pepper. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes.

If the sauce gets too thick as it simmers, add up to 1 cup water to adjust the consistency.

Serve the sloppy joes on the toasted rolls.

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Spicy Sweet Potato Fries

Posted in Appetizers, Side Dishes, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , on September 21, 2011 | 4 Comments »

The two things I can’t live without are cheese and bread. Trailing not very behind are French fries.  I love ALL French fries. I am an equal opportunity French fry lover.  I will eat steak fries, curly fries, shoestring fries, crinkle fries and of course sweet potato fries. Tonight I decided to make homemade sloppy joes. I found the recipe in Guy Fieri’s new cookbook.  I will post that recipe shortly! I usually eat tater tots with my sloppy joes, but I didn’t have any, I only had a bag of sweet potato fries in the freezer.  I decided to spice up the fries.  I thought by adding a bit of a kick to the fries they would be a great compliment to the spicy sloppy joes. I can’t tell you how good these fries are. The brown sugar gives the fries a nice coating and a bit of sweetness. It is a nice balance of flavors.

What is your favorite kind of French fries and how do you dress up frozen French fries?

Spicy Sweet Potato Fries
Recipe and photo by The Comforting Cook

Spicy Sweet Potato Fries


Ingredients:

  • Bag of your favorite sweet potato fries
  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon of brown sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon of cumin
  • ¼ teaspoon chili powder
  • Pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Toss the bag of French fries and all the above ingredients in a bag. Make sure all the fries are evenly coated.

Place the fries on a baking sheet.  I like to line the baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray the foil with cooking spray.
Bake the fries according to the directions on the back of the package.

Enjoy!

Disclosure: As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program I received a free bag of Ore Ida Sweet Potato Fries.

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Meatballs

Posted in Appetizers, Main Course, tagged , , , , on March 9, 2011 | 1 Comment »

Meatballs, what can I say about meatballs, except they are one of the most ultimate comfort foods in my book.  I just remember as a kid the best meal my mom could make my brothers and I was spaghetti and meatballs.  My mom’s meatballs were good but as I got older and developed my own palate and I wanted to put my own spin on a family favorite.  Years after my mom passed away my Dad gave me a cookbook called 365 All-American Favorites.  It is a great cookbook.  I found a great recipe for meatballs that reminded me of my mom’s meatballs, but they went a step further than my mom’s, they had breadcrumbs in them.  I couldn’t believe what a difference breadcrumbs could make to the taste of the  meatballs.  Years after I received this cookbook I continued to tweak this recipe.  I started to use panko breadcrumbs instead of regular bread crumbs, then I started to use a mixture of beef and pork and then finally I started to bake my meatballs instead of frying them in a pan with oil.  I have been trying hard to eat healthier without giving up my comfort food.  So I thought this was a great compromise without giving up the great taste of meatballs.  I hope you enjoy them!

Meatballs
Recipe by: Debra Boswell
Adapted from the cookbook called 365 All-American Favorites
Photo by: Debra Boswell
Serves:  Approximately 30 meatballs

Meatballs

Ingredients:
1 ½-2 pounds lean ground beef and veal combo
2 eggs
½ cup milk
⅓ cup bread crumbs ( I like to use Panko bread crumbs)
⅓ cup parmesan cheese
¼ cup parsley
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
Cooking spray

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

In a medium bowl, combine beef and veal mixture, eggs, milk, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, salt and pepper. Mix well with your hands. You don’t want the mixture to loose and wet, but if you find it is, just add more bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese to firm it up.

Wet your hands to prevent sticking and use heaping tablespoons to shape about 30 meatballs.

Spray a 13×9 baking pan with cooking spray.  Place your meatballs in the pan about an inch or so a part.

Bake meatballs for about 20-25 minutes.  After 11 minutes take the meatballs out and turn them over so they can bake evenly on the other side.

Enjoy!

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Pasta e Fagioli Soup

Posted in Appetizers, Main Course, Soups, tagged , , , , , , , , on January 29, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

I am still on the soup train since it is still so cold outside.  So I decided to make a soup that represents the ultimate comfort food in the soup category that is and to me it is Pasta e Fagioli Soup.  My family makes a few different versions of this soup and it doesn’t matter whose version you eat, you will never be disappointed.  I rarely get soup as an appetizer, but when homemade Pasta e Fagioli is on the menu then I am all over it.  I guess between the cold weather and missing my family a lot right now, I really wanted to make something comforting. So what better way to feel comforted than by eating Pasta e Fagioli soup.  What is your favorite soup?

Pasta e Fagioli Soup:
Adapted recipe and photo by The Comforting Cook
Original recipe by  Giada De Laurentiis

Pasta e Fagioli Soup

Ingredients:
2 bay leaf
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup chopped onion
3 ounces pancetta, chopped
3 pieces of bacon (cooked and chopped)
3 teaspoons minced garlic
5 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (14.5-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
3/4 cup elbow macaroni
Freshly ground black pepper
Pinch red pepper flakes, optional
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions:

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil and butter in a heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, pancetta, and garlic and saute until the onion is tender, about 3 minutes. Add the broth, beans, and bay leaves. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat, then decrease the heat to medium and simmer until the vegetables are very tender, about 10 minutes. Discard the bay leaves. Puree 1 cup of the bean mixture in a blender until smooth*. Before putting the puree back into the soup, add the macaroni and boil with the lid on until it is tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Return the puree to the remaining soup in the saucepan and stir well.Season the soup with ground black pepper and red pepper flakes.

Ladle the soup into bowls. Sprinkle with some Parmesan cheese.

*When blending hot liquids: Remove liquid from the heat and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes. Transfer liquid to a blender or food processor and fill it no more than halfway. If using a blender, release one corner of the lid. This prevents the vacuum effect that creates heat explosions. Place a towel over the top of the machine, pulse a few times then process on high speed until smooth.

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Tortilla Soup

Posted in Appetizers, Main Course, Soups, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 26, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

I don’t know about where you live, but it is cold outside.  So I have been in the mood for soups lately to warm me up at night! Now the search was on for a different kind of soup.  I didn’t want your predictable chicken noodle or chicken and rice or even potato soup.  So after searching the Internet for what seemed like hours, it was probably more like 15 minutes, but when you are starving fifteen minutes seems like an eternity. My search resulted in this recipe for Chicken Tortilla Soup.  I actually found the original recipe on a great food blog I regularly follow, AliGirl. I really recommend that you check out her blog, she is fun, silly and comes up with some really great recipes! But more importantly this recipe was a winner for two reasons.  One, as you have heard me say before my husband loves Mexican food.  So I knew this recipe was a winner. But more importantly, I had a good portion of the ingredients in the house.  Since I didn’t have everything in the house, I had to improvise, and adapt the recipe to fit what I had on hand.  I can’t tell you how good this soup was and how much it really hit the spot on these cold nights. Hope this recipe warms up your house!

Tell me about your favorite soup that warms you up on a cold winter’s day?

Chicken Tortilla Soup
Adapted Recipe and Photo by The Comforting Cook
Original Recipe by AliGirl

 

Tortilla Soup

Tortilla Soup

 

 

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:
2 cups of cooked chicken *
1 can diced tomatoes (No-salt)
48 ounces chicken broth ( I used homemade chicken broth)
2-3 tablespoons canola oil
1 onion, diced
1/2 red pepper, diced
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
1 small can diced green chiles
1 cup corn
salt and pepper
shredded cheese

Directions:
* I always have homemade chicken broth in the freezer along with the leftover chicken used in making the chicken broth.  Defrost both the chicken broth and chicken a few hours before you start to make the soup.

Heat 2-3 tablespoons of oil in your soup pot. Add in onions and cook 8-10 minutes, until translucent. Add in your peppers and cook for 5-6 minutes. Add garlic and spices and cook for 2-3 more minutes.

Add chicken, diced tomatoes and green chilies. Season with salt and pepper.

Bring the mixture to the simmer and cook for at least 30 minutes. Add in the corn 15 minutes before serving.

Once you ladle your soup into bowls, garnish with cheese. Enjoy!

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Mini Caprese Bites

Posted in Appetizers, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 7, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

For New Year’s Day we had some family over.  I wanted to start the New Year off right with some healthy appetizers. I had a house full of picky eaters, me included.  The only thing I could think of that most of us actually all liked were tomatoes and mozzarella cheese.  I remember seeing in a magazine a fun way of assembling a caprese salad by putting it on a skewer. I thought that was a fun way to showcase this appetizer to my picky guests! Well it must have looked good enough to eat since there were none left by the end of the night.  I will definitely use this recipe again the next time I have a party! Happy New Year!

Mini Caprese Bite
Photo by The Comforting Cook
Yield:  Makes about 20 skewers (depends on how many tomatoes are in the pint)

Mini Caprese Bites

Ingredients:
1 pt. grape tomatoes, halved
1 8 oz package of fresh mozzarella (cut into 1/2 inch pieces)
20 (4-inch) wooden skewers or wooden sticks
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon of maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
Thread 1 tomato half, 1 piece of cheese, and another tomato half onto each skewer. Place skewers in a shallow serving dish.

Whisk together oil and next 5 ingredients. Keep tasting the mixture as you go. You may want to add a little more mustard, balsamic or syrup depending on your taste. I would definite experiment with this recipe and get the measurements of the oil mixture to your liking.  Drizzle oil mixture over skewers.

Place skewers in a nice cocktail glass or on a serving platter. Enjoy!

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Baked Brie with Raspberry Jam

Posted in Appetizers, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on November 13, 2010 | 2 Comments »

As much as I love food, I can be a very picky eater.  I am really bad about not trying food if it has ingredients in it I know I don’t like or think I don’t like, even though I haven’t tried them.  But I have to admit as I am getting older I am getting much better about trying foods even though they may have ingredients that I wouldn’t normally eat or pair with each other.

On to the Baked Brie with Raspberry Jam. I really haven’t met a cheese I didn’t like.  And Brie cheese is no exception.  This recipe is inspired by a Baked Brie my cousin Gina served one Thanksgiving.  I believe it was the first Thanksgiving after my mother passed away and my cousin invited my family over for Thanksgiving dinner.  One of the wonderful appetizers served was a Baked Brie.  But little did I know until after I tried it that there were nuts and black currants in it.  If I knew that before I ate it, I wouldn’t have tried it.  Glad I didn’t ask what was in it before I ate it, because I would have missed out on a great appetizer!

This past weekend a couple of my friends and I decided to form a “Cooking Club”.  There are six of us in the group and two of them I only loosely know from husband, he went to high school with them.  The other is a gal I work with and the other two women are friends of my husband’s high school friends, that I have never met before. We decided on an Appetizers and Desserts theme for the first official meeting.  Since we are only a few weeks away from Thanksgiving, I decided to make my own version of my cousin’s Baked Brie recipe.  I used raspberry jam instead of black currants.  I omitted the nuts because I wasn’t sure if any of the ladies were allergic to nuts.  This appetizer is very comforting to me because it reminds me of that Thanksgiving where my cousin and her family opened up their home to me and my family.  We had a lot to be thankful for that year!

I can’t tell you how much fun the Cooking Club was. We had a great time meeting each other, trying each other’s food and learning what inspired each person to make their dish.  At the bottom there are photos of some of the wonderful dishes from the cooking club meeting.  Again, I ate food that I normally don’t eat, like pumpkin.  I worked in a bakery for 5 years and I am sick of pumpkin.  Two of the women made pumpkin spiced desserts.  They were excellent.  Again, I told them not to tell me what is in it until after I have tried it! Glad I ventured out of my comfort zone and ate the wonderful food. I am sure you will be hearing more about my cooking club in my blogs.  We meet once a month and I can’t wait to share all the wonderful recipes my new friends are so kind to share with me.  See how comforting food can be! It really does bring people together.  Now I am happy to call all of them my friends!

Baked Brie with Raspberry Jam

Baked Brie with Raspberry Jam
Adapted recipe and photo by The Comforting Cook
Original recipe from Paula Deen

Ingredients
•    1 sheet frozen puff pastry (package comes with 2 sheets)
•    1 small (8-ounce) wheel Brie
•    raspberry jam
•    2 eggs, beaten
•    Kitchen string

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Defrost 1 sheet of puff pastry for approximately 15 to 20 minutes and unfold (place remaining sheet in freezer for later use). Spread jam on Brie, use as much as you like. Gently roll pastry with a rolling pin to increase the size of the sheet 1 to 2 inches in each direction. Brush both sides of the sheet with beaten eggs. Center the wheel of Brie on top of the pastry sheet. Bring all four corners of the sheet together above Brie and twist slightly to form a “bundle.” Tie gathered pastry with kitchen/cooking string (tie string in the form of a bow), arranging pastry until you are satisfied with the “bundle” shape. Place “bundle” on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until pastry is golden brown. Enjoy!

Photos of the food from the Cooking Club:

Lots of Wonderful Food Made by Wonderful Ladies

Cheese Ball... Looks Gorgeous Doesn't It?

Pumpkin Spiced Cookies.. YUM!!

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Rolls

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