Hot Parmesan Artichoke Dip & Pizza Dip

Now that I am living with other people, I find I am not taking pictures of what I am cooking. With an audience, there is more pressure to serve the food right away, and not pause to take a series of photos. So I am sorry that I’m not posting much these days. I resolve to do better.

While at my parents’ house for Christmas, we decided, since my brother’s family was flying out that afternoon, to just do a bunch of hors d'oeuvres on Christmas Day. Here are two of the ones I made. Of course, I forgot to take photos of the finished dishes, but I did remember and took a photo of one of my bites. Everyone seemed to eat them pretty quickly, I guess they liked ‘em?

Hot Parmesan Artichoke Dip

Ingredients
14 oz artichoke hearts
1 c grated Parmesan cheese
1 c mayonnaise
1 garlic clove
1-2 Roma tomatoes, diced
3-4 green onions, sliced
Instructions
Mix all the ingredients but tomatoes and onions.
Spoon into a pie dish.
Bake at 350° for 25 minutes.
Sprinkle with the tomatoes and onions.
Serve with chips or bread pieces or crackers or whatever.

Pizza Dip

Ingredients
1 cube cream cheese
2 c spaghetti or pizza sauce*
1-2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated
Instructions
Spread the cream cheese evenly into the bottom of a pie dish. **I set the cream cheese out for a few hours beforehand so that it is room temperature, aka: easier to spread.**
Pour the sauce over the cream cheese.
Sprinkle the cheese on top.
Bake at 350° for 10-15 minutes (until the mozzarella is melted).
Serve with crackers or bread, etc.

*I usually just make my own quick sauce combining tomatoes and spices, instead of using a jar sauce.

Enjoy!

Recipe Reminiscing

Have you tried a recipe from Eat Your Veggies, Peas! recently and loved it?  Or did you make it a long time ago and still continue to whip it up every now and then?

If you're like me - right before I go to the grocery store I scan old and new recipes from this website to make my grocery list.  Some things have been posted for months, yet I just barely tried it and loved it - and want to share (who really goes back to see that I checked the "Loved it!" box?).

Let's hear all about what recipes from here you've been cooking up!

pumpkin pie...

I know Thanksgiving has come and gone but just had to post a homemade Pumpkin Pie recipe. It is so good and easy!

Crust:

2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup shortening
1 teaspoon salt
7 Tlbs ice cold water

Using a pastry cutter, blend ingredients until well blended. Roll dough out on floured surface using a roller til about 1/2 inch thick. Roll dough around roller and place in a 9 inch pie pan.

You will have a little bit of extra crust. What I like to do is roll them out again and make little strips and sprinkle cinnamon and bake in the oven until golden brown. Makes a nice treat!

Filling: (recipe is on Libby's 100% pure Pumpkin can)
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
2 large eggs
1 can (15 oz.) Libby's 100% Pure Pumpkin (don't get the brown can and the one that says "easy" on it)
1 can (12 fl. oz.) Evaporated Milk

Mix sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves in a small bowl. Beat eggs in a large bowl. Stir in pumpkin and sugar-spiced mixture. Gradually stir in evaporated milk. Pour into unbaked pie shell.

Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake 40-50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool on rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate.

I also make my own whipped cream. Just get 1 pint of heavy whipping cream and pour into a bowl that has been left frozen for a few hours. (This helps the cream to stay cool while mixing) Use 1 teaspoon of vanilla and some sugar to taste. Maybe about 1/2 cup - 2/3 cup. Depending on your desire of sweetness and beat with a beater until the cream thickens. Takes about 5 minutes to thicken.

Cinnamon Roasted Chicken with Pumpkin-Sage Grits

Sorry, I posted the pumpkin cinnamon rolls and mentioned another recipe I had planned to make that week... and then I got sick. Now I am better and cooking again. So here is the second pumpkin recipe I made this month. We all liked it , but the grits should definitely be eaten with the chicken. They compliment each other well, but I think alone, the grits are kind of bland. So here is the recipe, and as usual I put little side notes of changes I made...

Cinnamon Roasted Chicken with Pumpkin-Sage Grits

Ingredients

3 chicken breast halves (I then cut them in half, so into six pieces of chicken)

1 T vegetable oil (I used olive oil)

1½ t salt

1 t cinnamon

½ t black pepper

1½ c water

2/3 c instant grits

½ c canned pumpkin

1 T snipped fresh sage (I used closer to 3 T)

1/3 c shredded cheddar cheese

Sage leaves

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place halved chicken breast halves into a baking dish. Drizzle chicken with oil and sprinkle with 1 tsp. of the salt, the cinnamon, and black pepper. Rub the spices over all sides of the chicken. Bake for 20 minutes or until no longer pink and juices run clear. (I had to bake for 40 minutes for them to be fulled cooked.)

About 10 minutes before the chicken is done, in a saucepan, bring water to a boil. Stir in grits until combined. Stir in pumpkin, sage, and 1/2 tsp. salt. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Cook, uncovered, for 5 to 7 minutes or until thickened, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in cheese.

To serve, spoon grits onto dinner plates and top with chicken breast halves. Add sage leaves on top.

Enjoy!

instant potato soup.

this kept us nice & toasty during the winter storm today! i love that it doesn't require actual potatoes. i don't always have potatoes on hand, but i always have the instant variety :)

ingredients:
2 Tbsp onion, chopped
2 Tbsp butter
3 cups milk
1 can chicken broth
4 servings worth of dry instant mashed potatoes
1 1/2 tsp salt
pepper

directions:
in a saucepan, saute onion in butter over low heat. add milk, chicken broth, salt & pepper, and potato flakes. heat to almost boiling, stirring constantly. remove from heat. garnish with paprika, parsley, or grated cheese. add milk if too thick.

optional:
i added 2 cups of cubed, cooked potatoes. i think next time i'll try adding 4 slices of finely chopped bacon when i cook the onions.