Appetizer #11 - Rosemary Shortbread

 The Year of Appetizers

Appetizer #11 - Rosemary Shortbread

        All I can say is "Yummmmm". This was my first attempt at making shortbread and it turned out really well. While shortbread is really a dessert, I chose to make this as an appetizer,  because hey, we can have sweet & savory appetizers, right? This yummy recipe is in Southern Living's 50 Favorite Cookie Recipes, published in 2002.  It was super easy to make. Just make sure that when you're ready to make this, that you have softened your butter ahead of time. The original recipe calls for an electric mixer, but I mixed it by hand. Shortbread is a little "fragile" (at least mine was), so be careful when you are cutting pieces when your shortbread is cooled. I would definitely make this recipe again.

Ingredients:

1 cup butter (two sticks), softened (I used salted butter)

3/4 cup sifted powdered sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp minced fresh rosemary

Directions:

Beat butter by hand or on medium with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar and cornstarch. Beat well, then stir in flour and rosemary. The dough will be a bit stiff. Divide dough in half. Shape one half into a 6 1/2" round on an un-greased baking sheet. Using a fork, crimp edges of the round. Using a large knife, cut dough into 8 pieces, but do not separate. Repeat the procedure with the second half of the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour.  Before the hour is up, pre-heat your oven to 300 degrees. When dough has chilled for an hour, bake for 30 minutes (or until done). Remove from oven and cool on the baking sheet for five minutes. Remove both shortbreads to a wire rack and cool completely.  This recipe yields 16 wedges of shortbread.  Serve as an appetizer or as a dessert! 

Rosemary Shortbread

Appetizer #10 - Onion Tartlets

The Year of Appetizers

Appetizer #10 - Onion Tartlets

    Betty Crocker's New Choices Cookbook published in 1993 is the first cookbook I bought myself. I believe I bought the book in a Waldenbooks store at White Flint Mall (closed) in Maryland. This recipe is based on the Creamy Onion Tartlets in this book. The original recipe calls for turkey bacon; I used pork bacon and added a dab of cream cheese in the bottom of some of the tartlets (to see how I liked that). So, the biggest issue I had is that the recipe calls for 8 cups chopped onions (about 4lbs). I had four large onions and actually weighed them. None even weighed a pound, so I figured I was good. When chopped there was a huge mound of onion, but I figured "That's okay. I don't have 4lbs of onion." But, the onion did not cook down into a marmalade consistency as the recipe says it will.  I'll give you the recipe and note modifications in Italics. Even though they didn't turn out how they were supposed to, they still tasted fine. I served them with Appetizer #9 - Lemonchick's Sun-Dried Tomato & Cheese Tartlets this weekend.

Ingredients:

1 15-piece package of Athena phyllo shells

8 cups chopped onions (about 4lbs) *Note - This was way too much onion; I had a lot leftover and want to figure out what to do with it.

1 cup beef broth

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 diced, cooked bacon (Orginally 2 slices turkey bacon, cooked and chopped)

6 tbsps grated Parmesan cheese

Softened Cream Cheese (Optional)

Directions:

Cook onion, broth, pepper and bacon in a large skillet over medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium low and cook uncovered for 50 minutes, stirring occasionally. *Note: The original recipe says cook until all liquid is absorbed and the onions are the consistency of marmalade. This did not happen for me. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place phyllo shells on a cookie sheet. Spoon onion mixture into shells and sprinkle Parmesan cheese over each tartlet.  If desired, add a dab of softened cream cheese into the bottom of the phyllo shells, before adding the onion mixture. Bake for 6 to 8 minutes or until cheese is light brown. You may need to cook a couple minutes longer to ensure that phyllo is crisped.

Appetizer #10 - Onion Tartlets with Appetizer #9 - Lemonchick's Sun-Dried Tomato & Cheese Tartlets      

Appetizer #9 - Lemonchick's Sun-Dried Tomato & Cheese Tartlets

 The Year of Appetizers

Appetizer #9 - Lemonchick's Sun-Dried Tomato & Cheese Tartlets

    I had a friend over to my house this weekend and made appetizers for us to enjoy. I had this idea in my head to do something with sun-dried tomato and this is what I came up with. This is 100% my creation. You will have more filling than needed for the shells, so use it as a spread on crackers or toasted bagels. I ended up leaving them in the oven a little too long, so they turned out darker than I wanted. But, they still tasted great. I will definitely make these again. 

Ingredients:

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup, plus about 2 tbsps shredded mozzarella, divided use

1 1/2 oz sun-dried tomato, moistened in water for a few minutes, drained and chopped *Note: This is just how I did this making them for the first time; I may try not moistening them the next time.

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1 tsp Italian Seasoning

1 package phyllo mini tart shells (I used Athena brand; there are 15 shells in the package)

Directions:

Place softened cream cheese in a mixing bowl. Add salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and sun-dried tomato, stirring well before adding the mozzarella. Ensure ingredients are thoroughly combined. Place phyllo shells on a cookie sheet. Using a small cookie scoop or spoon, gently fill the phyllo shells. Using the back of a small spoon, lightly press the filling into the shell. If desired, sprinkle a pinch or two of mozzarella cheese on top of the stuffed shells. Bake in an oven pre-heated to 375 degrees F for 12 to 15 minutes. You need the shells to be a little browned (and crispy), but you don't want the sprinkle of cheese to brown.

Lemonchick's Sun-Dried Tomato & Cheese Tartlets
Pictured with Appetizer #10 - Onion Tartlets

 

Appetizer #8 - Carrot Puffs

 The Year of Appetizers

Appetizer #8 - Carrot Puffs

    Okay, so I sometimes will take a picture of a recipe in a cookbook, so I can easily refer to it in making grocery lists. This time around, I did that and then put the cookbook away. I know it was the Waring Blendor Cookbook, but I do not know for sure which year it was published. I "googled' and I believe that the cookbook I have is the one that was published in 1955. This is not the only Waring cookbook which spelled blender as "blendor", but I am pretty sure of the one I have. 

    These puffs were good. They were of a lighter texture than hush puppies, but you fry them just the same (I actually used about two inches of oil in a large cast iron skillet). There are a number of variations you could do with this recipe. Substitute sweet potato for the carrot, add more nutmeg or substitute cinnamon. I am also curious how this would turn out using spinach. I used avocado oil instead of regular vegetable oil, so it was a little "better". Still fried in oil, but better. Lol. 

    My verdict is that these were tasty and I would make them again if I wasn't being careful with fried foods (I don't know what possessed me to make something fried). They were not difficult to make, so if you like fried things, try this!

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

1/4 tsp nutmeg or cinnamon

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

3/4 cup cooked carrots (cut up in small pieces)

2 tbsp oil

Directions:

Into a bowl, sift flour, baking powder, nutmeg/cinnamon and salt. Into your blender or food processor, add the egg, milk, carrots and oil over and blend until smooth. Pour your liquid mixture into the dry flour mixture and stir, thoroughly combining. Drop spoonfuls into hot oil and fry for 3 to 5 minutes. You want them golden. Remove to a paper towel lined baking sheet or plate and sprinkle with salt. Serves 6.

Carrot Puffs

Sour Cream Cocoa Cookies

 Sour Cream Cocoa Cookies

    Mmmmm.  This recipe comes from Hershey Chocolate's Hershey's Recipes recipe booklet, published in 1940. I needed something to take to my church ladies group potluck and wanted to take something for dessert. I chose these cookies and I'm glad I did, because the cookies (2) which I sampled, were yummy. The recipe booklet says this makes about 4 dozen. I used a cookie scoop and got 4 3/4 dozen. My original thought was to make these and then do a drizzle of white chocolate over the top, but I decided not to do that. The recipe booklet also says to bake for about 10 minutes and I feel they need closer to 12 minutes at 375 degrees F. The recipe calls for sifted flour and then to sift with the cocoa, spices, salt, but I didn't pre-sift the flour. These cookies have nuts, but feel free to leave out the nuts, substitute pecans in lieu of walnuts or maybe add mini chocolate chips. Whatever you decide to do, you should make these. 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups sifted flour

1/3 cup Hershey's Cocoa powder (or your favorite brand)

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

2/3 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup sour cream

Directions:

Sift flour, cocoa, salt, baking powder and baking soda into a small bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, cream shortening, then add sugar gradually and cream until fluffy. Beat in eggs. Stir in vanilla and walnuts. Add flour mixture alternately with sour cream (I forgot to alternate, but they turned out fine). Mix thoroughly, then use a cookie scoop or spoons to drop onto greased baking sheets (I used un-greased stoneware pans). Bake at 375 degrees F for 10-12 minutes. This recipe will make at least 4 dozen cookies. 

Hershey's Recipes booklet

Sour Cream Cocoa Cookies

Appetizer #7 - Coconut Chicken Bites

 The Year of Appetizers

Appetizer #7 - Coconut Chicken Bites

    This recipe comes from 2007's The Taste of Home Cookbook, from Reader's Digest. I had to modify the recipe, because I once again, did not have all of the correct seasonings. I'll list what I used in italics and what the original seasonings were that I did not use. Even with my substitutions, I really liked these little bite-sized nuggets. They would be yummy with a hot honey sauce or a hot orange marmalade sauce. Instructions for the sauces will be below. 

P.S. Sorry for my plain-jane photo. 

Ingredients:

2 cups flaked coconut

1 egg

2 tbsps milk

3/4 pound boneless and skinless chicken breast, cut into nugget-sized pieces

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp celery salt (If you don't have this, use regular salt like I did)

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp ground cumin (I used chili powder)

Oil for frying

Directions:

Finely chop coconut in a blender or food processor (This took awhile for me, because I tried using a blender and it did not work great). Pour coconut into a bowl and set aside. Combine egg and milk in a separate bowl until well combined. Pour flour into a small bowl and toss the chicken a few pieces at a time, in the flour. Dip floured chicken pieces in the egg mixture and then in the coconut. Place chicken pieces on a tray and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Fry a few pieces of chicken at a time in 2 inches of oil (heated to 375 degrees) for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side. They should be golden brown. Drain fried chicken bites on paper towels and place in a bowl. Combine seasonings and sprinkle over chicken bites. Toss to coat chicken bites and serve warm with or without a dipping sauce. I actually opted to mix my seasonings in with the flour, before coating in the egg mixture and coconut. 

Dipping Sauce #1 - Hot Honey Sauce:

Heat 1/2 cup honey in a microwave until it is a little bubbly. Remove from the microwave and add sriracha sauce to taste.  Add more or less honey and sriracha. It really depends on how much sauce you want and how sweet or hot you want it. 

Dipping Sauce #2 - Hot Orange Marmalade Sauce:

Follow directions above, only use orange marmalade. 

Coconut Chicken Bites