appetizers · Daily Thoughts · Holiday Fare · Uncategorized

Holiday Quick Bites

One of my favorite magazines is Southern Lady. The pictures of homes and decorating styles won my heart at first glance. The recipes are so Southern and just perfect for home dinners or entertaining. The recipe I am posting today is not only delicious, but a great little appetizer for the holidays in that the red and green will look so festive on your serving buffet or table. Taken from Souther Lady Jan 2017…..

Artichoke &B Sun Dried Tomato Phyllo Bites

2 (14 oz cans) artichoke hearts, drained and finely chopped
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup mayonnaise (not Miracle Whip)
1/4 cup finely chopped oil-packed sundries tomatoes, drained
1/2 teas Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teas garlic powder
1/4 teas hot sauce
3 (1.9 oz) packages frozen mini-phyllo cups, thawed
Garnish:
Chopped fresh chives

Preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. (If the pans or coated, I don’t use the parchment paper or even lightly greased you will not need the paper)
In medium bowl, stir together all the ingredients except the phyllo cups and garnishes.
Place phyllo shells on prepared pan. Spoon the filling mixture into shells.
Bake until filling is hot, about 12-15 minutes.
Garnish with finely chopped chives.
NOTE:
To freeze, place filled unbaked shells (which you did not thaw to fill)in an airtight container. When ready to serve, remove amount needed and place on prepared baking sheets. Bake at 350 until filling is hot, about 20 minutes.

This is a great and easy holiday appetizer because it can be made ahead and frozen until ready to heat to serve.

appetizers · Daily Thoughts · Dips · Uncategorized

Jalapeno Pepper Jelly

This morning it was such fun to go to a friends house with 3 other friends to make jelly. It reminded me of stories from women who use to meet with ladies to sew or make jelly or batches of cookies. We had a blast. Some chopped while others measured sugar or vinegar to pour into the pan. One friend sat and cut out the material to make the lids look festive. All in all, it was such a lovely day. There is nothing quite like cooking with other women to bond you into a more fun and deeper friendship. Pass the jelly and grab a cracker…this makes a great hostess gift for the holidays. Pour it over a 8 oz bar of cream cheese and you have a wonderful appetizer that people love. Thank you Shirley for the great morning which is such a nice new memory!

3 green bell pepper, minced
4 fresh jalapeño peppers, deseeded and cut into small pieces
6 cups white sugar
1/2 teas cayenne pepper
1 (6 fluid oz) container liquid pectin
3 drops of green food coloring

In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine peppers, vinegar, sugar and cayenne pepper. Cook over medium high heat. Stir frequently until mixture begins to boil.
Stir in pectin, boil 5 minutes longer stirring constantly and then mix in green food coloring. Skim off any foam and remove from heat.
Ladle into sterilized jars. Seal and process in a boiling-water canner for 5 minutes. (we did not do this, but simply wiped the cleaned jars (and lids) and place lids on the jars when mixture was still warm. We tightened the outer lid and placed jars in fridge, where they will stay.) If you plan on storing these on the shelf instead of fridge, you will need to process in the boiling-water canner.
We doubled this recipe which gave us 18 (6 oz) jars.