Creamy Peanut Butter Dip~by Kelsey

So this is a "healthy" recipe.  Don't make it to serve at a party and impress everyone.  It IS good for your own snack or lunch when you are watching what you eat.  I made it for apple dip, and I did like it.  It's just not as good as the cream cheese and marshmallow apple dip.  ;)

Ingredients:
5 oz nonfat greek vanilla yogurt
2 tbspoons peanut butter
1/2 tbspoon honey
dash of cinnamon

Dip apples, bananas, etc in it.  I thought it tasted better after sitting overnight in the fridge.

Green Apple Dip~by Kelsey

From the Bring 'Em On Home cook book.

Ingredients:
8 oz cream cheese
Jar of marshmallow cream
Granny Smith apples, cut into wedges

Mix the cream cheese and marshmallow cream.  Dip the apples or other fruits. 

Frank's Redhot Buffalo Chicken Dip ~ by Sarah

Cousin Amy brought this to Thanksgiving as an appetizer and we all loved it!  Serve it with bread, crackers, celery, and/or carrots...it will be a hit!

INGREDIENTS:
8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup blue cheese or ranch salad dressing
1/2 cup FRANK'S® REDHOT® Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce or FRANK'S® REDHOT® Buffalo Wing Sauce
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese or shredded mozzarella cheese
2 cans (12.5 oz. each) SWANSON® White Premium Chunk Chicken Breast in Water, drained

DIRECTIONS: HEAT oven to 350°F. Place cream cheese into deep baking dish. Stir until smooth. MIX in salad dressing, Frank's RedHot Sauce and cheese. Stir in chicken. BAKE 20 min. or until mixture is heated through; stir. Garnish as desired. Serve with crackers or vegetables.

Chili Cream Cheese Dip~by Kelsey

This recipe was introduced to us by our neighbors down the road, the Bruhn family.  It's simple and really tasty.

Ingredients:
Canned Chili (You decide what kind.  We have used hot, regular or the Walla Walla sweet one.)
Cream Cheese Bricks

On the stove top or in a microwave-safe bowl, combine the chili and the cream cheese.  The ratio is really up to you.  I think we usually use about one can of chili to one brick of cream cheese.   Heat and stir until the cream cheese is melted.    You can also add shredded cheddar cheese or cooked ground beef.  Serve with chips.

Snow Popcorn ~ by Sarah

I got this recipe from another Sarah--a gal I taught with in Goldendale.  She brought it to the staff room one December and I couldn't get enough!

Ingredients:
microwave popcorn
white chocolate chips or white almond bark
peanuts
plain M&M's
peanut M&M's

(There aren't specific measurements for this.  For this batch, I used three regular-sized bags of butter-flavored microwave popcorn, two bags of white chocolate chips, one jar of peanuts, and one large bag of each kind of M&M's.)

Directions:
Pop popcorn.  Meanwhile, melt chocolate or almond bark in a saucepan over a larger pan of boiling water.  Dump popcorn into LARGE container (I've used garbage bags when I'm making a really big batch--you need room for it to be able to really move when you shake it).  Combine all the ingredients in the container with the popcorn and shake the heck out of it.  You might have to stir, too.  Lay out on baking sheets, foil, or wax paper to dry.  Enjoy!

Restaurant-Style Salsa ~ by Sarah

This is another Pioneer Woman recipe.  Get over it, Molly.  Yes, I'm her stalker.  But I like her recipes.  The ingredients aren't weird, the recipes are usually pretty simple, and they usually involve lots of butter.

This salsa was SUPER easy to make and is delicious.  My favorite part?  No chopping tons and tons of tomatoes!

**EDIT 4/24/2010--Wes and I ate at Casa el Mirador tonight.  We have always loved their salsa.  Tonight we decided that this salsa is way better.  We've been eating gallons of the stuff since I posted this recipe!

Ingredients:

1 can (28 ounce) whole tomatoes, undrained
2 cans (10 ounce) Rotel (diced tomatoes and green chilies) *Note--you'd think these would be in the Mexican aisle, but at Fred Meyer they're in the tomato aisle. 
1/4 c. chopped onion (Do you have a Vidalia Chop Wizard?  If you don't, get one.  It will change your chopping life!)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 whole jalapeno, quartered and sliced thinly
1/4 t. sugar
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. ground cumin
1/2-1 c. cilantro (depending on your love for the stuff)
the juice of 1/2 large or 1 small lime

Directions:
Combine all the ingredients in a food processor or blender.  Pulse until you get the salsa to the consistency you like--about 10 to 15 pulses.  Test seasonings with a tortilla chip and adjust as necessary.  (You might think it needs a little more salt.)  Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Bacon Wrapped Lit'l Smokies ~ by Jessie

Ok, so this is a recipe in which not a single ingredient can be classified as 'healthy' (my favorite kind of recipe). It's basically pork wrapped pork (or pork & turkey or beef, depending on your preference) with sugar sprinkled on top. I, like most people I know, think almost anything can be improved by wrapping it in bacon, and that's exactly how these little smokies (or lil or lit'l or however it's spelled) are prepared.

At this point I have no pictures, but next time I make them I will take some, as they deserve to be documented on all their porky, sugary glory. Enjoy and keep an aspirin nearby in case of a heart attack.

1 pkg lit'l smokies
1 pkg bacon (NOT thick sliced, it will be soggy and unappetizing)
brown sugar

Cut the bacon into thirds (lengthwise obviously), wrap each lit'l smokie with a piece, and secure bacon with a toothpick. Place bundle of goodness on rimmed baking sheet. Continue until you run out of smokies or bacon, which ever comes first. Sprinkle each bundle with a healthy amount (about 1tsp) of brown sugar, leaving sort of a pile on top. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until bacon is fully cooked.

They're a delicious little appetizer and my favorites are the ones that have a big mound of crusty sugar on top.

Mexican Layer Dip ~ by Sarah

This is delicious and, you guessed it, it's another Pioneer Woman recipe.  Wes was hesitant to let me make it for the Super Bowl party he was going to.  (He wanted the traditional 7-layer dip I normally make.)  When I told him it was a PW recipe he said, "Make it.  She hasn't let me down yet."

Ingredients:
1 can refried beans (any variety)
Tabasco sauce, to taste
1 small can diced green chilies (undrained)
ground cumin (to taste)
3/4 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup sour cream
1 cup guacamole
3/4 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese
1 can black olives, drained
1 cup pico de gallo
1 diced jalapeno (optional)

Directions:
Begin by throwing the refried beans into a small pan over medium-low heat.  Add several dashes of Tabasco sauce and can of chilies.  Stir well.  Next, sprinkle a little bit of ground cumin.  Spread the beans on the bottom of a glass bowl or platter.  Over this, sprinkle the sharp cheddar.  Next, plop your sour cream and spread it in a single layer, being careful not to disturb the cheese underneath.  The next layer is the guacamole.  (To make guacamole, all I did was mash two avocados and mix in some of the pico de gallo I had made.)  Spread it over the sour cream.  Follow this with a layer of Monterey Jack cheese and a nice sprinkling of chopped black olives.  Lastly, place a generous layer of pico de gallo.  You can also sprinkle some chopped jalapenos over the top, if desired.

 

 

Pico De Gallo ~ by Sarah

This is another Pioneer Woman favorite in our house.  Wes will eat an entire bowl of it in one day!  Simple, but so refreshing!

 Ingredients:

roma tomatoes

fresh cilantro

white or yellow onion 

jalapeno pepper

lime

salt

Directions: Chop up equal amounts of roma tomatoes, onion, and cilantro and put in a medium-sized bowl.  Dice the jalapeno (after removing the seeds and membranes--unless you want your pico hot, hot, hot!) and add it to the bowl.  Squeeze the juice of half the lime into the bowl.

Stir the ingredients all together and add salt to taste.

Delicious!

Audrey loves it!

Wes will even stop what he's doing in his shop to come eat some!

Ham, Cream Cheese, and Pickled Asparagus Roll-Ups ~ by Kelsey

Spread cream cheese on deli ham.  Put a pickled asparagus (grown in the Northwest, purchased at Costco) in the middle.  Roll them up.  DELICIOUS!