Bailey's Pudding Shots

Photo courtesy of the Cooking Corner.

      Looking to be the star of the party? Then try bringing these creamy little treats that are flavored with Irish cream and a touch of vodka. The chocolate pudding adds such a smooth texture that it makes them taste like chocolate mousse with a kick. They're creamy and delicious.

Bailey's Pudding Shots
1 small pkg. instant chocolate pudding
3/4 cup of milk

Easy ingredients.

1/4 cup of vanilla vodka 
1/2 cup of Bailey's Irish cream
8 oz. whipped topping

Mix pudding and milk with an electric mixer for a minute or two. Blend in alcohol slowly and mix well. With a spoon, slowly stir in whipped topping until well combined.

Spoon pudding mix into individual plastic shot glasses or serving cups with lids. 

Store in freezer.

These can be served frozen or at room temperature. However, they are easier to eat and very creamy at room temperature.

Makes 34 (of the shot glass size that I used).

Green Chili Wraps

Photo courtesy of the Cooking Corner.

     Some of my girlfriends have put different mixtures in soft shells and made a variety of wraps with meat and cheeses. I've always found this interesting, so I tried it with ranch dressing, olives and peppers and was surprised at how mellow these little snacks tasted. These are nice and easy bite-sized snacks that travel and store well.


Green Chili Wraps

1 cup mayonnaise

1 (8 oz) pkg. cream cheese, softened

1 packet ranch style dressing mix (powder form)

1 (4 oz.) can chopped olives 

Filling spread on soft shell.

1 (4 oz.) can diced green chilies

6 bunches green onions (finely chopped)

1/4 cup diced jalapeno peppers*

1 pkg. (8 count) large flour tortillas 

Mix all ingredients together until well combined.

Spread an thin coat evenly on tortillas and roll up making sure there are no air pockets.

Refrigerated for at least 1 hour or overnight. They cut easier when chilled and flavors have time to blend.

Cut into half-inch slices and serve or store in refrigerator for when needed.

* I used tamed jalapenos that were in a jar (Mezzetta). 

Sausage and Pepper Sandwiches

Photo courtesy of the Cooking Corner.

    How do you feel about an Italian sloppy joe? That's what this sandwich is and to make it even easier, it's done in a slow cooker. The Italian sausage combines with peppers and onions for a flavorful filling that's layered on cheese covered, toasted bread for a messy good time.

Sliced veggies.

Sausage and Pepper Sandwiches
(can be made as a slider or hoagie)
1 T. olive oil
1 lb. sausage (Italian recommended)
1/2 lb. ground beef
1-1/2 cups chopped tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
1 onion, sliced
1 red and green bell pepper each, sliced
2 cloves garlic, diced
1 small onion, sliced
mozzarella or provolone cheese, sliced
hoagie rolls 
(for sliders use dinner rolls)

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Brown sausage and ground beef until to no longer pink, breaking it up into bite sized pieces as you go.

Place in slow cooker with all ingredients except bread and cheese. Cook on low 4-5 hours.

Open rolls, layer with cheese and toast in oven until golden brown and cheese begins to melt. (If using dinner rolls to make sliders, watch your oven time carefully.)

With a slotted spoon, top rolls with meat mixture.

Makes 8.

Sausage and pepper subs.

To flavor you own Italian sausage, sprinkle regular sausage with -
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. basil
1/2 tsp. thyme - OR -
1-1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
*1/2 tsp. crushed red peppers (IF you like it hot sausage)

Mix until well combined and let rest at least 30 minutes.

Mini Little Heart Attacks

Recipe courtesy of Mark Short.

    

    Many of us love bacon and we'll try it numerous ways. I've had it deep fried, candied and wrapped around all kinds of items. This creation was a new one to me - molding sausage around a smokie link and then wrapping bacon around the whole little bomb.
    Anyone with gout should stay away from this creation, but if you have pork on hand and want to try something new, this is an interesting little tidbit. It was a big hit at a recent pot luck at work.

Mini Little Heart Attacks

1/2 pkg. little smokies

1 lb. Bob Evans hot sausage

1/2 lb. bacon, cut strips in half

Preheat oven to 325.

Spray coat baking sheet or dish.

Form sausage into a wad the size of a golf ball.

Wrap sausage around smokie (like a stuffed meatball).

Wrap bacon around sausage and insert toothpick to hold.

Bake in 325 oven for 40 minutes until bacon is crisp. 
Makes a dozen.

Slow Cooker Taco Dip

Recipe courtesy of Madonna Smith.

    Any dish that can be made ahead of time is a bonus. This easy dip has only 4 ingredients and combines good flavor and texture. It can also be made ahead of time so that you're free to take care of other things. How easy is that? Slow cooker recipes with great taste and easy ingredients are always a nice find.

Slow Cooker Taco Dip

1 lb. ground chuck

1 pkg. taco seasoning

1 jar medium salsa

1 can Campbell's Fiesta Nacho Cheese Soup

In skillet, brown ground chuck, chopping fine with a spatula. Drain.

Put meat mixture in crock pot and add all other ingredients.

Stir and cover. Cook on low 3-4 hours.

Serve with tortilla chips.

Sriracha Chicken Dip

Photo courtesy of the Cooking Corner. Recipe courtesy of Ryan Spear.

     Do you like the heat of a Buffalo sauce but not the wang of the vinegar? Then this chicken dip made with Sriracha sauce will add some heat without any bitter after taste.
     At work recently we had a pot luck of football food and this dip was a great compliment to the mix. Not only does this have the creaminess of a dip with a touch of heat, but there's also meat for substance. This is not only easy but very tasty.

Sriracha Chicken Dip

2 large cans shredded chicken

1- 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup Sriracha sauce

Optional:  1/3 cup ranch dressing (to thin if desired)

shredded cheese, as garnish

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Combine all ingredients in medium bowl. Mix well.

Pour into greased/sprayed 8x8x2-inch baking dish.

Bake 20 minutes or until mixture is heated through. Stir.

Serve with crackers and/or vegetables.

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Bacon Cheeseball

Photo and recipe courtesy of Jennifer Hill.

      Cheeseballs are one of my weaknesses. They spread on crackers and have great contrast in creamy and crunchy textures. With only 4 ingredients, this one is not only creamy and flavorful, but it's also covered in bacon. What's not to like?

Bacon Cheeseball

2 - 8 oz. packet cream cheese

2 - 5 oz. cans Old English Cheese Spread

2 - 1 oz. packets of Hidden Valley Ranch dip mix

1 - 3 oz. package of Real bacon bits

Place cream cheese in a large mixing bowl, covered,  at room temperature for 1/2 - 1 hour (until able to mix easily). 

Once cream cheese is spreadable, add cheese spread and dip mix and mix on low speed with a hand mixer until thoroughly blended together. 

Line a small soup bowl with aluminum foil and dish mixture into bowl, making sure to press the mixture into the contour of the bowl. Cover with aluminum foil and place in refrigerator overnight or until cheese mixture is hard and can be easily taken from the aluminum foil.

Shape with hands to round out into a ball. Pour bacon bits on a plate and roll cheese ball until completely covered. 

Place on serving platter and fill in any bare spots with remaining bacon bits. Can be served with crackers and/or crudites.

Honey Sriracha Smokies

Photo courtesy of the Cooking Corner.

       
    Over the last few weeks I've been playing around with different ideas for little smokies. Yes, those little wienies about the size of your little finger that have this smoked meat flavor.
    I found a recipe for a wing sauce that uses Sriracha hot sauce and honey to balance the sweet and heat, so I tried it on the smokies. These turned out really good and the crew at work gave them a "thumbs up" but we all agreed that the sauce would be really good on wings or meatballs, too.

Honey Sriracha Smokies (Hot Little Dogs)

1 - 16 oz. pkg. Hillshire Farms Little Smokies

3/4 cup Sriracha sauce

3/4 cup honey

2 T. butter

1/4 cup lime juice

 

In slow cooker combine everything except smokies. Stir well to combine.

Add links and stir to coat and combine thoroughly. Cook on low 2-3 hours to combine flavors.

Serve warm with toothpick on a plate. Offer remaining sauce as a side dip.

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Crunchy Onion Chicken Tenders

Photo courtesy of the Cooking Corner.

    A few weeks ago our son found one of those "back of the box" recipes that worked out really good with chicken breasts. It was on the back of the French's onions box (the one that's a classic in green bean casserole). 
    In this recipe you use an egg to coat the chicken pieces and then they are rolled in crushed french fried onions for a coating. That's not hard at all. The chicken was tender inside with a nice crunch on the outside. This was a quick and easy dinner.

Crunchy Onion Chicken Tenders

2 cups (4 oz.) French Fried Onions

2  T. flour

4 boneless chicken breasts, cut in half

1 egg beaten

Crush onion rings with flour in a plastic bag.

Dip chicken in egg. Place in plastic bag and coat in onion crumbs. Press firmly.

Bake at 400 for 20 minutes or until no pink in center.

Note: additional onions may be needed depending on size of chicken pieces.

Chicken just out of the oven.

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Oreo Peanut Butter Brownies

Photo courtesy of the Cooking Corner.

    When I saw the idea of putting cookies into a brownie and cooking them like cupcakes, I thought that seemed like a chocolate lover's delight. The steps are very easy and there's only a few ingredients, all of them sweet. My only problem was running out of peanut butter. Some of the cookies had a double layer of peanut butter and the others only one. I did make a difference, because the peanut butter really helps cut the overload of chocolate.
   I expected the cookies to soften up in the center after baking but they didn't, there's still a cookie crunch in the middle. We tried a quick dip in the microwave to see if that helped, and it did a little. The kids who love hand-held sweets were all up for this idea and it went over well with them. The hubby and I who are not big on sweets found this a little too over the top on chocolate scale. Those of you who are chocolate fans should like this just fine.

Oreo Peanut Butter
 Brownies
1 pkg. regular Oreo cookies
peanut butter


Easy ingredients.

1 pkg. brownie mix and contents required on box (egg, water and oil)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray coat 2 muffin or cupcake pans. Set paper liners in tins.

Take two cookies and add a layer of peanut butter on top of each and then stack them together. 

Place the stack in a cupcake liner.

Make brownie mix according to box Half fill each muffin cup with brownie mix over cookie stack.

Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

Makes 18.

Note - use leftover batter in remaining muffin tins or buy a bigger bag of cookies.

Brownies ready for travel.

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SPAM Tacos

Photos courtesy of the Cooking Corner.

      When experimenting with the many uses of SPAM®, I came across the easy idea of using jalapeño flavored SPAM® in tacos. This way any time you're in the mood for tacos, whether you have ground beef or not, there can be a can of SPAM® on hand to finish the dish.
     There are only a few basic ingredients and with some easy assembly, dinner can be done quickly. The topping also sprinkles over the top of nachos to use up any extra filling.


SPAM Tacos 
1 12-ounce can SPAM® Jalapeño, diced
1/2 can black beans, drained and rinsed (about 3/4 cup)
1/2 can corn, drained (about 1/2 cup)
10 yellow corn taco shells, heated
1 can refried beans (optional)

Toppings - shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, shredded cheese, salsa, sour cream and/or guacamole

Warm beans on low in small pan if using. Cover with lid.

In medium skillet, over medium heat, saute' diced SPAM® until lightly browned. Add black beans and corn and heat until cooked through, about 8-10 minutes.

Spread 2 T. of beans, if using, in bottom of taco shells and then top with meat and veggie mixture. Put on plate and place in microwave. Heat 30 seconds to warm shells.

Garnish tacos with toppings of choice. (We used salsa and shredded cheese.)

Recipe inspired by the SPAM website at http://www.spam.com

Warmed filling.

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SPAM Enchiladas

Photos courtesy of the Cooking Corner.

    Not long ago, one of my sons and I sat out on a SPAM-a-thon. After not buying SPAM in years, we bought both jalapeno and chorizo SPAM, and so the experiments began. We tried chorizo enchiladas and jalapeno tacos. It was a Mexican flavored SPAM weekend.
    The enchiladas called for grated SPAM. Never in my life would I have thought of grating that jelled meat. It worked great and was easier than anything else I've ever grated, but it did look a little weird.
    Our efforts were interesting, tasty and easy. The leftover enchilada filling has rice in it and would be good stuffed into bell peppers, tomatoes or even as a side like Spanish rice. What a nice new twist to an old American classic food.

SPAM Enchiladas

Enchilada ingredients.

1 12-ounce can SPAM® Chorizo, grated
2 T. olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 15-oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 tsp. dried cilantro
2 cups cooked white rice
2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese, divided
1 28-oz. can red enchilada sauce
8 8-inch flour (or corn) tortillas

Heat oven to 350°F.
 
 In large skillet, heat oil to medium. Cook onion, garlic and green pepper for about 5 minutes or until onion is softened. Add grated Chorizo SPAM® and fry for 5 minutes or until meat is browned. Save about 1/4 cup of the mixture for garnish.

Enchilada filling before adding rice.

Add black beans, rice, cilantro and 1 cup of the cheese into skillet. Stir until well combined. This is a big batch in the pan, stir carefully.


Spoon 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce over the bottom of a 9x13-inch sprayed baking dish.

In another large skillet heat enchilada sauce over low and dip tortillas in sauce, coating well. Spoon SPAM® mixture in the center of each tortilla. Roll up and place seam side down in baking dish. Pour remaining sauce over tortillas.


Top with the remaining shredded cheese. Cover with foil and bake 45-50 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes.

Enchiladas just out of oven.

Sprinkle reserved fried SPAM® over enchiladas.

Serves 8. Note - They are very filling. Use leftover filling in stuffed green peppers, in an omelet or as a side dish.


This recipe inspired by the SPAM website at http://www.spam.com

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Ham and Cheddar Cheese Omelet

Photo courtesy of the Cooking Corner.

     One of my favorite ways to use up tiny bits of leftovers is to put them in an omelet. We had some ham left from the holidays and just a few slices of chipotle cheddar cheese that were on a meat and cheese tray. 
     I put this omelet together for the hubby one morning and it was a quick and easy fix for me and a filling breakfast for him. I did slightly overstuff the omelet though and some of the filling broke right through the sides. It doesn't always have to be pretty to be good.

Ham and Cheddar Cheese Omelet
2 eggs
2 T. milk
1/4 cup ham, diced
4 slices (from an 8 oz. block) cheddar chipotle cheese, crumbled
salt and pepper to taste

Heat small 8-inch skillet over medium high heat. Spray with cooking spray or add 1 tsp. oil.

In a small bowl combine milk and eggs beating well.

When skillet is hot add eggs. Swirl eggs around pan to cover bottom. After cooking a few minutes, loosen sides with fork, sliding it around the edges. Keep shaking pan lightly and continue loosening edges so that uncooked eggs run under omelet and cook. 

As the eggs cook and harden, sprinkle with ham and cheese. When eggs are set, roll out of pan onto plate.

Serves 1.

Filled omelet before rolling out of pan.

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