Zucchini Fritters

It's starting again. The time of year where there's so much zucchini people don't know what to do with them.  I think I may add a zucchini tab in my cookbook so I know just where to go once they start rolling in each year. Daniel made these tonight. I'm terrible at frying anything so I gladly hand the apron over to him when the frying starts.

Ingredients

1 cup zucchini, grated

1 cup carrots, peeled and grated

2 T. onion, chopped

1/2 to 3/4 cup flour

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

1/8 t. seasoning salt

1/4 to 1/2 c. oil

Mix together all ingredients except oil; set aside. Heat oil in skillet; drop vegetable mixture into skillet by tablespoonfuls. Saute until golden and vegetables are tender. Serve Warm. Makes about 2 dozen.

Recipe from: Gooseberry Patchwork Potluck Edition.

Swedish Meatballs

We had these for dinner Saturday night. Dan loved 'em. MaryGrace loved 'em. I thought they were so so. They are labeled an appetizer in the cookbook where I found them but we ate them as a dinner and then as sandwiches the next day for lunch. I also froze half of them to pull from the freezer at a later date because this makes about 30 pieces.

Ingredients
2 lbs lean ground beef
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 egg
2 T cream (used half and half)
1/4 cup flour
1 cup chili sauce
1/2 cup grape jelly

Mix ground beef, salt, pepper, egg, and cream together. Add just enough flour to hold mixture together. Make miniature meatballs (1/2 to 1 inch diameter) and place in a shallow baking pan in one layer. Bake at 350 for 20 mintues. Turn once to brown evenly. Drain off excess fat.

In large saucepan, combine chili sauce and grape jelly. Heat to simmering. Add meatballs, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Empanadas with Goat Cheese

I got this recipe out of the latest RealSimple issue. They have an article featuring a whole bunch of three-ingredient dishes, and this was one of them.

It's so simple, it's not even a recipe, really, but they were SO GOOD. I made them the other day when a friend came over and we gobbled them all up!

You need:

2 sheets of refrigerated pie dough (you can also make your own, if so inclined)
4 oz. of goat cheese
salsa

Roll out the pie dough and cut 3-inch circles out. I used a biscuit cutter, but you could also use the rim of a drinking glass.
Spoon a little goat cheese (about 1/2 a tsp. or so) in the middle of the circle.
wet the edges of the dough with a little water and then fold it in half, pinching closed (be careful not to get cheese in your seam).
Bake in the oven at 350 for about 20-25 minutes until they're golden and delicious.

Then, dip them in a little salsa and eat. So, so yummy!

Dippity-Doo-Da

This month's issue of Real Simple has a great dip recipe on its back page. I cut it out and promptly lost it, but I was able to recreate it from memory: it's THAT easy!

Peel, slice and dice one whole biggish cucumber
Open and drain one (12 oz) can of corn kernels
Mince several stalks of fresh mint
Open and crumble one 8 oz package of goat cheese

Mix together, et voila!

The recipe they had called for pre-spooning this mixture into Tortilla brand Scoops! chips, but I saved myself that aggravation by just serving the bowl of Scoops! next to the bowl of "dip". :P

A very big hit at our last barbecue!!

Bacon Wrapped Smokies - Easy Appetizer

You Will Need:
1 package of smokies (make sure to get smokies, I almost grabbed franks)
1 lbs of bacon (I used about 1/2 a pound so if you already have it, great!)
some brown sugar
thawed out OJ concentrate
tooth picks

Wrap bacon around smokies. I wrapped about 3 smokies to one slice of bacon. Pour a little OJ concentrate over smokies. Sprinkled a generous amount of brown sugar all over them. Baked at 350 for 45 minutes.

Before

After

These are all over the internet so if you want more info on this recipe just Google it. Enjoy!

In Need of Recipe

Does anyone have a good party meatball recipe? I need one for two reasons. First, they sound really good to me so I want to make them. Second, Joy and Jacob are staying with us Saturday night due to a wedding being closer to Lafayette than their home so I thought I could make meatball subs for Sunday afternoon.

Help a pregnant lady out, will ya?

Healthy Black Bean Roll-Ups

It's been awhile since I've post. I'm on a healthy diet and my post would go something like this:

Defrost chicken
Place chicken in oven
Bake chicken
Eat Chicken

Fun huh? Last night though, I did have a fun healthy dinner! It is actually a recipe from Anne's mother-in-law for black bean roll-up’s.

Healthy Black Bean Roll-Up’s
1 pack of flour tortilla’s
1 red bell pepper, chopped
8 oz cream cheese (I used fat free)
6 green onions, chopped
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
¼ cup cilantro, chopped
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
juice from half of a lime.

Mix all ingredients together. Spread 2-4 tablespoons of bean mixture on one entire side of tortilla. Roll up and place tooth pick to secure. Refrigerate over night. Cut and enjoy!

Easy Peasy

I just got home from my uncle's 60th birthday party bash. It was a lovely party with great food. There was lots of raving about the delicious bacon wrapped appetizers. I enjoyed them too. And they even fit the diet guidelines. So what did I do when I got home after I put the baby to sleep? Googled the recipe of course!

Best of all they look completely simple to make!! Highly recommending these, even though I haven't made them myself yet; they're delicious!!

A Hit!

On Friday night the O'Neils had a going away party at their apartment. I made a nacho dip which was a big hit...at least with my husband! :o) I liked it because it was a crockpot recipe - low maintenance.

Quick and Easy Nacho Dip

1 lb ground beef, browned
dash of salt, pepper and onion powder (if you have it)
2 cloves of garlic, optional (but really...who doesn't love garlic?!)
2 16 oz. jars of salsa (throw in homemade salsa if you want to)
15 oz. can of refried beans
1 1/2 c sour cream
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
tortilla chips

Add salt, pepper and onion powder to ground beef. Combine beef, salsa, bean, sour cream, and 2 cups of the cheese in the slower cooker. Cover and heat on low for 2 hours*. Just before serving sprinkle with the last cup of cheese. Serve with tortilla chips.

*My shredded cheese was still frozen, so two hours wasn't quite long enough to really melt it into the mixture...be sure to thaw your cheese first if you want it melted.

Appetizing Appetizer

These are a regular appetizer in my family. When we have a gathering, you can be sure either Mom, Laura, or I will probably be bringing a tray or two full of these delicious bites. The only disadvantage to these appetizers is that they’re best when fresh out of the oven or at least warm, and it’s not always easy to keep an appetizer warm. They are worth the effort though.

Polish Mistakes
1 lb ground Italian sausage, cooked
½ lb (8oz) Velveeta cheese
¼ t oregano
¼ t garlic salt
½ t Worcestershiresauce
1 loaf of party-size rye bread.

After the sausage is cooked, add the cheese. Mix until the cheese is melted through. (You can put the sausage and cheese in a microwave bowl and melt it in the microwave if need be.) Mix in the oregano, garlic salt, and sauce. Slather about a tablespoon or two of the mixture on each slice of bread. Place the topped bread on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-16 minutes and serve.

Corn Fritters

Do you have extra corn this season you don't know what to do with? I made these last night and everyone at girls' night seemed to enjoy them. I also doubled the recipe and it worked out just fine.

Ingredients:
3 ears corn, husks and silk removed
1/3 cup milk
1 large egg
1 teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
¼ cup cornmeal
¼ cup flour
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Sour cream (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Remove kernels: Cut off tip of each cob; stand in a wide shallow bowl. With a sharp knife, slice downward to remove kernels. To bowl, add milk, egg, sugar, baking powder, salt, and pepper; mix. Fold in cornmeal and flour.

Line a rimmed baking sheet with paper towel. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium. Drop batter into pan by heaping tablespoons. Fry until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt; place in oven. Repeat. Keep warm in oven up to 30 minutes. Serve with sour cream, if desired.