Pulled Pork Cheese Ball

I had some leftover pulled pork from dinner the other night and wanted to find an appetizer that I could use it in for a Super Bowl snack. I scoured my cookbooks until I found a recipe for a cheese ball that called for chipped beef and thought that I could substitute that for pork - and it turned out great! I served it with tortilla chips and everyone loved it. So here's my version of The Favorite Cheese Ball from the Worldwide Ward Christmas Cookbook.

PULLED PORK CHEESE BALL

• 1 8-ounce package of cream cheese, softened
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoon chives, chopped
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1/2 cup pulled pork

With an electric mixer, mix all the ingredients. Carefully form a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until served. Makes 8 servings. 

Cream Cheese and Pecan Stuffed Berries

Shellie was kind enough to make a yummy treat for Colton's birthday dinner while she was here and they were eaten very quickly! I had a lot of leftover strawberries so she made this dessert that was my favorite. She helped me out a lot on Colton's birthday so THANK YOU SHELLIE!! She got the recipe here at FoodNetwork.com. I think these would be perfect served at a shower or party as finger food!

CREAM CHEESE AND PECAN STUFFED BERRIES

• 20 whole large berries, hulled (she used strawberries)
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
• 2/3 cup chopped pecans

Cut a thin slice from the bottom of each strawberry so the berries stand upright. Place berries, cut side down, on a serving platter. Carefully cut the berries into 4 wedges, cutting almost to, but not through, the bottoms with a criss-cross cut. Fan wedges just slightly, taking care not to break them. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until combined but still stiff. Using a teaspoon or pastry bag with decorative tip, fill the strawberries with the cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle chopped pecans on top of the stuffed strawberries. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Apple Dip

This is a dip that I could eat without ever having to dip an apple in to....just give me a spoon and I'll go to town. It surprised me when I went to search for it and discovered that I hadn't put this on my blog already! I've been making this dip for years now and it's one of my favorites to make when apples are on sale and I buy them in abundance. Every time I've taken it to a party or shower I always get asked for the recipe. Here it is! I believe I got it out of Taste of Home a long time ago, but I can't be sure.

APPLE DIP

• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup milk

Combine with a hand mixer until smooth. Serve with apple slices.

Baked Artichoke Squares

I made this for a baby shower I co-hosted on Saturday and they were a huge hit! I got asked many times for the recipe and was quite embarrassed when I described how easy they were to make. Anybody can make these. I got them from the Pillsbury.com website.....a great resource for recipes!

BAKED ARTICHOKE SQUARES

• 2 cans of the crescent seamless dough sheets (next to the crescent rolls in the refrigerated section)
• 1 can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
  
• 1 box frozen spinach, thawed and drained (squeezed)
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2/3 cup mayonnaise
• 2/3 cup sour cream
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder (I minced 1 clove of garlic)

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Unroll the dough sheets from the cans and cut them down the middle so that you have 4 long rectangles. Place them cross-wise in an ungreased 9x13 baking pan; press over the bottom and up along the sides. Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden colored.

Meanwhile in a bowl mix together the remaining ingredients. Spread the mixture over the cooked crescent crust. Bake 8-10 minutes longer or until the topping is hot. Cut into 1/2-inch square. Serve warm.

Ruby Red Pretzel Dip

This is another snack I made for the Super Bowl but with all the chaos I forgot to get it out of the fridge during the game! So Joe and I ate a lot of it and I also took to a play group. Everyone enjoyed it and thought it almost tasted "Christmas-y" because of the cranberries. I would recommend it as a finger food for an open house or something kinda fancy. I got the recipe from a Taste of Home cookbook.

RUBY RED PRETZEL DIP

• 1 can (14 ounces) jellied cranberry sauce
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon cold water
• Red food coloring, optional
• Pretzels

In a saucepan, combine the first seven ingredients; whisk over medium heat until smooth. Combine flour and cold water until smooth; add to cranberry mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl; stir in food coloring if desired. Cover and chill overnight. Serve with pretzels.

Pumpkin Dip

My sister-in-law, Shellie, passed this recipe on to me a couple of weeks ago. I decided to make it and try it out at a family reunion that we had yesterday and it was a big hit! We served it with vanilla wafers, ginger snaps, and apple slices. I think the vanilla wafers tasted the best with it.

PUMPKIN DIP

• 1 container of whipped cream cheese
  
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 can solid pack pumpkin
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon frozen orange juice concentrate (I actually forgot to put this in the dip and it was still very good!)

In a medium bowl, blend cream cheese and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Gradually mix in the pumpkin. Stir in the cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and orange juice until smooth and well blended. Chill until serving.

Armadillo Eggs

Being a Texan, I naturally collect many cookbooks that are based on Texas foods. This recipe I got from Stewing in Texas and was intrigued mainly by the title of this recipe. How fun is that name - Armadillo Eggs?! So of course I had to try it. Also, how can you go wrong with cheese, jalapenos, and sausage? I made this for my family and everyone loved them!

ARMADILLO EGGS

• 2 cups Bisquick
• 1 pound sausage
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar Cheese
• 2 jars whole jalapeno peppers
• 1 cup shredded Monterrey Jack
• 1 package Shake 'n Bake for Pork

Mix Bisquick, sausage, and Cheddar cheese by hand. Remove stems from peppers and slice lengthwise. Stuff the peppers with the Monterrey Jack cheese. Put small pieces of the Bisquick mixture flat and wrap around the stuffed peppers to make an egg shape.

Roll each one in the Shake 'n Bake. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 425 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

Artichoke Dip

One thing that I'm very grateful to Joe and his family for is that they've introduced me to fruits and veggies that I never had tried before. When Joe and I first got married, my mother-in-law steamed some artichokes for us to eat with dinner and I fell in love! They quickly became my favorite vegetable and I check for them to go on sale every time I go to the grocery. I know a lot of people like to dip their artichoke leaves in melted butter but I'm a big fan of this dip. Plus it has a lot less fat than butter.

ARTICHOKE DIP

• 3 tablespoons mayo (I like to use Miracle Whip)
• 1 tablespoon ketchup
• 1 teaspoon pickle juice
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix together until combined. Easy as that!

Jalapeno Poppers

For Father's Day I made a lunch for my dad and his request for the main dish was BBQ Shrimp (I'll post this recipe later this week). So I thought I'd make some BBQ-esque side dishes to go with it. One recipe that I had seen on Pioneer Woman's website was for Bacon-Wrapped Jalapeño Thingies. Sounded perfect for an BBQ appetizer, so I tried it out!

***Note to anyone attempting to make this dish - WEAR GLOVES! 24 hours later, my hands are still burning from working with the jalapeños, no joke.

Minus my hands feeling like they're on fire, these were delicious! If you take all the seeds and white membrane out of the jalapeños, they're not spicy at all. Especially with the cream cheese, that takes down the heat considerably. These are a new must-have for summer BBQs!!

JALAPENO POPPERS

• Fresh jalapeños, 2-3 inches in size (I used about 10)
• Cream cheese, softened (I used up all 8 ounces)
• Bacon, sliced in thirds

Cut jalapeños in half, length-wise. With a spoon (wear gloves!!) remove all the seeds and membranes from the jalapeño. Smear cream cheese into each half. Wrap the jalapeño with the bacon slice (1/3 of a strip). Secure the bacon with a toothpick.

Bake on a pan with a rack in a 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes. If the bacon isn't crisp enough for you, turn the broiler on for a few minutes.

Texas Caviar

My friend Lindsay called me this morning wanting my recipe for Texas Caviar. I told her to quit being lazy and just get it off my blog to which she replied that she had tried and couldn't find it. To my dismay, I had never posted it! This is hands down the most requested thing that I bring to get-togethers and potlucks. It is so amazingly good and healthy - minus the chips that you are dipping with.

TEXAS CAVIAR

• 2 cans black beans
• 1 can red beans
• 1 can black eyed peas
• 1 can white corn
• 1 can yellow corn
• 2 can Ro-Tel tomatoes
• 1 can sliced or chopped olives
• 1 small bottle Zesty Italian dressing (or half the bottle of the regular-sized one)
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/2 cup red onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• Serve with either Frito Scoops or tortilla chips
  

Drain all the beans, corn, and olives. Mix together and let sit in the fridge for 24 hours. You can serve in less time, but the taste gets better over time. Go make this now!!

Harry & David's Dip

Last year my Mom's extended family put together a family cookbook. I absolutely LOVE it! Today Shellie and I tried out the Harry & David's Dip that was contributed by our cousin-in-law, Becca. It is so delicious, especially with Harry & David's multi-grain chips!

HARRY & DAVID'S DIP

• 1 8-ounce package of cream cheese
• Half bottle of Harry & David's red pepper and onion relish

Mix together until creamy. Easy as that!

Fried Green Tomatoes with Dijon Pepper Dippin' Sauce

Some may describe her as “the butter-loving, finger-licking, joke-cracking queen of melt-in-your-mouth Southern cuisine.” I refer to Paula Deen as my BFF. I have yet to try any recipe that hasn't been simply wonderful. The phrases she uses on her show are classic:

"I like to beat my meat when it's thick"

"This is like butter porn"

"I like my meringue how I like my hair... high!"

"I'm sweatin' like a fat girl writing her first love letter."

"I used to hate avocados....'til I found out how much fat is in them!"

How can you not love her?! Anyways, Joe grabbed some green tomatoes from his mom's garden so we could fry 'em up. I had never made fried green tomatoes before, but I knew I could turn to my trusty ol' friend Paula for a good recipe! Not only did this turn out to be delicious, but my sister, Jill, instantly became obsessed with the dipping sauce and was putting it on everything on her plate!

FRIED GREEN TOMATOES WITH DIJON PEPPER DIPPIN' SAUCE

• 3-4 large firm green tomatoes
• salt
• 2 cups vegetable or peanut oil for frying
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups self-raising flour

Slice the tomatoes 1/4-inch thick. Lay them out in a shallow baking pan and sprinkle with salt. Place the tomato slices in a colander and allow time for the salt to pull the water out of the tomatoes (30 minutes should do it).

In a skillet, heat the oil for frying over medium-high heat. Dip the tomatoes into buttermilk, then dredge them in flour. Fry them until golden brown.

• 1 cup Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp white pepper
• 4 tbsp ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp red pepper flakes
• 1 tbsp whole peppecorns

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the mustard, mayonnaise, balsamic vinegar, white pepper, and 1 tbsp of the black pepper, and beat until just blended; set aside. In a small saucepan, combine the oil, the remaining 3 tbsp black pepper, the red pepper flakes, and whole peppercorns. Heat the oil until hot, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Allow to cool, then strain. With the food processor running, drizzle the oil into the mayonnaise mixture. Continue processing for 2 minutes.