Bacon-Wrapped Apple-Cheddar Rolls

1 Granny Smith apple, cut into 16 (1/4-inch) slices
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
Dash salt
1 can refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
8 slices (1/4 inch) extra-sharp cheddar cheese, cut in half (from 8-oz block)
16 slices packaged precooked bacon

Heat oven to 375°F. Line cookie sheet with nonstick foil, parchment paper, or silicone baking mat. (Some cheese will melt out during baking so this will make cleanup easier.) In a medium bowl, toss apple slices with brown sugar; sprinkle with salt. On cutting board, unroll dough; separate dough into 8 triangles. From center of longest side to opposite point, cut each triangle in half, making 16 triangles. Place 1 cheese slice on non-point side of each dough triangle; top each with 1 apple slice. Fold sides of dough triangle up slightly; wrap dough around apple and cheese. Wrap 1 bacon slice around outside of each dough roll-up, making sure ends of bacon are on bottom and slightly tucked in. Place on cookie sheet. Bake 12 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet. Serve warm.

Notes: YUM! These were really good. I didn't bother folding sides of dough, just rolled. The bacon slice will go around a couple of times. And if you don't want to use pre-cooked bacon, just use regular bacon and cook it a little bit first. You don't want it crispy because it still needs to be pliable in order to wrap around roll.

Tzatziki Sauce

1 cucumber, seeded and diced
1/2 T. Kosher Salt
1 T. lemon juice
1/4 clove of garlic, chopped
1/4 t. dried dill (or 1 t. chopped fresh dill)
Dash pepper
1/4 t. salt
6 ounces of Greek yogurt (fat-free, low-fat, whatever)

Peel the cucumber, then cut in half lengthwise and take a small spoon and scrape out the seeds. Discard the seeds. Slice the cucumber into thick slices, then put in colander (placed on a plate or in the sink, to catch the water), sprinkle with the Kosher salt, and let stand for 30 minutes or more to draw out the water. Pat dry with paper towel.

When cucumber is done, put it in a blender with the lemon juice, garlic, dill, and few grinds of black pepper. Process until well blended, and then stir this mixture into the yogurt. Taste before adding salt (it may not need it). Place in refrigerator for at least two hours before serving so flavors can blend.

This will keep for days or more in the fridge, but you will need to drain off any water and stir each time you use it. Serve with pita chips or whatever else you want!

Note on Greek yogurt: This is becoming more and more popular and therefore should be available in most large supermarkets. Even Yoplait is making their own. The brand I found was Chobani and it was about $1.49 for the six ounces. Regular yogurt will not work because of its moisture content. However, if you can't find Greek yogurt, you can strain regular plain yogurt through cheesecloth for about two to three hours to get the general consistency of Greek yogurt.

Pita Chips

2 pitas
4 t. olive oil
Dash pepper
Scant 1/4 t. garlic salt
Dash basil

Preheat oven to 400º. Cut each pita into eight triangles. Place triangles on cookie lined (with parchment paper, wax paper, or foil) sheet. In a small bowl, combine the oil, pepper, salt, and basil. Brush each triangle with the oil mixture. Bake in preheated oven for about 7-8 minutes, or until lightly browned and crispy. Watch carefully as they tend to burn easily!

Grilled Pineapple

1 large ripe pineapple
3 Tbs. honey
1 Tbs. freshly-squeezed lemon or lime juice
1/2 tsp. freshly-ground black pepper

Trim, core and peel pineapple. Cut into quarters from top to bottom. Slice out the core from each quarter. Cut each quarter slice into four pieces, once lengthwise and once crosswise. you should have 16 wedges of pineapple about 1 inch by 3 inches.

In small bowl combine honey, lemon or lime juice and black pepper. Brush glaze on each slice of pineapple coating completely.

Preheat grill and spray with a non stick spray. Place wedges on the grill and cook approx. 4 minutes on each side, turning so that grill marks are on all sides, until pineapple becomes fragrant and starts to dry on the surface. Do not overcook or they will by mushy.

Remove and brush with any remaining glaze and enjoy.

Notes: oh my, this is so good I can never get a picture before it disappears. Imagine pineapple wedges with grill marks on them. I have to give credit to the website where I found this recipe but I don't know where it is at this moment. Just know I didn't make it up someone else did and shared it with me which I am now sharing with you. Seriously though, too delicious to describe with words. And don't skip on the pepper, it gives it an extra kick!

Clam Dip (for Miles)

8 oz. cream cheese
2 TBLS. mayonnaise
1/2 C sour cream
1/2 TSP salt
1/2 TSP worchestire

Mix/blend all ABOVE ingredients together until smooth

ADD:

1 small can DRAINED minced clams, stir with spoon

TOP with:

1/4 lb. cheddar (shredded)

Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes until bubbly. Serve with veggies or tortilla chips.

We had this on Thanksgiving and one CUTE little boy I know wanted to be sure his mom had the recipe, now she does!!! ;)

Bruschetta

2 large tomatoes, coarsely chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

2 T. olive oil

1 T. fresh oregano

1 t. fresh basil

2 t. fresh parsley

1/2 t. sugar

dash salt

1 clove garlic, minced

dash of balsamic vinegar

Mix everything together. Let sit in the fridge for at least an hour.

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Slice loaf of french bread and brush the tops with olive oil. Put the bread in the oven for five minutes. Remove bread from oven and top with bruschetta and parmesan cheese. Put back in the oven for another five minutes.

Any leftovers can be refrigerated and then reheated at 350 degrees for about 5-10 minutes.

Notes from e: Although it would probably be much better with fresh herbs, I couldn't justify the cost for something I thought only I would eat. So I used dried herbs. I use 1 t. of the dried oregano, 1/2 t. of dried basil, and 1 t. of the dried parsley. And it still tasted great.

Nacho Cheese Sauce

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup milk (I used whole since I wasn't sure how skim would do)
7 slices processed American cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and stir in flour. Pour in the milk and stir until the mixture thickens. Stirring constantly, mix in cheese and salt. Continue to cook and stir until cheese has melted and all ingredients are well blended, about 15 minutes. If you'd like to add spice, you can add some tabasco sauce as well as chili powder.

(from allrecipes.com)

Boursin Cheese Ball

16 oz. cream cheese – room temp.
4 Tbsp. Butter – room Temp.
1 tsp. lemon juice
4 cloves minced garlic
1 Tbsp. Dried Oregano
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
¼ tsp. salt
4 Tbsp. diced fresh parsley
Plus….
Nuts or parsley to coat the outside.

Combine all ingredients in a mixer. Shape into a ball and wrap in seran wrap and chill over night. Right before serving, cover with nuts or parsley. Serve with crackers.

Layered Bean Dip with Baked Chips

So I kinda "created" this tonite and it was a big hit with my whole family (okay, not emmy - but she only wants to eat candy). It was actually our "main course" (ahem, my only course).

Dip:

1 can (160z) of fat-free refried-beans

1/2 package of fajita seasoning

1/4 - 1/2 t. cumin

2-3 minced garlic cloves

1 ripe avacado

1 lemon

1/8 t. salt

1 t. olive oil

lite sour cream

sliced olives

chopped tomatoes

shredded monterey jack and cheddar cheese

chopped cliantro

Chips:

flour tortillas

PAM

salt 'n pepper

In a small saucepan heat the beans up with the fajita seasoning, cumin, and garlic. Once warmed, take off the heat and set aside.

Mash the avacado up with a fork and the juice from one lemon, the 1/8 t. salt and 1 t. oil. It does not need to be completely smooth.

Then either in individual ramikins or other serving dish, layer the beans, then avacado, next with sour cream, tomatoes, cheese and cilantro. (I did mine in 7 ramikins - I layered the beans, then dolloped on about 1 T. of the avacado and about 1 T. of sour cream. I also put about 1 T. of cheese on each serving, too.)

Place in fridge for at least 4 hours (more longer if doing it in a larger serving dish).

Chips:

Heat oven to 350. Cut up the flour tortillas in triangles (I used fajita-size tortillas and made 6 triangles per tortilla). Place on a baking sheet and spray each wedge with PAM. Then sprinkle salt and pepper as desired. Bake in the oven for 8 minutes. Then turn each one over, spray again with PAM, and cook another 5 minutes. Done. (We did about 6-8 tortillas, on 2 different baking sheets).

Dip "chips" in the bean dip. Yum.

Individual Cheese Balls

1 tub (8oz.) chive and onion cream cheese spread
1 pkg. (8oz.) shredded mozzarella cheese
4 slices bacon, cooked, and finely chopped
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, ground

Mix cream cheese spread and mozzarella cheese until well blended. Stir in chopped bacon and seasonings. Shape mixture into approx. 54 balls, 1 level tsp. each. Roll in walnuts. Cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 2 hours.

To change flavor, prepare as directed using 1 pkg. natural three cheese crumbles in place of mozzarella cheese.

Bacon Wrapped Lil Smokies

1 lb. package little smokies (or little polskas)
1 lb. package bacon
3/4 c. packed brown sugar

Cut the bacon into thirds. Wrap each little wienie with the bacon and secure with toothpick; place on baking sheet. Sprinkle the brown sugar generously over everything.

Bake at 325 for 40 minutes.

Notes: I did these using turkey bacon and (shocker) dear husband thinks they'd slightly better if I used real bacon, although he still ate more than I had planned. Maybe next time we'd only make half and freeze the rest. They were perfect for football-watching.

Tomato Dip

Great for serving with chips or fritos or even veggies!

8 oz brick lite cream cheese
8 oz brick fat free cream cheese
3 medium ripe tomatoes
4 tbsp grated onion
1/2 tsp. tabasco
1/2 tsp. salt

Blanch tomatoes and peel. Cut the tomatoes into very small cubes on a paper towl to help remove the seeds and most of the juice (I removed the skins and seeds and then chop with a small food processor until fairly chopped). Blend the tomatoes with an electric mixer with the rest of the ingredients until well mixed. Chill 2 hours. Serve with chips or veggies.

Texas Rice Salad

3 cups cooked brown rice
1 cup (15oz.) can black beans rinsed and drained
1 can (11oz.) corn, drained
1-2 avocados peeled, pitted, diced
2 cups salsa
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
¼ cup chopped red onion (I don't add this--not an onion fan)
2 T fresh lime or lemon juice
¼ tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper

Mix all well and serve with Fritos Scoops

Cottage Cheese Ranch Dip

8 ounces small curd cottage cheese
8 ounces sour cream
1 package ranch dressing mix
1 heaping spoonful of mayonnaise

1. Mix all the ingredients together. Chill for at least one hour (preferably longer) before serving.

Use as a dip for crackers, veggies, chips, cheese, etc.

Apple Brittle Dip

8 ounces cream cheese
1 package toffee bits
1 tsp vanilla
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup white sugar

1. Using an electric mixer mix the cream cheese, brown sugar, white sugar and vanilla. Mix well until smooth. Then fold in the toffee bits.
2. Let the dip chill in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours before serving.
3. Serve as a dip with apple slices.

Note: I have not tried this recipe with lite cream cheese. If anyone happens to try it I would be interested in knowing how it turns out.

Pumpkin Dip

2 – 8 oz pkgs Cream Cheese
1 – 15 oz can Pumpkin
½ tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
¼ tsp Nutmeg
½ tsp Cinnamon
1 pound Powdered Sugar

1. Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pumpkin and spices. Fold in the powdered sugar.
2. Chill and serve with any of the following: apple slices, gingersnaps, vanilla wafers, angel food cake squares, bread.

Shoepeg Salsa

2 chopped tomatoes

1 chopped zucchini

1/2 c. chopped green onions

1 can shoepeg corn, drained

1/2 c. picante salsa

1 T. olive oil

1 T. lemon juice

3/4 t. garlic

1/2 t. cumin

Mix everything together and chill for at least 4 hours in the fridge.

Note: I love this so much that I can eat it like it's gazpacho! Yum, yum.