Cheesy Bacon Pull-Apart Bread

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AKA "Crack Bread."  Nuff said. 

(!!!Another winner from Pinterest!!!!)

{What you need}

1 uncut loaf sourdough bread, preferably round

about 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

3 oz. bag Oscar Meyer real bacon bits

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 Tablespoon ranch dressing mix

Cut the loaf of bread like a grid, without cutting through the bottom crust.  Sprinkle/pack the cheese down in the wedges and cuts of the loaf.  Do the same with the bacon bits.  Mix the ranch dressing mix in the melted butter and pour all over bread, making sure to get in the wedges and cuts as well.  Cover in tinfoil and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.  Remove the tin foil and bake for about 10 more minutes, or until cheese is melted.  Stuff your face relentlessly.  But try not to eat the whole loaf by yourself......

Eyeball Truffles

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These were a MAGOR hit at a recent Halloween party.  They are great for other occasions, too, if you leave off the blood-shot veins and pupils. . . and add sprinkles or something:)

{What you need}

1 package double stuff oreos {make sure they are double stuff!}

1, 8 oz. cube cream cheese

24 oz. white chocolate chips

4 tablespoons vegetable shortening

2 lil' tubes of red cake decorating gel

dark colored m&m's

Crush all the oreos in a food processor and add cream cheese until a thick dough forms.  Form small balls from the dough and place on a wax paper covered cookie sheet.  Place in the freezer until they become firm enough to handle.  While they are in the fridge, melt the chocolate and shortening together.  Dip each oreo ball in the chocolate and place back on the wax paper.  Use the red gel to make "veins" coming out of the center of each truffle.  Place an m&m in the intersection of all the "veins" and see the eyeballs come to life!  Keep in the freezer until you are ready to serve.  These are absolutely DELICIOUS!!

Mummy Dogs

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This is a cute little twist on the traditional pigs in a blanket.  It's great for entertaining around Halloween.

{What you need}

2 cans crescent rolls

12 links of your favorite PRECOOKED sausage/brauts, cut in half

mustard

{The pictures pretty much explain the assemblage themselves}
Cut each cresent roll triangle of dough into strips and wrap them around the dog, leaving a gap to put two little drops of mustard after they come out of the oven.  Repeat for all 24 mummies.  Cook according to the cresent roll instructions.  Let them cool for about 5 minutes and then put two little dots of mustard on the gap so it looks like eyes.  Very cute and fun!!

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

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These meatballs could actually be used in any meatball-needing-recipe {ie spaghetti and meatballs?}, but they are extra good with this sweet and sour sauce.  Pretty easy to assemble, too.  They can also be made for appetizers for entertaining, just serve with little toothpick.

{What you need}

1 pound ground beef {or turkey!}

2 tablespoons dehydrated onion

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 egg, beaten

1/4 cup bread crumbs

{sauce}

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

3 tablespoons flour

1/2 cups water or pineapple juice

1/4 cup white vinegar

3 tablespoons soy sauce

In a medium bowl, combine meatball ingredients.  Use a cookie scoop to shape meet into 1-inch balls and place on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.  Place under the broiler in your oven for 5-7 minutes or until the meatballs begin to brown.  

In a large saucepan, whisk together the sauce ingredients and bring to a boil.  Add the meatballs and reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring often.

(compliments of Sara Wells and Kate Jones)

Jill's Bean Dip

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Jill has been a loyal contributor to Nummies since it's dawn.  We love her around our house.  For many, many reasons.  This bean dip being one of them.  Check out her food blog if you want your socks knocked off.

{What you need}

2-3 cans diced green chilis

2 can spicy jalapeño rosarita retried beans

1/2 sweet onion diced

1/2 cup sour cream

1 8oz. Cream cheese

Cilantro chopped

Cheddar cheese shredded 

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and then pour into a 9x13 cake pan. Cover the top with more shredded cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes uncovered.

(compliments of The Hart of Good Eats)

Joelle's Stuffed Mushrooms

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My wonderful co-worker and friend Joelle made these phenomenal mushrooms for our work Christmas party a few weeks ago.  You can imagine how much I loved them, with my obsession with all things mushroom.  Then I found out there were only three ingredients and I about passed out.  She shared the love, so here I am sharing the love:

{What you need}

1 lb. ground sausage

1 8 oz. package creem cheese

2 packages whole mushrooms

Wash and de-stem the mushrooms. Fry up the sausage and drain the grease.  Combine cream cheese and sausage.  Place the mushrooms bottom up on a cookie sheet and fill each mushroom with the sausage mixture.  Broil on high for about 4-6 minutes.  Keep your eye on them so they don't overcook.

Brie en Croute

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I first had this beautiful appetizer this past Thanksgiving at my hub's aunt and uncle's house.  It was absolutely incredible!  As a brie lover, this did not dissappoint.  You can imagine my delight when I stumbled across this recipe the other day on my favorite foodie blog, The Sister's Cafe.  You can imagine my delight even more when I realized how flippin easy it is!  I just had to share the love with you:

{What you need} 

1 wheel of Brie, I used a 13 oz from Harmons ($11.99) (you can use up to a 19 oz)

2 puff pastries, found in the frozen dessert section by the pies (2 come together in one package)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup crasins

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1 egg + 1 Tb water for an egg wash

Allow the puff pastries to defrost to room temp.  On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry.  In the center of the pastry put the brown sugar, crasins, and pecans.  Take the wheel of brie and scrape off as much rind as you would like.  It is edible, but makes it a little harder to cut into if there is too much on.  I shave off a lot of the rind but not enough to cut into the cheese.  Place the shaved wheel of brie on top of the pile of goods in the center of the pastry.  Fold the dough up and around the cheese, taking care to seal completely and securely.  Turn the wheel over onto a lightly greased cookie sheet so that the folds and seems are underneath.  Egg wash the entire surface.  With the other puff pastry you can roll it out and cut out shapes and press it onto the top of the wheel to add decorations.  I copied The Sisters Cafe and cut out some holly leaves and berries to make it festive for a Christmas party we went to.  Then egg wash the entire surface again. 

Bake at 400 for 20 minutes, then let the oven cool to 325 and bake for 20-25 minutes longer.  Serve with crackers and fruit.

Let me know if you try this super classy yet easy appetizer for your holliday presentation!

Fry Bread (Scones)

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A Durrant family regular. When I was in high school we would have "scone parties" all the time. My siblings and I would have dozens of friends over and my mom would make us scones all night long. It was a major hit. We'd also have them on Sundays a lot as a family treat. I have so many wonderful memories associated with these delicious scones! Thank you, Mom, for giving me this wonderful recipe.

{What you need}

3 cups boiling water

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup shortening

2 teaspoons salt

1 or 2 packages yeast

enough flour to make a soft dough

3 cups vegetable oil

In a large bowl or bosch mixer put boiling water. Add shortening and let it melt. Add yeast and stir. Stir in sugar and salt and mix for about 30 seconds. Gradually add flour, about a cup at a time, until a soft dough forms.

In a medium sauce pan heat the oil over medium low until it crackles with a drip of water.

Take the dough and roll it out into a large slab on a greased countertop. Cut the dough grid style into squares about the size of large dish sponge (this is harder to explain than I thought it would be---I can't think of anything the size of the squares! Dish sponge will have to do...)

Take each square of dough and stretch it out just a little, and place in the heated oil with tongs. It will begin to bubble. Repeatedly push the scone under the oil until the underside is a golden brown. Turn over and repeat dunking until the other side is golden brown, too.

Let the scones drip off on a plate with paper towels on it. Serve hot with honey butter, jam, powdered sugar, whatever you desire.

Compliments of Jackie Durrant

Cream Cheese Oreo Truffles

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Thanks to my dear friend Krista I can now stuff my face with these sinfully delicious balls of delight any time I choose. Krista is a fellow recipe enthusiist and was willing to give me this incredible recipe that has proven to be a major hit on several different occasions at our workplace. Some recipes are hard to give away, and I was sure this would be one of those. But Krista is so willing to share the love! Bless her heart. These are great for entertaining or for family gatherings or to just have on hand any time you need a fix. I have this fantasy of making them for my first born's first birthday party, and decorating them all cute like. Enjoy, eh?

{What you need}

1 package oreo cookies

1, 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened

23 oz. milk chocolate chips (or white chocolate chips, if you choose)

4 Tablespoons vegetable shorting

lolli pop sticks (found at a craft store)

{Optional topping ideas}

shredded cocount

sprinkles

nut crumbs

fruity pebbles

candy bar crumbs

etc...

In a food processor crush the oreo cookies until there are no big chunks. Pour into a large mixing bowl and mix in softened cream cheese until it is all evenly mixed. Mold the dough into little balls (about golf ball sized, or smaller) and place on a wax paper-covered cookie sheet. cover with tin foil and place cookie sheet in the freezer for an hour.

Meanwhile, combine chocolate chips and veggie shortening in a large sauce pan and melt together, taking care to not burn the chocolate. Once the oreo balls are frozen enough to allow for easy handling, jab the lolli pop sticks in and dip each ball in the chocolate, (dip in other toppings at this point, if desired) returning them to the wax paper-covered cookie sheet. Freeze for another hour. Serve chilled, and keep the leftovers refridgerated
(if there are any leftovers. Not very likely).

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Aren't they just adorable?

Cashew Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Editor's note:  you'll need to at least quadruple this if you're planning on making it for a shower.  One batch makes enough for 4 or 5.

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If you've ever been to PF Changst than you've probably at least heard of their mean lettuce wraps. This recipe is inspired by those delicious apetizers but has a few extra flairs to it. I served this at a wedding shower and it was a major hit! And they turned out so pretty, it was perfect for entertaining. Classy and delicious, that's how we roll. This recipe easily multiplies and freezes well if you want to make extras to whip out on a busy night. Enjoy!

{What you need}

(Don't be intimidated...)

at least 8 dried Shiitake mushrooms

(I got mine in the asian food isle in a package, there were like 16 in it. I used all of them

because we're kind of obsessed with mushrooms in my household. )

1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped in small pieces

5 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon fresh minced ginger

2 cloves minced garlic

3 chopped green onions

8 oz. can bamboo shoots, chopped

8 oz. can water chestnuts, chopped

1 1/2 cup cashew nuts

1 can of Chinese Rice noodles

iceberg lettuce leaves

{Lettuce wrap sauce}

2 tablespoons oyster sauce

1 1/2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon cooking sherry

1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon sesame oil

Reconstitute the shiitake mushrooms by boiling water and soaking the mushrooms in the hot water for thirty minutes. Once they have been soaked, drain and dice them, removing any woody stem. Set aside.

While the mushrooms are soaking, combine all of the ingredients for the sauce in a large bowl (you'll eventually be adding the chicken to this bowl, too), making sure the cornstarch is fully dissolved. Set aside.

In a large skillet over medium heat add 3 tablespoons oil. Once heated, add the chicken pieces and fry until chicken is no longer pink, stirring constantly, about three minutes. Remove cooked chicken from skillet, place in the large bowl with the sauce in it and coat chicken evenly with the sauce.

In the same skillet, add 2 more tablespoons of oil. Ad the fresh ginger, garlic, and green onions and stir fry for about 1 minute, or until the garlic is golden in color. DON'T OVERCOOK GARLIC. Add the mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts. Stir fry for an additional 2 minutes or so.

Add chicken and sauce mixture to the skillet and stir fry until the sauce thickens. Add the cashews right before you serve it.

Serve on chilled iceberg lettuce leaves with rice noodles.

*And the crowd goes wild!!*