White Bean and Garlic Dip

Submitted by: melpfaff

Difficulty Rating: Easy

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 can white cannelloni beans
• 2 cloves garlic or 1 tbsp minced garlic
• olive oil
• Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:

• In mini food processor (I use magic bullet), dice garlic. Add beans gradually and a drizzle of olive oil.
• Finish with Parmesan cheese.
• Serve with crackers, tostadas,or veggies.

Cold Spinach Dip

Submitted by: melpfaff

Difficulty Rating: Easy - this can be made in a snap

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 8 oz package neufchatel cream cheese
• 1 cup low fat sour cream
• 1 package frozen spinach
• 1 tsp minced garlic

DIRECTIONS:

• Use microwave to defrost spinach. Drain and remove excess water from spinach using paper towels or cheesecloths.
• Mix ingredients together with hand mixer. Also add black ground pepper or parm cheese if desired.
• Serve with cold veggies, bread, pita chips, or crackers.

Hot Spinach Dip

Submitted by: melpfaff

Difficulty: Moderate, more time-consuming. I usually use this in winter, and use a casserole dish with tea lights underneath to keep it warm. Works well with pita chips, bread, veggies.

Taken from Emeril Lagasse/Food network

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 (10-ounce) packages fresh spinach, well rinsed and stems trimmed
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 cup chopped yellow onions
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 cup grated Monterrey Jack
• 1 (6 1/2-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan

DIRECTIONS:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9-inch round chafing dish and set aside.
• Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add the spinach in batches and cook until wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove and refresh under cold running water. Squeeze to remove all excess water and chop. Set aside.
• In a medium pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Add the garlic, salt, pepper, and cayenne, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, to make a light roux, about 2 minutes. Add the milk and cream in a steady stream, and cook, stirring constantly, until thick and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cooked spinach and lemon juice, and stir to incorporate. Add the cubed and grated cheeses, artichoke hearts, and stir well. Remove from the heat and pour into the prepared dish.
• Top with the Parmesan and bake until bubbly, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve hot with chips.

Notes: Make sure the pan is hot and stir constantly when making a roux. I usually omit the onions. I sometimes add diced tomatoes or red peppers. Also, make sure you rinse the artichokes, to get rid of the “vinegar” taste.

Bacon and Tomato Cups

Submitted by: becs11048

Recipe from: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/bacon-and-tomato-cups/detail.aspx

Difficulty Rating: Medium

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 slices bacon
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 3 ounces shredded Swiss cheese
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 (16 ounce) can refrigerated buttermilk biscuit dough

 

DIRECTIONS:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a mini muffin pan.
• In a skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until evenly brown. Drain on paper towels. Crumble bacon into a medium mixing bowl, and mix with tomato, onion, Swiss cheese, mayonnaise and basil.
• Separate biscuits into halves horizontally. Place each half into cups of the prepared mini muffin pan. Fill each biscuit half with the bacon mixture.
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.

Stuffed Mushrooms

Submitted by: amelianguy

Difficulty: Easy

INGREDIENTS: 

• 1 package button mushrooms
• 1 package pre-cooked bacon strips
• 1 1/4 cup shredded cheese (any you like, although sharper cheeses work better)

DIRECTIONS:

• Wash mushrooms and pat dry. Remove the stems (keep them!) and place the mushrooms, top down, on a baking sheet. Finely chop the stems and put into a bowl. Chop bacon strips and add to mushroom stems. Add 1 cup of the cheese, combine.
• Spoon the mixture into the mushroom caps, packing it down so it
  will stay. Top each cap with more cheese.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the mushrooms are heated through. Cool slightly and serve.

Easy Bruschetta

Submitted by: amelianguy

Difficulty: Easy

INGREDIENTS:

• 6-8 Roma tomatoes
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tsp. dried basil or 3-4 fresh basil leaves, chopped
• 2 cloves fresh garlic, finely chopped or 1 tbsp. jarred minced garlic
• 1/2 cup parmasean cheese, grated
• 2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar (optional)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 loaf baguette

DIRECTIONS:

• Chop tomatoes and put in mixing bowl. Add all other ingredients and combine. Slice baguette and toast, serve.
• This tastes better the longer it sits, so if you refrigerate it overnight and then let it come back to room temp before serving, the flavors will be stronger.

Creamy Spinach Dip

Submitted by: amelianguy

Difficulty: Easy

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 - 10oz package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed.
• 1 1/2 cups Sour Cream
• 1 cup Mayonnaise
• 1 pkg. Knorr vegetable soup mix
• 1 8oz. can Water Chestnuts, chopped
• 3 green onions, chopped (optional)
• Tortilla chips or sliced bread to serve

DIRECTIONS:

• Thoroughly thaw the spinach and squeeze as much water as you can out of it, until it's dry.
• Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl, chill for 2 hours, serve with chips or bread.

Avocado Salsa

Submitted by: aortiz59

Difficulty Rating: Medium

Yields 4-5 c.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 ripe avocados
• 1 (14.5 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (14.5 oz) can shoepeg corn, drained and rinsed
• 1 c. bell pepper (any color), diced
• 1 jalapeno, finely minced
• 2 plum tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 c. green onion, chopped
• 1/4 c. lime juice
• 1 tbs. taco seasoning mix
• 2 tbs. olive oil
• Salt, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

• Mix together beans, corn, peppers, green onion, and tomatoes in a large bowl. Slice avocados around the pit, so that you will have 2 halves per avocado. Remove the pit. Sprinkle halves with salt and about 2 tsp. of the lime juice. Using a small knife, slice the avocados into bite sized chunks while still in skin. Then, using a large spoon, gently remove the avocado chunks from the skin and add to the bowl.
• Whisk together remaining lime juice, taco seasoning, and olive oil in a small bowl. Pour over the salsa mixture, and gently stir to combine. Serve with tortilla chips. 
  

 
* No taco seasoning? You can use 1 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp. chili powder, 1 tsp. garlic powder, and 1/2 tsp. black pepper instead.

Veggie Pizza

Submitted by: aortiz59

Difficulty Rating: Easy

Yields 32 slices.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 (8oz) cans of refrigerated crescent rolls
• 1 (8oz) package of cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 c. sour cream
• 1 pkg. dried ranch dressing seasoning
• 1/2 c. small broccoli florets
• 1/2 c. cucumber slices, quartered
• 1 plum tomato, seeded and chopped
• 1/4 c. shredded carrot
• 1/4 c. shredded cheese, any variety

DIRECTIONS:

• Preheat oven to 375. Unroll crescent rolls into 4 long rectangles. On an ungreased baking sheet, press crescent rolls into the bottom of the pan and up the sides to form a crust. Bake 13 to 17 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• In a small bowl, mix cream cheese, sour cream, and ranch seasoning until smooth. Spread on crust evenly. Top with vegetables. Cut into 8 rows x 4 rows.

* You can adjust the recipe to make a "taco" pizza as well - substitute ranch seasoning for a taco seasoning packet. Use tomatoes, bell peppers, black olives, and cheese as toppings.

Exchange #3! Appetizers!

Steph started this one up a few weeks back, but with little response. So we'll give this one another shot!

This weeks theme: APPETIZERS

Send in your favorite appetizer recipe! I love apps, so I can't wait to try out all the new yumminess that is sure to come my way!

When you send in your recipe, please include a difficulty rating (Easy, Moderate, Difficult). This should help you decide if you'd like to try out the recipe or not.

I will post recipes as they come to me, each recipe will get their own blog post. You can sumbit as many as you'd like and pictures are a big plus if you have them.

Please send your recipes to: ninerrecipeexchange@gmail.com Please include your Nest screen name when you sumbit your recipe!!

The next exchange will be held in 2 weeks.

Happy app making everyone!