Maple Bacon Crack

Ingredients
1 lb. bacon
1 pkg. Pillsbury crescent rolls
1/2 c pure maple syrup
3/4 c brown sugar

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees°F.
2. Line a rimmed baking sheet (like a 15×10) with foil and liberally grease the foil with cooking spray.
3. Unroll the crescent rolls into one single plane of dough and pinch any perforations together to seal.
4. Stretch the dough out to fit the size of the pan with your hands so it’s even.
5. Prick the dough with a fork all over. Set aside.
6. Meanwhile, cook your bacon till lighter in color and not quite crispy.
7. Drain the bacon on a paper towel-lined plate.
8. Drizzle 1/4 cup of the maple syrup over the crescent roll dough.
9. Sprinkle with about 1/4 cup of the brown sugar.
10. Top with torn pieces of the cooked bacon.
11. Drizzle the remaining maple syrup on top of the bacon pieces, and top with the remaining brown sugar.
12. Bake for approx. 25 minutes or until bubbling and caramelized.
13. Remove from the oven and allow the pan to come to room temperature.
14. Cool before cutting into pieces.

Recipe from Get In My Belly.

Greek Goddess Dip

Tastes very much like Greek Tzatziki sauce, but packed with herbs.  Addictive for sure.

Ingredients

½ cup packed fresh dill

½ cup packed fresh mint

½ cup packed fresh parsley

⅓ cup packed fresh basil

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 scallions, white and green parts, sliced

1 ½ tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

 Pinch kosher salt, more to taste

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

½ cup crumbled feta cheese

½ cup Greek yogurt

¼ cup mayonnaise, optional

 Raw chopped vegetables or pita chips, for serving

Place dill, mint, parsley, basil, garlic, scallions, lemon juice and salt in a food processor and process until finely chopped.

With motor running, drizzle in the olive oil until incorporated. Add feta and process until smooth; pulse in yogurt. Taste dip and add more salt, if desired. If you like a creamier, richer dip, add mayonnaise and pulse to combine. Refrigerate for at least an hour so that all the flavors come together.

Serve with vegetables or pita chips. Store in refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Recipe adapted from NY Times

My Own Awesome Gazpacho for Dipping

This recipe is my very own. I wanted a cross between bruschetta and gazpacho, but thicker and richer so you can dip your bread into it.  Part is cooked, and part is left raw.  You will need a food processor as the chunks are very small.  There are a lot of ingredients, but the final result is so delicious. I brought it to a get-together and everyone loved it!

Ingredients

1 red onion, chopped and divided in half
4 cloves of garlic, chopped small and divided in half
2 medium red bell peppers, chopped and divided in half
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped fine
Extra virgin olive oil
1 14 oz. can Glen Muir Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes
1 14 oz. can Glen Muir Fire Roasted Crush Tomatoes
1 14 oz. can tomato sauce
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. ground cumin, toasted
Rind of parmesan or romano cheese, or a 1-inch piece
5 ripe, but firm plum tomatoes, diced and divided in half
1 English cucumber, ends removed, cut in half, seeded & chopped
1/4 c olive oil
1/4 c sherry or balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 T Worcestershire Sauce
Sriracha to taste
Salt and Pepper to taste
Basil Chiffonade for garnish

In a dutch oven over medium heat, saute 1/2 the onion, 1/2 the bell peppers, the entire jalapeno pepper & 1/2 the garlic in 2 T olive oil 4-5 minutes. Add the cumin & oregano and continue to cook for another 2 minutes. Dump in the canned tomatoes, tomato sauce and 1/2 of the diced fresh plum tomatoes. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes. Add the parmesan rind and continue cooking for another 20 minutes. Remove from heat and remove the cheese rind.  Add olive oil, vinegar, Worcestershire, Sriracha and salt & pepper. Stir until blended.  Test for taste. Adjust condiments as needed. Do not skimp on the salt. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

In the food processor pulse the remaining onion, pepper, garlic, plum tomatoes & cucumber until small. Do not puree. Remove from bowl of processor and set aside.

Once the tomato mixture is cool, add it to the bowl of the food processor and process until desired consistency.  Remove to a bowl and add the onion, pepper & tomato mixture.  Chiffonade the basil and sprinkle on top.  Drizzle with more olive oil just before serving.  Serve with baguette slices or any crusty bread.

To create basil chiffonade, take several fresh basil leaves on layer them on top of each other.  Roll up from the long side and slice with a sharp knife from the point of the roll all the way to the opposite end. You will end up with strips of basil.

Mangia!

Tomato, Ricotta & Basil Tart

Ingredients

1 pint Whole Milk Ricotta

2 large lemon, zested

1/2 cup Grated Parmesan

1 Egg, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon Kosher Salt

2 tablespoons Parsley, finely chopped

2 tablespoons Chives, finely chopped

1 sheet Puff Pastry

2-3 various Heirloom Tomatoes, sliced

1/2 cup Basil Leaves, torn

Flakey Sea Salt

Olive Oil

Black Pepper, freshly cracked

Parmesan cheese for garnish

Up to a day ahead of time, make the Ricotta mixture.  The flavors will continue to blend and enhance the longer it sits.

In a mixing bowl combine the Ricotta, Lemon Zest, Parmesan, Egg, Salt, Pepper, Parsley, Chives and 1 tablespoons of Olive Oil. Mix to thoroughly incorporate and refrigerate until ready to use.

Preheat your oven to 400°F. Place your Puff Pastry on a baking sheet and roll it slightly in to more of a rectangle shape. Fold the edges in and using your thumb and forefinger, create fluted edges. Blind bake for 10 minutes.  This ensures that your tart is not soggy or under baked in the center.  Cool. Next, spread the cooled pastry with the Ricotta filling. Bake until golden brown and bubbly looking on top, 20-25 minutes. 

Remove from the oven and slide on to a cutting board. Start layering your sliced Tomatoes across the top. Next add the torn Basil, a drizzle of Olive Oil, Cracked Pepper, a little more Parmesan and some flaky Salt. Slice in to 9 pieces and serve.

Adapted from The Chew.

Mangia!

Creamy Corn-Filled Sweet Peppers

Photo courtesy of Pillsbury.com

I have made these for 2 different occasions and they have disappeared as they are so scrumptious!

Ingredients

1 bag (11 oz) Green Giant™ Steamers™ frozen honey roasted sweet corn

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon Watkins™ Italian Seasoning

11 mini sweet peppers (3 to 4 inches long), cut in half lengthwise leaving stem attached, seeded

1 can Pillsbury™ Crescent Recipe Creations™ refrigerated seamless dough sheet or 1 can Pillsbury™ refrigerated crescent dinner rolls (8 rolls)

3 tablespoons butter, melted

Heat oven to 375°F. Line large cookie sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Microwave corn as directed on bag. Cut open bag; cool 10 minutes.

In large bowl, beat cream cheese with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add corn, 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese and 1/2 teaspoon of the Italian seasoning; mix well. Place cream cheese mixture in large resealable food-storage plastic bag. Cut off 1/2 inch from corner of bag. Squeeze bag to pipe filling into each pepper half.

Unroll dough. (If using crescent roll dough, firmly press perforations to seal.) Press to form 11x9-inch rectangle. With pizza cutter or knife, cut dough into 22 (9x1/2-inch) strips.

Wrap 1 dough strip around each pepper, from stem to tip. Place filling-side up on cookie sheet, tucking in ends of dough under pepper.

Bake 12 to 18 minutes or until golden brown.  Meanwhile, in small bowl, mix melted butter and remaining 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning. Remove peppers from oven; brush with butter mixture. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese evenly over peppers. Serve warm.

Recipe taken from Pillsbury website.

Crabmeat Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients

12 ounces baby portabella mushrooms, cleaned and stems removed
1 pound lump crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
6 oz. grated Gruyere cheese
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated

2 T fresh parsley, chopped
Lemon wedges (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place mushroom caps on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. In a large bowl, mix together crabmeat, garlic, cheese, Worcestershire sauce, salt, mayonnaise and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Place a heaping tablespoon of the crab mixture into the cap of each mushroom. Bake the mushroom caps for 30 minutes.  Garnish w/chopped parsley; serve with lemon wedges.

Enjoy!