Appetizers | STEPHANIE'S SLICE OF LIFE

Category: Appetizers
- Sausage Wontons Appetizer
  
  Posted at 9:47 am by StephMo
  
  Dec 27th
  
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  I have been making these sinfully delicious appetizers for over 20 years and always on Christmas Eve. Even though this year it was only my little immediate family, one of the first menu items requested were these wontons. You might look at the ingredients and think “eh”, but trust me they are delicious. It is hard to distinguish any of the ingredients in this wonton, but they all work together and create an amazing flavor. My children don’t like black olives or red peppers, but they love these.
  
  The nice thing about this recipe is you can make the sausage filling ahead of time and refrigerate it until you are ready to make them. You can also freeze the mixture if you’d like, which is nice when you aren’t using all of it because they do make quite a few.
  
  I first got the recipe from a friend years ago and she doubled the amount of cheese and dressing. I thought it was a little too much so I cut the measurements back a little, but if you want you can add more cheese and more dressing.
  
  Ingredients:
  
  1 package of Jimmy Dean or Jones sausage
  
  1 red bell pepper
  
  1 small 2.25 oz. can of black olives
  
  6 – 8oz. of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing
  
  4 oz. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
  
  4 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
  
  Wonton wrappers
  
  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and spray a muffin tin with cooking spray.
  
  Cook the sausage in a frying pan until done, and let cool. Cut the red pepper into chunks.
  
  In a food processor or chopper combine the sausage, red pepper, and olives. I didn’t have my food processor with me so I used a small chopper and chopped them in small batches of all three ingredients together. A food processor would have been much quicker.
  
  Once you have processed all of the sausage, pepper and olives, combine in a mixing bowl with the cheeses and dressing.
  
  Place one wonton wrapper in each opening and bake for about 5 -7 minutes until they get slightly brown.
  
  Once brown, fill each wonton with the sausage filling using two teaspoons.
  
  Bake for about 10 minutes until the cheeses are melted. Keep watching them to make sure the wontons don’t get too brown or burned.
  
  Now be prepared for your family and friends to ask you to make them again. So good!
  
  Posted in Appetizers, Sausage Wontons | Tagged appetizer recipes, easy appetizers, food blog, food blogger, Recipes, sausage wonton recipe, sausage wontons, stephanie's slice of life, wonton appetizer, wonton recipe, wontons
- Broccoli Christmas Tree
  
  Posted at 2:24 pm by StephMo
  
  Dec 9th
  
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  Oh Broccoli Christmas tree, oh Broccoli Christmas tree, la la la la, la la la. I have been making this adorable vegetable tree on Christmas Eve for years. Since this year will be a little different and I probably won’t be making it, I decided to make it today! Why not, right?
  
  You can serve this with any dip you prefer or even dressing. While my husband would most likely be content chomping on these vegetables without any dip, most of us really only eat the vegetables so we can eat the dip. I sometimes serve it with a simple vegetable or ranch dip, or sometimes with a blue cheese dip (recipe below). Today I decided I was in the mood for blue cheese dip. When am I not in the mood for blue cheese honestly.
  
  For this little healthy holiday appetizer you only need four ingredients : broccoli, cauliflower, a yellow pepper, and cherry tomatoes. Simple, simple.
  
  Cut off the stems on the broccoli and the cauliflower. Save a little piece of the broccoli stalk to use as a stem for the tree.
  
  Start assembling the snow (cauliflower) on a large platter, and then start building the tree.
  
  Pop a few tomatoes on as ornaments. Use a star shaped cookie cutter with the yellow pepper to make the star. You can put more stars on the tree or on the platter, whatever you like.
  
  And that is it! So simple and so impressive right?
  
  Now for the best part, the recipe for the Blue Cheese Dip.
  
  Ingredients:
  
  1 cup crumbled blue cheese
  
  1/4 cup mayonnaise
  
  1/2 cup sour cream
  
  1 tbsp. milk
  
  1 tbsp. lemon juice
  
  dash of pepper to taste
  
  dash of garlic powder to taste
  
  1 tbsp. sliced scallions.
  
  Mix all of the ingredients together and chill. This dip will taste better once it has been chilled for a few hours.
  
  Serve alongside your pretty tree! Yum!
  
  Posted in Appetizers, Broccoli Christmas Tree, Holiday Treats | Tagged appetizer, appetizer recipe, blue cheese dip, blue cheese dip recipe, broccoli christmas tree, broccoli tree, food blog, food blogger, holiday appetizer ideas, holiday appetizer recipe, holiday appetizers, Recipes, stephanie's slice of life, vegetable tray and dip, vegetable tree
- Bacon Wrapped Scallops in a Dijon Maple Cream Sauce
  
  Posted at 5:39 pm by StephMo
  
  Dec 6th
  
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  These were a Christmas Eve staple for many years until I became allergic to them. Such a bummer because they are absolutely delicious! The sauce is especially amazing. Scallops wrapped in bacon by itself are so good, but add the sauce and oh my! Super easy to make and so impressive. Trust me, you and your guests will love them!
  
  I wanted to share this recipe so I made them as a little treat for my family even though I couldn’t have any. Pretty sure they keep me around just for the food, and these scallops were gone in minutes. I wish these had looked a little nicer than they ended up looking, but the bacon just wasn’t cooperating. My son said “Mom, it doesn’t matter how they look, it matters how they taste and they taste so good”. So there’s that!
  
  To make this scrumptious appetizer you need:
  
  20 large sea scallops
  
  10 slices of bacon
  
  1 cup heavy cream
  
  2 tbsp. dijon mustard
  
  2 tbsp. maple syrup
  
  Cook the bacon on a baking sheet at 375 degrees until brown but not crispy. You don’t want the bacon too crispy so that it doesn’t break when you wrap them.
  
  While the bacon is cooking give the scallops a rinse and trim off the muscle. If you have never cleaned a scallop, it is the rough flap on the side of each one. These were very large and I cut some of them in half.
  
  When the bacon is cooked drain on a paper towel and let cool slightly.
  
  Wrap each scallop with half a slice of bacon and use a toothpick to hold it together. Place them on an un-greased cookie sheet.
  
  Bake at 400 degrees for 8 – 10 minutes. I went right in the middle at 9 minutes and they were perfectly cooked.
  
  When you put the scallops in the oven, start the sauce. Bring the cream to a boil and continue boiling for about 3-4 minutes. Add the dijon mustard and the maple syrup and continue boiling for another 3-4 minutes.
  
  Pour the sauce on a dish and top with the scallops. Yum, yum.
  
  Posted in Appetizers, Bacon Wrapped Scallops | Tagged appetizer, appetizer recipe, bacon wrapped scallops, dijon maple cream sauce, food blog, food blogger, Recipes, scallop recipe, scallops, scallops wrapped in bacon, stephanie's slice of life
- Chinese Stuffed Buns
  
  Posted at 6:45 pm by StephMo
  
  Oct 22nd
  
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  I was digging through my old recipes and I came across this recipe that my mother used to make. These were something she always made for any type of gathering back in the 70’s and 80’s. She may have made them more recently than that, but I can’t remember having these for years.
  
  Since I remember loving them at the time as did everyone else, I thought I would reminisce a little and give them a try. The little piece of paper I have didn’t have many instructions so I am not exactly sure if the way I made them was the exact way my mother made them, and unfortunately I can’t ask her.
  
  The only biscuits I could find were Pillsbury Grands and I don’t believe those were around back in the day. If you can find the regular Pillsbury biscuits I think they would be better.
  
  Ingredients:
  
  1 pkg. biscuits
  
  1/2 lb. hamburg (or ground turkey)
  
  1 1/2 celery stalks, chopped
  
  1/4 cup onion, chopped
  
  1 tsp. garlic, minced
  
  1 tbsp. soy sauce
  
  1 tbsp. brown sugar
  
  1 tbsp. corn starch
  
  salt and pepper to taste
  
  In a frying pan over medium heat cook the hamburg (or turkey) until no longer pink. I used ground turkey. Drain any excess liquid and set the meat aside on a plate.
  
  Spray the pan with cooking spray and cook the celery, onion, and garlic until tender. There are no onions in mine because my son doesn’t like onions. I used a little onion powder, but onions would be best.
  
  Add the meat back into the pan along with all the remaining ingredients and combine well. Cook on low/medium heat for 5 minutes.
  
  Flatten the biscuits and make sure there are no holes and put a heaping tbsp. of the meat mixture in the center of each biscuit.
  
  Fold the sides over and seal.
  
  Put the biscuits rough side down onto a greased cookie sheet.
  
  Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes.
  
  My mother used to serve these with mustard, which is what I did. Yummy!
  
  Posted in Appetizers, Chinese Stuffed Buns | Tagged appetizer, appetizer recipe, biscuit recipes, chinese stuffed buns, food blog, food blogger, h'orderves, h'orderves recipe, old school recipes, Recipes
- Easy Nachos
  
  Posted at 3:30 pm by StephMo
  
  Oct 6th
  
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  Who doesn’t love nachos? They are the perfect food to eat while watching a football game right? Well that is what I gathered from my husband’s puppy dog eyes as he mentioned how one of his clients had said he was going to be having nachos for the Patriots game last night. Despite his insincere “oh no you don’t have to make nachos”, I made nachos. I am not complaining because they were a yummy treat!
  
  Let me start by saying I did not make gourmet nachos with all homemade ingredients. I made easy, no frills, but delicious nachos. I know making nachos may seem like a simple thing to do, which it is, but in case you have never made them I thought I would share how I make nachos.
  
  If I were making these for company I might make my own guacamole https://stephaniessliceoflife.com/?s=guacamole, maybe use homemade pulled pork https://stephaniessliceoflife.com/?s=pulled+pork, a combination of fancy cheeses, a better looking presentation, etc. The beauty of nachos is that you can make them however you like!
  
  Last night I decided to use the following ingredients:
  
  Tortilla chips
  
  Shredded cheddar cheese
  
  Queso
  
  Ground turkey (or beef)
  
  Taco seasoning
  
  Lettuce, chopped
  
  Tomatoes, chopped
  
  Black beans
  
  Sliced black olives
  
  Banana peppers, chopped
  
  Jalapenos
  
  Sour Cream
  
  Guacamole
  
  I cooked ground turkey until no longer pink in a frying pan, drained the grease, and added the taco seasoning and water (follow instructions on the package). Cook for about 5 minutes until the mixture thickens. You can also use shredded cooked chicken mixed with the taco seasoning if you’d like.
  
  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spread a layer of tortilla chips covering the sheet.
  
  Add shredded cheese on top of the chips. You can use as much or as little as you like.
  
  Spread half of the taco meat on top of the chips.
  
  Add another layer of chips and more shredded cheese. I don’t know about you but I like nachos stacked.
  
  Now add the rest of the meat, the olives and black beans. My son doesn’t like beans or olives so I had to leave a section without. I then added some queso on top as well. You can never have too much cheese!
  
  Bake at 375 degrees until the shredded cheese melts.
  
  Then top with the remaining ingredients and that’s it!
  
  Since not everyone in my family likes sour cream and guacamole, I served it on the side.
  
  Posted in Appetizers, Easy Nachos | Tagged easy nachos recipe, food blog, food blogger, game day foods, game day recipes, loaded nachos, nachos, nachos recipe, quick nachos recipe, Recipes, stacked nachos, stephanies slice of life
- Spinach and Cheese Arancini
  
  Posted at 5:57 pm by StephMo
  
  Mar 13th
  
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  Every now and again when I am in the North End of Boston I will treat myself to an arancini. If you are not familiar with arancini, it is an Italian stuffed rice ball coated in bread crumbs and fried. It is always served with a little bit of red sauce. The most common types of arancini are spinach and cheese, and hamburger and peas. My favorite kind is spinach and cheese, so of course that is the kind I make.
  
  I am not going to lie, these are very time consuming and take hours from start to finish. They are completely worth it and these taste like you ordered them in a restaurant. I use my own homemade sauce with them, and you can find my sauce recipe by following this link:
  
  https://stephaniessliceoflife.com/2019/12/30/feeling-saucy/
  
  Yes, my sauce tastes as good as it looks!
  
  Ingredients for Arancini:
  
  1 1/2 cups arborio rice
  
  1 cup white wine
  
  Pinch of salt
  
  4 cups chicken broth
  
  2 cups chopped fresh spinach
  
  1 cup grated parmesan cheese
  
  2 tbsp. butter
  
  Pepper
  
  2 eggs beaten
  
  1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
  
  1 cup flour
  
  Mozzarella cheese
  
  Canola or vegetable oil
  
  One thing that makes these arancini so delicious is you cook the rice like risotto, so you need to keep adding, and stirring, etc. The creaminess of the rice is well worth the extra effort.
  
  Cook white wine, salt, and rice over medium heat for 5-10 minutes while stirring often.
  
  Once you get the rice started, heat the chicken broth in a pan on low/medium heat and keep it heated until you need to use it.
  
  After the 5-10 minutes, add 2 cups of the heated chicken broth and stir into the rice. Cook for 10 minutes.
  
  Then add the remaining 2 cups of broth, stir into the rice and cook for another 10 minutes while stirring often. Turn off the heat.
  
  Add the 2 cups of chopped spinach, grated cheese, butter, and pepper to taste. Stir well.
  
  Spread the rice mixture on to a parchment lined cookie sheet and refrigerate until the rice is cool. This while take some time.
  
  Once the rice is cool, cut it into squares. Put either a cube of mozzarella, or a little shredded mozzarella in the center of each square and use your hands to form the rice into a ball around the cheese.
  
  Use three separate bowls for the flour, beaten eggs, and bread crumbs.
  
  Roll the rice ball into the flour, then in the eggs, then in the bread crumbs.
  
  Drop the balls into a pan of oil that is heated to 350 degrees. Use a slotted spoon to keep moving them around in the oil and remove to a paper towel lined plate once they are brown.
  
  Serve warm with red sauce. Mangia!
  
  Posted in Dinners, Spinach and Cheese Arancini | Tagged Recipes
- Truffle Parmesan Popcorn
  
  Posted at 5:16 pm by StephMo
  
  Feb 25th
  
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  Recently I was at a restaurant that served Truffle Cheddar Popcorn and it was the best popcorn I have ever had. It was amazing! The type of food that the entire time you are eating you can’t stop saying “this is so good!”. I never make popcorn at home but needed to see if I could come even close to making those little kernels of amazingness.
  
  I dug out an unopened air popping machine I had in my basement and tried that way, and it wasn’t good. Then I decided to try the old fashioned way with oil, which I had never done. First I tried with half truffle oil and half olive oil and used the imitation cheddar popcorn seasoning, and it wasn’t what I was hoping for. Since the only grated cheese I had in the house was parmesan, I decided to give that a try. Even though the cheese was different, this combination tasted very similar to the one I had at the restaurant, which made me very happy!
  
  Here is what you need:
  
  2 tbsp. + 1 tsp. truffle oil
  
  1/2 cup popcorn kernals
  
  Grated Cheese
  
  2 tbsp. butter
  
  Heat 2 tbsp. of truffle oil in a heavy pan with a few kernels in the oil. When they start to pop, then it is time to add the rest of the kernels. Once added, cover the pan and shake it side to side occasionally. The popcorn is done when the popping slows down to 1-2 seconds between pops. Remove from the heat. I transferred the popcorn to a large plastic bowl with a lid.
  
  Melt butter and combine with 1 tsp. truffle oil and pour it over the popcorn. Shake the bowl to evenly spread the butter/oil mixture.
  
  Add the cheese and shake well. I’m not sure how much grated cheese I put on, my hand was just kind of shaking like crazy because I like cheese. I tasted it a few times and added a little more cheese.
  
  Nom, Nom, Nom!
  
  Posted in Truffle Parmesan Popcorn | Tagged food blog, food blogger, popcorn, popcorn recipe, Recipes, truffle parmesan popcorn, truffle popcorn, truffle popcorn recipe
- Homemade Potato Chips
  
  Posted at 10:11 am by StephMo
  
  Feb 20th
  
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  Yesterday my son and I decided to make homemade potato chips. This is not something I had ever done, and it was a fun thing to do together. I don’t think we will be putting Frito Lay out of business any time soon, but they were really good. They tasted much better than they look. A little too good actually, we couldn’t stop munching on them and there were hardly any left when we were done. They say there are no calories if you are standing while you are eating, so it wasn’t that bad 😜
  
  We peeled some russet potatoes, the potatoes were small so we used six of them. Then sliced them as thin as we could get them.
  
  I tried using a grater to slice the potatoes but they were coming out too thick so I switched to the sharpest knife I own, which was this small pairing knife. It definitely would have been easier if I owned a larger sharp knife.
  
  As we were slicing the potatoes we kept putting the finished pieces in cold water to soak. Once they were all sliced we drained them, rinsed them, and put them back in a bowl of cold water with 3 tbsp. of salt and let them soak for 30 minutes.
  
  We heated canola oil in a pan until it reached 350 degrees.
  
  Drained and rinsed the potatoes and added them in small batches to the oil.
  
  Once they browned we transferred the potatoes onto paper towel lined plates and patted them to remove the excess oil. They are browner than we wanted, but they still tasted delicious!
  
  We made three different kinds; ranch, nacho, and sea salted. For the ranch and nacho I used popcorn seasoning.
  
  We are already planning on making them again the next time we make turkey burgers. So good!
  
  Posted in Potato Chips | Tagged food blog, food blogger, homemade potato chips, lifestyle blogger, potato chips, potato chips recipe, Recipes
- Guacamole Recipe – Ole!
  
  Posted at 10:10 am by StephMo
  
  Feb 4th
  
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  I love guacamole and how there are so many different variations that make them all slightly different. The only thing I don’t like about guacamole is that every time I see it I think of that guacamole song my children used to sing by Dr. Jean, “Guacamole, gauc, gauc-amole”. Is anyone else familiar with these food songs? Anyway, this recipe is easy, and everyone that has tried it LOVES it! It differs from most guacamoles by not including cilantro as an ingredient. I’m not a huge fan of cilantro. This recipe also uses cayenne pepper to give it a little kick.
  
  If you have never worked with an avocado, let me tell you they are not the easiest things to work with. I knew I was going to make guacamole for the game Sunday and bought them three days ahead, which surprisingly worked out perfectly! Ripe avocados are the key to a good guacamole and a ripe avocado is not an easy thing to find. A ripe avocado is just slightly soft, which they never are when you think you want one and go to a store to buy one. Then while you are waiting for them to be ripe enough to use, you basically sneeze and they have gone bad. I’m exaggerating, but barely.
  
  Well I didn’t sneeze and they were exactly how they should be! I showed them!
  
  Here are the ingredients you need for guacamole:
  
  3 ripe avocados
  
  1 lime
  
  1 tsp. salt
  
  2 plum tomatoes – finely chopped
  
  1/4 cup chopped yellow onion
  
  1 tsp. minced garlic
  
  A pinch of cayenne pepper
  
  Slice the avocados all the way around and cut them in two.
  
  Then just use a spoon to scoop out the insides. Watch out for the pits, they are quite slippery and I shot one right onto my shirt while trying to remove it.
  
  Combine avocados, salt, and the juice of the lime in a small mixing bowl. Mash them together until most of the lumps are gone. I like to leave a few lumps so it is a chunky guacamole.
  
  Add tomatoes, onion, and garlic and mix well.
  
  Stir in cayenne pepper. Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.
  
  Left over guacamole can be saved for a day or so, but avocados turn brown once they are exposed to the air. It doesn’t mean the guacamole isn’t still good the following day, it just may look a little different.
  
  Posted in Dips, Guacamole | Tagged avocado recipes, avocados, easy guacamole recipe, food blog, food blogger, gaucamole recipe, guacamole, lifestyle blogger, Recipes
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