Crab Dip

I thought I would share a yummy dip recipe in case you needed an idea for the 4th of July weekend. I LOVE this dip...it is soooooo good!

Crab Dip

Ingredients

8oz crabmeat

1 bunch green onions, finely chopped

1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped

1 large celery stock, finely chopped

1/2 cup sour cream

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

2 tbsp. lemon juice

raw veggies or crackers to serve

Preparation

Cut up or flake crabmeat and combine with onions, bell pepper, and celery. Stir in sour cream and mayonnaise and season with lemon juice. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours for flavors to blend. Serve with veggies or crackers.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

I thought I would share our delicious supper with you. Lee made fajitas and piña coladas that we had with homemade guacamole and the best salsa from our favorite Mexican restaurant. We used the salsa dish we bought in Mexico on our honeymoon :) YUM!!

How did you guys celebrate Cinco de Mayo?

Sweet Treat

I made some Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookies this weekend and they were so good I wanted to share the recipe with all of you! I am not a baker but these cookies were so easy. I put some cream cheese frosting on the top of the cookies...yum! Their red color would make them the perfect Valentine's day treat. Enjoy!

Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 box red velvet cake mix

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup chocolate chips

cream cheese frosting (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

With an electric mixer, combine cake mix, oil, eggs and vanilla. Mix until a dough forms. Fold in chocolate chips. Roll into balls and bake for 8 minutes.

Super Bowl Food

Is anyone hosting a Super Bowl party on Sunday? I will share with you the recipe that I will be making for the friends we have coming over. This soup is so good, it will become one of your favorites. Of course there will be lots of yummy dips/snacks/appetizers but it's always nice to have a main course kind of food.

Cheeseburger Soup

1 lb hamburger
3/4 chopped onion
3/4 carrot (we substitue green pepper for this since I don't like carrots)

3/4 celery

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried parsley

4 tablespoons butter

3 cups chicken broth

4 cups potatoes (we use hashbrowns...so much easier!)

1/4 cup flour

2 cups velveta

1 1/2 cups milk

1/4 cup sour cream

salt and pepper

In a 3 qt sauce pan, ground beef, drain and set aside. In same sauce pan, sauté onion, carrots, celery, basil and parsley in 1 tablespoon of butter until tender (10 minutes). Add broth, potatoes and beef and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until potaotes are tender. In another small skillet melt rest of butter, add flour, cook and stir for 3-5 minutes or until bubbly (make a rue). Add it to the soup and bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes, reduce heat to low and add cheese, milk, salt and pepper. Cook and stir until cheese melts. Remove from heat and blend in sour cream. Enjoy!

Livin' the Dream

Lee has loved Duke basketball since he was little. Tonight we are going to Chicago to watch the Duke Blue Devils play Iowa State University. Coach K, Kyle Singler, Jon Scheyer, the Cameron Crazies....Lee will be in heaven! We will leave you with a recipe for a game time snack....Go Dukies!

Spinach Dip

1 package frozen spinach (thaw & drain before using)
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 8oz package cream cheese
2 cups shredded Monterrey Jack or Mozzerella cheese
Splash of milk
Garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the first five ingredients in a baking dish, with the spinach on the bottom. Cover. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven, stir to combine ingredients and distribute cream cheese. Add splash of milk, garlic, salt and pepper and stir until well blended. Bake for an additional 15 minutes uncovered. Serve warm with tortilla chips, pita chips, or crackers.

Party Time: Food

This New Year's Eve we will be heading over to some friends' house for a party. Are any of you in need of a great appitizer / dip recipe to take to your NYE party? Here is the recipe for one of our favorite dips that we will be taking to ring in 2010!

3 Cheese Dip
2 cups shredded Colby cheese
2 cups shredded sharp Chedder cheese
2 cups shredded American cheese
4oz jar pimento
2 tablespoons mustard
2 cups mayo
1 tablespoon dried onion
Garlic salt to taste

Mix mustard, mayo, dried onion and garlic salt. Mix cheese with pimento. Put 2 mixtures together and chill.

A Delicious Treat

I absoutly love these Reese's cookies.

Step 1: Grap the cracker
Step 2: Peanut Butter on the knife
Step 3: Spread the peanut butter on the cracker
Step 4: Place another Ritz cracker on top to make a sandwhich
Step 5: Remove excess peanut butter with finger and eat
Step 6: Dip cracker sandwhich into chocolate almond bark melted with a double broiler
Step 7: Place cookie on wax paper to cool in fridge or freezer
Step 8: Eat

I have been known to eat a plate at a time. Easy and delicious!!!

-Lee

Pretzel Turtles

A few years ago, I found this recipe for Pretzel Turtles in a Rachael Ray magazine and it quickly became my favorite Christmas treat. They are easy to make and soooo good! Hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Pretzel Turtles

One 14oz bag of soft caramels

One bag of pretzel nuggets

12oz of dark chocolate

2 cups finely chopped almonds

1. Unwrap the caramels, then, using a rolling pin, roll out each one into a 1/8 inch-thick oval. Wrap a caramel around each pretzel nugget, pinching the ends to seal.

2. In a double broiler over simmering water, melt half the chocolate, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Add the remaining chocolate, remove the top of the double broiler from the saucepan and stir until smooth.

3. Place the almonds in a shallow bowl. Line a baking sheet with wax paper. Using a fork, dip a caramel-covered pretzel in the chocolate to coat, tapping off any excess chocolate. Transfer the pretzel to the almonds and toss to coat; place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining pretzels. Let stand until set, about 3 hours.

Holiday Baking

Lee and I have been doing a lot of holiday baking over the last two weeks. It has become a tradition for us to spend a day making some Christmas goodies.

This year we had some friends come over to help us. Here are a few "action shots".

Stay tuned for Lee and I to share the recipes for our favorite Christmas goodies!