Image courtesy Baked Alaska blog.
I need help. In more ways than one. But today, what I am most in need of is a recipe. Oh sure. I could hop on Google and search that way. But I don't really know what I'm looking for so I thought I would just describe it to you and let you guys be my Google.
As confessed multiple times here over the years, I do not cook. Andy does all of that. What I can do is bake because I am extremely motivated to eat chocolate and other sweets. I can also mix and toss and marinade. I am generally in charge of salads, beverages and cheese plates when entertaining or attending parties.
For Thanksgiving this year, my mother has asked that I bring my holiday salad as well as an hors d'oeuvres. Already, I have had to look up how to spell hors d'oeuvres so this little assignment has become unnecessarily challenging. Lets just call it an appetizer and move on.
The only appetizers that I know how to make are ones that my mother makes. I would like to bring something that is new to her so she has something fun to try on a day that generally sees her doing all of the work.
I would also like this appetizer to be something that my vegetarian brother could eat.
It needs to be simple, able to be made ahead of time and easily transportable since we will be driving two hours to get there on Thanksgiving day.
Oh, and it needs to be really really really kick-ass tasty.
So, please share your ideas for me and my minimal culinary skills. Feel free to link to the recipe in your comment or e-mail it to me if you prefer. I'll be sure to share my cooking/prep experience as well as my family's review of what I made.
11 comments:
The old broccoli cheese dip is always popular and works for cheese-eating vegetarians. And is TOTALLY easy. example is recipe here:
http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/hot-broccoli-cheese-dip-51102.aspx
Yeah or artichoke dip! Which I've never made because I hate artichokes, but everyone else in my family loves it. Does your brother eat shrimp? Sometimes vegetarians will eat fish. There is a great easy recipe I have for shrimp filled with roquefort and cream cheese. Or stuffed mushrooms! If any of those sound good let me know.
These are over on Blueviolet's blog. Trust me, they are awesome, and I don't really even like spinach that much!
http://www.anutinanutshell.com/2011/08/spinach-cheese-squares-appetizer/#comments
Correct me if I am recalling incorrectly, but didn't you tell me once that your brother is vegan? Or teeters between vegan and veg? I know I do, ;)
Anyway, if he is in a not-eating-cheese moment, I have a recipe for a non-dairy spinach artichoke dip that I would be more than happy to email you. :)
I am the queen of breakfast dishes, but I do have afew go-to appetizers. The only one that can be made vegetarian is a chili cheese dip that is super easy but does need 30 minutes in the oven so that may not be best for you. Let me know if you want the recipe anyway :)
I have two that my family loves.
The first is bacon wrapped pineapple. you take a slice of partially cooked bacon, wrap it around a pineapple chunk. skewer it with a toothpick, dip it in bbcue sauce and bake it at 350 for about 15 minutes--yummo!
for the vegetarian.
We love frozen grapes. roll them in sugar or jello before freezing--yummo, again.
This isn't so much a specific suggestion as a go-to place for yummy and well explained recipes....
Here are all of the appetizers at Simplyrecipes.com http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/appetizer/
Whenever I am looking for how-to's or inspiration, that is where I start. Unlike allrecipes or other sites that have more than I can deal with, that one always has something, is formatted so that they are easy to print, and are so freaking good that you will wonder why you don't cook more often.
I've been working on developing some new appetizers. I love appetizers during the day on Christmas and New Years or all these football games. There are two that are my favorites so far and both are make-aheads. One is a crab dip served on cucumber slices. The other is a spiced nuts mix. The nuts are a good option if you don't want people to fill up too much on a feast-day like Thanksgiving. If either appeal, I'll be glad to share this recipe.
These pesto-filled mushrooms are a breeze to make. No real cooking involved, Molly, just spooning in and heating up :) http://queenofthecastlerecipes.blogspot.com/2009/02/super-easy-pesto-mushroom-appetizers.html
By the way, I love your idea of taking a week-long blogging break. I marvel at how you are able to post so often -- I am managing only a couple of posts a month. And congratulations on your new baby! Wow, I am really out of the loop. So exciting. May you greatly enjoy the adventure of parenting. Nothing better in the whole wide world! (Especially once they are sleeping well :) )
I make crescent rolls with spinach and herb cream cheese in them--you spread the cheese and spinach on a rectangle of crescent roll, roll it up, and then cut the roll into slices. Bake at a slightly lower temp and for a minute longer than for ordinary crescent rolls.
So Molly, what did you end up making? Hungry little stomachs are dying to know ;) Please share.
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