Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip

Forget the ham or the mac and cheese or the mashed potatoes. This Christmas, all anyone cared about was this amazing dip. It's savory and refreshing and delicious. Both my mom and mother-in-law insisted on taking some home and my husband made me go out and buy some more crackers so he could finish off our leftovers. If only cranberries were available year round, I would make this dip throughout the year.

Recipe from here.

Ingredients:
1 12-ounce bag of fresh cranberries, rinsed and dried
1/4 cup green onion, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon cumin
2 tablespoons lemon juice
dash of salt
2 8-ounce packages of cream cheese, softened (I used low fat)

Crackers for serving. We used butter crackers, but my mother-in-law also ate the dip with tortilla chips.

Directions:
Finely dice cranberries. You can do this in your food processor (which is what I did) or dice them by hand. In a large bowl, combine diced cranberries, green onion, cilantro, pepper, sugar, cumin, lemon juice, and salt. Cover and place in the fridge for at least 4 hours (and let mine sit over night). This allows the sugar to dissolve and be absorbed by the cranberries.

Before serving, spread the cream cheese evenly on your serving plate. Pour on cranberry mixture over the cream cheese. Serve with crackers.

Cream Cheese

Cranberry dip, molasses chews, cinnamon sugar chips, ginger truffles

Enjoy!

~Krissy

More Appetizer Recipes:
Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip
Jalapeno Popper Wontons 
Homemade Pizza Rolls
Spinach Balls with a Spicy Tomato Dipping Sauce  
Parmesan Veggie Crisps 
Cheese Puffs for Cheese Lovers!
Cheesy Twisty Straws

Black Bean Tacos

I must be in a Mexican-inspired mood lately. In the last couple weeks, I've made pumpkin brie quesadillas and chicken nugget tacos. And now a black bean taco. I can not even begin to tell you how much I love this black bean taco. My husband was on the phone and I made him take a moment to try one--they were that good. He's not a huge bean fan, but even he liked these.

Recipe adapted from here.

Ingredients:
1 15-ounce can blackbeans, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/4 cup salsa
1 ounce cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup mozarella cheese, shredded
8 6-inch tortillas
Cooking Spray

Directions:
In a bowl, coarsely mash together beans, garlic powder, cumin, salsa, mozzarella, and cream cheese.

Heat of skillet over medium-high heat and spray with cooking spray. Place one tortilla in the skillet, spread 1/8 of the bean mixture on half of the tortilla and fold the tortilla in half. Cook until tortilla is golden and crisp, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook the other side for about 2 minutes.

Repeat with the rest of the tortillas.

Enjoy!

~Krissy

More Mexican Recipes:
Snowflake Tortilla Chips 
Homemade Flour Tortillas
Chicken Enchiladas with Fire-Roasted Tomatoes
Chile and Tomato Shredded Chicken with Cheese Sauce
Corn and Black Bean Skillet Chicken 
Margarita Chicken and Steak Fajitas 

Roasted Garlic White Bean Hummus

I was making pita bread and decided I needed something to go with it so I decided to make a dip. I had a head of garlic and a can of Great Northern beans in the pantry. Did a little googling, found a recipe, then changed it up to suit what I had in the house, and I couldn't be happier with the outcome. The best part--I get it all to myself. In general, Eric doesn't like any type of white beans (I think I have one recipe he'll eat them in) but I love them. He wasn't thrilled with the dip which mean I get it all!

Recipe adapted from here.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
1 head of garlic, roasted (recipe below)
1 15.8-ounce can of Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon cumin
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

Directions:
Roasted Garlic
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Peel away the outer layers of the garlic head skin, however, don't peel the skins of the individual cloves. With a knife, cut off the top of the cloves--about1/4 to a 1/2 inch of the top--so you can see the inside of the individual cloves.

Drizzle the top with olive oil then wrap the garlic head in tin foil. On a cookie sheet, bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until the cloves feel soft.

Allow the garlic to cool. Separate the individual cloves from the head then pinch the end of the cloves so the garlic inside shoots out.

Hummus
Place the beans, roasted garlic, lemon juice, and cumin in a food processor. Process until smooth. Pour in olive oil and process. Season with salt and pepper.

Enjoy!

~Krissy

More Appetizer Recipes:
Bacon and Cheese Deviled Eggs
Cheese Puffs for Cheese Lovers!
Homemade Bread Sticks
Homemade Pita Chips 
Homemade Pizza Rolls
Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip
Jalapeno Popper Wontons

Crockpot: Chile and Tomato Shredded Chicken with a Cheese Sauce

According to the recipe I was following, this was supposed to be a jalapeno popper pulled chicken. However, I did not get a jalapeno popper feel from this dish. Don't get me wrong, it was fricking amazing, and I can't wait to make it again and again. It just didn't remind me of a jalapeno popper.

Recipe adapted from here.

Ingredients:
Chicken
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons onion, minced
15-ounce can of diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 tablespoon cumin
1 cube chicken bouillon

Sauce
3 ounces cream cheese
1/2 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded
Milk

Garnish
1 jalapenos, seeded and sliced or diced


Directions:
Chicken
Grease your slow cooker with cooking spray. Place chicken breasts in the bottom of the cooker. Add garlic, onions, and spices. Pour the can of tomatoes over top.

Cover and cook on High for 4 hours or on Low for 8 hours. Shred chicken using two forks.

Sauce
Place cream cheese in a microwavable bowl and microwave for 30 seconds and stir. Repeat as needed until the cheese has melted. Stir in pepper jack until the shredded cheese has melted. Add milk a tablespoon at a time until you reach the desired consistency. (I liked my sauce thick and only added 1 tablespoon of milk.)

Now, you can serve this dish a variety of ways. The original recipe served the chicken on a bun with the sauce and jalapenos on top of the chicken. But you also put it in a tortilla (this is how I'm eating it next time), in a taco shell, or on a bed of tortilla chips. I had used up all our tortillas to make homemade tortilla chips so Eric and I ate the chicken on a plate basically (it was still really good this way too!)

Cheese Sauce (I'm totally in love with this sauce!)

Homemade Tortilla Chips

Enjoy!

~Krissy

More Crockpot Recipes:
Alfredo Green Bean Casserole
Brown Sugar and Garlic Chicken
Creamy Butternut Squash Soup
Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip
Mashed Potatoes
Orange Chicken
Pumpkin Butter
Simply the Best Macaroni and Cheese
Tomato and Artichoke Chicken

Homemade Taco Seasoning

My mom gave me a recipe for chimichangas (I still need to play with that recipe a bit before I share it) that called for taco seasoning. I didn't have any on hand so I just made my own--I already had all the spices I needed in my pantry. I don't think I'm ever going to buy it again.

Recipe from here.

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions:
Mix all the spices together and store in an airtight container. I used a mini mason jar.

Enjoy!

~Krissy