Blue Cheese and Pear Tartlets

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Blue Cheese and Pear Tartlets

Recipe Type: Appetizer
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Ingredients
  • 4 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
  • 1 ripe pear – peeled, cored, and chopped
  • 2 tablespoons light cream
  • ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 (2.1 ounce) package mini phyllo tart shells
Instructions
  1. Pre-bake phyllo shells according to package directions. Set aside to cool.
  2. Mix together blue cheese, pear, and cream. Season to taste with pepper. Spoon mixture into cooled shells.
  3. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 15 minutes. Serve warm.

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Creamy Tomato Soup

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Creamy Tomato Soup

Recipe Type: Appetizer
Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
  • 10 sprigs thyme, tied together
  • 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1/4 cup tomato paste
  • 2 28-ounce cans whole tomatoes
  • 1/2 teaspoon sugar, divided
  • 1/4 cup (or more) heavy cream
  • Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
Instructions
  1. Melt butter in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add thyme, onion, and garlic. Cook until onion is completely soft and translucent, 10-12 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high; add tomato paste. Continue cooking, stirring often, until paste has begun to caramelize in spots, 5-6 minutes.
  2. Add tomatoes with juices, 1 teaspoon sugar, and 8 cups water to pot. Increase heat to high; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium. Simmer until flavors meld and soup reduces to about 2 quarts (8 cups), 45-55 minutes. Remove soup from heat; let cool slightly. Discard thyme sprigs. Working in small batches, purée soup in a blender until smooth. Return to pot. DO AHEAD: Soup can be made 2 days ahead. Let cool slightly, cover, and chill. Rewarm before continuing.
  3. Stir in 1/4 cup cream. Simmer soup until flavors meld, 10-15 minutes longer. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and remaining 1 teaspoon sugar. Add more cream, if desired.

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Nectarine and Blue Cheese Salad

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Nectarine and Blue Cheese Salad

Recipe Type: Appetizer
Ingredients
  • 2 black plums, halved, pitted, chopped
  • 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 4 teaspoons ume plum vinegar or red wine vinegar
  • Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
  • 12 cups (lightly packed) mixed greens (such as arugula and frisée)
  • 4 nectarines or peaches, halved, pitted, cut into eighths
  • 8 ounces firm blue cheese, such as Cabrales, sliced
  • 1/2 cup almonds, preferably Marcona
Instructions
  1. Bring plums and 3/4 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-high and simmer, stirring occasionally and mashing plums with the back of a spoon, until plums have completely broken down, about 15 minutes.
  2. Pour plum mixture through a fine-mesh sieve set over a small bowl, pressing on solids to extract as much purée as possible; discard solids in sieve. Let purée cool.
  3. Add oil, vinegar, and 2 tablespoons water to purée; whisk to blend. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD: Dressing can be made 1 week ahead. Cover and chill.
  4. Divide greens among plates. Scatter nectarines, cheese, and almonds over, dividing equally, and drizzle some of dressing over. Season with salt and pepper.

Recipe and Photo source: Bon Apetit, August 2012

Olive Garden Minestrone Soup Replica Recipe

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Olive Garden Minestrone Soup Replica Recipe

Recipe Type: Appetizer
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 cup minced white onion (about 1 small onion)
  • 1/2 cup chopped zucchini
  • 1/2 cup frozen cut Italian cut green beans
  • 1/4 cup minced celery (about 1/2 stalk)
  • 4 teaspoons minced garlic (about 4 cloves)
  • 4 cups vegetable broth (Swanson is good *note ( Do not use chicken broth!*)
  • 2 (15 ounce) cans red kidney beans, drained
  • 2 (15 ounce) cans small white beans or 2 (15 ounce) cans great northern beans, drained
  • 1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup carrot (julienned or shredded)
  • 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 3 cups hot water
  • 4 cups fresh baby spinach
  • 1/2 cup small shell pasta
Instructions
  1. Heat three tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot.
  2. Saute onion, celery, garlic, green beans, and zucchini in the oil for 5 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent.
  3. Add vegetable broth to pot, plus drained tomatoes, beans, carrot, hot water, and spices.
  4. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.
  5. Add spinach leaves and pasta and cook for an additional 20 minutes or until desired consistency.
  6. Makes about eight 1 1/2 cup servings.

 Recipe and photo source

Olive Crostini

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Olive Crostini

Recipe Type: Appetizer
Serves: 24
Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup black olives
  • 1/2 cup green olives with pimientos
  • 2 medium cloves garlic
  • 1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
  • 4 Tbsp butter
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 cup Monterey jack cheese, grated
  • 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
  • 1 baguette
Instructions
  1. Chop olives in a food processor. Transfer to medium bowl. With machine running, drop garlic through the feed tube of the food processor and mince. Add Parmesan, butter, and olive oil, and process into a paste. Add butter mixture to bowl with olives. Fold in jack cheese and parsley. Cut baguette into thin slices and spread each slice generously with olive mixture. Cook under broiler until bubbly and lightly browned – about 2 minutes.

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Prosciutto and Gruyere Pastry Pinwheels

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Prosciutto and Gruyere Pinwheels

Recipe Type: Appetizer
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 30
Ingredients
  • 1 sheet frozen puff pastry (half of 17.3-ounce package), thawed
  • 4 ounces thinly-sliced prosciutto
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves or sage leaves
  • 3/4 cup (packed) finely-grated Gruyère cheese (about 2 1/2 ounces)*
  • 1 egg, beaten to blend
Instructions
  1. Place puff pastry sheet on work surface. Cut in half, forming two 9 1/2×4 3/4-inch rectangles.
  2. Arrange half of prosciutto on one (1) rectangle, leaving 1/2-inch border along one side. Sprinkle prosciutto with 1/2 of the fresh basil or sage, then top with 1/2 of Gruyere cheese. Brush plain border with egg glaze. Starting at long side opposite border, roll up pastry jelly-roll style, pressing gently to seal long edges. Wrap in plastic paper.
  3. Repeat with remaining pastry, prosciutto, basil or sage, cheese, and egg to form second log.
  4. Refrigerate pastry logs, seam sides down, until firm, at least 3 hours and up to 2 days.
  5. Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 400°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
  6. Cut logs crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick rounds. Arrange rounds on prepared sheets, spacing 1-inch apart. Bake one sheet at a time until pastries are golden brown, about 16 minutes. Remove from oven using a metal spatula, transfer pastries to racks, and cool slightly. Serve warm.
  7. Makes approximately 30 pinwheels.

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Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

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Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Recipe Type: Appetizer
Ingredients
  • 1. Rinse pumpkin seeds under cold water and pick out the pulp and strings. (This is easiest just after you’ve removed the seeds from the pumpkin, before the pulp has dried.)
  • 2. Place the pumpkin seeds in a single layer on an oiled baking sheet, stirring to coat. If you prefer, omit the oil and coat with non-stick cooking spray.
  • 3. Sprinkle with salt and bake at 325 degrees F until toasted, about 25 minutes, checking and stirring after 10 minutes.
  • 4. Let cool and store in an air-tight container.
Instructions

 

Greek Meatballs

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Greek Meatballs

Recipe Type: Appetizer
Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
  • 1 large shallot, minced
  • 1 pound ground lamb
  • 4 ounces salt pork, ground or finely minced
  • Zest of 1 orange
  • 2 tablespoons chopped mint
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • Greek yogurt for dipping
Instructions
  1. Heat a small pan over medium heat and add oil, garlic, jalapeño and shallot, and cook for 1 minute, then let cool.
  2. Meanwhile, crumble lamb into a large bowl. Evenly scatter salt pork, orange zest and mint over lamb, and season with pepper. Sprinkle the cooled garlic mixture over lamb. Gently mix until just combined, then form into 1¼-inch balls and transfer to a plate or sheet pan.
  3. Heat a large cast iron pan over medium to medium high heat. Working in batches if necessary to prevent crowding, brown meatballs on all sides until cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes. Serve warm with toothpicks or skewers with plain yogurt.

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Celery, Blue Cheese and Hazelnut Salad

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Celery, Blue Cheese and Hazelnut Salad
Recipe Type: Appetizer
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 6 ounces good quality blue cheese
  • 3/4 cup hazelnuts
  • 1 Tbsp butter
  • 3 Tbsp maple Syrup
  • Pinch of cayenne
  • Salt
  • 2-3 bunches of celery, tops removed
  • 12-15 pitted dates (can sub with a handful of dried cranberries or cherries)
  • 1/4 cup olive oil (or hazelnut oil if you happen to have it)
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 4 teaspoons lemon juice (if using Meyer lemons, use 2 Tbsp)
  • Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. Remove cheese from refrigerator to come to room temperature.
  2. Place hazelnuts on a rimmed baking sheet in a 300°F oven for 30 minutes.
  3. While the nuts are roasting, prepare the other ingredients. Use a vegetable peeler to peel away the tough outer strings of the stalks of celery. Slice the celery stalks on the diagonal into 1/4-inch thick slices. Slice the dates lengthwise first in half, then slice the halves lengthwise into 3 or four pieces. If the dates are on the large size, you may want to slice them in half widthwise first. You want to end up with pieces that are about an inch long and a 1/4 inch wide.
  4. Once the hazelnuts have roasted for half an hour, remove them from the oven, let cool for a few minutes. Then rub the hazelnuts together inside of a clean dish towel to remove as much of the outer dark skin as you can.
  5. Melt butter in a small skillet. Add a pinch of cayenne and salt. Add the roasted hazelnuts to the pan and toast them on medium low heat for a few minutes, continuously stirring. When the hazelnuts are hot, turn off the heat and add maple syrup to the pan. Stir to coat the hazelnuts in the maple syrup. Let glazed nuts sit in the pan to cool. Later you will scrape them loose with a wooden spoon and serve atop the salad.
  6. Prepare the salad dressing. In a small jar, mix together the olive oil, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Add salt and black pepper to taste. Shake to combine.
  7. To assemble, layer a shallow platter or dish first with the sliced celery, then dates, then crumble the blue cheese over it and sprinkle with glazed hazelnuts. Right before serving, pour dressing over top.

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Roasted Garlic Potato Soup

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Roasted Garlic Potato Soup
Recipe Type: Appetizer
Ingredients
  • 5 whole garlic heads
  • 2 bacon slices, diced $
  • 1 cup diced onion $
  • 1 cup diced carrot $
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 6 cups diced baking potato (about 2 pounds)
  • 4 cups low-salt chicken broth
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 cup 2% low-fat milk
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
  1. Remove white papery skin from each garlic head (do not peel or separate cloves). Wrap each head separately in aluminum foil. Bake at 350° for 1 hour; let cool for 10 minutes. Separate cloves, and squeeze to extract 1/4 cup of garlic pulp; discard the skins.
  2. Cook bacon in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until crisp. Add onion, carrot, and minced garlic, and sauté 5 minutes. Add potato, broth, salt, pepper, and bay leaf; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until potato is tender; remove bay leaf.
  3. Combine garlic pulp and 2 cups potato mixture in a blender or food processor, and process until smooth. Return purée to pan; stir in milk, and cook over low heat until thoroughly heated. Remove from heat, and stir in chopped parsley.

Recipe Source: Cooking Light May 1995