Tag Archives: appetizers

Soft Pretzel Recipe from fifteenspatulas.com

Posted on by

FOR THE DOUGH:

  • 2.25 tsp instant quick rise yeast
  • 1 cup warm water (110 degrees F)
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 12.5 oz all purpose flour (2.5 cups)
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt

FOR THE TOPPING:

  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 1 tbsp baking soda
  • vegetable oil for greasing the sheet pan
  • coarse sea salt, for sprinkling
  • 3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
  1. Combine the yeast, warm water, and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer, and let sit for 10 minutes until foamy. This indicates the yeast is alive and working. Add the flour and salt. Mix with the dough hook by hand for a few seconds to roughly combine, then fit the hook and bowl on the mixer and knead on medium low for 5 minutes. The dough should feel soft and smooth, not sticky to the touch.
  2. Cover the dough and let rise for 30 minutes.
  3. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F, and lightly grease a baking sheet with vegetable oil. You could use parchment paper or a silicone mat.
  4. Place the dough onto a lightly oiled countertop. Divide the dough into 8 pieces (just cut it with a knife).
  5. Whisk to combine the warm water and baking soda and cook in the microwave for 1 minute. FYI it’s not going to dissolve completely, and that’s okay.
  6. Roll each of the eight pieces into a long rope, and shape each one into a pretzel (see the step-by-step photos on the blog post to see how to do this). Dip each pretzel into the soda wash and place onto the greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt, then let them rest for 10 minutes.
  7. Bake for 9 to 10 minutes until the pretzels are golden brown. Brush the pretzels with the melted butter while they are hot out of the oven. Enjoy while they are hot, and keep in mind these don’t taste as amazing the next day. Enjoy!

 

Baked Brie with Pecans from Martha

Posted on by

  • 1 small wheel of Brie or Camembert (about 9 ounces)
  • 1/2 cup pecan pieces
  • 3 tablespoons light-brown sugar
  • 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
  • crackers or sliced baguette, for serving

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place cheese on a rimmed baking sheet; bake until softened, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to a serving plate; cool about 20 minutes.

  2. While cheese cools, place nuts on a clean baking sheet; bake until toasted and fragrant, 7 to 10 minutes. Sprinkle nuts over cheese.

  3. In a small saucepan, combine sugar and maple syrup. Bring to a boil over medium heat; simmer until foamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Drizzle warm sauce over slightly cooled cheese and nuts; serve with crackers or baguette.

 

Shrimp Scampi Dip

Posted on by
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 8 ounces medium shrimp, peeled, deveined and roughly chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or more, to taste
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
  • 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
  • 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil a 9-inch baking dish or coat with nonstick spray.
  2. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add shrimp, garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring occasionally, until pink, about 2 minutes. Stir in wine and lemon juice; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
  3. Bring to a simmer; remove from heat and stir in cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, parsley, 1/4 cup mozzarella and Parmesan.
  4. Spread mixture into the prepared baking dish; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup mozzarella. Place into oven and bake until bubbly and golden, about 10-12 minutes.
  5. Serve immediately.

Taleggio-and-Roasted-Mushroom Dip from Martha

Posted on by
  • 1 pound mixed mushrooms, sliced if large
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • Coarse salt
  • 4 ounces thinly sliced Taleggio, rind removed
  • Fresh thyme, for topping
  • Crostini, for serving

    Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Toss mushrooms with olive oil and salt on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, tossing once, until golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer mushrooms to a 6-inch ovenproof skillet. Top with Taleggio. Bake until bubbly, about 5 minutes. Top with fresh thyme. Serve with crostini.

 

English Tea Cucumber Sandwiches from all recipes.com

Posted on by

1 cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
1 (8 ounc1128191e) package cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion salt
1 dash Worcestershire sauce
1 loaf pumprnickle bread
1 pinch lemon pepper seasoning
fresh dill sprigs

  • Place cucumber slices between 2 paper towels set in a colander. Allow liquid to drain, about 10 minutes.
  • Mix cream cheese, mayonnaise, garlic powder, onion salt, and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl until smooth.
  • Spread cream cheese mixture evenly on one side of each bread slice.
  • Divide cucumber slices over half of the bread slices; sprinkle lemon pepper on cucumber.
  • Stack the other half of the bread slices with spread sides down over the cucumber slices to make sandwiches.
  • Cook’s Notes:
  • To make these the night before, cover with SLIGHTLY damp paper towels, then cover with foil. Keep in fridge.
  • To make as appetizers, cut bread slices into rounds with a cookie cutter. Spread with cream cheese mixture and top each with a cucumber slice. Yields approximately 48 rounds.

Oven “Fries” Ellie Krieger

Posted on by

FNMOvenFries-credit_s3x4.jpg.rend.sni12col.landscape

3 large baking potatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick matchsticks
2 tablespoons canola oil
Salt
Cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. In a large bowl, toss the potatoes with the oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray and spread the potatoes in a single layer. Bake until golden and crisp, about 35 minutes. Remove the fries with a spatula and season with salt.

Patricia Wells’ Fake Frites

Posted on by
  • 368c4873-5ccc-4cd2-9708-f3f916104e19--2014-1220_fake-frites-0792 pounds baking potatoes, such as Idaho russets or Bintje, peeled and cut into thick fries, 3/4 inch by 3 inches
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • Fine sea salt to taste
  1. Preheat the oven to 500° F. Bring 1 quart of water to a simmer in the bottom of a steamer. Place the potatoes on the steaming rack, place the rack in the steamer, cover, and steam just until a knife inserted in a potato comes away clean, 10 to 12 minutes. (The potatoes should not be cooked through, or they will tend to fall apart.)
  2. Transfer the steamed potatoes to a bowl and drizzle with oil. Carefully toss to coat evenly with oil. (The potatoes can be prepared to this point several hours in advance. Set aside at room temperature.)
  3. With a large slotted spoon, transfer the potatoes in a single layer to a nonstick baking sheet. Discard any excess oil or liquid. Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake, turning so they brown evenly, until the potatoes are crisp and deep golden brown, 10 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, season generously with salt, and serve immediately.

Roasted carrot dip from 12tomatoes.com

Posted on by

Dip-2
1 1/2 pounds carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 red or white onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

  • 1/2 tsp -1 tablespoon sriracha, or to taste
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • cilantro to taste
  • sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
  1. Preheat oven to (425º F.)USE lower temp try 375 next time
  2. In a large bowl, toss carrots, onion and garlic with 2 tablespoons olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper and cumin.
  3. Transfer veggies to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and roast for 30-40 minutes, flipping over in the middle, or until tender.
  4. Remove vegetables from oven and place them in food processor. Add sriracha and greek yogurt and pulse to combine.
  5. While the motor is running, drizzle in remaining olive oil and pulse until desired consistency is reached.  Adde vinegar and cilantro and blend again, may need more olive oil and/or sour cream.
  6. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary, then refrigerate for 20 minutes, or until ready to serve.
  7. Transfer to serving bowl and serve with pita bread or fresh vegetables.

 

Nordic Open Faced Smoked Salmon Sandwiches from theviewfromgreatisland.com/

Posted on by

1-DSC_0131thinly sliced pumpernickel or rye bread, sometimes called cocktail bread
butter at room temperature
homemade dilled mayonnaise (recipe below)
salt and fresh cracked black pepper
thin slices of smoked salmon
microgreens
edible flowers
lemon for garnish
dilled mayonnaise
1 pastuerized egg, at room temperature
1 cup mildly flavored olive oil, also room temperature
a handful of fresh dill
salt and pepper to taste
a squeeze of lemon

Set oven to 400F
Cut the slices of bread into smaller rectangles. You can make them bite sized, if you like. Spread a very thin layer of soft butter on each slice and toast in the oven for a few minutes until they just start to get crisp. This step is optional, you can also use the bread un-toasted.

Spread a little dilled mayonnaise onto each slice of bread, then top that with a slice of smoked salmon.

Add microgreens, and then season with a little salt and pepper. Garnish with an edible flower, and serve with small wedges of lemon.

To make the homemade mayonnaise: Put the room temperature egg, oil and dill in a jar just large enough to fit an immersion blender. Put the blender down to the bottom of the jar, and turn it on, slowly raising the blade as it emulsifies the mixture. This will only take about 30 seconds. Once it turns to mayo, stop the blending. You can then stir in the salt and pepper, and a little lemon juice, if you like.

Momofuku’s Soy Sauce Eggs

Posted on by

ec8e90c3-de92-4ac3-a706-108c38f82e74--17381949518_15079556af_b6 tablespoons warm water
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
3/4 cup soy sauce
6 large eggs
Maldon or other flaky salt, for serving
Black pepper, for serving

 

  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the water and sugar to dissolve the sugar, then stir in the sherry vinegar and soy sauce.
  2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Carefully put the eggs into the boiling water and cook for exactly 6 minutes and 50 seconds, stirring slowly for the first 1 1/2 minutes to distribute the heat evenly. Meanwhile, fill a large bowl with cold water and ice. When the eggs are done, transfer them to the ice bath.
  3. Once the eggs are cool (and the water isn’t uncomfortably icy), peel them (in the water—this will help them keep a perfect exterior). Transfer the eggs to the soy sauce mixture and marinate in the fridge for at least 2, and up to 6, hours, making sure they are completely submerged. If necessary, top the eggs with a small plate to ensure submersion.
  4. Remove the eggs from the sweet and salty solution. You can save the soy sauce mix for another round of eggs, if you wish. The eggs will keep, refrigerated in a tightly sealed container, for up to a month.
  5. To serve, cut the eggs in half lengthwise and season with salt and pepper. Or Cool Hand Luke them to impress your friends.