Miniature Chicken Tarts

Ingredients:

• 2 pie crusts (use your favorite recipe or a pre-bought crust)
• 1 boneless skinless chicken breast, poached and cooled
• 8 oz. whole fresh mushrooms, cleaned
• 2 teaspoons butter
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 4 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Line mini-muffin cups with pie crust. Dock the bases of the cups with a fork and blind-bake. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken, mushrooms, and garlic, and sauté until chicken is lightly browned and all liquid from mushrooms has evaporated. Season. Deglaze pan with vinegar; continue to cook until pan is almost dry. Cool slightly.

Pulse cooled mixture in food processor with milk until a smooth, fluffy paste has formed. Spoon into prepared crusts and top with Parmesan cheese. Bake 15-20 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Makes 48 tarts.

Hummus! When I alluded to it in the pita bread recipe I posted a short time ago, my intention was to post the accompanying hummus recipe as an immediate follow-up. Meatloaf and toaster pastries somehow snuck their way in before the hummus settled in to the “you should post this now” section of my head. Ah, well.

There’s not much to say about homemade hummus other than to note that it kicks the ass of anything you can buy in a supermarket. It’s completely worth the time and effort that goes into it, although you can lessen that a bit if you buy your tahini paste (if that’s the case, omit the sesame seeds, sesame oil, salt, and water and substitute 2-3 tbsp of the paste).

Hummus

Ingredients:

• 3 tbsp sesame seed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1-2 teaspoons hot water
• 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2-3 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice (to taste)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Special equipment:

• Mortar and pestle
• Food processor

Process sesame seeds and salt with mortar and pestle until seeds begin to break down. Add sesame oil and hot water as needed and continue to process until the mixture is smooth and thick. This is your tahini paste.

Place tahini, chickpeas, cumin, garlic, and olive oil in food processor and pulse until smooth. Add lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste. Move to bowl; cover and refrigerate for one hour to allow flavors to blend. Serve with pita, crackers, veggies, or a spoon.

Everyone needs a super-simple snack recipe in their files, whether it’s for an impromptu get-together, an evening of board games with friends, or a championship game; this is mine. In the mood for something different? After marinating, pulse the entire mixture in a food processor until smooth, and serve with firm crackers for an amazing cheese spread.

Marinated Party Cheese

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces soft cheese (I prefer Montrachet-style goat cheese, but fresh mozzarella works just as well)
• 1 cup sun-dried tomatoes (drained, if oil-packed)
• 1 cup black olives
• 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1/4 cup fresh basil chiffonade
• 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped

Roughly chop cheese, tomatoes, and olives. Gently toss all ingredients in a large bowl until well-combined. Cover and marinate in refrigerator at least 1 hour, but preferably overnight. Serve with your favorite bread or crackers.

Serves 10.

Looking for more easy party food? This recipe, and others like it, will appear in the Game Night Party Event hosted by Fun and Food.

For a super-easy treat that will wow your guests, serve homemade baked tortilla chips. This dish is so simple, it doesn’t even need an ingredient list!

Baked Tortilla Chips

Heat 1 cup water to boiling and add 1/3 cup salt. Stir until salt has completely dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Brush both sides of a dozen corn tortillas with oil. Stack tortillas and slice into triangles. Lay oiled chips in a single layer on a baking sheet and cook in a preheated 400 degree oven until crispy and golden. While chips are baking, move cooled salt solution to a spray bottle. Immediately after removing chips from oven, spritz lightly with salt water. Serve warm with your favorite salsa.

Variation 1: Lime Chips

Replace 1/2 cup of the water with freshly squeezed lime juice. Goes great with beer!

Variation 2: Spicy Chips

Stir a shot (or several, depending on taste) of hot sauce into the salt water before spraying. Be sure to warn your guests if it’s super-hot!

Image byThe Rocketeer.

It’s a bit off-season to find properly fresh tomatoes, but don’t let that stop you from serving up some homemade salsa. Roasting adds a deeper, sweeter flavor to canned tomatoes, and the lime brightens things up. Perfect for Monday Night Football!

Roasted Tomato Salsa

Ingredients:

• Two 28-ounce cans diced tomatoes
• 2 dried chipotle peppers, rehydrated and coarsely chopped
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 lime, halved
• 3 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 bunch cilantro, minced
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Drain tomatoes and spread thinly in a roasting dish or deep-sided sheet pan. Bake at 450 for 30-40 minutes or until sugars begin to caramelize. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, combine cooled tomatoes and remaining ingredients, stirring until well-combined. Add 1/3 of mixture to blender or food processor and process until smooth but slightly chunky. Return to bowl and stir into other ingredients. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.

Serves 4-6.

Image by Micah Taylor.

Image by Landotter

Shrimp and Pork Pot Stickers

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup green onions
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
• 2 teaspoons minced ginger
• salt to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/2 pound medium shrimp, peeled and de-veined
• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 2 egg whites, beaten, divided
• 36 won ton wrappers
• 4 teaspoons peanut oil

Combine green onions, cilantro, 2 tablespoons water, ginger, salt, sesame oil, shrimp, pork, and garlic in bowl of food processor and pulse until mixture forms a coarse paste.  Fill skins with mixture and seal with egg white.

Heat peanut oil in a large skillet or dutch oven.  Arrange dumplings, flat side down, in skillet, working in batches if necessary.  Cook 3 minutes or until bottoms are lightly brown and crispy.  Add remaining water to pan and cover tightly.  Cook an additional 3 minutes.  Uncover and cook until liquid evaporates.  Serve immediately.

Serves 8-10.

You may not think to combine salmon and grapefruit, but the flavors work well together, especially when paired with the creamy cheese base.

Smoked Salmon and Grapefruit Crostini

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces smoked salmon
• 1/2 cup grapefruit, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons capers
• 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 4 ounces mascarpone, softened
• 1/2 bunch fresh thyme, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon chipotle powder
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 baguettes, sliced into 1/4″ pieces

Slice salmon into 3/4-1″ pieces and set aside. In a small bowl, whip the cream cheese and mascarpone together; stir in chopped thyme. In a separate bowl, toss grapefruit with chipotle powder.

Brush bread slices with olive oil and toast or broil both sides until crisp. Cool. Spread toasts with cheese. Divide salmon evenly among toasts, piling loosely. Top with grapefruit and a few capers. Serve immediately.

Makes 18-24 pieces; serves 6-8 as an appetizer.

I’ve been making this dish for years, for parties and catering jobs. The strudel filling is creamy and luscious, and the syrup topping tastes like candy. The original recipe is from Epicurious, but the version below is my own adaptation. There’s a lot of work involved, and it’s quite time-consuming, but the end product is well worth the effort; for this reason, I will often make a double-batch and freeze the extra before baking.

Goat Cheese and Mushroom Strudel with Balsamic Reduction

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter, melted, plus 4 tablespoons unmelted
• 1/4 cup shallots, finely diced
• 1/4 cup garlic, finely minced
• 10 ounces baby portobello mushrooms, stems removed, chopped
• 10 ounces button mushrooms, chopped
• 1/2 cup sherry (do not use “cooking sherry”)
• 2 tablespoons apple cider or white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon dried chopped parsley
• 4 sheets phyllo dough
• 6 ounces creamy goat cheese (pref. Montrachet)
• 8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
• 3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon molasses
• salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large pan set over medium heat, sautee shallots and garlic in 2 tablespoons butter, for 3 minutes or until softened. Add an additional 2 tablespoons butter plus the mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid given off by the mushrooms has evaporated and the mushrooms begin to color, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and add sherry and cider or wine vinegar. Increase heat to medium-high, and return pan to burner. Cook, uncovered and stirring often, until the pan is almost dry, about 5 minutes. Stir in salt, pepper, and parsley, and set mixture aside to cool.

In a medium bowl, combine goat cheese and cream cheese. Do not whip — hands or a wooden spoon work well for this. Filling should be dense but mixed thoroughly. Set aside.

Lay one sheet of parchment on a cold surface. Brush entire sheet with melted butter, and top with second sheet of phyllo. Repeat until all sheets of phyllo are used, ending with a layer of melted butter. Spoon cheese filling onto long side of phyllo, one inch from long edge and 1/2 inch from short edges. Smooth cheese out evenly, and top with cooled mushroom mixture. Roll tightly, starting at long end closest to filling. Place seam side down on greased or lined baking sheet. Brush top with melted butter and score top with a serrated knife. Bake for approximately 1 hour.

While strudel is baking, whisk together balsamic vinegar and molasses. Place in a heavy-bottomed shallow pan over medium-low heat and cook until mixture has thickened significantly and volume has reduced by more than 2/3. Finished syrup should be thicker than caramel and be almost as thick as melted road tar on a hot summer day. Cool to room temperature but do not refrigerate.

Allow strudel to cool slightly before slicing into rounds. Serve warm with a drizzle of syrup on top.

Serves 8 as an appetizer or 3-4 as a main course.

Many years ago, a friend handed me 2 grocery bags full of fresh plums from the trees on his property. That weekend, I made a number of plum cordials and some plum butter, along with this recipe. This chutney is a delightful accompaniment to pork or venison, and is excellent on a cracker or square of cocktail bread with a strong cheddar as an appetizer.

Sweet and Sour Plum Chutney

Ingredients:

• 3 pounds ripe plums, pitted and cut into 1″ pieces (skin on)
• 2 cups apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons mustard seed
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon jarred hot pepper rings, diced
• 1/4 cup chopped green olives
• 1/2 cup diced onions
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic

In a medium stock pot, combine all but 1 cup plums with 1 cup vinegar. Cook, covered, over medium-low heat until plums are soft. Finely chop remaining plums; set aside. In a separate heavy-bottomed pot, melt sugars in remaining vinegar over medium heat. When plums are soft, puree with an immersion blender. Stir in sugar syrup and remaining ingredients, including diced plums, and bring to a boil. Immediately after mixture boils, reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 3-4 hours or until sauce is thick. Pour into pint jars and refrigerate. Use within a week or freeze for up to 6 months.

Makes 2-3 pints.