Category Archives: Appetizers

Pizza Puffs

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Sometimes, sandwiches just aren’t going to cut it for lunch. I mean really, I can’t expect my kids to eat them every day just because I can make them in my sleep. I made these pizza puffs to change-up our mid-day meal today and my two preschoolers ate the entire batch. They devoured them so quickly that all I got was a little taste and I had to beg for it from my daughter. I filled my version with some sautéed mushrooms, bell pepper and some ham. You could use pepperoni and sausage or just about any other pizza combo you can think of. Feel free to switch out the cheese too. Cheddar or pepper-jack would be delicious I’m sure. No matter how you prepare them, these light fluffy bites filled with big pizza-y flavor are sure to be a hit!

I used non-fat milk because it’s what I have in the house to use up. These still tasted fantastic, but were a little more difficult to get popped out of the muffin tin than if I’d used whole milk. So just keep that in mind. More fat = less bits stuck to your pan. I was planning to freeze some of these for a later use, but the ravenous children didn’t allow that to happen. I’m sure they’d freeze up very nicely though. Mmmm. Just look at all that cheesy goodness packed into a perfect mouthful!

These would be great appetizers for your next party or to celebrate the start of football season (it is less than 100 days away).

Pizza Puffs
adapted from Plain Chicken

3/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp Italian seasoning
3/4 cup whole milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
4 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)
2 oz Canadian bacon (or deli ham)
1/2 cup mushrooms, sauteed until slightly cooked
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup pizza sauce

Pre-heat the oven to 375°. Grease a 24-cup mini-muffin pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, garlic powder , Italian seasoning and baking powder; whisk in the milk and egg. Stir in the mozzarella, mushrooms, bell pepper and Canadian bacon; let stand for 10 minutes.

Stir the batter and divide among the mini-muffin cups. Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, microwave the pizza sauce until warmed through. Serve the puffs with the pizza sauce for dipping.

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Creamy Chicken Taquitos

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Do you ever want to pick up the giant box of frozen taquitos at the warehouse store but have no idea where you would store them? Well, with this recipe you can make your own, in whatever quantity you can manage to make room for in between frozen corn and random half bags of ice leftover from your last party. I made a double batch, half corn and half flour tortillas which ended up making 36 taquitos. Now I have them ready for when I’m feeling lazy and don’t want to come up with something for dinner (or lunch). 20 minutes straight from the freezer and you have a delicious homemade meal that you can feel great serving to your family. You could even make them, freeze them and have them for a party appetizer! Yum!

At the beginning of every week I poach a few chicken breasts. It’s really easy. Boil broth in a medium saucepan, add the chicken – making sure it’s completely covered by the broth. Cover and turn off the heat. Allow the residual heat from the broth to gently cook the chicken for about 20 minutes (or until it’s cooked thru). Remove from broth and then shred with two forks or throw it into your Kitchen Aid with the paddle attachment and turn it on medium for about 30 seconds. Seriously. Shreds chicken perfectly. Like a restaurant. I keep a bag of it in my fridge pretty much at all times. It’s fantastic for throwing into casseroles, soups, making tacos or these taquitos.

So, I took a few cups of my already prepared chicken and added it to some cream cheese, spices, onion, salsa and fresh cilantro. Mix it all up and you’re ready to fill your tortillas.

Heat up a couple tortillas at a time to soften so they don’t break apart when you roll them. Corn tortillas will need a little longer in the microwave than flour. I put mine under a slightly damp paper towel for about 20-30 seconds. Put a couple of tablespoons of the mixture on the bottom third of the tortilla and then roll.

Repeat until all the mixture is used. Then you can freeze for later, or bake them up right away. If freezing, “flash freeze” them in a single layer on a  baking sheet. 15-20 minutes until they’re firm.

Then you can put them in a freezer bag and they won’t stick together. Easy easy.

When you cook these up they get all crispy on the outside with that rich chickeny cheesy filling melted up on the inside and are just divine. Use your favorite tortilla. Flour or corn works just as well. I know. I’ve tried both.

All ready to be devoured by your whole family. Mmmmm.

Creamy Chicken Taquitos
from Chef-in-Training

  • 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1/4 cup green salsa
  • 1 Tbsp fresh lime juice (juice from half a lime)
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 Tbsp chopped cilantro
  • 2 Tbsp sliced green onions
  • 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
  • 1 cup shredded Mexican flavored cheese
  • small flour or corn tortillas
  • kosher salt
  • cooking spray
Preheat your oven to 425˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, salsa, lime juice, ground cumin, chili powder, onion powder and garlic. Once combined, stir in the cilantro and green onions. Add the chicken and cheese; mix thoroughly.
(If you decided to prep this in advance, refrigerate the mixture at this point until ready to continue.)
Working with a few tortillas at a time, heat them in the microwave between two paper towels until they are soft enough to roll (about 20 – 30 seconds). Spoon 2-3 Tablespoons of the chicken mixture onto the lower third of a tortilla. Roll the tortilla as tightly as you can.
Place the rolled tortilla seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas until the mixture is gone.  Make sure the taquitos are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle with kosher salt.
Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until crisp and golden.
Serve with salsa, sour cream or guacamole.
**To freeze:  Before baking, flash freeze the taquitos in a single layer on a baking sheet then place in a labeled freezer bag and store up to 3 months.  To bake a frozen taquito (no need to thaw first): Preheat oven to 425˚F and bake for 20 minutes.  (Flash Freeze means freezing the taquitos in a single layer for 15-20 minutes so that when you add them to the freezer bag, they will not all stick together).

Turkey Taco Cups

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Mexican food is a big time favorite in my house. We have some variety at least once a week. And it seems that whenever I make tacos, I always have leftovers. Not enough really for another meal though. I hate throwing food away, leftovers especially. I mean, I already made all the stuff right? What a waste! So, I borrowed an idea from “Just Us” using wonton wrappers and my leftover taco stuff to create a quick and easy lunch. Used up all my leftovers, but put a new spin on them so I wasn’t bored with my food. I hate being bored with meals.
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Fried Mozzarella Balls

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I have tried the fried cheese at just about every restaurant in the Seattle area. I love it. In sticks, wedges or balls. With marinara, sprinkled with parmesan, panko, breadcrumbs or beer battered. I would eat it in a box. I would eat it with a fox. I would eat it here or there. I would eat it anywhere.  Hmmmm. Might be reading too much Seuss to my kiddos. Seriously though. Melty cheese in a crunchy shell is absolutely glorious. There’s a fancy pants fried bocconcini (mozzarella balls) recipe floating around on Pinterest, but I figured there had to be an easier way than draining the cheese, patting it dry etc. And I found it in my fridge. String cheese. Genius! Still melty and delicious, without needing a special trip to the store for a $20 bucket of bocconcini.

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Fruit Salsa & Cinnamon Chips

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I was trying to sort thru some old photos on my computer today when I came across a few I didn’t even remember taking. Also, about 20,000 pictures of my kids. Wow. It’s a wonder they aren’t blind from all the flash bulbs going off in their faces. I apparently took pictures of food well before I decided to start a blog as there were a random recipe photos sprinkled throughout the birthday parties, first days of school and family holiday get-togethers. It’s no wonder. The food at events has always been almost as important to me as the people. Almost. I made this fruit salsa when I hosted a baby-shower for my sister-in-law. I remember it was awesome. And that in the midst of all the other deliciousness I made that day, the salsa and chips disappeared the fastest. Maybe because the day Anna chose for her party ended up being about 100°. Which might not be unreasonably hot in your neck-of-the-woods, but Seattleites are sure they’ve gone to Hades when it’s that warm outside. This salsa is bursting with cool-off fruity goodness. Paired with the sweet crunchy cinnamon chips, it is incredible.
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Lizzy’s Cowboy Salsa

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Is there someone in your life who seems perpetually stuck at a certain age? Until recently, I’ve always thought of my baby sister as the age she was when I left home. In my mind she just kind of stopped growing up. Probably because I didn’t see her every day, I got involved in my own life etcetera. Lately however, I’ve realized what an incredibly grown up, level-headed and mature woman she is. She impresses me beyond words. I’m blown away by her strength and integrity. She’s just awesome. A small part of her overall accomplishments in life is the fact that she’s become a wonderful cook. She makes delicious things and hosts great parties. One of the items I always look forward eating at her soirées is this cowboy salsa. I recently requested the recipe from her so I could indulge in it at home as well. It’s packed with delicious veggies, a little kick and tremendously addictive flavor. Oh, and it’s served with Fritos  – who doesn’t love those? Continue reading →

Chinese Chicken Salad

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One of my all time favorite light meals is Chinese Chicken Salad. I always thought it was hard to make, until my friend Emily shared her recipe with me. Wow. So easy and scrumptious. I love it! Crunchy almonds mixed with a slightly sweet, slightly tangy sauce take a plain old bag of coleslaw mix to a whole new level. Rip apart a rotisserie chicken and toss it all together for an incredibly quick and easy delicious meal! I love to make this salad to take camping as well. We take a big batch of this, throw it in the cooler and munch on it for lunch and dinner. Fantastic. Continue reading →

Crack Bread

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I’ve seen this “recipe” so many times on Pinterest, I just had to give it a try. It is not elegant. It is not classy. You should not serve this to impress your husband’s boss. This is as far from diet food as you can possibly get. Not good for you at all. I could feel my arteries seizing up as I ate it. But I could not stop. Need bread? And cheese? Think all things are better with bacon? And butter? Yeah…I told you it wasn’t good for you. When you are ready to kick that New Year’s resolution to the curb, this is the thing to help you along.
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Spanakopita (Spinach Triangles)

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My husband says I move 20% faster than a normal person. He says it’s how I get so much done every day. Also, why I trip over toys constantly and frequently stub my toes on corners, door jams, chair legs, table legs and other people’s feet. Usually I consider my super speed a blessing. Not so much when working with phyllo dough. It is a little tricky, very thin and requires careful methodical preparation. Which is probably why I’ve never used it much. I know my limitations. Slow and steady is most certainly not a strength of mine. For this traditional Greek appetizer, I was willing to give it my best shot. The payoff of flaky, crisp triangles bursting with melty cheesy spinach was totally worth it the effort.
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Crispy Parmesan Asparagus Fries

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In general, my kids are very good at eating their vegetables. But I’m always looking for ways to make them more appealing. Although they’ll both eat asparagus with just a little olive oil, salt n’ pepper – they certainly don’t gobble it down like they did these crunchy flavorful asparagus fries. Yum yum! These would be great with any poultry or pork tenderloin or even as an appetizer for your next party. Bet you’ll even get those picky eaters to like asparagus with these beauties!
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