Veggie Pizza Appetizers

This is a dish for which I pulled inspiration from several sources...several years ago.  It's a "make it up as you go to suit your own taste" kind of thing.  But it's always a hit at parties because people feel good about themselves for eating something loaded with vegetables.  It justifies going back for seconds (or fifths) of the queso dip or barbecue meatballs.  Using a variety of colorful vegetables - and chopping them very small so no one veggie dominates a particular slice of the pizza - draws attention to this appetizer.

Ingredients for "Sauce"

2 tubes crescent rolls

8 oz low-fat cream cheese [or to taste]

4 oz low-fat sour cream [or to taste]

bottled ranch dressing [or powdered ranch dressing mix]

1/4 cup salsa [optional]

grated parmesan [optional]

seasonings [garlic powder, salt, pepper, chili powder, cayenne, smoked

paprika etc.]

Ingredients for Toppings

green onions

broccoli

carrots

red onion

radishes

peppers [red, green, yellow, or orange]

shredded Mexican cheese [optional]

Directions

1) Put cream cheese in mixing bowl and allow to soften slightly.

2) Unroll crescent rolls and spread onto baking sheet.  Distribute as evenly as possible and seal all seams.

3) Bake crescent rolls according to package directions.  Remove from oven and allow to cool completely or until just slightly warm.

4) Add sour cream and ranch (and optional salsa) to cream cheese in several increments.  Mix thoroughly each time until desired consistency is reached (should be spreadable but not runny). 

5) Mix in optional parmsean and seasonings.  Evenly spread cheese mixture over crescent rolls.

6) Finely chop vegetables into smaller-than-bite-size pieces.  Toss together to mix well.

7) Scatter chopped vegetables over cheese mixture.  Top with shredded cheese (optional).  Gently press toppings to ensure they stay in place.

8) Cut pizza into pieces of desired size.  Refrigerate until serving.

Notes: None.

Kid Participation:

* Seal crescent roll seams

* Mix sauce ingredients together

* Spread sauce over crescent rolls

* Add toppings to pizza

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Original Recipe HERE

These cookies were a great autumnal treat.  I would've eaten them all (with *N* gladly offering to assist) if I hadn't sent them to work with Husband.  He emailed me a few hours into the day to say they were a hit and that the recipe had been requested.

One thing to keep in mind when baking these is that they may not look or feel done - the tops will be very soft.  But watch for browning on the bottoms.  The end result is a very lightly-textured, "airy" cookie that means can easily find yourself consuming mass quantities because they aren't dense, fill-you-up-type treats.

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened [or margarine or shortening]

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

2 cups flour

1 Tbsp baking soda

1 Tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice [can be substituted with nutmeg and cloves]

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease cookie sheets with non-stick cooking spray.

2) In stand mixer or using a mixing bowl with electric mixer, combine butter, brown sugar, eggs and pumpkin until smooth.

3) In separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, pie spice, and salt.

4) Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix on low until combined.  Fold in chocolate chips.

5) Spoon batter onto greased cookie sheets in tablespoon-size drops. Bake 9-11 minutes. Remove from sheets and let cool on cooling rack.

Notes: None.

Kid Participation:

* Measure wet ingredients

* Crack eggs

* Measure dry ingredients

* Whisk dry ingredients

* Spoon dough onto baking sheet (likely resulting in dough smeared all over the sheet and a burned-cookie smell from your oven)

Southwestern Black Bean Salad

Original Recipe HERE

I picked this as a last-minute addition to dinner because I needed a side dish.  It turned out to be tastier than the entree.  This was enthusiastically gobbled up by my husband, my 3-year old, and my 1-year old.  Since I was in a rush, I added the avocado along with everything else and didn't have time to refrigerate it for 30 minutes.  It still tasted great, and it was even better the next day after the dressing had had time to really permeate the vegetables.  See helpful information on how to cut an avocado without making a massacre of it here.

This is similar to my standard homemade salsa recipe: same ingredients as well as finely chopped mango and a few spoonfuls of store-bought pineapple or peach salsa, as well as some minced jalapeno and garlic if I want it spicy.

Ingredients

1 can (15.5 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained

9 oz frozen corn, thawed

1 tomato, chopped

1 small hass avocado, diced

1/4 cup chopped red onion

1 scallion, chopped

3 Tbsps lime juice [or juice of one lime]

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp sugar

1 Tbsp cilantro [optional]

salt and pepper

Directions

1) Combine beans, corn, tomato, onion, scallion, cilantro, salt and pepper in metal or ceramic bowl.

2) In separate bowl, whisk together lime juice, vinegar, olive oil, and sugar.

3) Add dressing to vegetables.  Marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes. Add avocado before serving.

Notes: None.

Kid Participation: Just mixing everything together.

Flavorful Basic Tomato Sauce

Original Recipe HERE

I made this primarily for the chicken tenders, since I'm always on the hunt for the "perfect chicken tenders" recipe.  Homemade ones are obviously better than frozen, breaded, preservative-laden ones, and they're a staple in most households with little kids (though I'm surprised at how take-'em-or-leave-'em mine are).  They turned out fine, though they didn't blow my mind - next time I'll try panko.  But the sauce was killer...a very "vibrant" and concentrated flavor.  It was used for dipping, as the recipe suggested, but I think it would be a great straight-up sauce when served with pasta (which can be pretty boring if you have nothing else added to your noodles).  So "the secret's in the sauce," as they say.  I envision making this with a kid-friendly pasta shape (my latest favorite is ruffles), meatballs, and garlic bread (cut into strips for dipping fun).

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup minced onion

1 garlic clove, chopped

1 Tablespoon tomato paste

1 15-ounce can of tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

Directions

1) Heat olive oil in medium pot over medium-high heat. Sauté onions, stirring often, until translucent (about 3 minutes).

2) Add garlic and cook another minute.

3) Add tomato paste.  Mix well and cook 1-2 minutes more.
4) Add tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes, salt, and sugar. Bring to a boil and cook 5 minutes if using tomato sauce or 10 minutes if using crushed tomatoes.
5) Use an immersion blender, or put sauce into blender, and purée until smooth.  Sauce will keep in the fridge for up to a week.

Notes: Maybe adding some spices - dried or fresh - to add more "flavor layers."  It could be turned into a cream sauce with the addition of 1/4 to 1/2 cup heavy cream.

Kid Participation:  None.

Apple Crimble

I don't know if this dish is technically a "crisp" or a "crumble."  So for now, I'm dubbing it a "crimble" until I can research further.

I came across a baked apple recipe that was super easy.  I thought I bookmarked it, but when I went back to make it that night, it was nowhere to be found.  Luckily I remembered how to make it, so I did.  It was really good.  But it involved halving apples, scooping out the seeds, and baking in the skin.  It got the pan messy with the juice the apples released, some halves fell apart, and the topping came off in one big piece.  So I tweaked it to be easier to both prepare and eat. 

Below is listed how to make a good-sized crimble for an individual.  The amounts are easily adjusted depending on how many apples you're using and how big you want the servings to be (and if you want to double the topping but keep the apple portion the same...).  This could be tweaked a bit, like using wheat flour instead of white and adding nuts. The type of apple used, and whether it's peeled, is variable as well.

Ingredients

1 large or 2 small apples

2 Tablespoons butter

2 Tablespoons flour

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

4 Tablespoons quick-cook [or old-fashioned] oats

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon [or to taste]

Directions

(1) Preheat over to 350 degrees F.

(2) Peel each apple and cut into 8 slices.  Toss with cinnamon if desired.  Place slices in a 2-cup ramekin.

(3) In bowl big enough to hold all additional ingredients, melt butter in microwave.  Add flour, sugar, oats, and cinnamon [if not already used] and combine well.

(4) Spread topping over apple slices.  Bake 25 minutes, or until topping crisps (but does not brown) and apples are easily pierced with a fork.  Serve with whipped cream or Cool Whip.

Kid Participation:

* Arrange apple slices in ramekin

* Mix ingredients into butter

* Spread topping onto apple slices

Vanilla Coconut Mini-Muffins

This recipe comes from the Clay Corner Inn of Blacksburg, Virginia.

I love the combination of chocolate and coconut, which is why both usually end up in my morning oatmeal.  The original recipe didn't call for chocolate chips, but I thought they'd be too bland without (1) chocolate, or (2) adding more intense coconut flavor.

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup shredded coconut

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup miniature chocolate chips

2 Tablespoons butter, melted

1 egg

1 cup milk

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Grease mini-muffin cups or spray with non-stick spray.

2) In large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, coconut, baking powder, salt, and chocolate chips.  Whisk until thoroughly blended.

3) In small mixing bowl, combine butter, egg, milk, and vanilla.  Whisk until thoroughly blended.

4) Add milk mixture to flour mixture.  Stir by hand until just combined.

5) Fill each muffin cup half-full.

6) Bake for 11 minutes or until a knife inserted in center of muffin comes out clean (do not allow to brown on edges).  Remove muffins from cups immediately and cool on rack.  Yield: 36-44 muffins.

Notes: I baked the first batch for 12 minutes (per the original recipe), and they were slightly too crusty.  Next time I'll bake for 10-11 minutes.  Also, the coconut flavor was not as pronounced as I thought it would be, so I'll substitute 1/2 teaspoon of coconut extract for some of the vanilla.

Kid Participation:

* Pour dry ingredients

* Whisk dry ingredients

* Pour wet ingreidents

* Crack egg

* Stir wet ingredients

* Stir combined batter

* Scoop batter into muffin cups

Mini Maple Chocolate Chip Pancake Muffins

Original Recipe HERE

Chocolate chip pancakes (CCPs) were my brother's and my favorite breakfast, hands down.  On the extremely rare occasion our family went out to eat, we usually went to IHOP (because 20+ years ago, the one near us was a lot more respectable than they are now).  Chocolate pancakes with chocolate chips with whipped cream put us in heaven.  This love affair has continued throughout our entire lives, including ordering CCPs at the breakfast buffet in Disney World.  When we were in high school.  So when I saw this recipe, I was eager to try it.

I was surprised at how much they resembled pancakes in taste and texture.  I'm sure part of this is due to using real maple syrup (thankful to have family friends who tap trees and bottle their own syrup in the great state of New Hampshire).  The trick of adding the chocolate chips to the flour mixture, instead of into the batter at the end, helps keep them from sinking to the bottom of the muffin as they bake.  In hindsight, it probably wasn't as necessary in this recipe since the batter was so thick (but keep it in mind when baking things with runnier batter).  Also, stirring the "cold" ingredients together and allowing them to lose their chill a bit helps keep the melted butter from re-solidifying into not-very-appealing chunks when it's added later.

The recipe's name is a mouthful for such petite treats.  These are dangerous because you can eat them in two bites, so having "just one more" is tempting.  The original recipe says to serve them immediately with maple syrup or melted butter for dipping.  I tried them warm from the oven, a few hours later, and the next morning.  They were good each time, though I think reheating them in the toaster oven so the pancake resemblence is more obvious would be a good idea.

Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt [optional]
2 Tablespoons white sugar
⅔ cup buttermilk
1 egg
2 Tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
½ cup chocolate chips, plus more for garnish [optional]
Directions
1) In small bowl, stir buttermilk, egg, maple syrup.  Set aside.
2) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease 24-cup mini-muffin pan with nonstick spray.
3) Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar in medium bowl. Sift together with a wire whisk.
4) Add chocolate chips to flour mixture and stir until thoroughly coated.
5) Melt butter.  Add to buttermilk mixture.
6) Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Stir until combined.
7) Spoon batter into muffin tin [filling 24 cups almost completely].  Garnish each with several chips [optional].
8) Bake for 8-9 minutes.  Test for doneness by inserting knife.  Muffins should not brown.
9) Let cool slightly and remove from the pan onto cooling rack.

Notes: This recipe has potential to be tweaked to resemble other pancake recipes, like substituting blueberries for the chocolate chips, adding pumpkin spice, or putting some mashed banana (with cinnamon?) in the batter.

Kid Participation:
* Crack egg
* Stir wet ingredients
* Measure dry ingredients
* Whisk dry ingredients
* Whisk batter
* Garnish with chips (prepare for a melty, chocolatey mess)