Tag Archives: appetizers

another easy, crowd-pleasin’ appetizer…

28 Friday Sep 2018

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We were perusing the internet, looking for a great new dip…and boy did we find one! It has such great flavor and takes no time to put together. It was so delicious that we made it twice in one week for different occasions and it was met with great accolades!

(We even used the last remaining bit of it and ate it with some grilled chicken…versatility’s always a good thing)

We found it on the website The Mediterranean Dish , and are so happy we did!

Last-minute Mediterranean Feta Dip

8-10 ounces feta cheese crumbled

3 ounces cream cheese softened

1 tablespoon Olive oil

1 teaspoon honey

1 english cucumber chopped

1 jalapeño chopped

3/4 cup sun dried tomatoes chopped

10 fresh basil leaves torn

Combine the cheese, Olive oil and honey in a mixing bowl and mix until creamy. Add remaining ingredients and transfer to serving dish. This can also be prepared in advance and will keep refrigerated for several days.

We served it with pita chips and sliced cucumber.

Let us know what you think!

a&a

what’s ringin’ our belle…round 64

26 Tuesday Jul 2016

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The latest belle-ringers…

 Yikes!!!  Skin tightening tips

Via Half Baked harvest
A simple summer cheese board

  
Via Sallysbakingaddiction…A crisp we are dying to try 

 Via Hungrygirlporvida

A strawberry mint bourbon smash…cheers

 

Via revolve clothing

Belles just want to romp!

Ring-a-ling!

a&a

belleicious bruschetta…savoring summer

08 Friday Jul 2016

Posted by in belle-icious, friday friend 1-1

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We mentioned this Half Baked Harvest belleiciousness…

a few days ago…but thought we would share our success in the “test kitchen” with our “test audience” (as in family and friends who are happy to be brutally honest) over the holiday weekend. 
We chose three varieties (with slight tweaks, ’cause that’s how we roll) of the six incredibly creative crostini options…(and we chose to use larger, tasty bruschette to make things less tedious)…

Bruschetta no. 1:


Crusty sourdough topped with goat cheese, sliced cherries, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, and salt & pepper
Bruschetta no. 2:


Crusty sourdough topped with fig preserves, buffalo mozzarella, sliced figs, basil, and salt & pepper 
Bruschetta no. 3:


A slightly more traditional bruschetta of crusty sourdough topped with smashed avocado, feta, grape tomatoes, basil, and salt & pepper
All together now…


Almost impossible to choose a favorite!  Give ’em a try and let us know what you think!!

a&a

belles like these balls…a lot…a friend-1-1 recipe

23 Friday Oct 2015

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There is no better find than when you can find a delicious, easy recipe that can be made ahead of time. This one freezes beautifully. We love this updated version of the sausage ball…the perfect hearty appetizer. 

These sausage and hash brown balls from plain chicken are irresistible!!

  

  
All you need is a few key ingredients:

1 lb uncooked sausage 

1 1/2 cups Bisquick

4 cups shredded hash brown potatoes

1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

Mix all ingredients together. The plain chicken makes a great suggestion to use your standing mixer with the dough hook attachment. We tried it and it makes this recipe beyond easy. 

   

 

Form into bite-size balls. Bake in 400 degree oven for 17-20 minutes

    

If you want to freeze at this point, just put them on a baking tray in the freezer until frozen, Once frozen, you can throw them all in a bag. When baking add a few extra minutes to the cooking time. 

If you want to taste them now…..just heat and eat! 

   
 
For the original recipe, you can find it here.

Try to restrain yourselves belles…
a&a

it would be a sin not to eat this dip…a belle-icious friend-1-1

04 Friday Sep 2015

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We have made this dip for years, but had forgotten about it with all the new dips we kept needing to try. But now that one teen-belle is whooping it up at Ole Miss (hotty toddy!), and The Grove is callin’ our name…Mississippi Sin Dip keeps tempting us. Frankly, we all need a li’l sin in our lives…keeps things interesting!

 MISSISSIPPI SIN DIP

1 large round loaf of bread, hollowed out (optional)
1 block of cream cheese, softened
1 small container sour cream
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 can of chopped green chilies
1/2-1 can chopped jalapeños
6 ounces ham, thinly sliced and chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2-3 splashes of worcestershire

Preheat oven to 350 .

In the days of yore, we always served this in a bread bowl…we usually don’t bother anymore and just use a trusty Pyrex dish. Keep in mind though, tailgate parties and potluck fetes would benefit greatly from ye olde bread bowl as you don’t have to keep track of your property!

Combine the cream cheese and the sour cream until well blended. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Transfer mixture into Pyrex or aluminum-wrapped bread, put top of bread back on bowl and finish wrapping in foil.

Bake for about an hour. Serve hot.

We like to serve this with Fritos scoops and celery for our carb fearin’ belles.

Sinful, but we love it!!!

a&a

bringin’ home the bacon…a retro recipe friend-1-1

03 Friday Apr 2015

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Back in the day…some would say the olden days…our moms would make these delectable morsels of bacon-wrapped delight.

They are super-easy to make and will bring back fond memories of days gone by. And, bonus…the calories don’t count as you’ll eat ’em standin’ up!!

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Bacon-wrapped Delight Appetizers

Preheat oven to 250 degrees

Lay out Waverly club crackers on a cookie sheet or, as we like to do, on a broiler pan. One sleeve fills a standard sheet perfectly.

Top each cracker with a teaspoon of grated parmesan.
Now add a sprinkle of brown sugar over each cracker.

Take one pound of regular sliced bacon, cut in half (you may need more depending how many crackers you use)

Wrap each cracker tightly in a half-slice of bacon, covering as much of cracker as possible.

Place in oven and bake at 250 for about two hours

Serve and devour!!

By the way, they freeze beautifully and only need to be thrown in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. Perfect for when last-minute friends drop in for a visit.  

Remember…everything is better with bacon!!!

a&a

while everybody’s talkin’ ’bout balls…we’re talkin’ ’bout nuts…a big-game friend-1-1

30 Friday Jan 2015

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Over the holidays one of our dear belle friends, Lindsay, was kind enough to deliver her homemade roasted pecans as gifts. We are ever so grateful we made the cut because these nuts are worth fighting for!!! In fact, these belles took to squirreling away these nuts so they wouldn’t be eaten in one fell swoop!!

Spicy Pecans

Makes about 4 cups

1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup orange juice
1 1/4 t salt
1 1/4 t ground cinnamon
1/4 to 1/2 t ground red pepper
1/4 t mace (if you can’t find, substitute nutmeg)
1 pound pecan haves (4 cups)

Stir together first 7 ingredients in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Stir until butter melts and sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat, add nuts, and toss to coat. Place pecan mixture in a single layer on an aluminum-lined, rimmed cookie sheet. (spray lined pan with Pam)

Bake at 250 for 1 hour. Stir every 15 minutes. Cool in pan on wire rack, separating nuts with a fork.

Store in an airtight container up to 1 week or freeze up to 1 month.
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The perfect snack for commercial watchin’ and ball debatin’ on Sunday night.

Y’all will go nuts over these!!

a&a