Appetizers | No Empty Chairs

Category Archives: Appetizers

December 29, 2009 · 9:53 am

A Day of Dipping

With five children I quickly discovered that all food tastes better when it is dipped! So for Christmas day, after a post-present-opening brunch, the rest of the day was spent dipping food. The day was roughly divided into an early afternoon snack of: Hot Artichoke dip, Veges and Dip, Hummus and pita, Tortilla chips and salsa, and a cheese, sausage and crackers plate (I know, the cheese&crackers kind of ruins the whole all-dipping-all-day concept, but we ate them anyway), and then for dinner: Four Fun Fondues! It makes for a nice grazing atmosphere, and if you choose to do so, you can eat constantly all-day-long.

As this would also be fun for New Year’s, I thought I would share a few of the recipes.

Hot Artichoke Dip
with Crispy Bread Rounds

Artichoke dip is definitely one of the favorites around here. But only if it is accompanied by Crispy Bread. They will consent to eat it with crackers once they have inhaled all of the bread, but only when I assure them that I really don’t have any more bread in the house to make more crispy bread. And don’t let this get out, but I have also seen my children dip carrots and raw broccoli in the artichoke dip, so be sure to also have a vege tray on hand, as well.

The bread is easy to make- so buy much more than you think you will need. Start with a long, thin baguette (or 2 or 3).

Cut the baguette into thin slices. Pour a couple of tablespoons of olive oil on a rimmed baking sheet.

Place bread slices on the oiled baking sheet. Turn each slice over to get a small amount of oil on each side. Bake at 350°F for about 10-15 minutes, turning once. These can be made several days ahead of time-just be sure to hide them or your children (yes, you can blame them) will eat them all before you get a chance to set them out with your dips.

Our favorite artichoke dip is a simple mixture of artichokes, green onions, garlic, mayo, and cheeses.

A food processor makes it quick and easy to whip up a batch at the last minute.

Or prepare it the day before, keep it in the fridge and bake it just before serving.

Tomorrow (hopefully-I am finding it very hard to get time on the one family computer with everyone home from school!), I will share our fondue recipes.

RECIPE:

Hot Artichoke Dip with Crispy Bread Rounds

Servings: 8-10
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Artichoke Dip:
1 can artichoke hearts, drained
2 cloves garlic
½ bunch green onions
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup shredded Mozzarella
¼ cup grated Parmesan
¼ tsp salt
1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper
Crispy Bread Rounds, Crackers, Fresh Vegetables

Combine artichokes, garlic, and green onions in a food processor. Pulse until coarsely chopped. Stir in mayonnaise, cheeses, salt and pepper. Spread in a baking dish. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes.

Serve with bread, crackers and/or fresh vegetables.

Note: Dip can be prepared ahead (unbaked), refrigerated and then baked just before serving.

Crispy Bread Rounds:
long, thin baguette(s)
olive oil

Cut baguette into thin slices. Pour about 2 Tbs olive oil on a rimmed baking sheet. Place bread slices, in a single layer, on baking sheet. Turn bread slices over to get a small amount of oil on both sides of bread.

Bake at 350°F for 10-15 minutes, turning once, until bread is crispy.

Store at room temperature.

NOTE: This is also a good way to make croutons: Add some seasonings to the olive oil (garlic powder, dry salad dressing mix, dried herbs, etc), spread it out on the baking pan and stir in some cubed bread. Bake until crispy.

NoEmptyChairs.me

Roasted Green Tomato Salsa

The weatherman is predicting snow for Western Pennsylvania sometime over the next few days, with nights dipping into the low-30’s. So it was time to finally bring in all of the green tomatoes on our vines. With a super wet, cool spring and summer, I wasn’t sure if we would get any tomatoes at all this year. Leaves started turning yellow then brown much earlier than usual, and I didn’t get nearly the volume of tomatoes as most years. And since they ripened later, we have an extra surplus of green tomatoes about to be killed by frost.

Unfortunately, my kitchen countertops are all on interior walls, and I have very shallow windowsills, so trying to ripen all of these green tomatoes indoors is going to be difficult.

So I decided to try making my Salsa Verde using the green tomatoes instead of tomatillos. I will admit that I prefer the taste of tomatillos to the green tomatoes, but this salsa still tastes great! It should also make some great enchiladas verdes.

Start by washing the tomatoes and removing the stems. I left the really small tomatoes whole, but cut the rest in half. Place tomatoes on a baking sheet brushed with olive oil. Brush tops of tomatoes with a small amount of olive oil as well.

Place onions, garlic and hot peppers on a second roasting pan. Brush with olive oil. NOTE: There are more onions and garlic on this pan than I actually used in the salsa. The rest I used in another dish.

Roast at 475°F (using a convection oven, if available) until tomatoes, onions, and hot peppers just begin to blacken, about 10-15 minutes.

Place tomatoes, 2 onions, 4 cloves of garlic, and the hot peppers in a food processor. There is no need to peel tomatoes or peppers. (The onions should have been peeled before roasting)

Pour salsa into a bowl and add 1 cup packed cilantro, finely chopped (I did this in the food processor as well).

Stir in 1/3 cup fresh lime juice, 1 ½ tsp salt, and some fresh ground pepper. Add additional green tabasco sauce, if desired, for more heat.

RECIPE:

Roasted Green Tomato Salsa (or Salsa Verde)

3 lb green tomatoes (about 12 tomatoes) or tomatillos for real Salsa Verde
2 onions, red or yellow, peeled and cut in half
3 hot peppers, seeded and cut in half
4 cloves garlic, peeled (or roast whole garlic head and then just use 4 cloves)
1 cup packed cilantro, chopped
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1 ½ tsp salt
Fresh ground pepper, to taste
Green tabasco sauce, for additional heat, to taste

Preheat convection oven (if available) to 475°F.

Wash the tomatoes and remove any stems. Cut tomatoes in half (I left the really small ones whole). Place tomatoes, cut side down, on a baking sheet brushed with olive oil. Brush tops of tomatoes with a small amount of olive oil as well.

Place onions, garlic, and hot peppers on a second roasting pan. Brush with olive oil.

Roast at 475°F (using a convection oven, if available) until tomatoes, onions, and hot peppers just begin to blacken, about 10-15 minutes. If you are not using a convection oven, switch oven to Broil for the last 5 minutes, or until slightly blackened.

Place tomatoes, 2 onions, 4 cloves of garlic, and the hot peppers in a food processor. I did this in 2 batches: tomatoes in the first batch; onions, garlic, and peppers in the second batch. Pulse until coarsely chopped.

NOTE: I like a thicker salsa so I do not use the liquid from the bottom of the roasting pan, but you can if you like a thinner salsa. Also, there is no need to peel tomatoes or peppers.

Pour salsa into a bowl and add chopped cilantro, lime juice, salt, and pepper. Taste. Add green tabasco, as desired, for additional heat.

This salsa can be easily frozen in plastic containers or plastic baggies. Because it does not have a high acid content, however, it should not be canned in a boiling bath canner.

NoEmptyChairs.me

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Filed under Appetizers, Canning/Freezing, Condiments/Sauces

Tagged as green tomatoes, salsa, salsa verde