Tag Archives: Appetizers

Super Bowl Round Up

Posted on February 1, 2013 | 15 Comments

Super Bowl Round Up

The Super Bowl is on Sunday, and I have quite the line up for you today!  I am having a party, and I am still not sure what I am making.  Is that a problem?

So here is the line up: (corresponds to the numbers it the picture above)
1 – Avocado Bruschetta; this is a favorite at my house. Put out a bowl of the avocado mixture, a plate of toasted bread, and let your guests make their own!
2 – Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Brownies; every party needs dessert!  These are super fudgy brownies topped with egg free peanut butter cookie dough!
3 – Barbeque Pulled Pork; great thing to put in the crock pot in the morning, and it will be ready when your guests arrive
4 – Spicy Chili-Lime Yogurt Dip; a healthy alternative to other dips.  Great with veggies or chips
5 – Fire Roasted Salsa; I can’t watch a big game without salsa!  I love the flavor the fire roasted tomatoes give to this quick salsa.
6 – Chicken, Bacon, Avocado Quesadillas; you can make these just before your guest arrive, and leave them in the oven at a low temp so they stay warm.  Great for with the salsa.
7 – Artichoke Dip; a warm and guilt free artichoke dip.  Dip with veggies or crackers.
8 – Fudgy Brownies; I think that any occasion is a good time for brownies!
9 – Chili; have a big pot of this simmering a way on the stove for people to help them selves.  Set up a toppings bar, and you are done!
10 – Philly Cheesesteaks; fun idea to have as a make your own station at your party
11 – M&M Cookies; quick, easy, portable, and fun!
12 – Chicken Club Eggrolls; great finger food, and they are a healthier alternative, because they are baked.
13 – Chipotle Bacon Ranch Dip; spicy ranch dip with bacon, made with Greek yogurt.
14 – Peanut Butter Bars; a quick no bake dessert that is a huge crowd pleaser.
15 – Avocado Hummus; hummus is a great snack, and adding avocado is such a great flavor combination.  Plus it is good for you!
16 – Italian Chicken Meatballs; tender, chicken meatballs that you can have in the crock pot during the game.

There are so many other great ideas out there too.  Here are some of my favorites!

Dips
White Pizza Dip from How Sweet It Is
Hot Gruyere, bacon and jalapeno dip from FabFoods
Buffalo Cauliflower Dip from Mother of Thyme
Guacamole Tostada Towers from Scarletta Bakes
Lighter French Onion Dip from Gimme Some Oven
Cheesy Baked Jalapeno Popper Dip from Savory Simple
Spicy Sausage Dip from Climbing Grier Mountain

Appetizers/Mains
Cheeseburger Meatballs from Bake Your Day
Buffalo Chicken Potstickers from Add A Pinch
Buffalo Chicken Sliders from Wanna Be A Country Cleaver
Slow Cooker Barbeque Nachos from Pass The Sushi
Buffalo Chicken Flatbread from Simply Scratch
Jalapeno Poppers in-a-Blanket from The Little Kitchen
Carne Asada Nachos from Foodness Gracious
Crispy Baked Asian Chicken Wings from Just A Taste
Nacho Loaded Potato Skins from What’s Gaby Cooking
Grilled Cheese Guacamole and Bacon Bruschetta from Recipe Girl
Buffalo Chicken Bites from A Spicy Perspective
Hoisin Asian Meatballs from Damn Delicious

Sweet Treats
Cookies & Cream Popcorn from Erica’s Sweet Tooth
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Dip from Shugary Sweets
Rice Krispie Football Treats by Cheerios and Lattes
Milky Way Muddy Buddies by Chef In Training
Cookie Butter Pretzels by Crazy for Crust
Peanut Butter Cheese Ball by Buns In My Oven
Super Bowl Cookies by Lizy B

I think you should be ready for one killer Super Bowl party!  Now, if I could only decide what I am going to make….

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Italian Chicken Meatballs

Posted on January 15, 2013 | 16 Comments

Meatballs are one of my favorite appetizers.  I am pretty sure I have told you this before, but I will eat them just about any way.  Barbeque sauce, marinara sauce, Asian style, doesn’t matter.  I think I only have one or two meatball recipes on here, so I figured it was time I do another.  And just in time for the Super Bowl, and all the parties that will be going on.

Meatballs are perfect party food.  Make ahead, heat in the crock pot, no utensils required, all make for great party food.  These are similar to your traditional Italian meatballs, but made with ground chicken.  It makes them a little healthier, and personally I just like using ground chicken when I can.  You could easily use ground turkey or even ground beef in here, and they would be equally delicious!

We had these on New Year’s Day as part of our appetizers.  We mixed them together in the morning, and they were just waiting for us when it was time to eat.  They were very tender, and full of flavor.  I even used the leftovers to make meatball sandwiches later in the week.  My 7 year old was disappointed when they were gone, he was looking forward to another sandwich.  They would be a great addition to pasta too.

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Keema Samosas

Posted on January 4, 2013 | 18 Comments

These little guys are a healthy take on an Indian street food.  Normally samosas are a pastry that is filled with ground meat, vegetables, or a combination of both.  Usually they are fried and then served with chutney for dipping.  I found a healthier version of this that uses wonton wrappers in place of the dough.  Then I bake them instead of frying them.

I bought the cookbook these came from shortly after I got married, over 11 years ago.  I made them quite often at first, and then forgot about them until recently.  I am reminded why we always had them in the freezer before, and they will become a staple again.  They are a little work to make, mainly just tedious.  You have to fill the wonton wrappers, and then seal them.  Considering each wonton wrapper can only hold about a tablespoon of filling, it can take awhile.  But, they freezer perfectly.  So you can do all the work over the weekend, and then have these in the freezer for whenever you need them.

We like to have them as dinner with a salad or other sides.  But they would make a great party appetizer.  My son and husband like to dip these in ranch.  From the searching I did, a tomato chutney was a popular dip of choice.    To freeze them, I just fill them, put on a baking sheet, and place in the freezer.  Once they are frozen, I place them in a freezer safe resealable bag.  Then when I want to make them, I take them about about 15 minutes prior to baking.  You could also fry instead of baking these, if you wanted.

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Garlic Rosemary Scented Almonds

Posted on December 27, 2012 | 12 Comments

Did you brave the crowds for any returns or shopping yesterday?  I went to Hallmark at 9:00 right when they opened, and it was a mad house.  I walked through quickly, grabbed a few ornaments, and headed straight for the checkout.  I didn’t second guess anything, just in and out.  I was back in my car by 9:10.  The rest of the day was spent at home, minus the girls night out for Mexican and Margaritas :) After Christmas shoppers are crazy!

I love having spiced nuts around the house to snack on.  I often send in a container for my husband to have at his desk at work.  They make for a quick healthy snack.  I made these almonds as part of the gifts I gave my son’s teachers.  They turned out way better than I had hoped for, so I will be making another batch after the New Year when my husband goes back to work.  I am pretty sure these will be frequently around here.

These nuts came together very quickly.  In less than 15 minutes they were done.  I had a few of them warm, and they were delicious.  These are a great savory snack to have out with drinks, or an appetizer for your New Years party.  Put them out right away warm, and then people can enjoy them all through the night.

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Stuffed Mushrooms

Posted on December 26, 2012 | 14 Comments

Did everyone have a good Christmas?  We did.  It was just the 3 of us, so it was a little quiet, which was kind of nice.  Santa came and spoiled our 7 year old, we had a great ham dinner, and it even snowed over night so we could have a White Christmas.  Couldn’t as for a much better day.  Oh, plus I got a blender!!  Bring on the smoothies.

Now that Christmas is over, it is time to get ready for New Years.  What do you guys do for New Years?  We often times go out for dinner on New Years Eve, and then watch football all day on the 1st.  The 1st is also my birthday, so the boys are forced to take a break for cake and presents.  This year my parents will be here, and I think we are going to have snacks and appetizers for grazing through the day.  So that is what I am sharing this week.

Today is stuffed mushrooms, one of my favorites.  I have been making this version for years.  My husband doesn’t like mushrooms, so I don’t get them often, but when I do I eat more than my fair share.  I fill them with a sausage mixture, but you could change that to crab pretty easily if you wanted to get fancy :)   These are super easy to throw together.  You can make them a few hours ahead of time, and then just heat them up for a party.  Plus they reheat fairly well too.

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Spicy Honey Roasted Almonds

Posted on November 21, 2012 | 17 Comments

Almonds are a great snack.  They are full of protein, and healthy fats.  But sometimes snacking on just plain nuts can be boring.  And buying those pre-made mixes of mixed nuts or spiced nuts are so expensive.  They are so easy to do at home, and I am sure they are much better for you.

Jean made these awhile ago, and I have had them in the back of my mind since.  I have been playing with different nuts, and slightly different combinations of my Indian Spiced Nuts lately, but wanted to try something new.  My husband likes it spicy, so I thought it was the perfect time to try these.  They are great mix of sweet and spicy.

These really are super easy to throw together.  There is about 5 minutes of hands on work, then bake them for 10, let them cool and you are done.  I only managed to have a small handful of these before the disappeared to my husbands work.  He likes to take them, so he has healthy snacks at his desk throughout the day.  These would be great to have on hand for snacks, or to put on on your holiday appetizer table.

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Indian Curry Meatballs & Giveaway

Posted on September 26, 2012 | 86 Comments

I have been kind of obsessed with Indian food lately.  I love the traditional dishes like Chicken Tikka Masala, but I also love spicing up traditional foods to make them have more Indian flavor.  Take these Curried Pretzels and Indian Spiced Nuts for example.  Simple, easy snacks that both got an Indian makeover.  Amazingly enough, my super picky 7-year-old loves Indian flavors as well.  Those nuts, are one of his favorite snacks; so I decided it was time to spice up some meatballs.

I love a really good tender meatball.  It can have barbeque sauce, marinara, or the famous glazed (with jelly) meatball.  I am not too picky, I just love a good meatball.  The opening weekend of football season my husband requested we have snacks and appetizers to watch the games with.  I made a couple of his favorite dips, but I needed something that was actually going to fill us up.  And something that my 7-year-old would eat.  Guacamole just isn’t his thing.  Enter meatballs.

I also made a spiced yogurt sauce to dip them in, and it was perfect together.  The meatballs were very tender, and super moist.  They were also full of so much flavor from the curry and garam masala.  I am having visions of making a curry sauce and serving these over rice next time…yum!  These would work great sitting in the crock pot for a party.  They are flavorful twist on the traditional.

Please go check out Culinary.net to get the recipe!

Now time for the GIVEAWAY!!!

Today I also have a fun Gift for you!  Catching FireFlies wants to give one lucky ready a $43 gift certificate!  A quirky amount to match their quirky and fun site!

Check out this Guitar Spatula, these Wake Up Coffee Mugs, or these Flower Measuring Spoons! Such cute stuff!

What do you need to do to win?
Leave a comment for each to have it counted as an entry
(if you already do some of these, just leave me a comment letting me know.)

1.  Leave a comment with one thing you would want from Catching Fireflies
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You have 7 chances to win.  This is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada only.  The giveaway will close Wednesday, October 3rd.  I will announce the winners on Thursday the 4th.  The winner will be drawn using random.org.  Please make sure to leave your email address, so I can contact you if you win.

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Asian Turkey Meatballs

Posted on September 14, 2012 | 8 Comments

Did you enter the giveaway for $1000 from Visa?  Make sure you click over and do it, it ends on Sunday!

Thanks goodness it is Friday!  This was a really long week!  My son got his first cold at school, so that means we haven’t slept well the last couple of nights.  Hopefully a nice relaxing weekend will be what he needs to get better.  The leaves are starting to change up in the mountains, so we might take a trip up there to see all the gorgeous colors.

And maybe I will make more meatballs.  They are pure comfort food to me, and I love them!  I had this recipe printed for over a year.  Really not sure why it took me so long to make them.  I made them when my parents were here, and everyone loved them.  My Dad, ever the skeptic, didn’t really like the idea of soy sauce for dipping.  But once he was forced to try it, he was sold.  He went back for more.  Even my 84 year old grandpa ate his fair share!

These come together very quickly, so they are great for a weeknight meal.  Or you could easily serve them as appetizers for the weekend football get togethers.  My 7 year old dipped his in ketchup, so they will even work for the little ones in the crowd.

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Quinoa Bites

Posted on August 23, 2012 | 14 Comments

Crispy Quinoa Bites

The whole blogging world seems obsessed with quinoa right now.  There are so many different salads, cakes, and side dishes out there.  Lots of people even eat it for breakfast, kind of like oatmeal.  I have been experimenting with different salads and versions trying to find more ways to incorporate it into our diets as well.  It is so good for you, and so versatile, you can’t help but want to eat it!  I have had doing a “cake” on my list for awhile, so when I saw this recipe, I knew it was time.

I made this for lunch a couple weeks ago.  It was the perfect light lunch in my opinion. I used regular muffins tins, but you could use a mini muffin tin and serve it as an appetizer.  My husband suggested putting in some Italian sausage next time.  I was actually going to try that last week, but with my parents here it just didn’t happen.  The flavors would go really well together, and it would make for a great dinner option. I plan on making it very soon.

It may come as no surprise, but my 7 year old wouldn’t get even close to this.  We did force him to try one bite, but he wasn’t a fan.  I didn’t expect him to be, but had to give it a shot.  Now, when I do the sausage version I will be giving it to him as his meal, and hoping the sausage is enough to make him eat it :)

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Avocado Bruschetta

Posted on August 8, 2012 | 16 Comments

Avocado Bruschetta
I could pretty much live on avocados.  I eat them on or in just about anything.  So the other day when we were trying to think of a light dinner and my husband suggested Bruschetta, I knew exactly what I was going to do.  We had lots of tomatoes from the garden that needed to get used, so I made a traditional version as well.  But I had to turn the avocado that was ripe into something as well.

My husband requested that I make homemade bread for this, so I did.  Any French or Italian loaf from the store would work equally well.  There is just something about the smell of bread baking in your house that can’t be beat.  After we were done eating my husband said he would have actually paid money at a restaurant for this meal.  Considering it was entirely vegetarian that is HUGE praise coming from him.  There are still a few tomatoes on my plants, so I am hoping to make the traditional version again, and actually take pictures before we eat it all :)

I enjoyed this with a glass of wine, and it was the perfect end to the day.  We tried to get our 7 year old to eat it, but he was not a fan.  He did prefer the avocado version to the tomato version, but  still wouldn’t take more than the one bite we made him have.   The only thing that could have made this better would be patio furniture.  This meal seems perfect for sitting outside, and enjoying the weather.

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