Bleu Cheese Pinecone Serve with water crackers.

Transcription

1 Bleu Cheese Pinecone Serve with water crackers. 8 oz. cream cheese 32 oz. cream cheese (4 pkgs.) 4 oz. bleu cheese, crumbled 16 oz. bleu cheese, crumbled A few drops of Tabasco 1 teaspoon Tabasco A few drops of Worcestershire sauce 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce Chopped olives, as desired 1 can chopped olives, as desired Toasted almonds, whole or sliced Toasted almonds, whole or sliced Blend together cream cheese, bleu cheese, Tabasco sauce and Worcestershire sauce in a food processor, or large bowl. By hand (not in a processor) fold in olives, shape into a pinecone with the bigger end at the bottom. Lay on it s side, flattening one side. Arrange almonds in rows to simulate a pinecone. Place on a plate with a sprig of greens at the top and serve with water crackers. Another option is to form a cheese ball and roll it in chopped walnuts or almonds.

2 Veggie Wreath Serve with your favorite dip. Wrap a Styrofoam wreath with foil appropriate for the size of the group. Using pins or toothpicks, cover the circle with greens or Italian parsley. With the toothpicks attach broccoli florets, small mushrooms, baby carrots, cherry or grape tomatoes and black olives. You might even add a ribbon bow! A variation is, in place of the veggies, use an assortment of olives, ranging from black olives, kalamata olives, Spanish olives or attach ½-inch chunks of a variety of cheeses.

3 Sweet and Sour Meatballs 2 lbs. hamburger 8 lbs. hamburger 1 egg 4 eggs ¼ cup dry breadcrumbs 1 cup dry breadcrumbs ¼ onion, finely chopped 1 onion, finely chopped 1 teaspoon salt 4 teaspoons salt Pepper to taste Pepper to taste Combine ingredients and form ½-oz. meatballs (the size of a walnut), and place on a cookie sheet with sides. Bake at 350 degrees (or fry) until done, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. When done, place the meatballs in the sauce and simmer. You can also cover them and place in a low oven (200 degrees) until time to serve. They may be made a day or two ahead. Serve warm with toothpicks. Plan on at least four meatballs per person. Sauce: 1 12 oz. bottle chili sauce 4 12 oz. bottles chili sauce 1 10 oz. grape jelly 40 oz. grape jelly 1 tablespoon lemon juice 4 tablespoons lemon juice 1 tablespoon brown sugar 4 tablespoons brown sugar Blend ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring often.

4 Apricot and Brie Triangles 1 pkg. phyllo dough 2 pkgs. phyllo dough* 4 oz. brie cheese 1 lb. brie cheese* Small bottle apricot jam or jelly Large bottle apricot jam ½ lb. butter, melted 2 lbs. butter, melted Leaving it in the package, set out phyllo to thaw before using. When thawed, remove the roll of phyllo from the package, unroll and lay flat on the counter. Cover phyllo with a towel. Working with one leaf at a time, cut the shorter side into 2 wide strips the entire length of the longer side. Brush a strip with melted butter, cut a dime-sized piece of brie and place on the end of the phyllo along with ¼ teaspoon of jam. Fold the strip over the brie and jam, making a triangle. Continue folding the entire phyllo strip making the triangle several layers thick. Brush with butter and place on a cookie sheet. Bake minutes until brie melts and the triangle browns slightly. Serve warm. *Only a small amount is needed per triangle. You will want to allow 2 triangles for each person.

5 Candied Bacon 1 lb. bacon 4 lbs. bacon ½ cup brown sugar 2 cups brown sugar Toothpicks Toothpicks Cut the bacon slices into three pieces. Dredge in brown sugar. Accordion pleat onto a toothpick. Lay slices on a well greased baking pan with sides; bake at 350 degrees until bacon is browned and glazed, about 20 minutes. Watch closely as the sugar will burn if left in too long. Serve warm. Can be prepared ahead, but tastes best when served soon after baking. Allow 4 pieces per person.

6 Cranberry Ginger Ale Combine cranberry juice and ginger ale in equal parts. For a Christmas party, use a slice of lime on the glass for color. If served in a punch bowl, float the lime in the bowl. One gallon of punch makes 16 8 oz. servings. When adding ice to the punch, plan on 20 punch cups per gallon.

7 Cherry Glazed Cheesecake (4 springform pans) Crust: ¾ cup coarsely ground almonds 3 cups coarsely ground almonds ¾ cup crushed graham crackers 3 cups crushed graham crackers 3 tablespoons melted butter ¾ cup melted butter ¼ cup sugar 1 cup sugar 1 teaspoon cinnamon 4 teaspoons cinnamon Filling: 4 8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese 16 8 oz. pkgs. (8 lbs.) cream cheese 4 eggs 16 eggs 1 ¼ cups sugar 5 cups of sugar 1 tablespoon lemon juice ¼ cup lemon juice 2 teaspoons vanilla 3 tablespoons vanilla Topping: 2 cups sour cream 8 cups (128 oz.) sour cream ¼ cup sugar 1 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 4 teaspoons vanilla Glaze: 1 can cherry pie filling 4 cans cherry pie filling 1 teaspoon almond flavoring 4 teaspoons almond flavoring Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter 9- or 10-inch springform pan. For crust: Combine all ingredients and press compactly into bottom of pan forming the bottom crust. Bake for 10 minutes. Let cool.

8 For filling: Beat softened cream cheese in large bowl of electric mixer until smooth. Add eggs, sugar, lemon juice and vanilla and beat thoroughly. Spoon over crust. Bake 10-inch cake minutes. Cake may rise slightly and crack in several areas; it will settle again, cracks will minimize and topping will cover the cracks. You may test with a tip of clean knife. The cake is done when the knife comes out clean. Remove from oven and let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes. Retain oven temperature at 350 degrees. For topping: Combine sour cream, sugar and vanilla and blend well. When cake has cooled spoon topping over cake, covering it within ½ inch of edge. Bake 5 minutes longer. Let cool, then refrigerate cheesecake at least 24 hours. For glaze: Before serving, loosen cake from pan with a knife, remove springform side. Blend almond extract with the cherry pie filling. Spoon the cherries onto the top of the cake from the center in a circle. Refrigerate until time to serve.