Chip Beef Dip/Spread (Another Oldie but Goodie!)

This is a really old old recipe that many of our family members make from different sources.  I remember as a young married living across from the A & P in Broadripple in Indianapolis and they made this dip.  We bought it so often the deli lady told me how to make it.  My sister has a similar version marked from our ex-sister-in-law so it has been around for sure.  It is really good though, I can remember my sisters and I, the three of us  polishing off a whole batch in our youth!

Ingredients for Chip Beef Dip/Spread:

2 C. sour cream
8 ounces softened Philly cream cheese
3 green onion sliced with tops very finely
1 jar dried beef
1/8-1/4 t. garlic powder
1/8-1/4 t. Worcestershire sauce

Beat the cream cheese and sour cream together until fluffy.  Stir in the rest of the ingredients and serve.  Refrigerate in a sealed container any remaining or if not serving immediately. .  It just gets better.  Today we tried with some of the new "cracker" chips.  Also very good with crunchy vegetables or to stuff celery.  Yum!  Sometimes on weekends I make this up with veggies and meat and cheese and stash in the refrigerator so we can fend for ourselves mid-day or if the kids come by early.

Yield 3 cups.

Doing Pie and Cookie Dough Today! Christmas Buffet Menu.

5 pie crusts

Today I have made up my recipe for 5 single crust pie crusts (or 2 double and a single)  because I am making two very special people their favorite pies to send with my husband in the morning when he leaves for work.  He can deliver them for me and they will still be nice and warm.  That sounds like a great Christmas surprise to me!  I have the pastry made up and patted out into 5 disks and wrapped in waxed paper then dropped into a plastic bag  and stashed into the refrigerator.    thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2010/07/cherry-pie.html   thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2012/11/canning-apple-pie-filling-my-revision.html     thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2012/05/raisin-pie-and-primary-election-day.html

Home canned apple pie filling

I will use my last can of homemade Apple pie filling for one pie and then I am making an very old fashioned Raisin pie.

Raisins simmering

   

Snicker doodles

Next this morning I am making up a batch of Snicker doodles    thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2010/08/old-fashioned-snickerdoodles.html   then a recipe of sugar cookie dough  thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2013/12/baking-christmas-cookies.html   and a batch of dough for painted roll out cookies.   thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2013/02/painted-hearts-cut-out-cookies-for.html   I will bake the Snicker doodles today and store the made up cookie dough to bake off tomorrow after my marathon trip to both the butcher and the market.

Since I have been troubled with bad knees I was counting the days to the injection appointment.  But, the injections bother me about a day and a half but then I jump up and feel 30 again for awhile!  Today is my first feel like 30 day.  Thus the reason I have postponed the marketing.

Planned Christmas Buffet:

This Christmas I am planning a buffet to be left out and enjoyed at will.  The ham for Thanksgiving was such a hit I am repeating it.   thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2013/03/baking-whole-ham-for-easter.html    I also ordered several pounds of the butchers delicious homemade potato salad (yes I did!)  But I will throw together some baked beans.  Thinking of a huge, maybe 4 pound platter of fresh strawberries and some chocolate ganache for dipping!  Then our other "likes" include a platter of ice cold shrimp cocktail, a cheese ball with crackers, assorted bread. thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2011/12/old-fashioned-persimmon-pudding-my.html   Assorted beverages on ice and maybe a bit of hot buttered rum!    thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2010/11/hot-buttered-rum.html

Spiced Pecans

Some spiced nuts, and of course veggies and dip.  Dessert will be Christmas cookies and a batch of Christmas rice crispy treats with red and green holiday sprinkles!  Then maybe, just maybe, I will do up a persimmon pudding with whipped cream for good measure.  

Raisin and Apple Pies

Monday Morning 7:30 AM:  The pies have finished baking and are packed for Brian's deliveries! 
Since they are still hot I dropped a cooling rack into the bottom of each of two large tote bags.  Next I covered the rack with a clean tea towel and put the aluminum pie plate in a second aluminum pie plate to sturdy up the base.  Then I rolled 2 additional clean tea towels into cylinders and used them as bumpers to keep the pie from sliding.

Tucked away to travel

The last step was to tear, fold, and enclose two ample sheets of fresh aluminum foil for the pis to be covered with when cool. 

Bacon Ranch Cheese Ball and Easy Taco Soup for Supper

Bacon Ranch Cheese Ball is Prepared and Ready for Thanksgiving.

Delicious Taco Soup.

When I saw this recipe for Taco Soup I thought it sounded just as good and easier than the one I have always made.  Plus it sounded just right for the run up days before Thanksgiving.  So, yesterday I checked my ingredients and committed to throwing it together today.  I have adapted this recipe from  highlandsranchfoodie.com    The name of the blog convinces me it has to be good!

I also want to try this cheese ball as I am certain in a household of Ranch Dressing lovers who also LOVE bacon it will surely be a hit!  I adapted this recipe from one bouncing around Pinterest right now.  It only took a bit of tweaking from me.

Ingredients for Easy Taco Soup:

1 can drained pinto beans
1 can drained kidney beans
1 can drained black beans
2 cans drained yellow corn
1 large can tomatoes broken up with your fork
2 C. beef stock
1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing
4 T. Taco Seasoning
2 pounds ground beef chuck
1 onion diced
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 C. water
pinch red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

Crumble the ground beef into a dutch oven or large heavy bottom kettle and brown over medium high heat.  Meanwhile between stirs dice the onion and garlic and add to the pot and cook along with the beef.

Add the remaining ingredients and simmer over low heat at least 15 minutes or longer watching and adding water it it becomes too thick.  Or transfer everything into a slow cooker and simmer over lowest heat setting to meld the flavors.

Serve with shredded cheese, tortilla chips, diced avocado, or sour cream.   Yield 10 servings.

Ingredients for Bacon Ranch Cheese Ball:

2-8 ounce bars of Philadelphia Cream Cheese at room temperature
1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 C. crisp cooked crumbled bacon
1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Dip Mix

Place the soft cream cheese in a medium mixer bowl and beat until soft and creamy.  Add the Ranch Mix, lemon juice, Cheddar cheese, and 1/2 cup of the bacon and mix thoroughly.

Using you hands form into a ball.  Roll in the remaining bacon crumbles.  Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving with assorted crackers or crisp celery sticks.  Yield 1 cheese ball.  

This is wonderful to make ahead and cover in the refrigerator for a few days for the flavors to meld.  It is nice to have things like this tucked away during the holiday season and ready to pull our as needed,  I serve with assorted crackers, pretzels. or crisp vegetables .

Seriously Good Beer 'n Cheese Dip

Beer 'n Cheese Dip Served with Toasted French Bread and Bagel Chips.

The inspiration for this was one of those things I ran across someplace and hand wrote out to try at some point.  My apologies to whoever it may have come from in the first place.  It has undergone my adaptations and tweaking and has resulted in a REALLY good Beer Cheese, at least according to our guests last evening and my hubby!   Actually, I thought it was outstanding too.

Ingredients for Beer 'n Cheese Dip:

2, 8 ounce bars of room temperature cream cheese
8 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 packet dry ranch dressing mix
3/4 C. beer
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper (to taste)
1 loaf French Bread
olive oil
crackers or bagel chips

Add all of the ingredients to  the bowl of a food processor and pulse until perfectly smooth.

Place 1/2" slices of French bread on baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil.  Heat for 20-30 minutes in a preheated 350 degree F oven.  Serve warm or at room temperature with Beer Cheese Dip.   This would also be good with vegetables or crackers.  Cover tightly and keep refrigerated until serving.

Yield almost 2 pounds Beer 'n Cheese Dip.

Taco Dip Fast, Fun, & Delicious Every Single Time I Make It!

I love the ceramic dish my Granddaughter's painted with big triangular corn chips and our names!

This Mother's day has been lovely and such a relaxing time.  Partly because we had an easy meal and nobody had to do a lot because we all did a little!  Brian grilled burgers and roasted carrots on the grill.  Joel and Julie brought the chips and Mike and Julie brought dessert.  I made the dip!  One of my favorite dips!  It is easy, fast, and downright yummy.

Ingredients for Taco Dip:

8 ounces room temperature Philadelphia Cream Cheese
1 C. sour cream
1 bottle taco sauce
i can black olives
1/2 jar of pepperonchini
3-4 sliced green onions, optional
1 diced tomato
4 ounces shredded cheese
Corn Chips for scooping up the dip

Using an electric mixer beat together the cream cheese and sour cream until smooth.  Spread this onto a large flat serving dish.  I used the large decorated dish the granddaughters made me one Christmas.  It is decorated with big triangular corn chips with all of our names on painted on them. (Really cute girls!)  Next spread the taco sauce across the top of the cheese and cream layer.

I usually stop with the sauce just before the edge but it really doesn't matter!  Next add a layer of sliced black olives and a layer of sliced pepperonchini.

Top these layers with diced fresh tomato and shredded cheese.  You are ready now to scoop and enjoy!  Yield 12 - 15 servings.

Planning an EASY Christmas Menu and Preperations for the Season..

In doing this for the last 45 years, since I was 18.  I have deduced that it is far easier to do the big turkey and/or ham with all of the trimmings on Thanksgiving and something grand but easier on Christmas.  To that end I have made Crown Roast of Pork, Standing Rib, Strip Roasts and Beef Tenderloin both as a roast and as steaks.  All of which are much easier and add a baked potato and a salad and you are home free.  If you want to work a little more fix twice baked potatoes ahead to pop in the oven and heat at serving time!!

This year I am tentatively planning for Christmas Dinner:

Prime Rib Roast
Baked Potatoes, both White and Sweet
Tossed Green Salad

Gingerbread Kids Posted 12/5/10

Gingersnaps Posted 12/16/11

Rum Cake and Christmas Cookies

Breakfast Treats for any early guests:

Doughnut Muffins and Christmas Coffee Cake
Juice and Coffee

Doughnut Muffins posted 7/6/11

Meanwhile before Christmas make cookies, candies, and treats then double wrap and freeze to be ready for guests and celebrations on the fly.

Spiced Pecans posted12/7/10

Buckeyes Posted 11/19/10

Crab Ball posted 11/24/10

Pineapple and Walnut Cheese Ball posted 11/12/11

Blue Cheese and Pecan Ball posted 11/20/10

I always make a cheese ball or two and tuck back into the recesses of my refrigerator and the family loves the home made salami too.  (Recipe given 12/13/10.)  There are many many more Holiday treats throughout this blog so I invite you to please look around a bit. 

Delicious Hot Crab Rangoon Dip and Helpful Hints.

Delicious Hot Crab Rangoon Dip.

A friend and a very good cook, Mickey Thienes recently shared a "Helpful Hint" and chef's secret with me and I tried it out today in this recipe.  It worked wonderfully well and furthermore enhanced the flavor of this dish!

The idea is to freeze whole fresh lemons.  I washed and dried mine and stashed a very large one in a freezer bag a week or so ago.  Then when a recipe calls for lemon, be it juice or zest or whatever, you just use a box grater and grate the whole lemon onto a dish and slide it off into the recipe. 

This recipe calls for the juice of 1/2 of a lemon, instead I grated into the dip about 1/3 of a large frozen whole lemon.  The taste was wonderful.  Evidently this is a chef's trick and done rather routinely in fine restaurants.  I like it a lot!  So, I am sharing it with you.

This recipe is adapted from one I saw on Ally's Sweet and Savory Eats.  It is much spicier than any Crab Rangoon I have ever eaten but we liked it a lot.  In fact we liked it more than any hot crab dip we have ever eaten.  I hope you enjoy it this upcoming Holiday season.

Ingredients for hot Crab Rangoon dip:

8 oz, softened cream cheese
1 C. mayonnaise
3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
2 cans of crab meat drained and cleaned (Look over and remove any shinny pieces of cartilage you may see.)
1/2-1 t. ground red pepper (I used 1/2 t.)
1 t. salt
1 t. ground black pepper
1/3 of a large grated frozen lemon (or juice of 1/2 lemon)
4-6 green onions, sliced including green stems (You might want to save some back for garnish.)
6 T. Panko breadcrumbs for topping

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Combine all of the ingredients except the Panko crumbs in a medium sized mixing bowl and stir well to combine.  Pour into a shallow baking dish and top with the crumbs.  Bake for 25 minutes until bubbling hot.  If desired sprinkle with additional green onion tops and serve warm with tortilla chips, pita chips, toasted baguettes, or fried wonton wrappers.

Cover and refrigerate any remaining dip and reheat to serve.  Yield 3-4 Cups Crab Dip.

Cheese Sauce Recipe for Now and for Your Freezer

Five ample servings of delicious cheese sauce ready for the freezer.

This is another recipe adapted from my new Make-A-Mix Cookbook.  They call it a mix but technically it is not because you quite simply make up a batch and use for now and/or freeze for future use.  This is really delicious and I an tickled to death at how well it has turned out.  Full of flavor!  The fresh broccoli I am fixing for tonight's supper will be adorned with it!

Ingredients for Cheese Sauce to Make and Freeze:

3/4 C. flour
1 t. salt
1/4 t. fresh grated nutmeg

Stir the above ingredients all together in a small bowl and set aside

12 Oz. grated cheddar cheese (I used 8 oz. extra sharp and 4  oz. sharp cheddar)

Grate the cheese and set aside.

3/4 C. butter (1 1/2 sticks)

Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed pan over medium-high heat.  Stir in the flour and cook a minute or so stirring constantly.  Add all at once:

4 C. milk
2 C. undiluted condensed chicken broth

Stir and heat continuously until slightly thickened. Remove from the heat and quickly beat together in a small bowl:

4 egg yolks and
1 C. half and half

Pour ladle of the warm sauce into the egg mixture and stir, add another ladle of warm sauce and stir well.  Pour the warmed egg mixture back into the pan of sauce and stir together.  Return this to the heat and cook stirring until thickened.  Do not boil.  Remove from the heat.

Add the shredded cheese and stir until melted.  Cool to room temperature and package in freezer containers of the desired size.  1 1/3 to 1 1/2 cups is good for a recipe but however you will use is fine.  This would be perfect over egg dishes, vegetables, baked potatoes, anyway you would use any other cheese sauce!

Label and freeze.  Just thaw in the microwave and reheat.  Yield 5-6 batches.

Hot Crabmeat Dip & Chicken Casserole Gifted Recipes in My Mailbox

Hot Crab Dip Served with Corn Chips.

This week two of my dearest and oldest friends gifted me with recipes.  Diane Begley Goss sent me two of her Mother, Gayle Begley's most favorites, Hot Crab Dip and Chicken Tetrazzini.  These arrived just in time for the weekend as we are attending a double Birthday "cruise" for my husband and Granddaughter Katie this weekend.  It is perfect to prepare these dished ahead and just heat them up as needed this weekend.

Low and behold,  Mickey Thienes, also know as Henderson, Kentucky's "Herb Lady", mailed me a old and fascinating recipe for a Yeast-ed Chocolate Cake and a Black Chocolate Cake.  Had I already not baked a "Devil's Food" cake and "Oreo Cheesecake Cupcakes" for our party I certainly would have plunged into one of these recipes and will certainly do so in the very near future!

Tried and True Devil's Food Cake, Brian's Favorite.

Mickey also sent me a very old copy of her Corn Relish recipe I plan om fixing yet this fall.  SO A REALLY BIG THANK YOU GOES OUT TO BOTH DEAR FRIENDS.  I am so excited for all of these new things to try!

NOTE:  Katie requested these specific cupcakes instead of a regular birthday cake this year. The name of the recipe can be typed into the finder box for the recipe as is the case with any other mentioned.

White chicken, sauce, mushrooms, and cheese make this delicious with a side of fresh cooked green beans from our garden.

Ingredients for Chicken Tetrazzini:

7, 1/2 chicken breasts, (cook and cut up into bite size pieces) save the broth for cooking the spaghetti.
3 C. uncooked thin spaghetti broken into bite sized pieces and cooked in the chicken stock.

1 stick butter
1/2 C. chopped onion
1/2 C. chopped celery
Cook the celery and onion in half of the butter until tender.

1, 12 Oz. can of evaporated milk
1 t. celery salt
1, 10 3/4 Oz. cans of cream of chicken soup

1 large box of mushrooms sliced
Cook the mushrooms in the remaining half stick of butter apart from the onion and celery.

1-2 C. shredded cheddar cheese for the top of the casserole.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Butter a large casserole dish and set aside.

Combine all of the ingredients except the cheddar cheese until well blended.  Pour into a large buttered casserole dish.  Bake for 30 minutes until hot and bubbling.  Top with shredded cheese and bake an additional 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted.  Yield 10 servings.

Fresh Fruit Platter

Deviled Eggs

Vegetables and Dip

Note I served this with fresh green beans, deviled eggs (which dumped over in the car and looked a mess), veggies and dip, and a fruit platter.

Hot Casserole of Crab Meat Dip Just Out of the Oven.

Ingredients for Hot Crab Dip:

1 C. cream or milk
1 C. mayonnaise
2 T. fresh parsley chopped or 2 t.. dried
1/3 C. finely chopped onion
5,  6 Oz. cans of crab meat
2 eggs
sprinkling of salt and pepper
1, 8 ounce bar of softened cream cheese
2 C. crushed butter crackers

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Butter a medium sized casserole or pie a dish and set aside.

Drain and Pick Through the Crab Meat for Cartilage.

Open the crab and check of shinny cartilage, removing any you may see.  Mix all ingredients except the crackers until well blended.  Pour into the buttered dish and top with the crushed crackers.  Bake 30-40 minutes and serve hot with tortilla or corn chips of your liking.

Mixing Ingredients.

This recipe is better if made early and reheated and the flavors are allowed to meld.  This works well to prepare in the morning and refrigerate, then reheat all or small portions in individual bowls.  The small portions due particularly well reheated in the microwave as pictured at the top of this page.  Yield 8 large servings.

Peanut Snickers Dip for Apples and Pretzels (That Salty Sweet Thing.)

While browsing Pinterest the other day this one struck me! It originated from relativestate.net and I have adapted it in the saltiest sweet way.  They made a snickers dip for pretzels but I thought it would be even better with the addition of chopped peanuts, and a hint of vanilla.  In addition to pretzels and graham crackers for dippers I thought  apple slices or crisp celery sticks and bananas would go nicely.  So the inspiration evolved and I got busy and made my version up to serve to our guests on Saturday night and on Sunday evening.

The idea was to make it up Friday evening and let the flavors meld overnight,  With the additions and changes I made it was more than enough to split and serve to two different groups of friends and family.

Ingredients for Peanut Snickers Dip:

6 large Snickers candy bars chopped
1/2  C. dry roast peanuts rough chopped + 1/4 C. more for topping (3/4 C. total)
16 oz. softened cream cheese
12 oz. Cool Whip topping thawed
1 t. vanilla extract

Add the soft cream cheese, cool whip, vanilla, and Snickers candy all together in a large mixer bowl and combine well.   Scoop into a bowl and top with the reserved peanuts.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Scoop out half of the dip onto a large platter and assemble fruit, pretzels, and graham crackers in a pleasing fashion ans serve.  The sweet and salty,  tart and sweet, and crisp and creamy combinations are festival in your mouth!  ENJOY, we certainly have.