Making Queso in the Crockpot

This is my favorite party tool because it looks sleek on the buffet and works non-stop to keep foods hots. I'm not sure what I would do without my Cuisinart Crockpot. Although my last post was Dip overload, I failed to include one of my favorite dips of all time: Queso! It's a staple at our football parties and this recipe is extra special because it uses ground turkey and just the right amount of heat.

The first thing to do is brown a pound of turkey with one chopped onion.

You could use any type of ground meat in this recipe, simply brown over medium-high heat until there are no signs of pink meat.

Yes, I use velveeta. It's a log of processed cheese and melts beautifully in queso and taste great in this recipe. Don't be afraid, it's how most Texans make queso - or at least my circle of Texans.

After the meat is browned with the onion, dump it into your crockpot and add a small can of hatch green chiles.

Next, add one can of rotel. I like to buy the "hot" rotel.

Cube the cheese log.

Stir the cubes into the crockpot.

With the crockpot on high, the cheese will melt in about 15 minutes. Every once in a while stir the mixture and the cheese will melt smooth. This is one of those really easy recipes, but I always get asked what I put in my queso because the green chiles and ground meat add a slow heat and hearty bite. Now you know. If your guests can take the heat, dice up a jalapeno also.  Did you also know that this freezes really well? I put leftover queso in a freezer safe zip top bag and freeze flat.

Game Day Dips

It's football season in case you haven't noticed. With the cooler temperatures this time of year, we can also expect some exciting game day parties with plenty of food and drink. Keep it simple by serving snacks and appetizers that can be prepared in advance.

When your team takes the field, be ready to cheer them on by hosting a dip buffet. Here is a round-up of my Most Valuable Players that you can add to your play book as well.

Serving Tips: Setting the scene for game day can be fun when you get creative and serve dips in vegetables such as peppers or acorn squash, hollowed bread, or beer mugs.

Be sure to have plenty of these staples on hand for your dips:

• Tortilla chips
• Pita triangles
• Vegetables
• Chips
• Crackers
• Bread rounds or sliced baguettes
• Shrimp

The following recipes will definitely score you some points with your team:

The number one visited page on Home with Mandy is this homemade French Onion Dip made with caramelized onions, sour cream and a few surprising ingredients.

Good old salsa, nothing beats the homemade kind. Here is my copy cat recipe for my favorite salsa that taste like On The Border Salsa.

Another restaurant dip that I just love is the Creamy Jalapeno Ranch at Chuy's Tex Mex Restaurant. This copy cat recipe makes a dip that taste good with tortilla chips, french fries or hot wings.

With only two ingredients, this Raspberry Peach Chipotle Dip is one of the easiest dips you can pull together right before kick off.

Thanks to my blogging buddy Aggie, we have fallen in love with this Hot and Spicy Artichoke Dip.

Coconut shrimp are elevated to new heights when served with this amazing Sweet Chili Mayo dip.

Hummus is easy to whip up in the cuisinart mixer and it is such a versatile dip as well. Add whatever ingredients you like or have on hand. Pine nuts, roasted bell pepper, black bean, spinach, sun dried tomato, pumpkin or almond butter are all wonderful additions. Serve with veggie sticks for a healthy option on game day.

This Creamy Chipotle Ranch dip is a crowd pleaser and good served with everything in Texas!

You know you have a good recipe when your friends request it by name. This Chicken Enchilada Dip consist of ingredients you probably have on hand and can be thrown together at the last minute and baked for just 30 minutes before football fans arrive.

For a crowd, this Spinach Green Chile Dip serves 10 to 12 hungry men and couldn't be easier to make. Directions include "combine all ingredients and refrigerate."

Not all dips on game day need to be savory. Try this sweet Toffee Apple Dip and serve with an assortment of fruit.

The use of a cuisinart blender eliminates chopping all these ingredients, and the end result is a fresh flavor explosion great on sliced baguettes. Get the recipe for my Antipasto Dip here with easy step-by-step photos.

I love to serve this Spinach Artichoke Dip in a hollowed out bread bowl. Smear this warm dip on a toasted baguette or homemade pita chips.

Now for a new dip recipe! Make this blue cheese and bacon dip this weekend and be the MVP of the party!

 

Warm Blue Cheese, Bacon and Garlic Dip

For this recipe you will need the following:
Bacon, half a package, chopped
1 package Cream Cheese, room temperature
1 small container of Blue Cheese crumbles
Garlic, minced
1/4 C Whipping Cream
4 green onions, chopped
3 ounces smoked almonds, chopped

I tried to choose a package of bacon with not much fat. Take the slab out of the package and slice in half, then chop into small pieces.

Over medium-high heat, brown the bacon until crispy but not burnt.

Add minced garlic, either fresh or jarred. This is about 1 heaping tablespoon of minced garlic. Stir around for a minute and then take this off the heat.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the softened cream cheese.

With the mixer running on low, add 1/4 cup of whipping cream.

Add the small package of blue cheese and let this mix until well combined.

I tried to drain the grease as much as possible off the bacon. Maybe this should have been done BEFORE adding the garlic? Note for next time.

Add the cooled bacon and garlic to the cream cheese in the mixer. stir to combine.

Chop the white and light green parts of the green onions then stir that into the mixture lightly.

Pour the cream cheese mixture into an oven proof dish, cover with foil and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Before serving, top with a sprinkling of crushed almonds.

Hot and Spicy Artichoke Dip

I was reading one of my favorite food blogs, Aggie's Kitchen and she showcased a Hot and Spicy Artichoke Dip made by her friend Colleen. The recipe comes from the cookbook, Culinary Journey to the Mediterranean. It looked easy enough to make for our draft day so I looked in the pantry and actually had all the ingredients. It comes together fast and cooks in the oven for less than 30 minutes.

1 can (14 oz) artichoke hearts, chopped, drained
1 cup mayo
1 cup (4oz) grated parmesan cheese
1 can (4oz) chopped green chiles, drained
2-3 cloves of garlic minced

Mix all ingredients in a shallow, ovenproof dish or 9-inch pie plate. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned. Top with 2 Tbsp each of chopped tomatoes and olives.

This was fantastic as is or you could customize it to fit your tastes as well. I could see the addition of shredded chicken, making this a heartier dip. Green olives on top would bring a wonderful briny flavor to the dip. Add red pepper flakes or some form of jalapenos to make this a spicy dish. The green chiles I used were from the can and were very mild. Next time I would probably buy the HOT variety. Ohhh, if you by chance still have some hatch chiles in your fridge/freezer, they would be GREAT in this dip. Thanks Aggie for the recommendation!!!

I took the leftovers and topped baked chicken and roasted asparagus in the oven. The artichoke dip automatically elevated a simple chicken dish to something you would find in a restaurant. I pulled this dinner together in less than 30 minutes - delish!

With football season underway, I highly recommend this dip for your next pig skin gathering!

Taco Night with Homemade Pico

Once my brother and I were old enough to cook easy meals in the kitchen, my mother was smart enough to assign us each one night a week to cook dinner for our family of four. My brother Brad would usually make spaghetti and I would more often than not make tacos. This is a great dinner for a group! It's easy to pull together and completely customizable to accommodate all your guests.

This was my first time however to make homemade pico de gallo. It was thepioneerwoman.com who first gave me the idea and I followed her directions. I was very pleased with the outcome, however I wonder if jalapenos in Texas are somehow hotter than what she finds in Oklahoma since my pico was burn your butt hot.


This is what a great taco night buffet generally looks like. Shredded cheddar cheese, shredded lettuce, beans of some sort (refried, black or charro), ground meat (seasoned beef or turkey), pico (or salsa), and of course the vehicle to which you get all this flavor to your mouth - soft tortillas, either corn or flour, hard shell tacos or flat tostadas.

Most people would probably use ground beef, but I've been using ground turkey since I was a little girl and think it's a wonderful substitute for tacos. I always doctor up the taco meat myself though. I chopped an onion and added to a skillet with one pound of ground turkey.

Over medium-high heat, cook, stir and break up chunks until meat is no longer pink and onion is translucent. You could add a packet of taco seasoning or make your own. Download this HWM printable recipe for making your own Taco Seasoning.

Once the ground meat is cooked and seasoning is added, turn heat to low, or off and cover until your taco buffet is ready to serve.

Homemade pico de gallo begins with one onion finely chopped.

Add one teaspoon of minced garlic to the chopped onion.

3-5 roma tomatoes, chopped.

PW uses three jalapenos and chopped them with seeds inside. I chopped one with seeds and then cleaned out the other two and chopped them up. Remember to wear gloves when dealing with jalapenos, they are HOT!

Large bunch of cilantro, washed. Chop this up and add to bowl of ingredients and give it a good stir.

Add juice of one lime and stir again.

Fresh pico was a wonderful addition to our taco buffet.

Each person can go through the buffet and create their own mexican favorites with the flavorful ingredients you've provided.

I personally like the flat tostadas. I mash up some black beans and put them on the bottom, topped with the ground turkey, a little shredded cheddar cheese and finally some fresh pico on top.

Mmmm Lovely!

Jim prefers tacos with black beans on the side.

He's a simple man. Simple to please, and that's another reason I love him!