French Herb Cheese and Radish Crostinis

I was so excited to pick my first bunch of radishes from the yard today.  I threw these seeds in the ground in the early spring and a few weeks later, I had a wonderful colorful variety: red, purple, and white...oh my! They're called the "Easter Egg Blend" because they look like little Easter eggs.  I wanted to use them in a recipes that showed off their colors and focused on the fresh root vegetables.  This is when I remembered an old-time favorite: French Herb Cheese.  I made a batch and smeared some on toasted french bread slices and topped with radishes.  It's a flavorful but simple appetizer or snack to bring to a party this spring!

Ingredients:

-1 bunch radishes

-1 french baguette

-2 blocks cream cheese, softened

-1 stick butter, softened

-1 bunch Italian parsley

-1 large handful of any herbs (pick your favorite...rosemary, chives, tarragon, thyme, oregano)

-2 dashes hot sauce

-1 tsp garlic powder

-salt and pepper to taste

Easy Tip to Freezing Bacon: How-To

Do you have bacon left-over that you know will go to waste if leave the rest in your fridge?  Ever frozen bacon in the package before to find a huge frozen hunk that would take forever to thaw and you only want 2 pieces!?  I read this recently and thought I'd give it a try after making my Zesty Broccoli Salad,  which only called for a few pieces of bacon.

Needed:


-leftover bacon
-parchment or waxed paper
-rubber bands
-gallon plastic freezer bag

Easy Broccoli and Ham Quiche

I'm not exactly a morning person so when I know I'm having house guests this is my go-to brunch recipe because I can make it a day or two in advance and just warm it up in the morning.  Perfect! I've made a few other versions of this quiche including "Spinach and Mushrooms with Goat Cheese" and "Ground Beef Mexican" (with jalapenos and green chilies, and corn!).  The sky is the limit.  It's actually a great way to get rid of leftovers.  Just use the same milk, mayo and egg mixture....and don't forget some sort of cheese! Also, the pie crusts usually come in two's so I often double the egg mixture and make 2 different versions. The following measurements are for 1 quiche.

Ingredients:


-1 frozen pie crust
-1 package of cubed ham (I like Hormel)
-1/2 bag of frozen broccoli florets, thawed (although I've thrown them in frozen before!)
-1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
-1 Tbsp garlic pepper (or garlic powder + pepper)
-1 tsp dry mustard
-1/2 cup milk
-1/2 cup light mayo
-4 eggs

Breakfast Braid

I found this recipe in Cooking Light and thought it would be great for a group, easy, quick and yummy. And that it was! Blake and I spent the past weekend in Beaver Creek with a group of friends.  I decided to get some egg, sausage and carbs in our system before we hit the slopes.

Ingredients:

-1 (13.8 oz) can refrigerated pizza crust dough

-Cooking spray

-1 Tbsp olive oil

-3 Tbsp chopped onion

-4 ounces spicy sausage

-3 large eggs

-1 egg white

-1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

-1/4 cup chopped jalapeño peppers

Homemade Granola

After making this I'm convinced I've NEVER had homemade granola.  Probably because I never order the "lighter" items on the brunch menu like fruit or yogurt...

This recipe is SO easy and will last quite awhile.  I made this at the end of last week to have on our road trip to Arkansas for Lauren and Bryant's engagement party (check out Lauren's fabulous wedding blog: Southern Aisle).  I figured if we had this healthy snack in the car we would be less likely to eat the fatty, fast-food, road-trip diet.  Although we gobbled most of this granola down we still stopped at McDonalds, Sonic, you name it and we ate it..gross.  Maybe I should make another batch and go on a "granola-only diet" the rest of the week. 

Ingredients:

-3 cups of rolled oats

-1 cup of slivered almonds

-1 cup of cashews

-1 cup of shredded sweet coconut

-1/3 cup brown sugar

-1/3 cup of maple syrup

-1/4 vegetable oil

-2 tsps of vanilla extract

-1 tsp of salt

Superbowl Series - Easy Deviled Eggs

Although we didn't have a big crowd watching the game together I still felt the need to cook too much. Here's one of four quick appetizer recipes that are great for game day or an easy party spread. 

Deviled eggs are easy, although I've definitely tasted some not-so-yummy ones.  This is an easy recipe that will make people going back for more than one, two, three or half a dozen (maybe that's just me).

Ingredients:

1 dozen eggs

2-4 Tbsp of mayo

2 Tbsp of spicy mustard

1 tsp white vinegar

1 Tbsp of sugar

Paprika to sprinkle