Green Goddess Hummus

A few weeks ago I made and shared Green Goddess Dressing with you. This dressing is so different and very delicious. I could not help but think it would make a great Hummus flavor too. So I tried it right away. I used the microwave hummus method and substituted a little mayonnaise and sour cream for the tahini. I used the fresh herbs like in the dressing, chives and parsley are perfect in the hummus too. I tried it with garlic and it was too strong. I did experimented with the anchovies a bit. The first time I made it I just used maybe three and thought it needed more. I added all the anchovies from the dressing recipe and it was delicious and savory. However, I did notice the last serving of hummus was stronger in that anchovy flavor than the first. So if you are new to anchovies you may want to start with half of the amount and add to taste. I served it with all green veggies but it is delicious with any vegetables. I recommend giving it a try if you are looking for a new and savory way to eat more hummus.

Green Goddess Hummus
Makes 2 cups

Ingredients

15 oz. can chickpeas, undrained
2 oz. can anchovy fillets, or to taste
1/2 cup chopped parsley
3 Tbsp chopped chives
2 Tbsp Mayonnaise
2 Tbsp sour cream
1-1/2 Tbsp tarragon vinegar
Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions

Microwave undrained chickpeas in a mixing bowl for 4-5 minutes, set aside.

Put all other ingredients in a blender; blend until herbs are very fine, smooth and green in color. Add chick peas only, process until smooth and creamy, scraping down sides as needed. Add chickpea liquid one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency (3 Tbsp.), it will thicken once refrigerated. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.

Cover and refrigerate until needed. Best if allowed to blend for some time. It tastes even better after refrigerated and flavors have had time to develop.

To serve, garnish with a little olive oil and chives. Serve with veggies, crackers and/or pita. Keep leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. 

Masonable Mondays #3 - Cheese Balls

Welcome to Masonable Mondays #3! Today we are doing after work snacks. I hate to admit this but at some point in my life I could make dinner out of wine and a cheese plate. I don't do that now! Well not often. But I do enjoy the idea. So this week I decided to make a cheese board in a mason jar. I filled each mason jar with juicy green grapes. Then I made two savory and flavorful mini cheese balls to suspend in a fruit cup. I made one with blue cheese and pistachios and another with jalapenos and bacon. You can't get board with these flavors. I packed the top fruit cup with some whole wheat Ritz crackers. This after work treat is definitely something to rush home to. Or take your snack outdoors. This Masonable would make great picnic food to share with friends. I hope this inspires you to roll some cheese balls of your own. Be sure to share your creations. I always love more #Masonable ideas.

Cheese Ball Masonable
Serves 1

Supplies

1 wide mouth pint Mason jar
2 empty fruit cups

Ingredients

Grapes
Cheese Ball of choice
8 round crackers

Directions

Add grapes to the bottom of the mason jar. Add fruit cup and place cheese ball in cup. Add lid and stack crackers on top of lid. top with inverted fruit cup and secure with mason jar ring. Store in refrigerator until ready to eat.

The first cheese ball I made was based off of a blue cheese cheesecake we have made for the Christmas holidays several times. It is savory and "funky" in a good way. I love the blue cheese, green onions and pistachios. It is very flavorful. Dear sister thought this one was her favorite. She said it was the more exciting of the two cheese balls. I have to agree.

Blue Cheese Balls
Makes 6 Balls

Ingredients

4 oz. 1/3 light Neufchatel cheese, softened
1/2 cup reduced fat blue cheese crumbles
1 green onions, finely chopped
kosher salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes, to taste
4 Tbsp. pistachios, shelled and finely chopped
Handful of parsley, finely chopped

Directions

Combine Neufchatel cheese, blue cheese and green onions in a small bowl. Season with salt and peppers. Mix well so all ingredients are evenly distributed. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Divide mixture into six and roll into a balls. Place in a shallow dish of pistachios and parsley; roll to coat pressing to cover each ball with nut and herb mixture. Serve with crackers and fruit.

Note: You can roll this recipe into as many cheese balls as you like. Make one cheese ball or even 8 mini cheese balls with a pretzel stick like a lolly pop.

The next cheese ball is both spicy and savory. It is reminiscent of a jalapeno popper. The center is creamy cream cheese, Mexican blend cheese and pickled jalapenos. A classic combination of yummy ingredients. To finish, each cheese ball is rolled in crispy, salty bacon. Why? Because bacon is always a good idea.

Jalapeno Popper Cheese Balls
Makes 6 Balls

Ingredients

4 oz. 1/3 light Neufchatel cheese, softened
1/2 cup 2% Mexican cheese blend
2 Tbsp. chopped pickled jalapenos
kosher salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes, to taste
6 slices bacon, pre-cooked and finely chopped

Directions

Combine Neufchatel cheese, cheese blend and jalapenos in a small bowl. Season with salt and peppers. Mix well so all ingredients are evenly distributed. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Divide mixture into six and roll into a balls. Place in a shallow dish of bacon and roll to coat pressing to cover each ball with bacon. Serve with crackers and fruit.

Note: You can roll this recipe into as many cheese balls as you like. Make one cheese ball or even 8 mini cheese balls with a pretzel stick like a lolly pop.

Linking to:
Ramblings of a (Bad) Domestic Goddess: Turn it Up Tuesdays
Carole's Chatter: Food on Friday - Cheese

Pizza Masonable

Here is a #Masonable for the kid in everyone. The Pizza Masonable! This jar is just assembly really. Buy your favorite pizza ingredients and pack them to go. Now this jar looks a little empty. It just did not fit in a half pint jar. It was close but just didn't make it. So I used a pint jar. So there is room in that jar for more pizza toppings. Maybe veggies, olives or Canadian bacon anyone? Just load it up. Just between us once you assemble you little pizza you can heat it in the microwave until the cheese melts. YUM! Hot or cold these little pizzas are a great snack or lunch.

Pizza Masonable
Serves 1

Supplies

1 wide mouth pint Mason jar
2 empty fruit cups

Ingredients

8 round crackers
2 Tbsp. Pizza Sauce
8 Turkey Pepperoni
2 Tbsp. Mozzarella cheese

Directions

Fill mason jar with cheese and pepperoni. Place fruit cup in jar fill with pizza sauce. Place lid on top of jar. Stack crackers on lid. Place fruit cup inverted on top of crackers and lid. Add mason jar ring to secure everything in place. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

So now that is four different Masonables for your lunch. 

And I still have two more ideas to come. So keep visiting. 

I hope to have them up soon.

Want more mason jar meal prep ideas?

Check out these other posts.

Recycle Tip: Fruit Cups + Mason Jars

Peachy Crisp Yogurt Jar

Masonables

Shrimp Masonable

Shrimp Cocktail Masonable

Here it comes another #Masonable idea! This might be my favorite so far. The idea for this Masonable came from dear sister. Mom, sis and I were enjoying some boiled crawfish at home. She asked if I had a little disposable cup for cocktail sauce. I said I have those fruit cups? She grabbed three and brought cocktail sauce to each of us. That is when it hit me, wouldn't a shrimp cocktail make an awesome lunch. So guess what I made the very next day. The Shrimp Cocktail Masonable! So easy! Think about this! You could make a ton of these and put them in a bowl of ice for an outdoor party. Such an easy make ahead summer party appetizer. With or without crackers this would make great party food. You could use any number of dipping sauces too. Try Deckhand Sauce or Piri Piri Sauce or Kickin' Po Boy Sauce or even Thai Style Peanut Dipping Sauce. So many possibilities. I think I need more shrimp.

Shrimp Cocktail Masonable
Serves 1

Supplies

1 wide mouth pint Mason jar
2 empty fruit cups

Ingredients

8 round crackers
2 Tbsp. Cocktail Sauce
8 boiled shrimp

Directions

Fill mason jar with boiled shrimp. Place fruit cup in jar fill with cocktail sauce. Place lid on top of jar. Stack crackers on lid. Place fruit cup inverted on top of crackers and lid. Add mason jar ring to secure everything in place. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Want more mason jar meal prep ideas?

Check out these other posts.

Recycle Tip: Fruit Cups + Mason Jars

Peachy Crisp Yogurt Jar

Masonables

Pizza Masonable

Linking to:

Life on Lakeshore Drive: A Bouquet of Talent Linky Party

Tumbleweed Contessa: What'd You Do This Weekend?

Peach Pico de Gallo

This post started out as a taco idea, but I soon discovered that one ingredient stood out as the best part of the taco. The Peach Pico de Gallo was definitely the star. The taco was okay but nothing to drool over. The crunchy, sweet and juicy topping was something to get excited about. How did the new pico come to be? Well I wanted to make a fruit topping for a mustard grilled pork taco. I used my usual Pico de Gallo recipe and substituted 3 peaches for some of the tomatoes. I also used a yellow bell pepper instead of the green. This is what makes the peach pico crunchy. I omitted the garlic altogether and added some agave nectar to adjust the sweetness of the peaches. It really turned out amazing! It is great with chips for a sweet and salty snack. It complements BBQ flavors well. It is also delicious with pork, chicken, fish and shrimp. I also tried some on a ground turkey taco that I had seasoned with Piri Piri Barbecue Sauce. Very good! Definitely a great use of all those summer peaches available now. I will definitely make another batch before summer is gone. I hope you will too.

Peach Pico de Gallo
Makes about 5 cups

Ingredients

3 large peaches, pitted and diced
1 roma tomato, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1 small red onion, diced
Juice of 1 lime
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp white balsamic vinegar
1 tsp agave nectar, or to taste
Handful of cilantro, chopped
Kosher salt to taste

Directions

Chop all ingredients and combine in a large bowl.  Add lime juice, oil, vinegar and cilantro. Stir to combine and season with salt to taste. Refrigerate until ready to serve.  Serve with chips, BBQ, pork, chicken. shrimp, or fish. Try it as a salad topper too!

Piccadilly Salad

Growing up the family would go to the cafeteria on occasion. Piccadilly Cafeteria is what I remember most. The funny thing is I don't remember the entrees we would get. I remember choosing the appetizers and dessert. There was an Italian salad, gumbo and cheesecake. That is the extent of my memory of the dishes we would always get. I remember the cheesecake being a must have and then having to agonize over whether to get the salad or gumbo. The funny thing is I remember us all getting the gumbo, but Mom and Dad always complained because it wasn't like home. The salad on the other hand was always delicious. It was served ice cold in a little square baking dish with the dressing on the side. It sat on a chilled buffet table so even the dish was cold. This week I decided to relive those cafeteria days by making a Piccadilly Salad at home. The salad is very simple but very flavorful as well. It is a simple layered salad starting with iceberg lettuce. All the flavor comes from the salty and savory toppings. The Parmesan is nutty, the capers briny and the anchovies add salty, slightly fishy, umami flavor. Then you drizzle the whole thing with Italian dressing. With all this flavor there is no need for salt just some freshly ground black pepper. It is so good! Dear sister thought there may have been olives on the cafeteria salad. I tried it with and without. Both are great but I think I like without because the capers shine more. This is a great starter for a dinner party. You can assemble them ahead of time and refrigerate until ready to serve. They will be ice cold just like the salad of my youth. 

Piccadilly Salad
Serves 1

Ingredients

1/4 head of iceberg lettuce, shredded
1 to 2 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese, shredded
1 to 2 tsp. capers, drained
Black pepper, to taste
2 anchovie filets
2 Tbsp. Italian salad dressing (fat free works too)

Directions

Assemble salad in a chilled bowl. Layer lettuce, Parmesan and capers. Season with black pepper. Garnish with two anchovies and a shot glass filled with Italian dressing. To serve pour dressing over the top.

Print It

Linking to:
The Tumbleweed Contessa: What'd You Do This Weekend?
Yesterfood: Treasure Box Tuesday
God's Growing Garden: Tuesdays with a Twist

Light Spinach Dip

I was first served Knorr Spinach Dip when I was in college. A fellow interior design student made it and served it with Bugles. I was hooked. I started making it for my family and friends. It is still one of my favorite cold dips.

Recently I saw a spinach dip recipe on Pinterest that used cottage cheese instead of sour cream and mayo. I thought I have to try that. But I could not get the Knorr dip out of my mind. I just knew if I made it, I would be disappointed it was not the Knorr dip. So I decided to borrow the technique and modify the spinach dip I craved into a light spinach dip. It worked great. It is a thick, delicious, loaded spinach dip. I love the crunch from the water chestnuts and green onions. It is so thick it will break a wimpy chip. Dear sister and I tried it with corn chips first. It was really good. But my favorite was the veggies. I did not have Bugles on hand this time. But I will next time I make it. The cottage cheese was a great substitute for the sour cream. I think I liked it better than light sour cream or plain Greek yogurt. It has more dairy flavor and is less tangy than the others. I look forward to trying it in other dips and dressings. It did not get completely smooth in the blender. There were a few curds left, but they were hardly noticeable in this dip recipe. This was a great experiment, one for the recipe box.

Light Spinach Dip

Makes 3 cups; Serves 12 (1/4 cup each)

Ingredients

16 oz. light cottage cheese

2 Tbsp. light mayonnaise

1 package Knorr vegetable soup and recipe mix

1 can (8 oz.) water chestnuts, drained and chopped

3 green onions, sliced

1 package (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

Directions

Place cottage cheese in a blender and blend until smooth. Combine cottage cheese, mayonnaise, recipe mix, water chestnuts and green onions. Stir until well combined. Add spinach mixing well until all combined. Chill about 2 hours. Serve with your favorite veggies, corn chips or Bugles.

Nutritional Information per serving*: Calories 58.0, Total Fat 1.5 g, Saturated Fat 0.6 g, Polyunsaturated Fat 0.4 g, Monounsaturated Fat 0.2 g, Cholesterol 5.7 mg, Sodium 418.6 mg, Potassium 78.8 mg, Total Carbohydrate 6.5 g, Dietary Fiber 0.9 g, Sugars 1.8 g, Protein 5.1 g.

WW P+ 1

*Information from the Sparkrecipes calculator. NI may vary depending on the brand or size of the ingredients used to prepare it.

Linking to:
My Turn for Us: Freedom Fridays with All My Bloggy Friends
Ms. enPlace: See Ya in the Gumbo
The Chicken Chick: Clever Chicks Blog Hop
The Tumbleweed Contessa: What'd You Do This Weekend?
Stone Cottage Adventures: Tuesdays with a Twist
Creative K Kids: Tasty Tuesdays
Dizzy Busy & Hungry: Wine'd Down Wednesday
Buns In My Oven: What's Cookin' Wednesday

Guacamole

Cinco de Mayo is just days away. Do you have a dip for your tortilla chips? How about Guacamole? This is how I have been making guacamole lately. I use all the usual ingredients; ripe avocado, tomato, onion, garlic, lime juice and cilantro. But instead of fresh jalapeno I use pickled jalapeno. This way I can put in just enough to match my mood. Plus pickled jalapenos usually have a very consistent heat level. You just never know how hot a fresh jalapeno pepper will be. This guacamole is delicious as a dip for tortilla chips. It is also great on tacos, nachos, salads or any Mexican dish. If you press plastic wrap on to the surface of the guacamole it will stay nice and green. The lime juice helps too. So you can make it a little ahead if you need to. I hope there is a Cinco de Mayo celebration in your future and this recipe will come in handy. Have some fun for me!

Guacamole

Makes about 1-1/2 to 2 cups

Ingredients

1 garlic clove, minced

2 Tbsp. red onion, finely chopped

1 Tbsp. pickled jalapeno, minced

1 Roma tomato, chopped

2 medium large avocados

Juice of 1 lime

2 Tbsp. cilantro, roughly chopped

Kosher salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes, to taste

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Stir to combine mashing some of the avocado with a fork. Press plastic wrap on to the surface of the guacamole so that there are no air pockets. This helps prevent browning. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Serve with tortilla chips, or as a topping for tacos or any other Mexican dish.

Want more dips for your chips?

Check out these recipes for your Cinco de Mayo Celebration.

Pico de Gallo

Cilantro Lime Salsa

Hot and Smoky Salsa

Hot Sauce

Pineapple Pico de Gallo

Tomatillo and Avocado Salsa

Garlic Lover's Hot Sauce

You want those chips to be a meal?

Check out these Nacho ideas.

Grilled Shrimp Nachos

Breakfast Nachos

Linking to:

Horrific Knits: Inspired Weekends

The Tumbleweed Contessa: What'd You Do This Weekend

Stone Cottage Adventures: Tuesdays with a Twist

Anyonita Nibbles: Tasty Tuesdays

Buns In My Oven: What's Cookin' Wednesday