Appetizers
I made this appetizer for a football gathering but with summer and grilling season fast approaching these would be great to grill up. Just add the sauce and serve at any cookout you might be having. This is one of those recipes where you really need to use a beer you like. If beer is not your thing this recipe is not for you. These are easy to serve right away or keep warm in a slow cooker.
INGREDIENTS
1 package Johnsonville bratwurst sausages or regular sausages
1 12 ounce bottle of beer – make sure it’s one you like!
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 Tablespoon chopped parsley, optional
2 teaspoons cornstarch
DIRECTIONS
Place the bratwurst or sausages on the grill or in a skillet over medium heat. Grill or cook until sausages are cooked through.
While the sausages are cooking you can make the sauce. Place the beer and brown sugar in a saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 10 – 15 minutes or until the mixture is reduced and thickened. Whisk in the mustard until smooth.
Whisk the cornstarch with one Tablespoon of cold water and pour into the beer mixture. Bring the beer mixture back to a boil and cook for 1 minute stirring constantly until the mixture is thickened.
Slice the sausages into one-inch rounds and place in the beer mixture to coat. Serve warm or keep in a slow cooker. Sprinkle with parsley if desired.
Enjoy!
Another Taste Of Home recipe for you today. This one comes with mixed reviews but well-liked overall and funny enough I thought I was going to be the one who loved this easy appetizer but it was Jim who loved them! These are sweet and salty all in one bite. I made one change to the recipe by using uncooked bacon and partially baking the bacon strips in the oven before continuing with the recipe. I find that the pre-cooked bacon you can buy in the store can be too salty.
INGREDIENTS
1 Tablespoon Butter
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
3 Tablespoons apricot preserves
1 tube refrigerated crescent rolls
1 package fully cooked, ready to eat bacon
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a small skillet heat butter over medium heat, add onion. Cook and stir 3-5 minutes or until tender. Reduce heat to low and add preserves. Cook and stir until melted. Remove from heat.
Unroll crescent dough into one long rectangle. Roll into a 15 x 9-inch rectangle sealing the seams and perforations. Cut crosswise into 15 one inch strips.
Top each strip with one piece of bacon. Roll up jelly-roll style starting with the short side. Pinch the seam to seal and place on an ungreased baking sheet, cut side down.
Spoon apricot mixture over each spiral and bake 12-15 minutes or until golden brown and the crescent dough is cooked through. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
Enjoy!
The Juicy Lucy burgers have been making their way through all of the diners and have been seen on many food network shows. I came across the Juicy Lucy meatballs on Pinterest and thought that would be a fun idea for a game day or tailgating especially with the combination hot sauce and barbecue sauce. I baked them in the oven and kept them warm in the slow cooker for us to munch on through the afternoon.
INGREDIENTS
1 pound ground beef
2 Tablespoons minced onion
1 egg yolk
3 Tablespoons Panko bread crumbs
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 Tablespoons hot sauce
Dash of salt
Dash of pepper
4 ounces cheddar cheese, cut into small cubes. About 15 pieces
Sliced scallions for garnish if desired
SAUCE
1/3 cup hot sauce
2/3 cup barbecue sauce, I used a honey BBQ sauce
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray. Set aside. Cut cheese into 15 small squares and set aside. Combine onion, egg yolk, bread crumbs, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Mix until combined, add the ground beef and mix until just combined.
Divide the meat mixture into 15 equal pieces, flatten one piece at a time. Add one cheese cube into the center of the flattened beef and wrap the beef around the cheese sealing the cheese in the best you can. Do this for the remaining beef and cheese. Bake 15-18 minutes, it’s ok if the cheese leaks out slightly.
Combine the sauce ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, allow to boil for two minutes while stirring. Add meatballs to the sauce, toss to coat the meatballs and serve warm. If you want to you can transfer to a slow cooker to keep warm.
Enjoy!
One of our favorite appetizers is spinach artichoke dip, but it’s not something I typically make at home. Our favorite dip we have had was made at Bully Hill Vineyard in NY. Although this version is good and so easy to make it’s not quite as good as Bully Hill, a good substitute for sure! This is great for tailgating or any party you may be having. I like to serve them with warm pita chips.
INGREDIENTS
4 garlic cloves
1 (10 ounces) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 (14 ounces) can of artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 (10 ounces) jar of Alfredo sauce
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/3 cup grated parmesan
1/2 ( 8 ounces) package of cream cheese, softened
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place garlic in a small baking dish, bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes until soft. Remove from heat, when cool enough to touch, squeeze the garlic from the skins.
In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients together to combine. Spray an 8 x 8-inch baking dish and pour the mixture into the baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve warm.
Enjoy!
I was looking for a simple appetizer dish and thinking of what I had on hand and this came together so easily. My entire family loves a little bit of heat so this was a big hit at my house using only just a couple of ingredients. You can serve this with ranch or blue cheese dressing but we loved it with the White BBQ sauce I posted yesterday. I know when camping season comes around I will be making this often on the grill. For today I used the oven!
INGREDIENTS
1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp
1/4 cup buffalo sauce, plus a few dashes at the end of cooking time
Pinch of salt
Pinch of pepper
DIRECTIONS
Turn oven to broil, leaving the oven door slightly open. Place the shrimp in a bowl add the 1/4 cup of buffalo sauce along with salt and pepper. Mix to combine and place the shrimp in an even layer on a sheet pan. Place in the oven, still keeping the door open just slightly, and cook for just a couple minutes until you see the shrimp turning pink. Once one side is pink turn the shrimp over and cook for just a minute or until both sides are pink and cooked through. Remove from oven, add a couple more dashes of buffalo sauce, mix and serve warm.
Enjoy!
