Christmas 2010 Appetizers

Cream Cheese Roll Ups

2 jars Hormel dried beef (found in canned meat section)
1 8 oz tub WHIPPED cream cheese
1 can diced green chilies

Mix cream cheese and chilies together.  Spread into piece of dried beef and roll up! Chill for at least 3 hours. These can be made 2 days ahead of time.

Blue Cheese Dip

2/3 cup sour cream (can be fat free)
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)

Whisk sour cream, blue cheese, vinegar and cayenne in a small bowl.  Chill for 2 hours before serving. Serve with cut veggies and can also be used to dip hot wings.

Rheinlander, Steve's and Marczyk's OH MY!

We were so excited to be back in Denver for Christmas this year!  Not just because this place is home to us but because of all the great food choices.  We had a lot of help making our Christmas great and I can't wait to tell you about them.

But first....our Christmas Menu (recipes will be attached later)

2010 Christmas Menu

Cream Cheese Roll Ups

Blue Cheese Dip with Veggies

Pickled Herring (from Marczyks Fine Food)

Smoked Prime Rib (from Marczyk's)

Yorkshire Pudding

Dirty Rice with Elk Italian Sausage

Caramelized Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries and Bacon

Snowman Cake (from Rheinlander's German Bakery)

Yule Log (from Rheinlander's German Bakery)

We were really excited to visit a bakery that we'd found right before moving to Utah in 2006. It's located in Old Town Arvada and has the most delicious cookies and treats. They have something for everyone...sugar free, gluten free and coffee and cookies. Their service is amazing! We were walking around looking at everything and one of the employees asked if she could get me a cup of coffee while we looked. LOVED THAT! iKeith really wanted a Yule Log but the kids fell in love with a Frosty cake. So we got both!

 While we were in Old Town Arvada we discovered a little gem called Steve's Meat Market.  It's right next to the bakery and it has some really special items. This is not your average meat store....they specialize in processing wild game but they also have some items available to purchase that are made from Elk and Buffalo meat.  We selected Elk Italian Sausage and Summer Sausage (this went great with the cheese we picked up at Marczyk's).  We were incredibly impressed with both and can't wait to get our hands on more! They also sell Exotic Jerky, Steaks, hamburger and Buffalo meat.

Marczyk's Fine Food

Our last stop was Marczyk's Fine Foods in Denver.  My brother in law Robert insisted that we had to get our Prime Rib from there and he finally wore me down and I did as he asked.  I called them up to order it and there were many choices.  I told the nice man what I was going to do to it (smoke) and how many people were coming to my house and he helped me make a decision.  Awesome customer service!

When we went in to pick up our meat...we were blown away by the beautiful store!  Not only is it pretty...but they pack a lot of great stuff inside and many items for the home cook that wants the best ingredients. There was a really nice man giving cheese samples that were to die for!  I loved them all....but we really wanted something to go with the Elk Summer Sausage we'd bought and he helped us pick out 4 great choices. Manchego, L'Edel de Cleron, Stilton Colston and Prima Donna.  GREAT customer service! We also found Pickled Herring which made my husband's Christmas complete!  And it was really good.

Can you believe that I didn't get a picture of our beautiful Prime Rib?  We were so excited to eat it that we didn't snap a pic.  Next time....

Appetizer Spoons

I think I've just found my new obsession!

Appetizer Spoons and Amuse-Bouche!

It all started with these super cute spoons on a bambo tray from West Elm.

I also like these Trudeau Novella Spoons from Amazon.

I really like the look of these Windermere metal spoons with the curved handle from Gourmet Settings.

And then I saw these adorable stainless steel spoons from Crate and Barrel and I fell in LOVE!

Chocolate Cream Cheese Pie

When I saw that Tidymom was having a Pie Party, I knew that I had to participate...and I knew the pie I needed to make is the one that's been on my mind for more than 16 years. 

When I was growing up my Dad got his pilot's license and many of his practice flights took him to the Cheyenne Airport. There was a little restaurant a few blocks away called The Owl Inn that had the most amazing Chocolate Cream Cheese Pie.

The last time I had a slice was in 1994.   I really, really miss that pie!

I decided that I'm accomplished enough in the kitchen now to figure out how to make it....or at least come close.  I came extremely close!  One bite and I was 14 years old again!

I am not good at pie crust...it's a skill I need to work on so I just use Pillsbury unbaked pie crust and bake it myself. Easy Peasy!

Chocolate Cream Cheese Pie

inspired by The Owl Inn

• Pie Crust, purchased or homemade 

• 2 8oz blocks of Cream Cheese, softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 container Cool Whip, thawed
• 1 tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract

• 1 1/2 cups Chocolate Pudding, purchased or homemade
• 1 cup mini chocolate chips

• 2 cups Heavy Cream
• 1 -2 tablespoons Sugar
• 1-2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract

Bake the crust in a 9 inch pie pan according to package directions.  Cool.

Layer 1:
Beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar in a stand mixer with the flat beater.  Once it's incorporated, add the cool whip and vanilla extract.  Put cream cheese mixture into cooled pie crust.  Chill for one hour.

Layer 2:
Apply the chocolate pudding to your cream cheese layer and then add a layer of chocolate chips.

Layer 3:
Make Whipped Cream.  Put cold heavy cream  in mixing bowl.  Add 1 to 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract per cup of cream, and 1 to 2 tablespoons of sugar  Adjust to taste. With an electric hand mixer or a standing mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat cream.  Start slowly -- if you set it on high at first, you'll have cream all over the place. Set the mixer so it goes as fast as possible without splashing.

As the cream thickens, turn the speed up. As it gets foamier, start checking for a soft peak, which is what you want. The peak should bend over at the top when you remove the whisk.

Add the whipped cream to the top of your pie.  Chill for another hour before serving. Enjoy!

Coffee Talk: The Press Coffee Company

My little boy doesn't like the Library so we like to go on adventure walks.  We've recently become addicted to letterboxing so a nice hot chocolate and a coffee are a welcome treat.  Unfortunately...on this day, it was only 50 degrees in Colorado and our walk ended early so we headed over to Belmar Shopping Center to The Press Coffee Company.

On the menu:

• Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookie
• Hot Chocolate with Whip Cream
• Drip Coffee

The cookie was a hit and the Hot Chocolate was delicious!  The Press is one of my favorite places to get coffee because it is always good and piping hot.  Plus there is a lovely seating area and nice music playing.

Coffee Talk: Whole Foods

I have a passion for coffee. I like Starbucks but I also like to check out Non-Starbucks coffee shops because there is so much great coffee out there in the world. I've been visiting some local shops so I thought I'd document them here.

Good Cookie

Every week I take one of my kids on a date.   The one who is not on a date goes to spend two hours with Nana.  We've been doing it for several weeks and once the temperatures got cooler...it started to include a stop at a local coffee shop.

On this outing with my daughter we had been to the Library and then we went to Whole Foods for a few groceries.  What a bonus that they have a coffee shop located right next to the bakery!

On the menu:

•  Blueberry Fritter
•  Chocolate Chip Cookie
•  Hot Chocolate with Whip Cream
• Allegro Coffee

I selected the fritter because Mallory wanted a doughnut and this was the closest thing they had to one.  Imagine that!  No doughnuts at Whole Foods.  I was skeptical about it but it was great!  In fact...Mallory took a bite and let me eat the rest.  She was very happy with the cookie.  Mallory gave the Hot Chocolate 2 out of 5 stars.

Caramel Apple Muffins

You may recall a couple weeks ago I sent Pumpkin Chocolate Chip muffins to my husband's office and his bosses wife also sent in muffins. Well....last week I decided to try again and was sure the universe wouldn't jack me around twice.

I got this recipe for Caramel Apple Muffins from my friend Sue and I thought...YES, these will be great! Incidentally...my children did not like them. Too sticky and too sweet.

Hubby's co-workers loved them! YAY!

Caramel Apple Muffins
Adapted from Taste of Home

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup 2% milk
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 teaspoons Spice Islands®, All Natural, No Corn Syrup Added, Pure Vanilla Extract
1 cup chopped peeled tart apple
12 caramels, chopped

TOPPING:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup quick-cooking oats
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. In another bowl, whisk the egg, milk, butter and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in apple and caramels.

Fill paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Combine topping ingredients; sprinkle over batter.

Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the cake portion comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Serve warm. Yield: 14 muffins.

Since my kids didn't care for the sweet and sticky Caramel Muffins...I decided to try a different recipe for them. These were a hit and I discovered that I don't like nutmeg.

Apple Oatmeal Muffins
from Food.com

2 eggs
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup uncooked quick-cooking oat
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tart cooking apples, cored,peeled,and chopped

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Grease a 12 cup muffin tin. In a mixing bowl, lightly beat eggs; add milk and oil, stirring until just blended. Stir in flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon, mixing until only just moistened (do not overmix).Gently fold in the apples.

Spoon batter into the muffin tin, dividing evenly among the cups. Bake in a preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Cool in pan 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to finish cooling. Serve warm or cool; store unused portions in an airtight container.