.maple & bacon wrapped lil smokies. {husband's choice}

These lil guys are the best/most addicting/tasty/delicious appetizers EVER. I have made them for two parties already that they did not last even a couple minutes out of the oven before they were devoured. They also make the house spell so yum which is always an extra perk. Original recipe can be found here. Enjoy!



Ingredients
1 pound Li'l Smokies
12 ounces, weight Center-cut Bacon
FOR THE GLAZE:
⅓ cups Brown Sugar
¼ cups Maple Syrup
1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
A Small Pinch Of Cayenne (optional)

Preparation
Empty the smokies onto some paper towels and blot them dry. Dry smokies will allow the bacon to adhere better. Place the dried smokies in a single layer (keeping them separated) onto a small cookie sheet. Place in the freezer for 45 minutes.
While the smokies are in the freezer, cut the bacon into thirds. Separate each piece of bacon and place on a large cookie sheet in a single layer. Put the bacon in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. The well-chilled smokies and bacon will help to keep everything from getting too slippery when you wrap the smokies later.
When it is nearly time to take the smokies out of the freezer, preheat the oven to 350F. Line a rimmed sheet pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Make the glaze by whisking together the brown sugar, maple syrup, mustard, and cayenne (if using). Whisk the mixture well to ensure that the larger pieces of brown sugar have broken up.
Wrap a piece of bacon around each smokie, pressing firmly on the final edge of the bacon to better ensure it does not spring open during baking. Try not to stretch the bacon when wrapping the sausages. Place the bacon-wrapped smokies onto the foil-lined sheet pan, seam side down. Continue with the rest of the bacon and smokies. Using a spoon, put a little bit of the thick glaze on top of each bacon-wrapped smokie, trying to coat each one evenly. You should have just enough glaze to do the entire batch.
Bake the smokies for about 35 minutes or until they are lightly brown on top. Immediately transfer the smokies to a serving plate or a slow cooker set on low to keep warm. These a very addictive. I apologize in advance.

.stuffed mushrooms.

I love appetizers and I love mushrooms. These little morsels of deliciousness were so easy to make. Enjoy!




Ingredients
12 whole fresh mushrooms
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened (if mushrooms are on the small side cut cream cheese amount in half)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Clean mushrooms with a damp paper towel. Carefully break off stems. Chop stems extremely fine, discarding tough end of stems.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and chopped mushroom stems to the skillet. Fry until any moisture has disappeared, taking care not to burn garlic. Set aside to cool.
When garlic and mushroom mixture is no longer hot, stir in cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, black pepper, onion powder and cayenne pepper. Mixture should be very thick. Using a little spoon, fill each mushroom cap with a generous amount of stuffing. Arrange the mushroom caps on prepared cookie sheet.
Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the mushrooms are piping hot and liquid starts to form under caps.

.spinach & artichoke dip.

Another amazing dip that I have made several times already. Served with a french baguette :) Enjoy! (excuse the bad picture, I realized I hadn't taken one after it was already half eaten..opps!)



Ingredients
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 (4.5 ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 (12 ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1/4 cup canned chopped jalapeno peppers, drained
1 (10 ounce) box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Mix together the cream cheese and mayonnaise in a bowl until smooth. Stir in the green chiles, Parmesan cheese, artichokes, peppers, and spinach. Spoon the mixture into a baking dish.
Bake in preheated oven until slightly browned, about 30 minutes.

.jalapeno popper dip.

Found this wonderful recipe on a blog and just can't get enough of it! Really does taste like a jalapeno popper. Enjoy :)



Ingredients
2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chiles, drained
1 (4 oz.) can diced jalapeño peppers, drained
½ cup shredded Mexican style cheese
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Cooking spray

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. In a medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, mayonnaise, green chiles, jalapeños, and shredded cheeses. Mix thoroughly with a spoon or spatula until smooth and evenly combined. Spread the mixture into a baking dish (approximately 9 x 9-inches).
In a second bowl, combine the Panko and Parmesan and stir with a fork until combined. Sprinkle over the cream cheese mixture in the baking dish. Spray lightly with cooking spray. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the mixture is hot and the topping is golden. Serve warm with baguette slices, vegetables, etc. as desired.

.cracked pepper potato chips.

These were so tasty, also from my "So Easy" recipe book. However, when I made these I didn't cut the potatoes thin enough and cook them long enough. So they did not really taste like chips but were still good and probably much healthier than the store bought ones. I also added some extra garlic..because I like it :)



Ingredients
2 large russet potatoes sliced into 1/8-inch-thick rounds
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
Salt to taste

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Toss the potatoes in a large bowl with the oil and pepper until well coated. Arrange the potato slices in 1 layer on a baking sheet; use 2 baking sheets if necessary. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until chips are crisped and lightly browned. Remove from the oven, season with salt, and cool.

.sweet potato fries.

These are my ABSOLUTE favorite! Bought from Trader Joe's in the frozen section. So cheap, simple, and a great addition to any meal. I like to have them with a horseradish sauce that I make with mayo and horseradish. Just mix in the horseradish to taste. SO good!

.jalapenos.

This recipes was given to me by my friend Betsy and I was eager to try it because I desperately needed something to do with the extra jalapenos I had from the pizza recipe. Such a simple recipe! Just needed to cut the jalapenos in half, scrap out the seeds, fill with mexican cheese, then sprinkle on some Larwy's seasoning on top. I baked at 400 until the cheese melted. YUM!!!

A WORD TO THE WISE...I was told that jalapenos are worse on your eyes than onions...however they did not seem to bother me until I touched my face with my hands. The same hands I used to pick out the seeds. (apparently you should use a spoon or gloves, but Im clueless) My face started burning..then I put water on it and this just spread around the burn, I accidently touched my eyes...and long story short and 40 minutes of screaming sobs later, my husband pouring milk on my face, a hot painful shower, alcohol and a fan on my face actually helped. But for two days every time I touched my eyes they burned. Apparently jalapenos have the worst oil ever. I did not know, and now YOU know :)