Joybee, What's for Dinner? : Appetizer

Showing posts with label Appetizer. Show all posts

Friday, November 13, 2015

Kimchi Fried Rice

A fried rice made with leftover rice and kimchi. A popular recipe in Hawaii and a great comfort food.

Hawaii is known for diversity. So many cultures and cuisines come together and make one big 'ohana (family). This makes for spectacular food. Kimchi fried rice is just one of those foods that make Hawaii great.

HI's diversity makes great food #KimchiFriedRice [Tweet this]

Kimchi is a Korean side dish made from fermented cabbage and hot chili paste (among other ingredients). Adding it to fried rice makes a delicious, simple, and inexpensive meal. This may not have originated in Hawaii, but it's a common menu item at many restaurants. Of course, I had to try my hand at making it. It turned out great. It was spicy, tangy, bacony, nutty, and I added spinach for little more nutrition. This will be a common menu item in my home. Some day I even want to try making my own kimchi.

#Kimchi FriedRice is an #inexpensivemeal [Tweet this]

Kimchi fried rice can be served as an appetizer, side dish, or meal. I think it makes a great lunch or snack while drinking beer and watching football (or any event--and you don't have to drink beer to enjoy it).

Kimchi #FriedRice is a great #Gamedaysnack [Tweet this]

Kimchi Fried Rice

Cook time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4-6

Ingredients:

2-3 cups leftover rice
dash sesame oil
dash rice vinegar
1-2 tbsp soy sauce
1/4 lb bacon chopped
1-2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1 tbsp ginger, minced
1/2 large onion, chopped
2-3 cups frozen chopped spinach, thawed & squeezed
12oz jar of hot kimchi, drained & rough chop
1 cups chopped green onions, divided

KimchiFriedRice is a great use for #leftoverrice [Tweet this]

I think fried rice always works best with leftover rice that has been refrigerated for a day or two.

Remove leftover rice from the fridge. Add it to a large bowl with sesame oil, vinegar, and soy sauce. Stir well breaking up any clumps and mixing well.

In a large skillet, cook the bacon, over medium heat, until it becomes crisp. Pour off most of the grease (leaving some adds to the overall flavor of the dish) and add the oil. Bring up the heat to about medium-high.

Add the ginger and garlic and stir-fry until fragrant. Add the onions and stir-fry until just softened.

Then add the spinach and kimchi. Stir fry until just heated and add the rice mixture. Continue stir-frying until the rice is heated through and fried to your liking. (I don't know what I did this time...maybe used plenty of oil, --closer to 2 Tbsp than 1, maybe a little more-- but the rice did not stick to my pan)

Turn off the heat and stir in about half of the chopped green onions.

Serve warm garnished with more green onions. Sriracha can be added if you would like a little more heat.

Enjoy.

For more leftover rice recipes check out:

Spicy Vegetable Fried Rice

Coconut Rice Pudding

Pork Fried Rice

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Friday, October 16, 2015

Crispy Pizza Sticks

Yum

Crispy cheesy bread sticks with garlic and salami dipped in marinara sauce. A great finger food for gameday or a snack any day.

Crispy Pizza Sticks: Crispy cheesy bread sticks with garlic and salami dipped in marinara sauce. A great finger food for gameday or a party.

I came up with this recipe on the fly when I was home alone so it only makes one serving...maybe two if you aren't too hungry. I had one pizza dough leftover from making Spinach Artichoke Pizzas (I'll post about it soon) and wanted an easy, crunchy snack. Have I mentioned that crunchy/crispy is my favorite (food) texture? Does anyone else have a favorite texture or am I just weird like that? Anyway, I made these pizza sticks crunchy by baking the crust twice.

Do you have a favorite food texture? Mine's crunchy [Tweet this]

I prefer to bake most things in my toaster oven and love that it's big enough to fit a frozen pizza. When you bake frozen pizzas it always says to bake it directly on the rack for a crispier crust. You can't bake dough directly on the rack though so I spread the dough on a baking sheet and baked it until it was light golden brown and sturdy enough to re-bake (with toppings) directly on the rack. This worked great for a crispy crunchy pizza snack. And if you don't care if the crust is crispy just bake it all only once in the pan.

Crispy Pizza Sticks are perfect #snack for the #toasteroven [Tweet this]

Crispy Pizza Sticks

Cook time: 20 minutes
Servings: 1-2 (use more dough and a bigger pan to serve more people)

Ingredients:

200g pizza dough, at room temperature (store-bought or your favorite recipe)
Butter
Garlic powder
Mozzarella
Salami (optional)
Easy Marinara Sauce

Spread pizza dough into an 8-inch pizza pan (I used an 8x8 inch square baking sheet which is close enough). The dough should be about 1/4 inch thin.

Bake the dough (I used my toaster oven) at 450 for about 10-15 minutes until golden brown. If you have a pizza stone you can skip these first two steps, proceed with the rest of the instructions, and bake the pizza directly on the stone...or if you don't care if the crust is crispy, just skip this first bake, top the dough as below, and bake in the pan.

Allow the baked dough (crust) to cool slightly and remove from pan (you can even do this ahead of time and freeze the pizza crust for later use--just thaw before continuing).

Spread the crust all over with butter, sprinkle on garlic powder (garlic butter made with roasted garlic would be even better if you have it), and as much cheese as you like. Then top with salami.

Place the crust back in the oven, directly on the rack, and bake at 450F for about 10 minutes more or until cheese is melted and browned around the edges.

Remove from oven, let cool slightly and cut into sticks.

Serve Pizza Sticks with Easy Marinara Sauce for dipping.

Enjoy.

If you love pizza check out these recipes:

Focaccia Pizza -

Meatball Calzones -

Cheese Steak Stromboli

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Friday, September 18, 2015

Sun-dried Tomato Spread

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A zesty two-ingredient spread made with pureed sun-dried tomatoes and olive oil. A great appetizer for a party, a gameday snack, or anytime.

Sun-dried Tomato Spread: A zesty two-ingredient spread made with pureed sun-dried tomatoes and olive oil. A great appetizer for a party, a gameday snack, or anytime.

Wow. Sun-dried tomatoes are so rich in flavor. They add an extra pop of flavor to anything they are added to. I often just much them right out of the jar. I love keeping a jar of these little beauties in the fridge for easy addition to pastas, pizzas, and antipasti. Sun-dried Tomato Spread is simple (just a puree of sun-dried tomatoes and olive oil), packed with lycopene, versatile, and delicious.

Add rich flavor w/ Sundried Tomato Spread [Tweet this]

This spread is so easy and quick to prepare and it's so delicious it will impress everyone. It's perfect for a fancy dinner party or even a simple gameday snack. I also love that it is healthy (packed with fiber and lycopene) in kind of a sneaky way. Sundried tomatoes are just so delicious you don't even consider their nutrition, but it's there.

Snack healthy w/o realizing it w/ Sundried Tomato Spread [Tweet this]

Sun-dried Tomato Spread

Prep time: under 10 minutes

Ingredients:

Sundried tomatoes in Italian seasoned oil
Olive oil
Fresh basil (optional)
Parmesan (optional)

This is super simple.

In the bowl of a food processor, fitted with the chopping blade, add about 20-30 sundried tomatoes.

Turn the processor on and let chop/puree until the tomatoes are finely chopped. Add optional ingredients (if using) and continue to chop.

Add oil 1 tablespoon at a time while processing until spread is to your desired consistency. You may not need any extra oil if you use oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes ...if it looks dry add some oil (remember it's easy to add more oil but you can't really take it away so err on the less oil side).

The spread is ready to serve immediately. Serve with your favorite bread, meats, and cheese. It's great on sandwiches or paninis and as a pizza sauce too.

Refrigerate any leftover spread. I've kept it for up to a week...it would probably last longer (maybe not as long if you add fresh basil), but I always eat it all right away.

Enjoy.

For more dips and spreads check out:

Bacon Jam -

Quick & Easy Guacamole

Hummus -

Linked to: Best of the Weekend, Pretty Pintastic, Tickle my Tastebuds, Wake up, Whimsy, Wonderful, Full Plate, Freedom

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Friday, January 30, 2015

15 Super Dips for Super Bowl 2015

Yum

A roundup of 15 dips, salsas, and spreads to make any Super Bowl party super. I sure love dips.

Super Bowl is Sunday. Whether you are watching at home or away, by yourself or with a crowd, here are 15 dips that are sure to please even the pickiest eaters. Make one or make many you can use vegetables, potato chips, tortilla chips, crackers, bread, or pita for your dippers. Maybe even mix it up and have multiple dippers and/or dips.

Click on the pictures to go to the recipes or pin for later