Apple Chips with Pork Tenderloin and Cherry Chutney

Makes 22

Make Ahead Tip: Up to 3 days ahead, make chutney.  1 day ahead sear tenderloin.  Refrigerate both until ready to use, then allow to come to room temp.

If you want to assemble ahead of time, rub the apples with a scant amount of lemon or orange juice so the apple doesn’t turn brown.

Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pound pork tenderloin, sliced 1/4 inch thick rounds
• salt and pepper
• 2 large gala or fuji apple, sliced into 22, 1/4 inch thick disks and then sliced in half  into thin half moons (seeds removed)
• 1/2 cup creamy goat cheese
• 6 leaves sage, minced

Directions

1. Salt and pepper both sides of each tenderloin medallion.
2. In a large sauté pan over medium/high heat add olive oil.
3. Once the oil is glistening add the pork ( don’t over crowd, do in two batches if needed).  Brown for about 1 1/2 minutes, then flip medallions over and brown on the other side until cooked through about 2-3 minutes.
4. Spread goat cheese evenly over the apples slices, place pork on top of the cheese, top with chutney and finish of with a pinch of sage.

Cherry Chutney Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup yellow onion, diced
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 3/4 cup dried bing cherries
• 2 sage leafs
• 1 Tablespoons butter

Cherry Chutney Directions

1. In a medium sauté pan over medium/high heat add oil and onions, allow to caramelize for about 10-12 minutes, stirring frequently.
2. Pour in chicken broth, cherries and sage and reduce on medium for about 10-15 minutes or until most of the broth has been reduced.
3. Swirl in butter and set aside.

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cup roasted red peppers
• 1 cup Feta
• 3/4 teaspoon garlic salt
• pinch cayenne
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar
• 2 Tablespoons mascarpone cheese (you can sub cream cheese)
• pinch of sugar
• 4 pitas
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil

Directions

1. Add all of the ingredients through the sugar to the bowl of a food processor.  Blend until well combined.
2. Heat  a medium sauté pan over medium.  Add 1/2 Tablespoon olive oil to the pan and add 1 pita allow to “toast” on for about 20-30 seconds and flip and toast the other side.  Repeat with remaining oil and pita.
3. Cut each pita in to 8 wedges and serve with dip.

Makes 16 Large or 32 Small Potato Skins

Get ready for Kickoff with two varieties of my delicious potato skins, Chilli and Cheese and Bacon and Blue Cheese, two fun twists on the classic appetizer.

Ingredients

• 8 large or 16 small russet potatoes, washed
• 7 slices of bacon
• 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
• pinch cayenne pepper
• 2 cups mascarpone
• 1 cup blue cheese, crumbled
• 2 cups chili, canned
• 2 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1/3 cup Sour cream
• 1/4 cup Chives

Directions

1. Pre heat your oven to 375°.
2. Pierce potatoes with a fork and bake on a baking sheet for 1-1 1/2 hours or until easily pierced with a fork.
3. Remove from the oven and set- aside until cool enough to handle.
4. Lay bacon strips on a baking sheet lined with Sil Pat or parchment paper.
5. Mix together brown sugar and cayenne.
6. Sprinkle brown sugar over bacon.
7. Bake for 12-16 minutes or until crispy. Remove from the oven and set-aside.
8. Once the potatoes have cooled, slice each one in half length-wise.
9. With a spoon scoop out most of the inside, leaving a 1/4inch rim left with the skin, reserve the scooped out potato for later mashed potatoes.
10. Remove from the oven and fill each one with 1 Tablespoon mascarpone (1 1/2 tablespoons for large potatoes).
11. Top half of them evenly with blue cheese and cut up the bacon and crumble the cooked bacon over the blue cheese.
12. Evenly fill the remaining potatoes with the chili and top with cheddar cheese.
13. Place filled potatoes back in the 375° oven and allow the cheese to melt, about 5-7 minutes.
14. Remove from the oven top both with scallions  and the chili ones with sour cream.

Makes 22 Sliders

Sliders are the perfect appetizer for the Big Game, no matter what side your friends are rooting for, these sliders will be a winner!

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef
• 12 oz or 1 cup ground sausage
• 1/4 cup yellow onion, finely grated
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire
• 1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar, I use Mr. Vinegar’s vinegar
• salt
• 2 Tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cups yellow onion, sliced 1/4inch thik
• cheddar or swiss cheese, sliced,1 inch squares
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1 Tablespoon ketchup
• 2 teaspoons sweet relish
• 1/8 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon of red wine vinegar (I prefer Mr. Vinegar’s Red Wine vinegar)
• 22 Hawaiian sweet rolls

Directions

1. Pre-heat your oven to 375°.
2. In a mixing bowl mix together beef, sausage, onion, Worcestershire, garlic vinegar and pinch of salt.
3. Scoop into 18-22 large golf ball size balls and pat down into patties.  Keep wrapped in plastic in the fridge until ready to cook.
4. In a medium sauté pan over medium/high heat add olive oil and onions. Allow to caramelize for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. In a medium mixing bowl mix together mayonnaise, ketchup, relish, sugar, vinegar and a pinch of salt.  Keep in the fridge until ready to use.
6. When ready, heat a large heavy bottomed skillet over high heat.  Salt and pepper both sides of each burger and when the skillet is  hot spray with cooking spray and a add the burgers.  (Don’t over crowd, work in batches if needed).
7. Cook about 2-3 minutes on each side to get a nice crust and place on a baking sheet and top with cheese.
8. Once all of the sliders have been seared, place them in the oven for about 5-10 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 160°.
9. Slice each roll in half and spread the top and bottom with the mayo sauce.
10. Place a patty on each roll and top with caramelized onions.

In this healthy version of the classic appetizer, we are using frozen spinach and frozen artichokes.  Unless you harvest the spinach right out of your garden, frozen is a good way to go because spinach rapidly looses nutrients after it has been harvested.  Frozen spinach is harvested and frozen right away, locking in the nutrients.  Artichokes are best fresh, but very labor intensive, frozen is the next best thing.

Quick Tip: Assemble, but don’t bake.  Keep in the fridge for a day and bake according to the recipe or wrap with plastic and foil and freeze for a few months.  Bake from frozen in a 400° oven for about 1 hour covered, uncover and bake until bubbling.

Serves: about 6-10

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup light mayo
• 1,  8 oz package 1/3 less fat cream cheese
• 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
• 3/4 + 1/3  cup parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon Tabasco
• pinch of salt and pepper
• 1 3/4 cup artichoke hearts, frozen and thawed, sliced in half
• 1/2 cup frozen spinach, thawed and water squeezed out
• 1/3 cup sun dried tomatoes, minced

Directions

1. Pre-heat your oven to 375°.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine mayo, cream cheese, mascarpone, 3/4 cup parmesan, sour cream, garlic, Tabasco, salt and pepper. Mix well.
3. Stir in the artichoke hearts, spinach and sun dried tomatoes.
4. Spread into a 2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle top with remaining 1/3 cup parmesan cheese. Bake for 30 minutes or until bubbling.
5. Serve with whole wheat crackers.

This appetizer is perfect to make ahead.  The sauce can be made and stored in the fridge up 2 days in advance. Saute the shrimp and keep in the fridge for up to1 day.

Make sure to keep the sauce chilled when serving. I like to fill a freezer safe bowl with water and place a smaller metal bowl inside the bowl filled with water, place in the freezer over night or until frozen solid. Place the dip in the frozen bowls and serve.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds shrimp, peeled and de-veined
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• salt and pepper

Directions

1. Place a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add butter and allow to melt.
2. Add shrimp to the melted butter and sauté for about 5 minutes, you want them to be curled up, firm and pink.
3. Remove from the sauté pan and serve or keep in the fridge until ready to serve.

Herb Yogurt Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 small clove garlic
• 1/4 cup yogurt
• 2 cups mayo
• 4 sprigs of chives
• 4 large basil leafs
• 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika

Directions

1. Place all of the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor, blend until well combined.

Serves 10-15

Quick Tip: Assemble the veggies up to 1 day ahead and the dressing up to 2 days ahead.

Ingredients

• 8 cups broccoli, cut into small florettes
• 3 red pepper, sliced into strips
• 4 medium zucchini, sliced on the diagonal
• 3 cups cherry Tomatoes
• 1 large head celery, sliced into 3 inch sticks

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the broccoli. Blanch for 30 seconds and strain out hot water and run cold water over the broccoli to stop the cooking. Drain.
2. On a large platter arrange the vegetables.

Basil Ranch Dip – Ingredients

• Makes about 1 cup
• 1 large garlic clove
• 1 cup yogurt
• 1/2 cup mayo
• pinch of salt and pepper
• 8 basil leaves

Directions

1. Place all the ingredients into the bowl of a food processor, blend until well combined.

Make Ahead Tip: You can assemble the meatballs and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Place in the freezer. Once frozen place in a freezer ziplock and store up to 2 months.

Bake in a 400° oven on a parchment lined cookie sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165°
If you don’t want to freeze they can be baked and kept in the fridge for up to 2 days.  Reheat in a large pot with sauce.

Recipe makes about 30

Sauce – Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 cup yellow or white onion, 1/2 inch dice
• 4 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 3/4 teaspoon ginger, ground
• 1 cup canned pineapple chunks
• 2/3 cup pineapple juice, from canned pineapple
• 3 Tablespoons sugar
• 2/3 cup chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch

Sauce Directions

1. In a medium sauce pot pour in olive oil over medium heat, add the onion and sweat for 2-3 minutes or until translucent.
2. To the onions, stir in the vinegar ketchup, ginger, pineapple chunks, pineapple juice and sugar.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the chicken broth and the cornstarch.
4. Whisk chicken broth mixture into the sauce and bring to a simmer. Allow to lightly simmer for about 5 minutes. Turn down to low and keep warm.

Meatballs – Ingredients

• 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 2 Tablespoons grated yellow onion
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger, ground
• 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 2 pounds ground chicken

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°
2. In a large bowl mix together the garlic, onion, eggs, soy sauce, coriander, ginger and panko.
3. Add chicken and mix until well incorporated.
4. Scoop into quarter size balls.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the internal temp reaches 165°.
6. Add meatballs to the sauce and serve.

Cyclops Deviled Eggs Recipe
Makes 12
This appetizer is a perfect start to a Halloween dinner or substitute the olive for diced tomato or leaf of cilantro and you have a delicious appetizer for anytime of the year.

Quick tip: If you are in a hurry, hard boil the eggs and keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 day .  You can use bacon bits, in place of cooking the bacon.

Ingredients:

• 6 eggs
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup or 1/2 of an avocado, peeled and chopped
• 1 1/2 teaspoon shallot (or onion) , minced
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 strips of bacon, cooked crispy
• 4 olives, sliced into rounds
• salt

Directions:

1. Place whole eggs in a medium pot and cover with cold water and a tight fitting lid. Bring to a boil over med/high heat. Once at a boil remove from heat and let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Pour out hot water and run cold water over the eggs.  Crack eggs and peel under cold running water.
3. Slice eggs in half length wise and scoop out the yolk into a mixing bowl, reserve the whites.
4. Smash and mix the yolks, mayonnaise, avocado, shallot and lemon juice.  Season with salt.
5. Place bacon in a food processor and blend until the bacon is finely minced to create a “bacon powder”.
6. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of avocado mixture into the empty cavity of an egg white.  Repeat with remaining whites.  Sprinkle with bacon powder and finish with an olive slice.