Serves 4
How to Make Ahead: You can make this dish up to 4 hours ahead.

Ingredients

• 2-3 tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing
• 1 small avocado, cubed
• 4 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 3 cups Baby spinach, washed and dried
• 1/3 cup granny smith apple sliced into matchsticks
• ¾ cup croutons

Directions

1. Toss the avocado with the balsamic vinaigrette and place on the bottom of a salad bowl. Place apples on top of the avocado and the bacon on top of apple.
2. Place the spinach on top and keep in the fridge. Toss when you are ready to serve.

Makes 24
These are perfect for a party or tail gating, you can assemble them a day or two before your party, just keep them in the fridge wrapped in plastic. Pan sear and bake just before serving.
Tip: Be careful when working with the cut jalapeños, the seeds and the white ribs is where all the heat comes from. I like to wear gloves when cutting Jalapeños so I can toss them when I’m through and don’t risk inadvertently rubbing my eyes with hot fingers!

Ingredients

• ¾ cup fat-free cream cheese, room temp
• ¼ cup parmesan cheese, finely grated
• 1/4 cup sour cream, fat free
• 1 ½ teaspoon lime juice
• 3/4 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
• pinch of salt
• 12 slices of center-cut bacon, sliced in half
• 12 jalapeño peppers

Directions

1. Pre-heat your oven to 450 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl mix together cream cheese, sour cream, lime juice, cumin, garlic and salt. Set aside.
3. Wash jalapeños. Slice off the stems. Slice each jalapeño in half from top to bottom, so you now have two halves. With a small knife, slice out the seeds and discard them. Repeat with remaining jalapeños. Once all of your jalapeños no longer have ribs or seeds, spoon in about ½ Tablespoon of cheese filling into the cavity of each jalapeño.
4. Wrap each filled jalapeño with a slice of bacon and thread a wooden toothpick through the popper to secure the bacon.
5. Place poppers a baking sheet lined with a sil-pat or parchment paper.
6. Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until bacon is crispy.

*If you want them nuclear hot, leave some of the ribs and seeds in the jalapeno.

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.

Follow along with Jill. Click here to watch a Make Ahead Meals web segment for this recipe.

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.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 1 Cup –Bacon (sliced in to bits)
• 1 Cup – Leek (sliced 1/4 inch)
• 1 Pound -Haricot Verts (or green beans)
• 1/4 Cup –Almonds (slivered)

Directions

1. In a medium sauté pan, over med/high heat cook bacon until crisp (about 8-10min) stirring occasionally.
2. Remove bacon from pan and set aside, leaving drippings in the pan.
3. Add leeks to pan with drippings, sauté on medium heat for 5-7 min, stirring occasionally.
4. Add green beans to leeks and sauté for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. In a separate small pan toast almonds over medium heat stirring so not to burn. Toast almonds until fragrant, about 5 minutes.
6. Toss green beans, bacon and almonds together and serve.

This recipe is perfect for a Thanksgiving menu or a quick meal a home. Make sure to taste your potatoes before you stuff them to make sure the texture and flavor is to your liking, if you have larger potatoes you might want to add a tablespoon more of butter or milk.
Quick Tip: Make the potatoes up to a day ahead, keep in the fridge and bake about 25 minutes before you want to serve.
Makes 10 potatoes

Ingredients

• 5 medium russet potatoes, washed
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup mascarpone cheese
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 2 Tablespoons milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
• 8 pieced bacon (or 1/4 cup bacon bits)

Directions

1. Pre-heat your oven to 400°.
2. With a fork prick each potato about 5 times, place on a cookie sheet. (If you have a sil-pat, lay that on your cookie sheet and bake the potatoes on it).
3. Place the potatoes in your hot oven and bake for about 40-60 minutes or until easily pierced with a fork.
4. Remove from the oven and slice each potato in half lengthwise.
5. In a mixing bowl or stand mixer, add butter, mascarpone, sour cream, milk and salt.
6. Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle, but still warm, scoop out the insides leaving the skin in tact, and place the insides in the mixing bowl with the other ingredients, reserving the skin.
7. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer with a whisk attachment, whisk together on high until well incorporated and most of the lumps are gone, about 1 minute. Turn off the mixer and stir in 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese and all of the bacon.
8. With a large spoon scoop about 1/3 of a cup the whipped potatoes into each one of the skins. Sprinkle remaining parmesan cheese on top and bake at 375° for 7-10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the potato is heated through.
9. If you want to make ahead and freeze: Follow the recipe, after the stuffed potatoes are baked, place in the fridge to cool. Once cool, place the potatoes in a freezer safe container or zip lock bag. Store in the freezer for up to 2 months.

To serve straight from the freezer: Preheat your oven to 400°. Place the potatoes in an oven safe dish and cover with foil. Bake for about 35 minutes, uncover and finish baking until cheese is melted and potatoes are hot, about 10 minutes. Serve.