This one goes out to all my fellow vegetarians! I’m going to post 4 easy, fun vegetarian appetizers to make up for last week!
1. Creamy Spinach Bites
INGREDIENTS:
8 Oz. Cream Cheese
8 oz. Monterey Jack Cheese Shredded
1/4 tsp. Garlic Powder
1/4 Yellow Onion Diced Small
1 – 10 oz. Package of Frozen Spinach, Thawed and Drained Really Well
1 Box of Puff Pastry Sheets (2 Sheets)
1 Egg
1 Tbsp. Water
DIRECTIONS:
1. Combine the Egg and Water and Beat untill well mixed.
2. Combine Softened Cream Cheese, Monterey Jack Cheese, Garlic Powder and Onion in a bowl and mix well.
2. Combine Softened Cream Cheese, Monterey Jack Cheese, Garlic Powder and Onion in a bowl and mix well.
3. Add Spinach into the Cream Cheese Mixture and stir.
4. Unroll Puff Pastry Sheets and Brush both sides with Egg and Water Mixture.
5. Spread Cream Cheese and Spinach Mixture over one side of the Puff Pastry.
6. Roll Up the Puff Pastry and Slice.
4. Unroll Puff Pastry Sheets and Brush both sides with Egg and Water Mixture.
5. Spread Cream Cheese and Spinach Mixture over one side of the Puff Pastry.
6. Roll Up the Puff Pastry and Slice.
7. Place rolls on a Baking Sheet and bake at 400 Degrees for 20 Minutes or until the Puff Pastry turns a golden color.
2. Avocado Egg Rolls with Sweet Chili Sauce
INGREDIENTS:
- 10 egg roll wrappers
- 3 avocados peeled and pitted
- 1 roma tomato diced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- canola oil for frying
For the sweet chili sauce:
- 4 tablespoons sriracha
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
DIRECTIONS:
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Add avocados, tomato, salt, and pepper to a mixing bowl. Mash the avocados to a chunky consistency and stir to combine the ingredients. This will become the egg roll filling.
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Lay out the egg roll wrappers and a small bowl of water. Distribute the egg roll filling among the wrappers, scooping them onto the bottom third of each wrapper. Taking one wrapper at a time, use a finger to brush water along its four edges. Fold up a corner over the filling, then the sides, and then roll it up. Dab the last fold with more water to seal. Repeat for all other wrappers.
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Add canola oil to a large pot until the oil is about 2 inches deep. Turn the burner to medium heat. When the oil temperature reaches 350 F, add the egg rolls in batches. Cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel to drain. Slice each egg roll diagonally.
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Combine sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Mix well. Serve with sliced avocado egg rolls
3. Honey Garlic Baked Cauliflower
Ingredients:
- 1 small head of cauliflower cut into bite sized florets
- 2 cups panko bread crumbs (see note)
- cooking oil spray
- 2 large eggs whisked
- 2 scallions finely sliced
for the sauce (see note)
- 6 tbsp honey
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 6 tbsp water + 2 tsp cornstarch
- 1 1/2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 tbsp sriracha sauce
Directions:
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Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread panko crumbs in a thin even layer across the surface of the baking sheet. Spray panko crumbs with cooking oil spray. Bake crumbs about 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.
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Set whisked eggs aside in a small bowl. Line another large baking sheet with parchment paper.
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Dip cauliflower in egg mixture and then shake a few times so that excess egg drips off. You don’t want to dampen your breadcrumbs with excess egg because then they won’t stick to the cauliflower. Then place into sheet with panko crumbs. Cover cauliflower with panko, pressing the crumbs gently against the cauliflower to help them stick. Place coated cauliflower on empty prepared baking sheet. Repeat until all cauliflower is coated.
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Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until cauliflower is cooked and the coating is a dark golden brown.
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While the cauliflower is cooking, make sauce on the stove. In a small bowl, completely dissolve cornstarch in water and set aside.
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Add all sauce ingredients except the cornstarch + water to a small pot or saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer and stir a few times until ingredients are mixed. This should only take a few seconds. Then add cornstarch water to the sauce. Stir immediately to dissolve cornstarch into the sauce. Stir occasionally and let sauce come to a simmer (make sure to stir otherwise the cornstarch will clump up) and cook until sauce starts to thicken (about 2 minutes).
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Allow sauce to cool a few minutes and thicken even more. Drizzle over cauliflower. If you wish to completely coat cauliflower in sauce, it’s best to double the sauce and brush it on with a pastry brush. Garnish with scallions.
4. Spinach and Artichoke dip Stuffed Garlic Bread
Ingredients:
- 1 baguette
- 1/2 tablespoon oil
- 1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
- 1 (10 oz) bag baby spinach leaves
- 1 (8 oz) package cream cheese
- 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 3 green onions, sliced
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- Parmesan cheese, grated, to top
- Fresh basil leaves or parsley, torn, to top
Directions:
- Cut the baguette into 4 pieces. Use a long knife to cut out the insides, leaving some bread along the edges. Pull out the loose bread to leave hollow bread quarters. Set aside.
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add in the artichoke pieces and cook for one minute. Reduce heat to medium, add in the spinach, and cook until wilted, turning often.
- Mix in the cream cheese and mozzarella, and let it melt entirely. Fold in the green onions and season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Stuff the baguette quarters with the spinach and artichoke dip, using a spoon to help pack the dip.
- Once the bread is stuffed, transfer it to a cutting board. Line up the quarters so that they fit together as they did before the baguette was cut. Slice the baguette into slices that are approximately 1″ thick.
- Tear a piece of heavy duty foil that is about 5-6 inches longer than the baguette. Slide the baguette slices off of the cutting board and onto the foil, keeping them together.
- In a small bowl, combine the butter and minced garlic. Loosely cover the top and microwave for a minute, or until the butter is fully melted. Brush the garlic butter over the baguette, allowing some to drip down between the slices. Make sure to get all of the minced garlic on top of the bread.
- Wrap the foil around the bread and bake for 15 minutes. Unwrap the bread and bake for 5 minutes, or until the top browns slightly.
- Remove from the oven, top with parmesan cheese and torn basil or parsley leaves, and serve warm.
with love, c.p 