Appetizers

This is how to make perfect guacamole at home, simple and fresh, better than your favorite Mexican restaurant.  And you have to serve with homemade tortilla chips, you just do!  Instructions included with recipe.

Classic hummus bi tahini recipe with mellowed garlic, sesame paste and chick-peas.  A favorite Middle-Eastern spread served as a dip with pita bread.

Instant Pot Blackberry Jalapeño BBQ Meatballs, an easy sweet and spicy cocktail meatball appetizer for holiday parties or game day.

Easy, crispy southern fried green tomatoes, with optional spicy Louisiana rémoulade sauce ~ an iconic classic in the South.

Loaded Steak Nachos! Seasoned steak and homemade tortilla chips layered on a sheet pan with cheese and beans, then topped with sour cream, guacamole and salsa. Who doesn’t love a pan of nachos?  Or a plate, like my kids used to make after school.  They’d pile chips on a plate, top with some shredded Mexican blend …

Summer farm-fresh okra soaked in buttermilk, dredged in seasoned cornmeal then fried, with homemade rémoulade sauce for dipping. Meathead and I went to a real dive last week for dinner.  We heard they had good food so we checked it out.  First, we had to eat outside because of the smoke.  I reeked after just …

Insalata Caprese, the quintessential Italian summer salad of fresh mozzarella and heirloom tomatoes, over mixed greens with a fresh basil vinaigrette.

Have you heard of Texas Caviar or Cowboy Caviar?  I decided to try it over the long, rainy holiday weekend.  It’s a dip, made with black-eyed peas, lots of other good stuff, and tossed in a garlic balsamic vinaigrette.  At least that’s the version I made.  Some Texas Caviar recipes call for corn, some for …

Years ago, many years ago, when we still lived in Chicago, one of our favorite restaurants was Vinci on Halsted.  We went many times with friends or just for a date night.  They had an appetizer on the menu, Polenta con Funghi.  We always started with this polenta and mushroom appetizer.  The waiter would bring it out …

  My really good friends, Beth and Steve, live in Minnesota just west of Minneapolis.  They have a gorgeous house and property on several acres.  Their gardens are beautiful and they have worked hard on them over the years.  I visited them earlier this summer and their gardens were so pretty and inviting.  And they …