Marry Me Nachos

The first time Brent made these for me was back in October. It was right before Halloween and I was trying my best not to eat “bad things” because we (and his brother) were going to be the Dukes of Hazard for Halloween.

Daisy Duke didn’t have a pudgy belly. She probably didn’t eat nachos. I however DO eat nachos and then spent all of Halloween night sucking my gut in as best as I could.

None of this has anything to do with why I call them “Marry Me Nachos”, but writing this post made me remember that. I call them “Marry Me Nachos” because I had about two bites and promptly asked Brent to marry me.

He said no.

And then I cried.

Just kidding. I just ate about 4 plates full of nachos and called it a day. It’s hard to upset me when food is involved.

I’m going to put a bit of a disclaimer here before I post the “recipe”. Getting a recipe from Brent is a little difficult and all measurements are approximant since he doesn’t take the time to measure, and make notes like I have learned to do. But I love these nachos and want to share them with you even if there really isn’t anything super special about them. Or maybe there is? Let me know if you anyone proposes to you after eating them. This could get dangerous.

“Marry Me” Nachos

(printable recipe)

*Serves 4-6 people

Ingredients:
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 taco seasoning packet
- tortilla chips
- diced jalapeños, small can undrained
- 1 cup bean dip, mixed with water
- 3 cups cheese cheddar and/or pepper jack
- 1 large tomato, diced
- ½ cup chopped onion or scallions
- 1 cup cheese on top
- 1 ¼ - 1 ½ cups of water
- ½ cup salsa

Crab, Artichokes, and Cheese! Oh My!

So lately you may have noticed a trend on my little bloggy blog here. The last few recipes I’ve posted have been for appetizers of some sort. The reason for that is simple – Football season is upon us. I’m not really a football fan – I prefer baseball to be honest – but I try to be a good sport for my boyfriend.

Depending on the game, it can get a little ugly at my house because we have different favorite teams, and it just so happens that my favorite (and home team) is the one team he hates with a passion.

However, he picked Tom Brady as his quarterback for Fantasy so maybe it won’t be so bad this year.

I made this dip a little while back when we had family over for dinner. His mom is a big fan of Crab and Artichoke dip, so I thought I would make it for her. I served it with wonton chips because I forgot to pick up pita bread at the store and I had wonton wrappers in the freezer. You could use anything you want though! Warmed pita bread, crusty crostini, chips, a spoon – whatever floats your boat!

Please excuse my picture; I had to snap it quick before everyone dug in.

Crab and Artichoke Dip

*Serves 8 – 10 as a starter

(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:

- 14oz artichoke, drained and roughly chopped

- 12 oz lump crab meat, drained if too liquidy

- 8oz cream cheese, room temperature

- ½ cup sour cream

- ¼ cup heavy cream

- 2 teaspoon garlic powder

- 2 teaspoon onion powder

- 1.5 cup shredded Italian mix cheese
- Salt and pepper to taste


Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl stir together all ingredients except shredded cheese. Pour into an oven proof baking dish and then top with shredded cheese. Cover with foil.

2. Place in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 10 minutes until cheese on top is slightly browned and dip is bubbly.

Thoughts: Creamy, cheesy, tasty, and I would have stood there and ate it all with a spoon if that was socially acceptable. I had made another appetizer, but this was clearly the favorite of the get together.


I’ve got a couple other appetizers that I will be posting as soon as I can. School started this week so I’ve been preoccupied with that.

5 Minute Appetizer

Recipe: Herbed Ricotta Spread

A lot of times I get ideas on a whim or out of desperation and necessity. This was one of those times when I had unexpected people coming over, and I needed some form of an appetizer and quick. So after rummaging through my fridge for a moment I came up with this idea. I actually really liked how this came together and its especially yummy when spread over warm crusty bread. And because it comes together in less than 5 minutes, its a perfect addition for a cocktail party. You can whip it together and throw it in the fridge while you take care of other last minute party details. Which for me, would be putting on make-up or pants.

Makes 2.5 – 3 cups

(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:
- 15oz tub Ricotta cheese
- 3/4 cup parmesan cheese
- 1.5 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon garlic
- splash of milk
- S& P to taste

Directions:

In a large bowl combine all ingredients and stir to combine. Let mixture sit for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow flavors to develop. Allow to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving. Serve with crostini or warmed pita bread.

Thoughts: I made this with dried herbs because that’s what I have on hand but I think fresh herbs would be even better. Basil, parsley, thyme, rosemary, and chives would all be exceptional in this. Another great use would be to make your crostini, spread the mixture on, and top with diced tomatoes.

How to Basics: Caramelized Onions

A new element I would like to add to my blog is a “How To” section. The basic idea of this feature will be for me to demonstrate or break down some form of cooking or baking that I think would be useful. FYI: There is a link for a printable version at the end of the post.


I wanted to start with caramelized onions for a couple of reasons: 1- I use them a bit when cooking so it would be easier for me to have a post that breaks it down rather than explaining it every time and 2- they really aren’t the easiest thing in the world to make. They seem pretty simple, but it took me quite a while to figure out the trick to them. I figure other people may have the same issue.

Three things you need to know about caramelized onions:
- You start out with a lot, but end up with about a quarter of what you started with
- They take a LOT of patience
- Butter is key

What you’ll need:
- 1 medium/large white or yellow onion (I prefer yellow)
- 3 tablespoons of butter
- 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)]
- Salt and pepper

Directions:

Step One: Melt your butter in a sauté pan over medium-low heat. Use a large pan; you want the onion to have a lot of room to move around. Slice your onion as evenly as possible. This will ensure that they cook evenly. I prefer to slice them about ¼ inch thick.
Step Two: Add the onions to the melted butter and stir to coat evenly. Season with salt and pepper. Add EVOO. Stir again and cover with a lid. I’ve found that covering them helps a lot. It will keep the moisture in the pan and will prevent the onions from browning too quickly.

Step Three: Keep an eye on them! Stir them every 5-7 minutes. If you see the pan getting a little “dry” add more butter or EVOO. Don’t be afraid to add more as needed. During this process I probably added another tablespoon of EVOO.

Step Four: Keep up Step Three until onions have developed a deep brown color and have become soft. Mine took between 50 – 55 minutes. HOWEVER – depending on the amount of onion and how thick you slice them, they make take more or less.

Here is the process in pictures:

Just added the onions to the pan

After cooking for fifteen minutes

After cooking 30 minutes

After cooking 50 minutes

I turned them off at this point. As you can see from the photos, they cook down a lot! Onion is a sneaky little ninja like that.

Click here for a printable copy.

A recipe and some rambling...

Recipe for Spicy Kick Guacamole

I’ve been blogging for a little over a year now and many times I still feel like a newbie. I was completely green when I started Kitten with a Whisk and all I knew was that I wanted to track my recipes and this seemed like a fun way to do it.

I had never shared recipes before because I never – I mean never – wrote them down. So while my problem has never been coming up with a new idea or a recipe, there was a problem when it came to replicating one I had created previously.

Believe it or not, I have actually used the print feature for some of my recipes I’ve posted here. I don’t keep them on file once I upload them… I probably should but I hate files clogging up my computer.

All this has nothing to do with the recipe I’m going to share with you.

Oh wait – yes it does.

So my blog is a little over a year old and I’m still learning new things about being a food blogger. The most recent lesson is: Plan on posting EVERYTHING you make.

A lot of times if I’m just cooking a quick dinner I don’t worry about writing down the specs as I go. And many times those dinners have been really great, and I would have loved to have posted them here. The recipe below was one such occurrence and was even apart of another dish that I didn’t write down either that was spectacular. Blogger FAIL.

This recipe took me 3xs to replicate what I did the first time so I could post it. And it was just a guacamole recipe!

 

Spicy Kick Guacamole