My Delicious Potato Poppers

You'll love this little appetizer.  So easy to make and just crazy good.  I also serve them on the side with simple dinners.  Little goodies, filled with potatoes and mustard. Then topped with cheese and bacon.  OMG.  So yummy.

    My Delicious Potato Poppers

 

1 Pound small Yukon Gold potatoes

2 teaspoons yellow mustard or more to taste

2 tablespoons sour cream

1 tablespoon cream cheese  

¼ cup cheddar or Monterrey Jack cheese, shredded

1-2 tablespoons of bacon bits

Fresh parsley, chopped for garnish

Salt and pepper to taste

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with foil.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boil the potatoes in a pot of salted water until they are fork tender.  Set them aside to cool.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Using a small melon baller, scoop out the inside of the potatoes and add to a small bowl. Add a pinch of salt to each scooped out potato.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mash the potato in the bowl with a fork or spoon and add the cream cheese and sour cream and mustard.  I usually just use a spoon and mash but you can mix with hand mixer if you want a smoother texture.

NOTE:  If the potatoes are moving too much.  Using your paring knife slice off the thinnest piece from the bottom and they will sit flat. 

Fill the potato skins with the cheese mixture. You can do this with a spoon or a piping bag.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Place the potatoes on a greased baking tray, and add the salt and pepper on top.  Add your bacon bits to the top of each potato and place in the oven for about 5 minutes until cheese melts.

 

Garnish with parsley.

Serve and enjoy!

Photography is the property of and copyrighted to Welcome Home.

Asian Lettuce Wraps

 Asian Lettuce Wraps

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love these things!  I could honestly eat them every day of the week and not get tired of them. And because they take a total of 15 minutes to make, I eat them a lot!  Okay, so it far away from my usual country cooking and I never had a lettuce wrap until about 10 years ago when I heard that PF Chang’s was new in town and this is high on the list of things to try.  And I did and I fell in love with them.  Cold crisp lettuce bib Lettuce and warm tender chicken crumbles mixed with the best sauce and a little crunch!  Try these… you’ll love them!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Asian Lettuce Wraps

 

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 pound ground chicken

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, diced

¼ cup hoisin sauce

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger

2 carrots julienne or grated

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 head butter (bib) lettuce

 

 

Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add ground chicken and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the chicken as it cooks; drain excess fat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stir in garlic, onion, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ginger and Sriracha until onions have become translucent, about 1-2 minutes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Arrange lettuce leaves on a plate or platter.  You can use any lettuce but I prefer Bib, Boston, or Butter Lettuce for the tender leaves that make the perfect cup to hold your filling. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stir in carrots and sauté until tender, about 1-2 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To serve, spoon several tablespoons of the chicken mixture into the center of a lettuce leaf, taco-style.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Want a bite?
 

 Photography is the property of and copyrighted to Welcome Home.

Cinnamon Roll Pie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

Imagine this:  You wake up early Christmas morning.  It's quiet in the house…not a creature is stirring. You quietly come down the stairs and immediately the smell of fresh brewed coffee fills the air. You are thankful for a coffee pot that brews your coffee automatically and can’t wait to grab your first cup.  You feel ambitious this morning so you decide to make cinnamon rolls for breakfast. But this is Christmas morning… so you take that first sip of hot coffee, grab your apron, and pump up the ambition another notch.  In a few minutes the house will smell like cinnamon and fresh baked dough and you can’t wait to have that first slice.  Wait, did I say slice?

 

 Cinnamon Roll Pie

1 cup milk lukewarm

2 large eggs room temperature

5 tablespoons butter softened

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 cup sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast or active dry yeast

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cinnamon Roll Filling

1 cup brown sugar

6 tablespoons butter softened

3 tablespoons ground cinnamon

 

Pie Crust

2 unbaked pie shells

 

Cinnamon Roll Icing

2 cups powdered sugar aka confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons butter melted

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 tablespoons milk can substitute with heavy cream or half and half

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 To make the cinnamon roll dough, combine all the dough ingredients in a mixer. Mix for 3 minutes. The dough will be sticky.  Place the dough in an oiled bowl and turn the dough to grease all sides. Cover with a clean towel and let rise until doubled in size. This will take 1 to 2 hours, depending on the temperature of the room.While the dough is rising, make the cinnamon roll filling by combining the brown sugar, softened butter, and ground cinnamon. Mix with a mixer until smooth.

 

When the dough has doubled in size, turn it out onto a floured board. Roll the dough out into a rectangle about ⅜ inches thick and spread the cinnamon mixture onto the dough. Starting with the short end, roll the dough (not too tightly) into a log. Cut the log into 12 to 14 equal-sized pieces.

 

 

 

 Place the center roll into each of the pie shells. Then add the remaining rolls to the pie shell. Cover with a clean towel, and let the dough rise again for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375°F. 

 Bake the cinnamon roll pies for 15 to 20 minutes. While the pies are baking, make the frosting by combining all the frosting ingredients. Stir until smooth. Frost the pies with the icing after they have cooled for about 20 minutes.

NOTE:

Okay so you’re not a morning person.  But you like the thought of this, you just can’t find that ambition. Here are my shortcuts!

You can use Pillsbury canned cinnamon rolls. No one will know the difference.

 

 

 

 

You can buy pre-made pie shells. Homemade pie crust is best, but frozen ones are great for making pies in a hurry.