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Reader Recipe: Chicken Salad in Celery Ribs

YumSugar — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:00:08 -0800

Whenever I find myself in need of creative inspiration, I simply look to the Kitchen Goddess group. This week, I came across a killer app — mini celery boats stuffed with chicken salad and peas. I'm thinking these would make a great appetizer to bring to my next book club, since they're bite sized and not too messy. Apparently, I'm spot on: Jenious says they're such a big hit at gatherings that she always doubles the recipe. To make these for your next get-together,

Killer App: Grape Goat Cheese Crostini

partysugar — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 08:00:17 -0700

I have a weakness for crostini. I simply can't get enough of the thin, crisp toasts with savory toppings. Since I jump at the chance to try a new variation, I recently made this easy, vegetarian crostini recipe. The ingredients are ordinary — baguette, grapes, and goat cheese — but the results are divinely delicious. The superb balance between the crunchy bread, juicy grapes, and creamy goat cheese is rich and luxurious. This dish proves that simple food can be incredibly satisfying — especially if served with a glass of bubbly on the side! To learn how to make this killer appetizer,

Killer Apps: Prosciutto-Wrapped Asparagus

YumSugar — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 11:28:51 -0700

Growing up, I hated asparagus. I thought it tasted weird, had an odd texture and was downright lousy. These days my opinion has completely changed and I think it's one of the tastiest veggies out there. Naturally it took a piece of cured meat to change all of that. That's right, prosciutto-wrapped asparagus was how I took the plunge from asparagus hater, to asparagus lover. And while I've learned to love asparagus in most any form, there's nothing quite as tasty as when it's wrapped in pork.

The traditional recipe for prosciutto-wrapped asparagus calls for you to blanch them first. However our pals at Slashfood claim you can skip the blanching step and roast them directly. Not wanting to dirty another pan, I decided to take their advice. It came out perfectly, and made for a wonderfully quick, delicious appetizer. If you want to see how to do it — with or without blanching — just

Killer App: Endive Boats

YumSugar — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 14:28:11 -0700

The other night I got home from work and was starving. Unfortunately we had late dinner plans that evening, so I couldn't chow down too heavily. We also had limited supplies in our cabinets; there was no bread, crackers, or fruit to snack on. Oddly there were several heads of fresh endives and I figured that was a good place to start.

Endive is great in that you can trim the bottoms off and use the leaves in lieu of crackers. Sometimes I just dollop a mixture of blue cheese and candied walnuts on the ends, and other times I use a tapenade or a hummus. This time I ended up ~~cleaning out my pantry~~ blending canned tuna, hummus — it was a nice replacement for mayonnaise — sundried tomato/olive tapenade, and chopped cherry tomatoes into a creamy mixture. I then placed a small spoonful on each end. It ended up being the perfect snack and I was able to save the rest of the mixture — which I put on top of a bed of leafy greens — for lunch the next day.

If you've never had endive, I suggest you give it a try. The outer leaves tend to be more bitter than the inner ones, which are creamy and mild. Just think of them as carb-free savory crackers, and top them with whatever you feel like! They're a great personal snack and make for an elegant appetizer. Most people are always thrilled by them, so give it a go and let us know what you make!