It’s nearly the end of football season. Try these appetizers for the big parties.
Ham cheese rollups
1 tube refrigerated pizza dough
3/4 lb. ham, very thinly sliced
8 oz. Swiss cheese, very thinly sliced
8 TBS butter melted
2 TBS brown sugar
1 TBS Dijon mustard
2 TBS poppy seeds
cooking spray
1 TBS chopped parsley, optional
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9×13 pan with cooking spray. Unroll pizza dough onto a non-stick surface and roll it into a large rectangle, roughly 13×8 in size. Layer ham on top of pizza dough to cover it completely and then layer cheese in the same fashion. Starting at one of the long ends, tightly roll up dough, jellyroll style, pinching the end to seal.
Cut loaf crosswise into 12 equal-sized pieces, then arrange in prepared pan. Whisk together butter, brown sugar, Dijon mustard and poppy seeds and pour evenly over rolls. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Sprinkle with parsley, if desired, and serve.
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Wrapped Smokies
1 14-oz. pkg. Smoked Lil Smokies
15 slices bacon, uncooked, cut into thirds
3/4 C brown sugar
1/4 tsp. dried cayenne powder
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. (For an alternate cooking method try bacon wrapped smokies in air fryer.) Wrap each smokie with a bacon piece, overlapping ends, and then secure with a toothpick. Mix brown sugar and cayenne pepper in a shallow bowl and then firmly press each smokie in mixture, coating generously.
Place in a single layer on prepared pan and bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes or until bacon is browned. Flip sausages and continue to cook another 20-30 minutes or until bacon is browned on the second side. Remove from oven and serve. These little treats will be hot in more ways than one, so a little cool-down period is advised.
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Great spinach dip
8 oz. cream cheese
16 oz. light sour cream
1 stick (8 TBS) unsalted butter
1-1/2 C shredded Parmesan cheese
14 oz. quartered artichoke hearts drained and coarsely chopped
4 oz. can diced jalapeños, drained
10 oz. frozen spinach, thawed and drained
2-3 garlic cloves, pressed
In a medium pot over medium heat, melt together cream cheese, sour cream, butter and Parmesan cheese, stirring frequently until melted and an even consistency. It should start to bubble. Stir in coarsely chopped artichoke hearts, drained jalapenos and drained spinach. Finally, stir in 2-3 pressed garlic cloves.
Cook until all is heated through. Serve hot with chips, crackers or toasted baguettes.
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Husband: “My wife asked me why I spoke so softly in the house. I said that I was afraid Mark Zuckerberg was listening! She laughed. I laughed. Alexa laughed. Siri laughed. I rest my case.”
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(Melanie Behrens – melb@marysvillejt.com)