Buffalo Chicken Dip

When I went home for Christmas, my stepsister made this really yummy dip for us to munch on before dinner.  It was so good that I had to share it here.  We made a little change to it by baking some extra mozzarella cheese on top of it.  I could've just had it for dinner!

Buffalo Chicken Dip
Ingredients
8oz package of cream cheese
1/2 cup of ranch dressing
1/2 cup hot sauce
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese (with an additional 1/4 cup to sprinkle on top)
2 cans of chicken breast (drained)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350F.

Mix all ingredients except for the extra 1/4 cup of cheese in a large baking dish.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from the oven and sprinkle 1/4 cup of cheese on top.  Return to the oven to bake for another 10 minutes.  

Serve with tortilla chips.

Enjoy!

Another Katie Classic: Spicy Shrimp Pasta

This recipe is one of the first ones that came into my cooking repertoire. The first time that I ever made it was back in 1998. I found it in the Southern Living 1997 Annual Recipes Cookbook, and it is super easy which was perfect for me back then. I've made a couple of changes from the original recipe, but I still love it to this day. I've made it for quite a few people and shared it with several of them. I also like it because it provides two nice size servings. I hope that you enjoy it, too!


Spicy Shrimp Pasta
Ingredients
8 oz of linguine
3/4 pound peeled, deveined shrimp
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup green onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup cooking wine with lemon
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (sometimes, I sub the Parmesan-Romano blend)
2 teaspoons dried crushed red pepper
5 teaspoons dried parsley

Directions
Cook linguine per box directions in water that has been salted and seasoned with garlic powder. Drain, return to pot, and set aside.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet and add green onions and garlic. Saute until tender. Add Cajun seasoning and stir for one minute

Stir in shrimp and whipping cream. Reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes, stirring often. Stir in wine and simmer for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add sauce, Parmesan cheese, and red pepper to the pot with linguine and heat over low heat, stirring gently. Stir in parsley and serve immediately.

A Katie Classic: Brazilian Shrimp Stew!

Yes, it was back in my single days that I first made this recipe, and I was all alone. It was a shame that I didn't have Rick with me to be one of the first to try it. I probably ate it for a week, but I loved it! When Rick and I first started dating, I'm sure it was among the first that I made for him. I wanted to impress him, and I promise it is smooth and silky when it hits your mouth. He says that it's not his favorite meal that I make, but it's definitely in my top 5 ever. I love it when Rick and I do all the cutting together, but sometimes, I'll do the prep work myself before he comes over so that we can get started sooner.

I've shared it with many people and made it for several friends and my family so it's only appropriate to post it here. I rearrange the order of the original recipe because it sometimes takes longer to do all the prep work and you don't want the shrimp to "cook" in the lemon juice.

Here's a link to the original recipe from epicurious.com, and here's my version.

Ingredients
1 1/2 lb large shrimp in shell (21 to 25 per lb), peeled and deveined
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 (14- to 15-oz) can petite diced tomatoes including juice
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
5 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1 can well-stirred canned lite coconut milk

Accompaniment: cooked white rice


Directions
Cook onion and bell pepper in olive oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add cayenne, 1 tablespoon cilantro, and remaining teaspoon salt and cook, stirring, 1 minute.

Toss shrimp with black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon salt, garlic, and lemon juice and marinate, covered and chilled, 15 minutes. (you want to do this here so that the shrimp doesn't "cook" in the lemon juice)

Add tomatoes and simmer briskly, stirring, until mixture is very thick, about 15 minutes.

Stir in coconut milk and bring to a boil, then add shrimp mixture and cook, stirring, until shrimp are just cooked through, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Serve over rice.

When I plate this, I usually take a 1/4 or a 1/2 measuring cup, scoop rice into, place it in the center of the plate, and then put it the stew around it. Garnish with cilantro on top of the rice.

Suprise shower snacks!

My friend Kim is in town this week. I haven't seen her since around Christmas, and since then, she has moved to West Virginia. She is expecting her daughter, Chloe, in November. Some of our friends had planned a surprise baby shower for her on Sunday. Kim thought that she was going for dinner on Shem Creek, but we had other things in mind!

I was asked to make my shrimp bruschetta that I had brought to Kristin's party in December. I came up with the idea for these snacks by combining two bruschetta recipes from epicurious.com. Over the years, I have taken them to showers, parties, and on road trips. I even made them for Rick as a comfort food after he had a really bad day at work a couple of weeks ago. He loves them. One thing that makes this recipe even easier is having the baguette sliced at the bakery at Publix. It not only saves time, but it also saves me from having to deal with those messy crumbs!

I also decided to make these cheese puffs from epicurious.com that I have made several times for Rick and I. They are one of our favorites. Since I knew how much Kim (and everyone, too) likes hot things, I thought that they would be perfect! I like to do half habanero cheese and half sharp cheddar to give them a little spicy bite. This time, I made them a little bit bigger than normal. At first, I had a mild freak out moment when they didn't seem to be poofing enough, but I think that happened due to the size. Why is it that when you make something for a bunch of people it never seem to come out as well as when I make them at home? I was also worried that they weren't done. After they came out of the oven, I sampled one, and it was a-okay. My mouth was definitely on fire from the habanero cheese!

I'm happy to report that I came home with two empty platters. Luckily for Rick, there were two puffs and two pieces of bruschetta that didn't make it on either plate!

The recipes:

Spicy Shrimp Bruschetta
Ingredients

• One bread baguette, sliced into 1/2 inch slices
• Olive oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh basil
• Two cloves garlic
• 2 shallots, chopped (I have also been known to use 1/3 cup of onion if I don't have shallots)
• 1/2 pound shrimp (each shrimp cut into thirds)
• 3/4 cup light mayo
• 1/2 container of shredded 3 cheese blend
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teapsoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon parsley
• Shredded cheddar cheese to put on top of each piece of bruschetta
  

Directions
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium pan over medium heat, and sautee shrimp, basil, garlic, and shallots until the shrimp is opaque. Place mixture on a plate that is covered with a paper towel.

Place the slices of baguette on a baking sheet.

Turn on oven to broil. In a medium bowl, mix mayo, cheese, paprika, cayenne pepper, and parsley. Add shrimp mixture to bowl and stir. Taking a tablespoon, add one scoop of the mixture to each slice of bread. If you need to make the mixture go a little farther, just add a little bit more mayo and cheese. Put a pinch of shredded cheddar cheese on top of each piece of bruschetta and broil for 2-3 minutes until the cheese starts to broil. Enjoy!


Here's the original recipe again for the cheese puffs.

And then the one that I use

Habanero-Cheddar Cheese Puffs

• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, cut into 4 pieces
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt plus additional for sprinkling
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 4 large eggs
• 3/4 cup (packed) grated sharp cheddar cheese
• 3/4 cup (packed) grated habanero cheese1
• 1 cup minced green onions

Directions
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Bring 1 cup water, butter, and 1/2 teaspoon salt to boil in heavy medium saucepan. Remove from heat; mix in flour. Stir over medium heat until mixture becomes slightly shiny and pulls away from sides of pan, about 3 minutes; transfer to stand mixer fitted with paddle. Add eggs 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition to form sticky dough. Mix in cheese and green onions.

Using 2 teaspoons, form dough into 1 1/4- to 1 1/2-inch ovals; drop onto baking sheet 1 inch apart. (Can be made ahead. Wrap in plastic, then foil. Refrigerate up to 2 days or freeze up to 2 weeks.)
Preheat oven to 375°F. Bake cheese puffs until golden, about 30 minutes if at room temperature and 35 minutes if chilled or frozen. Serve immediately.