The CookMobile » Holiday Fare

Cream Cheese Wontons

Lalaine — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 01:44:04 +0000

“People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year, but they really should be worried about what they eat between the New Year and Christmas”.

So, hey yeah! let’s bring on the cocktails…hic…and the appetizers…burp! Happy New Year everyone! May the coming year be better than the others.

Ingredients

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 pkg wonton wrappers
oil for deep-frying

Procedure

Separate wonton wrappers into individual sheets. In the center of each wrapper, drop a teaspoon of cream cheese.

Moisten edges with water. Raise all four points of the wonton square around cheese cheese, gather the two facing sides and pinch, then gather the other two facing sides and pinch to completely seal filling. Repeat procedure with the remaining wrappers.

In a large, heavy bottomed pan, heat oil sufficient to cover the wontons.

Gently drop wontons into hot oil and fry until golden and crisp, turning once. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Serve immediately with sweet and sour or plum sauce.

You can take these cream cheese wonton appetizers up a notch with these suggested variations below. Enjoy!

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup water chestnuts, finely chopped
1 tbsp green onions, finely chopped

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup smoked salmon, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh dill, finely chopped

8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup of crumbled crisp bacon
1 tsp horseradish

8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup of anchovies, minced
1 tbsp red onion, minced
1 tbsp walnuts, finely chopped

8 oz cream cheese
3 oz blue cheese
1 tbsp onions, finely chopped
1 tsp garlic, minced

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 tbsp chili sauce
2 tbsps capers

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 tbsp pimientos, finely chopped
1 tbsp green olives, finely chopped
1 tbsp walnuts, finely chopped

8 oz cream cheese, softened
2 to 3 jalapenos, seeded and coarsely chopped

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup fresh or canned crab meat, drained and flaked
1/2 tsp.Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp Tabasco sauce
1/2 tsp light soy sauce
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
1 tsp chopped chives
1/4 tsp parsley
1 tsp. salt

8 oz cream cheese, softened
3 oz Roquefort cheese
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, coarsely chopped
2 tbsps reduced balsamic vinegar

8 oz cream cheese
2 tbsps chives, finely chopped
2 tbsps orange marmalade

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup shaved honey ham, chopped
2 tbsps carrots, shredded
1/4 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded and finely chopped
1 tsp italian dressing

8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup cooked shrimp, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp grated lemon rind
freshly-cracked pepper to taste

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Bunuelos

Lalaine — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 12:11:38 +0000

Milk and cookies for Santa tonight? Go nontraditional and try crisp, sweet and cinnamon-y Bunuelos with a steaming cup of champurrado instead!

We prepared 200 pieces of these sweet discs for our Las Posadas celebration at work last week and impressive the volume may be, we did save steps by using ready-made lard flour tortillas instead of making the dough from scratch. If you want to see a real master at work, watch the video below.

Ingredients

12 pieces lard flour tortillas
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup ground cinnamon
oil for deep-frying

Procedure

In a bowl, combine cinnamon and sugar.

Heat one-inch deep oil in a skillet wide enough for the tortillas to fry flat. Deep-fry tortillas until golden brown, turning once. Remove from pan and drain excess oil on paper towels.

While warm, sprinkle fried tortillas on both sides with sugar-cinnamon mixture to taste.

Flour Tortilla Recipe: adapted from Mexrecipes.com

1/2 cup lard or shortening
3 cups all-purpose flour
dash salt
3/4 cup warm water
1/2 cup vegetable oil

With a pastry blender or your hands, work shortening into flour and salt . Add warm water and stir until dough comes together. Roll out to thin rounds 7-8 inches in diameter.

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Chocolate-covered Marshmallows

Lalaine — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 02:08:22 +0000

One of the treats I received and got to enjoy a week before Christmas was a box of chocolate-covered marshmallows from Too Good Gourmet. These giant marshmallows were drenched in white chocolate, made extra festive with a sprinkling of tiny holiday candies and came in a decorative steeple box. Half of these goodies I relished as a sweet snack and half of them found company in my daily morning coffee and evening hot chocolate.

Fortunately for me as I have developed an addiction to a piece or two of these melted in my hot drinks, these chocolate-covered marshmallows are very simple to make.

Line a sheet with parchment paper. Melt chocolate following any of the methods below:

Microwave Melting
In a microwaveable bowl, microwave one square or one cup of chips on HIGH for 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds. Stir until chocolate is completely melted. Add 10 seconds for each additional chocolate square or cup of chocolate chips. Stir microwaved melted chocolate since it may retain original shape even when melted.

Direct Stove Top Melting
Place chocolate in a heavy saucepan; cook on very low heat just until melted, stirring constantly.
Watch the chocolate carefully when using this method as it can easily be scorched.

Double Broiler Melting
Place chocolate in the top of a double broiler or in a heat proof bowl over hot, not boiling, water. Stir until smooth. The water should remain just below a simmer and is one inch below the bottom of the top pan. Make sure steam or water does not get into the chocolate.

Hand-dip jumbo-sized marshmallows into melted chocolate and coat well. Arrange chocolate-covered marshmallows single-layer on a parchment-lined sheet.

Sprinkle with crushed peppermint candies or colored sprinkles. Allow to set in the refrigerator. Store in a cool, dry place.

Tip:
Make sure that all utensils used are completely dry as moisture causes chocolate to become grainy and stiff. If this happens, add 1/2 teaspoon of shortening (not butter) for each ounce of chocolate and stir until smooth.

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Bacon-wrapped Hotdogs, Fruited Coleslaw and Bacon-Potato Salad

Lalaine — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 07:11:03 +0000

Have I already mentioned that my birthday is this month? I have already discussed my personal feelings about getting old, yes? Can I tell you again the things I am starting to forget? Where I laid my keys, where I placed my purse, what whatchamacalit’s name is, etc.. Just last night I threw away cashier’s checks in the trash. They were in a blank envelope, which I mistook to be empty and which I swooped down when I cleared our kitchen counter. I had to go through our community dumpster while my husband and daughter shined a flashlight on me! I found the envelope in a garbage bag, amongst the leftover pasta we had last Saturday, the close-to-rotting bananas we had in our fruit bowl, and other unmentionables from our bathroom trash. True story, I tell you. Wait. This is not forgetfulness and really has nothing to do with getting old. Just Lalaine being Lalaine~at whatever age.

I took these pictures at our 4th of July celebration at work as I was meaning to share the recipes here. If a firecracker, probably a neighbor’s leftover from yesterday’s fireworks, did not explode with a bang outside our window, I would have forgotten all about these hotdogs! Oh well, better late than never. Our Independence day menu was pretty simple~hotdogs, fruited coleslaw and potato salad. This is not a recipe, per se, but more of a combination of ideas.

Hotdogs
We wrapped the hotdogs with bacon, which we secured on with toothpicks. We then grilled them until both bacon and hotdogs were cooked. We served the bacon-wrapped hotdogs on buns with sauteed green bell peppers and onions and condiments such as catsup, mayonnaise and mustard. Delicious!

Coleslaw
We used shredded cabbage and carrots, raisins, and finely-chopped fresh pineapples. We put the fruited coleslaw together with a blend of mayonnaise and strawberry yogurt as dressing. Very good!

Potato Salad
We did our potato salad with the usual works of finely-chopped onions and celery, chopped boiled eggs, boiled potato cubes but we added interest with chopped crisp bacon. We also mixed in buttermilk along with the mayonnaise. Creamy!

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Champagne Sorbet

Lalaine — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 01:58:33 +0000

This champagne sorbet dessert is an elegant and stylish way to greet the coming New Year!
The bottle I used reads California Champagne, so officially it is a sparkling wine, as only wines made in specified areas of Champagne under strict regulations can legally bear the name Champagne

Makes 4 Servings

1 bottle (750ml) Champagne or sparkling wine
1/4 cup sugar

In a metal bowl, combine the champagne or sparking wine with sugar, stirring well.
Cover tightly with film or foil and freeze.
Whisk every 30 minutes, until mixture becomes firm and granular, around 4 hours.
Once mixture is granular, process in a blender or food processor to break up the icy chunks and to create a lighter texture.
Refreeze, tightly covered with foil or film in a bowl, until ready to serve.
Spoon into Champagne flutes or wine glasses.

TIPS:
1) For optimum flavor, serve sorbet within 48 hours of being prepared.
2) Garnish with candied violets or rose petals.
3) Add a drop or two of fruit liqueur for extra color and flavor.
4) For the young to join in the fun, use apple cider in place of the wine.