Steelers Sunday Snacking

On football Sundays we like to have something around to snack on while we watch the super Steelers kick butt!

This week I went with an artichoke/spinach dip that we had fallen in love with at the Olive Garden. After several trial and errors I finally got the recipe just right and now I like to make it for munchin' (it's better to eat at home so you don't have to worry about having spinach stuck in your teeth!) I serve it with sesame crackers and buttery crackers of some type. A few times I've had celery or a crusty bread on the side too...YUM!

Simple recipe...a can of artichoke hearts (cut up fine), frozen spinach, 8 oz softened cream cheese, 2 dollops of sour cream, 1/2 cup mayonaise, 1 cup shredded cheddar/monterey jack cheeses, salt, pepper, garlic salt and fresh diced tomatoes on top (after it comes out of the oven). Mix together, bake at 350 for approx 1/2 hour!

As Halloween Continues

Okay, wanna share the rest of my pics from last year's Halloween Tea....



These cute little plastic Halloween candy bowls are dirt cheap and the local grocery store makes these round loafs of bread that are a perfect fit! Just hollow them out and fill them with your favorite dip mix. Tear the pieces into chunks for dippin' and everyone will think you worked your tail off making them! I use these for all occasions but they are extra special around Halloween with little plastic spiders crawlin' around the edges.



Simple, simple, simple is the key...but it has to look like work. This is simply a tray of cubed cheese, but I printed out these little tiny Halloween graphics and taped them to the back of toothpicks...charming!



These were bones and blood dippers. Using loaves of frozen bread dough, twist the ends to look like a bone, sprinkle with garlic and or butter and bake! Served in a straw pumpkin and I used a glass pumpkin candy dish for the pizza dipping sauce.





You may notice the little signs in several of the photos and there is an explanation. One of my dear friends has Celiac disease and cannot eat anything with wheat and such. What I did to help her out this year is I printed cards with her face and taped them on toothpicks inserted into each dish. If it was "friendly" for her diet it would just be a smiling picture of her. If it was "unfriendly" to her diet her photo would have an evil Halloween skull overlayed on it so that she knew it was not safe for her to eat. She loved the idea and I loved making her feel special.



Okay, now I'm getting excited and starting to plan for my 2010 gathering...this should be interesting.