Game Day Queso

No one needs an excuse to eat a big pot of melty cheese with salty chips, but watching all this football and baseball seems to be a great one. The last time I made it in the pic below, it was under the shade of a tree surrounded by my college girlfriends, which was heaven.  Now it is time to cozy up to Fall and break out the leggings, so this might be on heavy rotation each weekend. This is a combo of a few recipes I have made over the years. The best part is it is easy and you can make it to your taste. Happy dipping. 

                       

The Best Queso Dip

Imperfect Polish 2016

serves about 4-6 people at snack time

1 tablespoon oil, I like olive oil, but vegetable is fine

1/2 an onion, chopped

1 jalapeno, deseeded and chopped finely (leave some seeds if you like heat)

12 oz American Cheese (go to the deli counter), shredded 

4 oz Pepper Jack Cheese, shredded (use regular Monterey Jack you do not like spicy)

3/4 cup milk

Bunch of cilantro, chopped (leave out if you do not like it)

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Place a metal dish, like a cast iron casserole or pan, in the oven to heat up. 

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and jalapeño and sauce until onions are slightly browned. Reduce heat to Medium Low/Low and add in the cheeses and stir until melted. Add in about 1/2 of the milk and whisk. You can add more milk if it is too thick a little bit of at a time and keep whisking. Continue until you like the consistency of it. 

Take off the heat and pour the queso into the heated dish. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then add the cilantro if using. If you want to make it spicier, add in some of your favorite hot sauce. 

Enjoy! 

xo

Erin 

Edamame Hummus

In the spirit of St. Patrick's Day (yes, I realize this was over a month ago), I made some green food to bring to a friend's. Besides rolling up some spinach tortillas and adding a little green food coloring to chocolate chip cookies, I made this easy dip. It took 5 minutes and comes together with ingredients you might already have. Or at least most of them. The edamame gives this hummus a new spin since we have all had the same boring one a billion times. Plus, I am sure there are some health benefits of the edamame, so there's that. 

                  

Edamame Hummus

Imperfect Polish 2016

1 bag of frozen edamame, defrosted 

1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

juice of two lemons

1/2 cup tahini 

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

water and/or olive oil

salt and pepper

Place the first five ingredients in a blender/food processor/bullet/vitamix and process until smooth. Add in some water and/or olive oil to desired consistency (start with a little, process, add more if you need it, repeat until you get to what you like). Season to taste with salt and pepper. Can be store in the fridge for 5 or so days. 

Enjoy! 

xo

Erin 

Cheesy Zucchini Tots

We had monster zucchini from the garden and coming up with all the ways to eat the mountains of it was a challenge. We grilled and drizzled it with balsamic, attempted to make healthier versions of bread with it, cubed and roasted it with olive oil, and most successfully these cheesy zucchini tots. This recipe is all over Pinterest and this recipe is my version after trying a few. It is simple and the only "bad" ingredient being breadcrumbs, you could use a gluten free variety if that is what you are into. Also, you could sub in any cheese that you love that melts well, but sharp cheddar really is the best. These are great as a side or as an appetizer. 

Cheesy Zucchini Tots

Imperfect Polish 2015

makes 4 sides 

1 packed cup of shredded zucchini (you can do this with a box grater or in a food processor with the grater attachment)

1 egg

1/4 cup breadcrumbs, any variety

1/2 teaspoon salt

few cracks of fresh pepper

heaping 1/4 cup of shredded sharp cheddar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

Spray a cookie sheet with oil liberally. Set aside. 

Place the zucchini in a couple paper towels and pat out the excess water. Set aside. 

In a large bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients well. Then add the zucchini and combine using a fork or your hands. Place tablespoon sized round mounds of the mixture on the cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, turning once after 10 minutes. Tots should be golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature. 

To make in advance: Follow all of the recipe to the end. Then just reheat in the oven later. You can also freeze them and reheat in the oven at 350 until heated through, about 20 minutes. 

Enjoy! 

xo

Erin 

Leftover Oatmeal Muffins

Oatmeal seemed like such an easy breakfast for the kids to love. I grabbed the organic steel cut oats from the store thinking #momoftheyear! I made them on the stove after they woke up, drizzled it with agave nectar and cinnamon, then served up waiting for giant smiles of excitement from the deliciousness. 

Which never happened. Instead they were over it and only requested more syrup (lots), which completely negates the entire point of this breakfast. So with a few cups of already cooked oatmeal going to waste I decided to go the baked good route. This recipe uses very few ingredients and has very little sugar. My son thinks everything in muffin form is a cupcake, so we added a couple of sprinkles on top. The muffins are super moist and hearty. They also come together in under ten minutes. See below if you do not have leftover oatmeal, you can use quick cook oats too. 

Oatmeal Muffins 

Imperfect Polish 2015

Makes one dozen muffins 

2 cups cooked oatmeal - or - soak 1 cup of oats in 1 cup of milk for 15 minutes
1 egg
1/4 cup oil 
1/4 brown sugar
1 cup while wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder 
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Using a standing mixer or hand mixer, beat egg, oil, and brown sugar in a large bowl. Then mix in the oats. 

Combine all of remaining ingredients in a separate bowl, then add to the wet ingredients. Mix well until combined. 

Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray and fill each cup about 2/3 full. Bake at 425 for 18-22 minutes. You can check when toothpick comes clean out of one of the muffins. 

Enjoy! 
xo
Erin