A Dinner Party

I recently had some lovely ladies over to my house for dinner.  We had a wonderful time and I think you will really enjoy the recipes from that evening.  I'll start with the appetizer: Warm Mexican Crab Dip, courtesy of Mrs. Paula Deen.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons seeded and chopped jalapeno pepper, plus slices for garnish, optional
• 1/2 cup light beer
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 (8-ounce) block pasteurized prepared cheese product
• 1 pound lump crabmeat, drained and picked for shells
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice, (about 2 limes)
• 1/4 cup minced green onion
• 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Pinch freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• Tortilla chips, for serving, recipe follows

Directions

In a 4-quart saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, jalapeno pepper, and garlic and cook stirring frequently, for 3 minutes. Stir in the beer and cook until the liquid is reduced by half. Stir in the cream, cream cheese, and processed cheese, whisking until melted and smooth.

Stir in crabmeat, lime juice, green onion, cilantro, and chili powder and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the salt, black pepper, cayenne, and cumin. Transfer the dip to a serving bowl and garnish with sliced jalapeno pepper, if desired. Serve hot with tortilla chips.

This recipe is SO good.  I have made it several times and it always gets rave reviews.  The main thing that I change about this recipe is that I do not use the cilantro.  I don't like the taste of it and all and if you have ever cooked with it, you know how overpowering it is.  It really takes over a dish.  I also did not use a light beer. I just used what my husband had around the house which was a type of pale ale. Paula Deen suggests you serve this dip with tortilla chips (which she provides a recipe for), but I serve mine with Club crackers.

recipe link: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/warm-mexican-crab-dip-recipe/index.html

For my main course, I served Creamy Tomato Basil Soup and a Grilled Chicken Salad.  I am not going to give the recipe for the salad because I wrote about a very similar recipe last month in my Mother's Day Lunch blog. Here is the recipe for the soup:

Ingredients

• 4 tomatoes - peeled, seeded and diced
• 4 cups tomato juice
• 14 leaves fresh basil
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 cup butter
• salt and pepper to taste
• 
  
• Directions
• Place tomatoes and juice in a stock pot over medium heat. Simmer for 30 minutes. Puree the tomato mixture along with the basil leaves, and return the puree to the stock pot.
• 
  
• Place the pot over medium heat, and stir in the heavy cream and butter. Season with salt and pepper. Heat, stirring until the butter is melted. Do not boil.

This soup is amazing. I just can't say enough good things about it. If I had a restaurant, this would be on the menu. The only thing I change about the recipe is that I use cherry tomatoes instead of regular ones. The tomatoes were from my dad's garden and the basil came from my herb garden.  On a side not, I highly recommend having at least a small herb garden if you like to cook. I love mine which I have in two large pots on my back porch. It has rosemary, basil, thyme, dill, oregano, parsley, and cilantro. By far, I use basil the most. I cook with it almost every day!

recipe link: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/rich-and-creamy-tomato-basil-soup/Detail.aspx

I made two dressings for my salad: Ranch and an Herb Vinaigrette. I'll talk about the vinaigrette first.

Ingredients

9 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons wildflower honey
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup canola oil
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
3 tablespoons minced fresh chives

Directions
Combine the first 3 ingredients in a medium bowl; slowly whisk in oil until combined. Stir in basil and chives. Store, covered, in refrigerator for up to 5 days

I really enjoyed this dressing and again I had the basil in my little pot garden. Now I only used about half of the canola oil the recipe called for, it. I think if you used it all it would really drown out the tangy flavor of the
white wine vinegar. I also couldn't find wildflower honey and so just used regular. It was great.

recipe link: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/easy-herb-vinaigrette-10000001973621/

Here is the recipe for the Ranch dressing:

Ingredients
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon dried chives
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

• Directions
• In a large bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, chives, parsley, dill, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.

I have always wondered what is in ranch dressing to make it taste so dang good! My friends loved this dressing. It was definitely the most popular of the two I made. The lady that shared this recipe says that you can substitute buttermilk for the sour cream, which is what I did after reading reviews of the recipe.  It seems that if you are using it for a dressing use buttermilk, but if you are using it for a dip, use sour cream. 

recipe link: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/ranch-dressing-ii/Detail.aspx

For dessert, I made Bread Pudding with a Bourbon Sauce:

Ingredients
1 pound French style bread (the firmer the better)
3 1/4 cups milk
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup pecans
1/4 cup raisins (optional)
Bourbon Sauce, recipe follows

Directions
Tear bread into medium pieces. Add sugar and cinnamon. Mix milk, lightly beaten eggs, and vanilla. Add to bread mixture. Place 1/2 mix in casserole. Layer pecans and raisins, if used. Top with the rest of the mix. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until lightly brown. Serve warm with Bourbon sauce (below).

Bourbon Sauce
1 cup granulated sugar 6 tablespoons butter, melted 1/2 cup buttermilk 1 tablespoon (or more!) Bourbon 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 tablespoon white corn syrup 1 teaspoon vanilla

In a sauce pan mix all ingredients. Bring to a boil for 1 minute. Serve warm.

This bread pudding is delicious.  I went on the search to find a good recipe for this after I had the most amazing bread pudding with bourbon sauce at luncheon for work. I think I succeeded. I may have to put this on the menu, too if I had a restaurant. I made no changes to this recipe at all. 

recipe link: http://southernfood.about.com/od/breadpuddingrecipes/r/bl10424e.htm

I hope you enjoyed all these recipes. Happy cooking y'all!