What I Did Last Saturday: Wine and Cheese and Appetizers

I am a sucker for a theme party. I am somewhat incapable of having people even over to my house without some overarching premise: it's a fiesta, it's Italian, it's the Super Bowl, it's the let's watch me on TV cook  and say crazy things night...you get the idea. Last Saturday I hosted a Lia Sophia jewelry party and true to form I sent out the invites with a theme: wine and cheese party. Remember, the purpose of this party was to have my friend Anne show off the jewelry collection. Most people have a couple snacks or something...here is what I had:

I may have a problem.

In the meantime, I did dream up a yummy way to use a pound of baby portabello mushrooms and a can of crescent rolls:

Caramelized Onion and Portabello Mushroom Tart

Ingredients

• 1 Vidalia onion, thinly sliced
  
• 1 pound baby portabello mushrooms, sliced
  
• 1 tablespoon sugar
  
• 2 tablespoons white cooking wine
  
• 1 can crescent rolls
  
• 1 egg beaten
  
• 1 cup skim ricotta cheese
  
• 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
  
• 2 tablespoons chopped, fresh flat leaf parsley
  
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  
• 1 tablespoon fresh ground pepper
  
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt divided
  

Cooking Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Roll out crescent rolls onto an un-greased cookie sheet and flatten into a rectangle, pressing the seams together. Slightly roll up the edges to form a small crust-like edge. Brush top of pastry with small amount of egg and reserve remainder. Place crescent rolls in oven and cook for 9 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

In a skillet melt the butter over medium high heat. Add the onions and saute them in the butter. Add the sugar, 1 teaspoon of salt and pepper. Continue cooking the onions for about 15 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes. Add the remaining teaspoon of salt. Cook for another 10 minutes or until onions are brown. Add the white wine to deglaze the pan and cook for 5 more minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.

In a small bowl mix the leftover egg and the ricotta cheese. Evenly spread the mixture over the surface of the cooked crescent rolls being careful to leave an edge of about 1-inch. Add the onion and mushroom mixture and even spread over the cheese. 

Top with the mozzarella and sprinkle evenly with the parsley. Put back into oven for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Allow to cool slightly and using a pizza cutter, cut into squares.

This was super delicious and I think I could modify to use various ingredients...nothing like always having a can of crescent rolls handy!

Appetizer Alert: Asparagus Wrapped in Prosciutto Improvised

I love making appetizers and consequently I love having a reason to make lots of little bites and dips and such. Usually it revolves around some sort of sporting event when I am not making appetizers to entertain. On a particular evening, with our dinner plans no longer possible due to a very obstinate preschooler, I decided it would be fun to make snacks for me and the hubby while he...umm we...watched college basketball. We had gone grocery shopping that day and there was fresh asparagus on sale as well as prepackaged prosciutto that was in the deli.

In a cooking class several months ago, we had made prosciutto and puff pastry wrapped asparagus. I made them for my family over the holidays with just the prosciutto, no puff pastry, much like the recipe found on Food Network. So that evening I set about making prosciutto wrapped asparagus. Imagine my surprise when I opened the prepackaged prosciutto to find 6 slices of said meat. So now what?

Well, conveniently we had also purchased some deli baked ham that day and because I knew the ham would not have the salt and fat properties of the prosciutto to cook the way I wanted, I decided to improvise and add crescent rolls. Below is the result....and they were gone in a flash!

If I made them again with the ham for company, I would personally add a little spicy mustard before wrapping them in crescents. One can of crescents did 20 pieces of asparagus with still some dough left over (and I probably still used more dough on each one than necessary). Same principle as pigs in a blanket, just cut the dough into the strips. I cooked everything at 375 degrees for 13 minutes. Just be aware that the prosciutto only asparagus will put off a little oil when cooked so in the future I wouldn't cook them on the same pan.

Another Family Favorite (Courtesy of Pillsbury) Taco Pie

My brother had/has a very limited palate and as such when my mom found a dish he liked, she kept making it. When she discovered he liked tacos, she found a recipe for a taco casserole that Pillsbury had using their crescent rolls. She called it taco pie and since he's adverse to vegetables of ANY kind, including tomatoes, she made hers with taco meat, crescents and cheese. This is another dish that has become a favorite in my house but I've lightened it up a bit and no one is bothered a bit!

2 packages reduced-fat crescent rolls
1 pound ground Turkey
Favorite taco seasoning
Water as directed by seasoning
2 cups shredded reduced-fat Mexican cheese

Spread out one package of crescents onto an ungreased cookie sheet, pressing together the seams until the dough is in a large rectangle. Do the same with the other package of crescents on a large sheet of wax or parchment paper, trying to approximate the size of the other sheet of dough. Cook turkey until no longer pink, and drain off all liquid in pan except for approximately 1 tablespoon. Follow instructions for seasoning the meat with the taco seasoning you prefer. Every brand of packet seasoning has different directions.( I no longer buy packets and instead by the large container of McCormick seasoning from the local big box store.)

When meat is finished and all liquid is absorbed, remove from heat and set aside. Spread one cup of cheese on the dough on the cookie sheet being sure to keep a small edge all around the rectangle. Next, evenly spread the meat on the cheese. Cover meat with remaining cheese. Then cover with the other rectangle of dough and pinch and seal the edges all the way around. Bake in the oven according to the package directions  for the crescents (usually 375 for 15-20 minutes) or until crescent rectangle is golden brown.

Slice into rectangles and serve with sour cream. I have made this adding green chiles and salsa too!