Cheese Crisps

Is it a chip?  Is a cracker?  Does it matter?  It's delicious!!  Another winner from Carla Hall.

Ingredients:
block of gruyere cheese
sesame seeds

1.  Preheat oven to 350.

2.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
3.  Cut cheese into very thin slices.
4.  Put cheese on cookie sheet and sprinkle sesame seeds on top.
5.  Bake for 5-8 minutes until cheese is  melted, bubbly, and golden brown.
6.  Remove from oven and cool until ready to handle.

Enjoy!!

Savory Cheese Soup

Ingredients:
45 oz broth
1 small onion, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 Tbs butter
1 tsp salt
1/3 c flour
1/3 cold water
1 (8oz) pkg cream cheese
2 c shredded cheddar cheese
1 (12oz) can beer (optional)

1.  In a slow cooker, combine the first eight ingredients.
2.  Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours.
3.  Combine flour and water until smooth; stir into soup.
4.  Cover and cook on high 30 minutes longer or until soup is thickened.
5.  Stir in cream cheese and cheddar cheese until blended.  (This is a great place to use an immersion blender if you have one!)
6.  Stir in beer, if desired.
7.  Cover and cook on low until heated through.
8.  Serve with desired toppings - croutons, popcorn, crumbled bacon, green onions, etc.

Stuffing Stuffed Peppers

This was a crowd-pleaser at a recent dinner party with friends.  So much so that I didn't have a chance to get a photo :)  This would also make a great meal for the day after Thanksgiving to use up that extra stuffing!!

Ingredients:
6 large red bell peppers
4 c stuffing *
2 c gravy
Shredded gruyere cheese
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper


1.  Preheat oven to 375.
2.  Cut the top off each pepper, remove stem, seeds and ribs from inside.
3.  Drizzle olive oil in each pepper and season with salt and pepper.
4.  In a large bowl, toss together the stuffing and gravy.  Spoon mixture into peppers until full.
5.  Place peppers in a greased baking dish and bake for 15-20 minutes.
6.  Remove dish from the oven and top each pepper with cheese.
7.  Turn the oven to broil and put peppers back in for 2-3 minutes.



* I used this version with ground Italian sausage added in.  You could use any stuffing recipe you like and consider adding in leftover turkey instead of the sausage.

Chocolate Nutella & Sea Salt Fudge

A great holiday treat!!

Ingredients:
1 can (14oz) sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 c semisweet chocolate chips
1 c Nutella
3 Tbs butter, at room temp, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
Sea Salt

1.  Line an 8x8 or 9x9 baking pan with parchment paper.
2.  In a medium glass bowl, stir together sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, chocolate chips, Nutella, and butter.
3.  Form a double boiler by setting the bowl over a medium pot of gently simmering water.  The water level should be low enough that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. 
4.  Stir until the chocolate chips are melted and the mixture is smooth, 5-7 minutes.
5.  Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan, spread the top smooth with a spatula, and sprinkle with sea salt. 
6.  Refrigerate until fudge is firm, at least 2 hours.
7.  Once firm and cool, cut into bite-sized pieces.