Browsing Category APPETIZERS
Anita’s Best Shrimp-Stuffed Mushrooms
Ingredients for Roasted Shrimps
1 1/2 Pound Shrimp, tail on and peeled
4 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup of green onions, chopped
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon coarse see salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
juice and zest of 2 lemons
Preparation for Roasted Shrimps
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a large bowl toss shrimps with all ingredients. Arrange shrimps in an even layer in a large baking sheet pan.
- Roast for 20 to 25 minutes or until shrimps are pink and cooked through. Chopped shrimps in small pieces and add some chopped fresh tarragon leaves. Set aside.
Preparation for Stuffed Mushrooms1. Remove stem from 12 Baby Portobello mushrooms. Arrange rounded part of mushrooms facing down on an oiled baking sheet pan and brush mushrooms with olive oil. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven and let them cool for 2 to 3 minutes before filling them with roasted chopped shrimps. Ready to serve. Enjoy!
Anita’s Grilled Man’oushe Zaatar
Man’oushe Dough Ingredients (you can see my Organic Homemade Dough recipe on my site) or follow this simple one:
1 cup All purpose flour
1/3 cup warm water
1 Tablespoon active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
2 Tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Zaatar Topping (recipe on my site)
Preparation to make your Man’oushe thin crust Dough or any Pizza of your choice grilled over a Gas or Charcoal Grill
- Combine warm water, yeast and sugar into a small glass bowl. Stir and let it sit for about 15 minutes until yeast starts to bubble or foam appeared on the surface.
- In another glass large bowl place flour and salt. Add the yeast mixture and incorporate extra virgin olive oil slowly mixing with your hands until well combined.
- Floured a surface and transfer dough. Knead it for about 5 to 7 minutes.
- Transfer dough to an olive oil greased bowl and pour some of the olive oil left over your hands to coat dough .
- Cover dough with a towel and let it rise for about 2 hours or until dough has doubled in size.
- Preheat grill to 400 grades Fahrenheit.
- Meanwhile roll out dough over a floured surface or over (pizza peel spatula) extending from the middle toward the edges.
- Transfer dough to a preheated Pizza Stone.
- Spread zaatar topping or any of your topping choices over dough and place man’oushe over you preheated pizza stone. Cover grill and let it cook for about 8 minutes or until crust is crispy, golden brown underneath and all around the edges.
Extending your Organic Pizza Dough over your wooden Pizza Peel making it easier to transfer into the B.B.Q grill.
Transferring Zaatar Manouche into the pizza stone.
Delicious ready to serve grilled Zaatar Man’oushe with cucumbers, fresh mint and tomatoes. Yummy!
Anita’s Cinco de Mayo best Shrimp Fiesta in Corn Salsa
Ingredients for Grilled Garlic Shrimps
1 pound large cooked shrimps, peeled and deveined
2 Tablespoon garlic, minced
4 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon hot sauce
1 Tablespoon jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon smoke paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
- Place all ingredients into a plastic bag. Place to marinade in the refrigerator for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Remove from refrigerator and let them sit for about 15 minutes at room temperature.
- Prepare the grill to high heat and cook shrimps for about 3 to 5 minutes to char in both sides. Set aside.
Ingredients for Fresh Corn Salsa
2 cups fresh Kernels corn
1 cup cherry tomatoes red and yellow, halves
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped finely
1/2 cup green onions, chopped finely
1/2 yellow onion, chopped finely
1 avocado, diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped finely
3 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon cumin, ground
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
Mix the corn with all ingredients. Let them marinade for 30 minutes in the refrigerator or until ready to serve.
Ingredients for Homemade Baked Yucca (Cassava) Chips
1 large yucca root, peeled and thinly sliced (paper thin)
2 Tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 425 grades Fahrenheit.
- Toss all ingredients together.
- Lay yucca chips flat into a large lined baking tray with parchment paper.
- Bake for about 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown.
Assembling your delicious Shrimp 5 de Mayo Best Appetizer
On top of your homemade baked yucca chips, place your fresh corn salsa topped with a grilled shrimp. It’s a Fiesta in your mouth!
Note: You can enjoy each of these three main delicious components on its own like the Yucca chips, which are very addictive, but they’re gluten-free root vegetable that boost your energy mood. Enjoy them with my guacamole.(see recipe on my site) Yummy!
Anita’s Creamy Stuffed Mushrooms
Ingredients
8 button Mushrooms without stems
4 Tablespoon light cream cheese, softened
1 Tablespoon Plain Yogurt
2 Tablespoon green onions, chopped
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
2 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and lined a baking dish with aluminum foil paper.
- Meanwhile, clean the mushrooms with a wet paper towel to remove dirt and stems. Set aside caps.
- Place mushrooms caps into a zip-log plastic bag. Drizzle with olive oil. Seasoned with salt and pepper to taste. Place over lined baking dish. Bake for about 10 to 15 minutes till slightly tender. Remove from oven. Let them cool before stuffing and drain on paper towels.
- In a medium bowl combine softened cream cheese, plain yogurt, dried basil, chopped green onions, minced garlic, and rest of salt and pepper.
- Stuff each mushroom with cream cheese-yogurt mixture. Sprinkle with chopped green onions. Serve at room temperature. Enjoy!
Anita’s Best Easter Chicks Deviled Eggs
Ingredients
4 large eggs
2 Tablespoon Caesar salad dressing(see recipe on my site)
1/2 teaspoon Horseradish Mustard
1/2 teaspoon Organic apple cider vinegar
3 cups of water
1 medium potato, baked
Salt and Pepper TT(to taste)
To Color Boiled Eggs
2-3 drops purple food coloring
2-3 drops blue food coloring
2-3 drops pink food coloring
2 drops pink+1 drop blue=light purple
4 bowls with water
Preparation
- Place eggs into a medium saucepan and cover with 3 cups of water. Bring water to a boil. Leave eggs boiling for 5 to 7 minutes. Turn off heat and let eggs finish cooking for another 5 minutes. Rinse eggs under cold water and peel gently with your hands. Set aside for 10 minutes and using a tiny spoon remove egg yolks and place it into a medium size bowl. Cut zigzags out of hard boiled egg whites.
- For the filling: Mash yolks and the baked potato.
Add the Caesar dressing, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper. Mix well until smooth.
- For Coloring the Eggs: Place the drops of food coloring into the bowls with enough water to cover both parts of egg whites. If color is too pale, you can always add more drops.
4. Pipe or spoon egg yolk-potato filling into colored egg white zigzags halves.
5. Make little triangles out of yellow bell peppers or carrots for the beaks and pickled cucumbers for the eyes. Apply into the filling. Place these cuties chicks over a bed of chopped lettuce and be creative on finishing decorating your Easter garden. Happy Easter!
Anita’s Lebanese Potatoes with Cilantro and Garlic-Kizbra Batata
Ingredients
3 large potatoes
6 large cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tablespoon olive oil
2 Tablespoon canola oil
1 Tablespoon butter
1 bunch fresh cilantro, finely chopped
2 teaspoon salt
2 Kielbasa (Polish Sausage), diced round
2 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice(1/2 of a lemon)
1 zest of a lemon
Preparation for Cilantro-Garlic Potatoes
- Peel Potatoes. Cut into cubes about 1/2 to 3/4 inch of thickness.
- In a large skillet at medium-high heat sauté potatoes in 2 Tablespoon of canola oil and butter until crispy at all sides and tender from the inside.
Remove and place fried potatoes over paper towel to drain from oil. Sprinkle with salt. - Meanwhile, wash and dry fresh cilantro with paper towel. Chop cilantro leaves thinly and fry at medium-high heat in 2 Tablespoon of olive oil for about 2 minutes. Add minced garlic and sauté for another minute leaving garlic half cooked to maintain more flavor. Add fresh lemon juice, zest of the lemon and rest of the salt.
- Incorporate all fried potatoes into cilantro-garlic oil. Toss all well.
5. Remove potatoes from pan and set aside. Do not discard some of the oil left in pan to drizzle over potatoes when serving.
Preparation for Polish Sausage
- At medium-high heat place sausage in a large saucepan. No oil needed. They will cook in their own juices.
- Brown sausages for about 10 to 12 minutes on both sides until caramelized.
- Remove from pan. Set aside.
Note: You can incorporate the sausages into the cilantro-garlic fried potatoes and toss all together or enjoy as side dishes where each one can shine on its own.
Anita’s Eggplant Dip with Pomegranate Juice
Ingredients
2-3 large eggplants
4 Tablespoon of Tahini (sesame paste)
1 whole pomegranate fruit
2 Tablespoon of fresh pomegranate juice
1 1/2 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
zest of a lemon
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup minced parsley, for garnish
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Preparation
- Grill eggplants over open gas grill, lightly charred the skin for a tasty smoky flavor. Keep turning them until soft from inside. Set aside to cool. (you can also roast them in the oven, placing them first under the broiler for about 5 to 7 minutes and then bake at 400 grades Fahrenheit until flesh is softened and can be removed easily).
- Peel some of the eggplants skin and gently remove seeds with a spoon. Cut into small cubes.
- Cut pomegranate fruit in half, remove seeds with your hands or spoon. Clean seeds well from the white skin.
- Set aside some pomegranate seeds for garnish.
- Use a sifter to strain out juice from pomegranate seeds with your hands.
- Place grilled eggplants into a glass bowl or smashed them over a wooden mortar. Add minced garlic, salt and paprika. Combine all ingredients.
- Add tahini paste, pomegranate juice, zest and juice of the lemon. Mix all until dip is smooth but with a little chunky texture from the eggplant. It can also be placed in food processor until mixture is smooth (I prefer the handmade one).
- Garnish with parsley and pomegranate seeds. Enjoy with pita chips as an appetizer, snack or as a side dish next to your grilled beef or chicken kebab. Drizzle extra virgin olive oil on top before eating it. Yum!
Anita’s Caprese Salad in a “Fan Way”
Farm ripe tomatoes, fresh buffalo mozzarella with fresh basil, presented in a very fun (fan) way. A refreshing and delicious summer salad or snack with balsamic glaze. Enjoy!
Anita’s Easy Guacamole
Top your grilled shrimp, fish, steak or chicken with this simple and tasty guacamole. Great for a party too !
Ingredients
3 avocados
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 small white onion, small diced
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon hot sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
- Smash two of the avocados and one diced to add more texture to your guacamole.
- Add in lemon juice for your avocados to stay bright green. Stir in tomatoes, cilantro, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Mix all well.
- Chill and serve with tortillas or yucca chips. Enjoy!
Anita’s Mini Bell Peppers stuffed with Goat Cheese
Nutritious, fast and easy to make delicious mini bell peppers. Beautiful and fresh shiny colors to impress a crowd, as an appetizer or side dish. Enjoy!
Ingredients
12 mini bell peppers, seeds removed
1/2 cup soft goat cheese
1/3 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/3 cup Lebanese labneh
1 Tablespoon fresh chives, chopped
1 Tablespoon fresh dill, chopped
1/3 teaspoon Salt
1/3 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoon Olive Oil
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 425 grades Fahrenheit.
- Cut top of peppers . Drizzle olive oil over mini bell peppers.
- Sprinkle bell peppers with salt and pepper.
- Place mini bell peppers and tops into a baking dish and roast for about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let them cool.
- Combine goat cheese, parmesan cheese, labneh, fresh chives and dill until well combined and creamy.
- Fill each mini bell pepper till top. Garnish with dill or parsley.
