This is a quick to mix recipe for a tasty appetizer cheese ball. PK pulled it out of her mother’s recipe book that we put together about two decades ago. It goes well with carrot or celery sticks, cauliflower and broccoli flowerets, or oven crisped low carb tortillas broken into chips.
However you serve it, this ball of goodness makes a great way to start your St. Patrick’s Day Celebration.
Grandma Tony’s Guinness Golf Balls
1 package Cream Cheese
1 tablespoon Onion Flakes
1 tablespoon garlic juice
1 tablespoon Seasoned Salt
1 cup chopped Pecans
2 tablespoons Guinness Gold
Combine all ingredients. Pinch out pieces of mixture. Carefully cover each pecan with enough mixture to form a ball. Use the rounded back of a spoon to press dimples into balls to create golf balls.
Chill for about 1 hour before serving.
Variation: Grind pecan pieces and add to all ingredients. Form into a large cheese ball
Makes 14 walnut-sized cheese balls.
To toast low carb tortillas, heat the oven to 350 degrees, put tortilla on a foil-covered pan and bake for three to four minutes until browned and crispy. Break into pieces to use as dipper.
Here’s some other delicious Irish recipes to try. For more, type in Irish in the search box.
Tiropitas are a delightful combination of phyllo dough and feta cheese. They make a great snack or appetizer for parties. In Greek, the word means cheese pie. While their carb count is a little high for snacking on many of them, at 3.2 net carbs each, you can indulge in two or three depending on your total carb allotment for the day.
I’ve made tiropitas many times over the past decades, but I have to admit this last time really caused headaches. My preferred brand of Phyllo dough (Athena) wasn’t stocked by the market I usually buy it from, and the one they had turned out to be problematic. It broke when I unfolded the sheets and continued to break while I folded the dough into packets. The dough tends to dry out while you’re using it, so it becomes more difficult to work.
Ultimately, I developed plan B, which was to use phyllo cups instead. Not only did his work better, but the cups come out lower in carbs, but they also hold more of the cheese mixture. I have dubbed these tiropita cups, although they could be described as a mini Greek quiche.
Tiropitas
1 pound feta cheese
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh or 1 tablespoon dried basil leaves
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1 package (16 ounces) frozen phyllo sheets (18×14 inches), thawed
1/3 cup margarine or butter, melted
Heat oven to 400°F. Prepare a cookie sheet by placing a sheet of parchments paper on it and spraying it with cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, crumble the cheese and mash with a fork. Stir in eggs, basil, and white pepper until well mixed. Alternately, you can put the cheese into the food processor and pulse it a few times to break it into small bits, then add the eggs, basil, and pepper and pulse to mix together. You want it to be coarse rather than a paste.
On your large work surface, unroll the phyllo sheets carefully and cut them lengthwise into 2-inch strips. Cover with plastic wrap or wax paper, then with a damp towel to keep them from drying out.
Take one strip, and place 1 level teaspoon of the cheese mixture on the end. Fold the strip over the cheese, turn it, and bring the right side to the left edge to form a triangle. Turn the triangle up, then fold it from the left edge to the right side. This makes a triangular fold, like folding a flag. Repeat until you come to the end of the strip. Tuck the dough under and place on the cookie sheet. Repeat with each dough strip.
Once all the strips are done, brush the triangles lightly with butter.
Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Serve warm.
To make them in cups, place the cups on a parchment-covered sheet pan and fill each cup with a rounded teaspoon of the cheese mixture.
Once all the cups are filled, lightly brush with butter if you wish. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes.
These are best when baked just before serving. You can prepare them earlier and bake when needed or refrigerate or freeze them until you’re ready. If you freeze the packets, let them thaw before baking or add a little extra baking time.
The folded tiropitas make about 72 triangular cookies. Most packages have 18 to 20 sheets of dough.
The cups make about 60 appetizers. Each package has 15 cups in it.
As I hinted, I did make a terrific cheeseball over the weekend, let it sit until Monday, then dug in. I would have posted yesterday, but time escaped me again! Wrapping packages, writing my last few Christmas cards, and the next thing I know, the day is gone. Funny how that happens faster when you get older.
I took time to look for the Christmas star, aka the Jupiter and Saturn conjunction. I expected it to be brighter and maybe a little larger, although I’m sure city lights dimmed the view. If I’d been in the desert like I used to be when I lived in El Paso, Texas, I’m sure it would have popped more. Still, how the heck did the Three Kings manage to follow that light amongst all the others?
But I digress… I found this recipe on gimmedelicious.com and had to make minor adjustments to make it low carb. Of course, I added a tiny touch or two to make it mine. Use low carb crackers, bagel chips, carrots, or celery as the base to spread a little of this yummy cheese on top. Easy to make, it comes together quickly once you have the chopping done. It’s great for a family gathering or a small party. Besides that, it’s festive-looking with the red and green in and on it.
One tip, though; when it comes to chopping chives or onions, it’s easier to use kitchen scissors to cut them into small pieces.
Cranberry Pecan Cheeseball
8 ounces Cream Cheese
1 cup White Sharp Cheddar Cheese shredded
1/2 cup dried Sugar-reduced Cranberries chopped and divided
1 cup Pecans chopped and toasted (optional)
2 tablespoons Chives, chopped
2 tablespoon Spinach, chopped
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/4 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
Set the cream cheese out to soften for about an hour. Meanwhile chop the pecans, the craisins, chives, and spinach. Shred the white cheese if needed.
Toast Pecans: Pre-heat oven to 375F. Spread the chopped pecans on a baking tray and bake for 4 to 5 minutes or until they smell toasty. Be careful not to burn them. Set these aside and turn the oven off.
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, cheddar cheese, cayenne pepper, and garlic powder together until you have a smooth mixture. Add 1/2 of the roasted pecan and 1/2 of the cranberries, then the chives. Stir together until these are mixed through the cream cheese.
Cut a large piece of plastic wrap and put the mixture in the middle. Use a spoon or spatula to begin to shape it into a ball. Once all the cheese is pulled together, use the wrap to push it closer together and round the shape as you encase the ball in the wrap and close off the top by twisting.
Put the cheese ball in the refrigerator to chill for a few hours. This will firm up the cream cheese.
Before serving, mix the remaining pecans, cranberries and spinach or chives together on a flat surface, such as a baking pan or cheese board. Unwrap the chilled ball and roll it in the pecan and cranberry mixture, coating all sides. Press the fruit and nuts into the ball if they won’t stick.
Place on a serving platter and surround with dippers. Makes about 12 servings.
I love California roll sushi. Not so crazy about raw fish, but put cooked crab or shrimp on it and I’m in. The only problem is that pesky rice exterior that holds the whole roll together! So as I was chomping down on a forbidden rice encrusted treat, I wondered if riced cauliflower would work with it. Just like that, this experiment blossomed in my mind.
I took fresh cauliflower, pulled apart the flowerets and tossed them in the food processor, pulsing until I had rice sized pieces. Then I cooked them in a pan with about 1/4 cup of water until the bits were tender and most of the water had evaporated. I put them in a bowl and placed it in the refrigerator to chill for at least two hours.
When I was ready to make the sushi, I took out an ounce of cream cheese and softened it, then mixed it into the cauli-rice. From this point, I followed the recipe to make the roll. It came out great! Okay, not as pretty as a restaurant-bought one, but this was my first try at making it at home. I did buy a sushi kit that provided the bamboo rolling mat, other tools like a paddle and an avocado slicer, and a sushi knife.
Curious about options, I also tried this using riced turnips. This works well also, although the turnip retains more moisture than the cauliflower, so it’s best to drain after cooking and squeeze the excess water out in a paper or clean kitchen towel. The turnip has a tiny bite to it that actually works with the oriental flavors.
So, if you’re adventurous, try this California Roll recipe with either cauliflower or rice and let me know what you think.
Low Carb California Roll
1 cup Cauliflower rice or riced turnips
1 ounce Cream Cheese, softened
2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
4 half-sheets Nori roasted seaweed
1/2 teaspoon Sesame Seeds
4 pieces Crab Meat or 4 tablespoons of Cracked Crab.
4 thin slices Cucumber, cut in sticks
4 – 8 pieces of Avocado, cut into sticks
4-8 pieces Zucchini, cut into sticks
4 Carrot sticks, about 3-1/2 inches long, cooked and chilled
Wasabi
Sliced Ginger
Sodium-reduced Soy Sauce
Cook cauliflower rice in a small pan or skillet with 1/4 cup water, bringing to a boil, then reducing to a simmer. Stir frequently and add additional water if it evaporates too quickly. Cook about 15 minutes until done. It sound be firm, but tender to chew. Drain any excess water off. Let rice chill for 1 to 2 hours. Mix cream cheese, rice vinegar, and sesame seeds into the rice. This will help to bind the riced vegetables together.
You will need a bamboo sushi mat for rolling. Place it on a counter or cutting board and cover with plastic wrap.
Cut the vegetables for the filling and ready the crab.
Riced cauliflower with sesame seeds, cream cheese, and rice vinegar mixed in plus sliced avocado and zucchini.
Place 1/2 sheet of nori, rough side up, on the plastic wrapped sushi mat. Spread 1/4 cup riced cauliflower over the nori evenly, leaving a 1/4 inch edge free at each end. Across the narrow side, lay down the vegetables and crab next to each other.
Begin to roll the nori across the length of it, using the mat to press it firmer in the roll as you go. Rolling the mat over the top keeps it clear of the actual roll as you work.
When complete, place the sushi roll on a plate and repeat with the remaining vegetable rice, vegetables, and crab.
Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least an hour to chill and set. This also softens the nori. Cut each roll into five pieces with a sharp knife.
Place on small plates with about 1/4 teaspoon wasabi and several pieces of ginger to serve.
Want a low carb variation of the BBQ Chicken that tastes great and is pretty easy to do? To make these, I used Carbquick from Tova Foods. You could also use Bakesquick from Dixie Carb Counters. If you use other flours, they may not hold together as well and you’ll need to add butter and baking powder. This uses precooked rotisserie chicken, which makes it a great way to use any extra chicken.
You can order either Carbquick or Bakesquick from Netrition.comor from Amazon. It may be a little higher from Amazon, but if you have Prime, you may save on the shipping.
BBQ Chicken Biscuit Rolls
2 cups CarbQuick
1/4 cup Water
1 teaspoon Garlic and Herb Seasoning
1/2 cup G. Hughes Sugar-free BBQ sauce
1 1/2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
1/3 cup Onion, finely chopped
1 cup shredded cheese
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
Preheat oven to 425 degrees (F.) Prepare a baking pan with either a silicone mat or parchment paper.
Mix the Carbquick in a large bowl with about 1/4 cup of water. Add enough that it pulls together into a ball, but don’t get it too moist. It will roll out better if it is a stiff dough. Form the dough into a 5-inch x 3-inch log, then put in on a silicone mat or wax paper covered board. Place a sheet of wax paper over the top and press it into a rectangular shape. Use a rolling pin to roll it out to about 10 inches long by 6 or so inches wide.
Put BBQ sauce in a cup and use a basting brush to spread about half of it over the top of the biscuit dough. Add the rest to the diced or shredded chicken. Spread the chicken evenly over the dough, allowing a slight edge on each side for rolling the dough. Top with chopped onions, cheese, and sprinkle on the parsley.
Roll the dough on the long side to form a roll-up. The dough may break in places, so pat it back together as you go. If it becomes difficult to roll, then pull the other side to meet the rolled side and press together to seal. Cut the roll into 8 slices.
Place slices flat with the filling up on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until they are golden brown and the cheese is melted.
Let cool about 5 minutes, then serve with a poblano ranch dressing or more BBQ sauce. Makes 4 servings of two rolls each.
