Category Archives: Appetizers

Appetizers, Recipes

Tomato Spinach Cheese Puffs Are So Tasty!

It started with a challenge from the roomie — a recipe for Sun Dried Tomato Spinach Cheese Puff, in the October 1 issue of First for Women Magazine — can you make it low carb?

To be honest, it was pretty straight forward on some points, but the main one was the puffs are made with refrigerated crescent rolls, so I would have to find a substitute for those. As it turned out, I tried two variations that both tasted wonderful, but also different. Version #1 uses a biscuit dough made from CarbQuick and makes a light, flakey biscuit topped with spinach, tomatoes, green onions and cheddar cheese. Version #2 is based on the Oopsie roll from from Your Lighter Side’s web site and is topped with the same ingredients, but it has more of a quiche flavor. So, here they are — two delightful appetizers to start your next party or to just have around for a low carb, low calorie snack!

Version 1 – Biscuit base

When I made these, I rolled out the biscuit dough into a rectangle, sprinkled the topping ingredients on top, then rolled it up and cut it. I believe you get the same effect and flavor by mixing the ingredients into the dough or just putting them on top. It’s certainly easier and quicker to make dropped biscuits than rolled biscuits, so that’s what I’m going with.

Makes 24 mini muffin puffs

1 1/2 cup Spinach, fresh
1/4 cup Scallions or green onions
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 cup Sun Dried Tomatoes
1/2 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded
1/4 cup bacon bits

Biscuit mix
2 cups Carbquick
4 tablespoons Shortening or butter
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic and herb seasoning or other seasonings of choice
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup Heavy Whipping Cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Using cooking spray, grease a 24 slot or 2 12 slot mini-muffin pans or insert mini-muffin cups.

Mix Carbquick, baking powder, seasonings and salt, then cut in the shortening or butter. Mix until the dough pieces form pebbles. Add whipping cream and water. Dough should be firm, but easy to drop from a teaspoon. If not, add a little more water. Set aside.

Sauté spinach and scallions (or green onions) in 1 teaspoon olive oil over medium heat for a minute or two until spinach is limp. Remove from burner and add chopped dried tomatoes and bacon bits.
Drop the biscuit dough by teaspoonfuls into the mini-muffin wells to about 2/3 full. Drop about a half a teaspoon of the spinach mixture on top. Distribute as evenly as possible. Sprinkle shredded cheese on top of the tomatoes and bacon bits.

Dough puffs ready for the oven.

Cover loosely with aluminum foil. Bake in oven for about 10 minutes, remove the foil and bake another 10 minutes until puffs are done and lightly browned.

Makes 24 puffs, each is about 60 calories, less than 1 g net carb and 2.5 g of protein.

Version 2 – Cream Cheese Roll Base

 

Cream cheese puffs ready to bake.

 

1 1/2 cups fresh Spinach, packed
1/4 cup Scallions, chopped
1/4 cup Sun Dried Tomatoes, minced
1/2 cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded
1/4 cup bacon bits

Cream Cheese Puff Dough:
2 large Eggs, separated
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 oz Cream Cheese
2 tablespoons Carbquick or any low carb flour
1/4 teaspoon garlic and herb seasoning

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Using cooking spray, grease a 24 slot or 2 12 slot mini-muffin pans or insert mini-muffin cups.

Sauté spinach and scallions (or green onions) in 1 teaspoon olive oil over medium heat for a minute or two until spinach is limp. Stir in minced tomatoes and bacon bits. Set aside.

In a clean bowl, beat 2 egg whites until foamy. Add cream of tartar and beat until stiff.

In another bowl, mix together egg yolks, cream cheese and Carbquick. Fold mixture into the egg whites being careful to not beat them down.

Spoon the batter evenly into the muffin cups to about 2/3 full. Bake for five minutes until the batter is just set. Pull out and spoon spinach topping on top of each puff. Sprinkle shredded cheese on top of the spinach.

Return to oven and bake another 10 minutes. Cheese should be melted and lightly toasted.

Each puff is about 22 calories and .4 g carbs with about 3 g of protein.

POSTED BY RENE AVERETT AT 9/12/2012 5:45 PM

Appetizers, Recipes

Simple Rollups Make Great Game Snacks!

Here it is January again and that means the “big game”.  I have to be honest – the game doesn’t hold much sway around our house, but coming up really soon are the Olympics and we will be glued to the television for some of those events.  So while becoming couch potatoes, snack foods are the easy way to munch without losing too much game time.  I’ve already got a few snack options up on the blog, so check out those in the Appetizers section where there are things like Pollo Pequitos, Stuffed Mushroom, alternate chips and nachos.

Here are a couple of additional ideas for easy to do snacks that are low carb, guilt free munchies.  They’re good for at home or taking to a viewing party where you may not have many low carb options.  They are easily doubled or tripled for more people.

Turkey Rollups With Cream Cheese

4 slices of thinly sliced turkey

1 oz of cream cheese
1 teaspoon heavy cream or sour cream
Mrs. Dash Garlic Pepper seasoning or seasoning of your choice
4 teaspoons of guacamole or 8 thin slices of avocado
1 ounce of Queso Fresca or other crumbly cheese

Makes 8 roll-ups.

Let cream cheese soften, then mix with heavy cream or sour cream and seasoning until well blended.

Put a slice of turkey on a plate, spread 1/4 of the cream cheese mix onto the slice near the middle.  Spread 1 teaspoon of guacamole or place two slices of avocado along the cream cheese.  Sprinkle with crumbled queso fresca.  Fold one edge of the turkey in and roll it over the filling into a tube.  Cut the tube across the middle diagonally.  Repeat with the other turkey slices.  Makes 8 small appetizers, which is one serving for a solo snack.

To increase the recipe, just double or triple the amounts used.

For  24 small snacks, use:

12 slices of turkey
3 oz. of cream cheese
1 tablespoon of heavy cream
1 teaspoon of Mrs. Dash or more to your taste
4 tablespoon of guacamole or 24 slices of avocado
3 ounces of Queso Fresca

Nutrition Info per recipe:

Calories: 223.7  Fat: 7.5 g  Net Carbs: 4.7 g  Protein: 13.2 g

Per each small piece

Calories: 28     Fat: 2 g        Net Carbs: 0.6 g  Protein: 1.7 g

Ham and Pickle Rollups

Among our Irish friends, there’s a saying that any true Irish meal has two kind of potatoes.  Given our fondness for bacon, I think it could also be said that any true Irish meal around our house includes two kinds of pork.

4 slices of Deli ham,  or 8 1/4 inch ( or less) thick slices about 3″ x 2″
2 oz. cream cheese
1/4 cup cheddar jack cheese or other cheese of your choice, grated
4 small sweet pickles, sugar free
2 slices of bacon, broken into pieces (optional)

Cut the ham slices in half so they are about 2″ by 3″.  Soften cream cheese by putting in the microwave for about 15 seconds so that it’s easily spreadable.  Spread cream cheese thinly on ham slices across the shorter side.  Sprinkle with about a tablespoon of grated cheese.  Cut pickles in half lengthwise and put in the middle of the cream cheese.  Put two or three small pieces of bacon against the pickle.  Roll up from one to the other and secure with a toothpick.

For the photos, I secured the rolls in two sections with a toothpick and cut them through the middle.  It makes a pretty display of the filling but isn’t necessary if you prefer to leave them as longer rolls.

I also made these using sliced spiral ham left over the New Year’s dinner.  The slices were more triangular and thicker so it is a more open roll.  These didn’t include bacon.  ou can also see that I tried a whole pickle, but it was a bit too much, both in fitting it into the roll and in flavor.

Makes 8 rolls or 16 half rolls.

Per each roll (with bacon):

Calories: 51     Fat: 4.2 g     Net Carbs: 0.5 g  Protein: 3 g

Originally POSTED BY RENE AVERETT AT 1/18/2014 2:38 PM