Christmas Eve Appetizers
Christmas Eve is a great night for a lot of appetizers and different foods - nothing fancy, just good, home cooking!
Unfortunately this year I couldn't do as much as I wanted since I had pneumonia. We ended up taking food over to my parents' house so they could do all of the work..thank goodness! We contributed two appetizers - my spinach artichoke dip and Jon's boiled shrimp and homemade cocktail sauce.
My Spinach Artichoke Dip
I tried a few different recipes and finally created my own. Believe me, if you make this one, it will be the best you have ever tried..jpg)
Ingredients
- ½ sweet yellow onion finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, pressed
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 10 oz box frozen spinach
- 2 cans artichoke hearts in water, drained and coarsely chopped
- 2 packages cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup sour cream
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup mozzarella cheese
- Few pinches of red pepper flakes
- Salt
- Saute onion and garlic in olive oil and set aside
- Cook spinach according to package directions; drain.
- Mix spinach, onion, and garlic in large bowl.
- Add cream cheese; mix
- Add mayonnaise, sour cream, cheeses, red pepper flakes, and salt. Mix well.
- Add artichoke hearts; mix; transfer to a baking dish
- Top with some cheese.
- Either store in fridge until ready to bake or bake on 350 degrees until hot and bubbly.
- Serve with tortilla chips and/or raw vegetables such as carrots and celery.
Jon's Shrimp and Cocktail Sauce
It is a tradition in Jon's family to have lots of shrimp on Christmas Eve. Jon loves this tradition - it's another excuse to make shrimp!
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Here is what he does -
- Add 3 tbsp white vinegar and 1/3 cup of Old Bay seasoning to a pot of water; bring to a fast boil
- Add 2 lbs of shrimp to the boiling water. Cook until firm, approximately 7 minutes.
- Remove from the water and toss under cold water to stop the cooking.
- Clean and de-vein the shrimp (unless you bought them clean)
- Chill in the fridge
Cocktail sauce: Jon mixes ketchup, horseradish, Tabasco, and Worcestershire sauce to make his cocktail sauce. Whew is it spicy!!
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i have a great spinach artichoke recipe i tried but now i can't find it... i can't wait to try your recipe :)
ReplyDeleteI made this for New Year's Eve and it was a huge hit. It was fabulous! Thanks for sharing! I will keeping this recipe for future use.
ReplyDeletei made this and it was so good! (i ate almost the whole thing myself!)
ReplyDeleteI made the dip for a party I had last night. It disappeared! Delicious :)
ReplyDeleteApproximately how many does this dip serve? Looking forward to making it!
ReplyDeleteHi! This dip served 6 plus leftovers, and we ate a lot of it!! I made it again last week and it served 7 with leftovers.
ReplyDeleteEvery time I make this recipe for Spinach Artichoke dip, people RAVE.
ReplyDeleteAnd then ask for the recipe. It is the best!