Hot Crab Dip with Old Bay Seasoning Serves 10 Ingredients: 8 oz. whipped cream cheese, softened – $2.19 3 scallions (about ¼ cup), chopped fine – $0.99 ½ of a red bell pepper (2/3 cup) , chopped – $1.07 a heaping ½ cup grated Monterey Jack cheese – $1.09 ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese –[…]
Curried Pork Potstickers with Soy-Ginger Dipping Sauce
Mariel here. Many moons ago, my husband and I spent an incredible year living in Hong Kong. We were in our mid-20s, unmarried and unmoored from all those wonderful anchors of adulthood. Feeling restless and in search of adventure, we both decided to part with our jobs and experience life away from the east coast,[…]
Empanadas Stuffed with Lamb, Sweet Potatoes, and Montrachet
Mary Anne here. These were created in the heat of July, when Mariel still had the glazed look of a zombie, and Lil Man was on a feeding frenzy 18 hours out of 24. In need of quick meals that could be delivered as fast as take-out, I conjured up these “emapanadas,” which more than[…]
Tex-Mex Pizza with Chorizo and Black Beans
Mary Anne here. Yesterday Mariel and I shared our mutual sorrow at having so little time for our beloved blog. But before you feel tooo terribly sad over our negligence, it’s actually a time to celebrate! My gorgeous girl and her fabulous husband have moved to the ‘burbs…and just a mere mile from this madre.[…]
Chile Con Queso aka Tex-Mex Style Nacho Cheese Dip
Mary Anne here. Super Bowl Sunday is upon us, and this year I may actually watch the game as my New York Giants tackle the New England Patriots! Usually it’s all about the grub…and the commercials. My cheering section of the Ellicott-Rittenhouse team plans to keep up our spirits no matter what happens on the[…]
Sun-Dried Tomato Caprese with Smoked Mozzarella
Sun-Dried Tomato Caprese with Smoked Mozzarella Tip: You can prepare this up to 2 days before. Bring the tomato mixture back to room temperature before serving. Store the toasted baguette rounds in a sealed plastic container. Serves 10 Ingredients: 4 ozs. sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil – $2.49 2 cloves garlic, minced – stock 1[…]
Crispy Kale Chips
Mary Anne here. This fall, I spent a glorious eight hours up north in horse country with my favorite girl, Mariel. I just love those quiet, mom-daughter days. On this particular adventure, we stopped for coffee on the way and, while sipping from our paper cups, we perused the goodies at a local farm stand.[…]
Spiced Cheddar Cheese Twists
Spiced Cheddar Cheese Twists Makes about 3 ½ dozen Note: You can see in the photo some of these are twists while others were fashioned as the straw variety. I was simply playing with length, width and shape and found that a 6 or 7-inch long straw works best as the longer ones tend to[…]
Montrachet and Walnut Quesadillas with Apple, Fig, and Date Salsa
Mary Anne here. At Feast on the Cheap, we’ve written our fair share about enjoying breakfast for dinner. And Mariel realized recently that when I broke out the pancake batter for our night-time repast when she was just a little girl, it was more an act of…ummm…laziness, rather than altruistic, motherly benevolence. Busted by my brood,[…]
The Classic Lobster Roll
Mary Anne here. It has always astonished me that the scavengers of the sea command such ridiculous market prices. A century or so ago, these hard-shelled crawlers were actually considered peasant food, but you’d never know it if you’ve bought Lobster Rolls on the eastern tip of Long Island. Last year, fresh shelled lobster meat[…]
Open-Faced Peach & Prosciutto Sandwiches with Brie & Arugula
Mary Anne here. As I cruised my grocer’s aisles this past weekend, the plump, softly furred peaches captured my imagination. I wanted peaches, and I wanted them right then and there – even in their unripened form. Given their immature state, I began daydreaming this “cooked salad” on bread and the following ingredients somehow landed[…]
Memorial Day Recipe Ideas
I took a look at last year’s holiday menu and realized that we’ve added a boatload of family-friendly Memorial Day recipe ideas for this weekend’s start-of-summer feast. While we tend to stick to tradition when it comes to our own Memorial Day “picnic” – Deviled Eggs, Barbeque Spare Ribs, Southern Fried Chicken and Macaroni Salad[…]
Spicy Cheddar and Chutney Palmiers
Mary Anne here. It would seem that I’m on a puff-pastry binge these days, but I’ve got a pretty good excuse. Mariel and I are busy with a flurry of catering activity, whether it’s dishing up cocktail fare or composing menus for clients for everything from buffet dinners to week-long private chef requests. No wonder[…]
Puff Pastry Bites with Stilton, Fig Jam, and Candy-Glazed Walnuts
Mary Anne here. Living in the Northeast, this wickedly wild winter left me wanting to hibernate. And while our spring has certainly had its fair share of dark and dreary days, we’ve also enjoyed intermittent bouts of sunshine and warmth. I am SO ready for real spring weather that I’m determined to dust off the[…]
Beer-Battered Coconut Shrimp with Orange-Ginger Marmalade
Mary Anne here. While we normally don’t pay much attention to the “suggested” recipes sent our way – we have to eat what we make, after all – Sam’s Club recently passed along a shrimpy serving suggestion that struck my fancy. Unlike the pay-for-play Panera and Nutella craze that you’ve seen splashed about the internet,[…]
Crab-Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms
Mary Anne here. From the time he was a little boy, my eldest son has been wild for Portobello mushrooms, whether they’re grilled, sauteed in oil and splashed with Balsamic vinegar, or just plain raw. This past week ushered in a flurry of frantic activity in my nursing job, so my boy came home to[…]
Acorn Squash and Pear Soup
Mary Anne here. Wandering the aisles of my local market, I noticed that pears were finally out in full force…and were conveniently nestled beside a display of the most beautiful green acorn squash I’ve ever laid eyes upon. Right there in the supermarket, I began conjuring up a soup that wed these disparate beauties and[…]
Dressed-Up Shrimp Quesadillas with Mango and Gouda
Mary Anne and Mariel here. Recently Mariel and I enjoyed a few days alone at our little family abode and, per usual, food was at the forefront of our conversation. As we pondered what to have for dinner one night, Mariel requested that we make my “fancy quesadillas,” the ones with shrimp and Gouda cheese.[…]
Smoked Salmon Challah Bites
Mary Anne here. As I’ve mentioned before, the Ellicott clan was raised in a Christian-Judeo household. We were confirmed Catholics but our step-dad, George, was a devout Jew. And as he embraced our Christmas and Easter traditions with all the enthusiasm of an excited toddler, we honored his religious holidays as well – and none[…]
Jalapeno Corn Fritters with Sweet Pepper Pineapple Relish
Jalapeno Corn Fritters with Sweet Pepper Pineapple Relish Makes 18 fritters Ingredients for Sweet Pepper Pineapple Relish: ¼ cup sweet onion – $0.89 2 ½ cups fresh or canned pineapple. If you use canned, opt for the type in natural juices – $2.39 1 small red bell pepper – $1.22 ¼ cup fresh cilantro –[…]