Pepper Jam Cream Cheese Recipe

Prep Time: 5 Minutes  Difficulty: Easy

This is my favorite go-to appetizer recipe!    It's delicious, easy, elegant, and with only two ingredients (three if you count the crackers), entertaining doesn't get any simpler.

At any given time our pantry is stocked with at least one of our mouth-watering Hot Pepper Jams.  Aside from appetizers, Hot Pepper Jams can be used in a variety of recipes, such as glazes for meat, kabobs, candied bacon, meatballs, etc.  

So if you're looking for something quick, easy, and tasty, grab a jar of Cherchies® Hot Pepper Jam, (Cherry, Cranberry, or Strawberry), a block of cream cheese, your favorite crackers, and voila, instant entertaining.  We dare you to try just one bite!

Can't decide?  Try them all:)

Ingredients:  

• 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese
• 1/2 jar Cherchies® Cherry Hot Pepper Jam, Cherchies® Cranberry Hot Pepper Jam, or Cherchies® Strawberry Hot Pepper Jam
• Crackers of choice

Preparation

Spread the cream cheese onto a plate.  Spoon the Hot Pepper Jam over top the cream cheese.  Or, be daring and dollop one third of the cream cheese with each of the Hot Pepper Jams and let your guests decide their favorite:)  

Serve with crackers.  Easy Peasy...done!  Enjoy!

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Tomato Basil Cups Recipe

Tomato Basil Cups Recipe

Cook Time: 30 minutes  Difficulty: Easy  Yield:  30 servings

I love easy-peasy recipes! A few years ago, a friend shared this recipe with me, and I had forgotten how addicting these mini morsels were: Swiss cheese, bacon, tomatoes, basil, oh my! I recently served these cuties for our family's birthday celebration, and the joy of seeing them being devoured was priceless! It was as if I hadn't fed my family in days—they disappeared so quickly!

The combination of flavors in this recipe is truly unique and worth a try! In addition to fresh juicy tomatoes from our garden, Cherchies® Basil Pizzazz is the star ingredient in this recipe. And while you can certainly use your favorite biscuit recipe, I chose refrigerated biscuits from the grocery store for ease. The unique blend of Swiss cheese, bacon, tomatoes, and basil will tantalize your taste buds.

You need to have this mouth-watering appetizer in your recipe cache, but grab a few for yourself—they will vanish before your eyes! Enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by:) Comment below if you have tried this tasty recipe. Return for more family-tested recipes, entertaining ideas, and cooking tips using all our favorite Cherchies® gourmet products.

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Ingredients

• 1 package bacon, cooked and crumbled

• 2 tomatoes, finely chopped

• 1 onion, finely chopped

• 6 oz. shredded swiss cheese

• 1 cup light mayonnaise

• 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) Cherchies® Basil Pizzazz

• 2 (16 oz. cans) reduced-fat refrigerated biscuits

• cooking spray

• mini muffin pans

Preparation

Cook bacon in oven at 400 degrees  until bacon is cooked.  Drain bacon on a paper towel lined plate and crumble when cooled.  Add crumbled bacon to a medium bowl and add the tomatoes, onions, swiss cheese mayonnaise, and Cherchies® Basil Pizzazz.  Mix together.

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Slightly grease mini muffin tins with cooking spray.  Cut each biscuit into fourths (in half and half again) and place in muffin tins.  Mold the dough to make little cups in the muffin tins.  Place enough tomato mixture into the tins to create a little mound of filling.

Sprinkle tomato cups with a little more Basil Pizzazz.  Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cups are golden brown.  Tangy, salty, savory Tomato Basil Cups, the perfect easy appetizer or snack!  Enjoy!

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Grilled Balsamic Champagne Vegetables Recipe

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Grilled Champagne Balsamic Vegetables Recipe

Cook Time: 20 minutes  Marinade Time: 2 hours Difficulty:  Easy  

It's summer and my garden is exploding with fresh vegetables!  With summer grilling season well under way, I wanted take advantage of summer's bounty and share our favorite grilled vegetable recipe, Grilled Champagne Balsamic Vegetables. These vegetables are delicious!!

I made this easy recipe for our July 4th picnic, and the vegetables were devoured!  In fact, they were so well-received that I was asked to bring my "grilled veggies" to our next potluck.  Imagine that? Vegetables getting a "call back" (sorry, theater terms...another blog).

For this recipe, we used red and green peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, Portabella mushrooms, and Vidalia onions, but feel free to substitute your favorite veggies (eggplant, yams, asparagus, etc.)

The secret to this recipe is marinating the vegetables in a tangy Champagne Mustard vinaigrette and grilling the vegetables to a perfect "tender crisp" consistency.   This recipe can also be used to roast the veggies in the oven, but if you prefer grill marks and the flavor of grilled anything, then you must grill these vegetables.  And, if you have any leftover veggies, chop them up and use them in omelets, quesadillas, or fried rice the next day!  Easy peasy!

Easy to make, colorful on the plate, and full of fresh summer flavor, this is one of those recipes worth keeping on repeat all season long.

Thanks for stopping by:) Comment below if you have tried this recipe. Come back again for more family-tested recipes, entertaining ideas, and cooking tips using all our favorite Cherchies® gourmet products.

Follow us on social media: Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons (Tbsp) Cherchies® Garlic Seasoning (could substitute Cherchies® Garlic and Herb No-Salt Seasoning)

• 1 teaspoon (tsp) pepper

• 2 Tablespoons (Tbsp) olive oil

• 1 1/2 Tablespoons (Tbsp) White Balsamic Vinegar

• 1 1/2 Tablespoons (Tbsp) Cherchies® Champagne Mustard

• 2 red peppers, seeds removed, sliced into 1 inch strips

• 2 green peppers, seeds removed, sliced into 1 inch strips

• 2 large zucchini, sliced into 1/2 inch slices

• 2 large yellow squash, sliced into 1/2 inch slices

• 1 package Baby Portabella Mushrooms 

• 1 vidalia onion, sliced in half

Preparation

Place cut vegetables on two baking sheets.  Season the vegetables with Cherchies® Garlic Seasoning (or Cherchies® Garlic & Herbs Seasoning) and pepper.  Mix the veggies by hand to ensure the veggies are evenly coated with the seasoning.  Set aside.

Prepare the vinaigrette by whisking the olive oil, the Balsamic Vinegar, and the Champagne Mustard in a small bowl.  Pour the vinaigrette over the vegetables and once again use your hands to coat the vegetables evenly.    Cover with plastic wrap and marinate the vegetables for at least two hours in the refrigerator (I usually marinate overnight).  

When vegetables have marinated, turn the grill onto high to heat up, then to medium low once grill is warmed.  Place the vegetables on the grill and cook for 4-5 minutes until vegetables have grill marks, then carefully turn over to cook the other side and cook for another 4-5 minutes.   These may need to be grilled in batches depending on the size of the grill.  Serve warm or at room temperature.  Enjoy!

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Basil Cheeseburger Macaroni Recipe

Cook Time:  30 minutes  Difficulty: Easy

Basil Cheeseburger Macaroni Recipe

Move over boxed dinner mixes,  it's so much tastier to make this dish from scratch!

Be honest, how many of you have used boxed meal mixes (Hamburger Helper, etc.?) Ok I admit, I used the them when I first married my dear hubby 25 years ago (not that there's anything wrong with that:). Making things from scratch would have been a no-no for me back then, but thank goodness my dear hubby didn't marry me for my cooking;)  Boy, how things have changed!

Ok,  I'll admit another thing...I'm a cookbook nerd...remember those...cookbooks? Well, I used to (and still do) read cookbooks. The light dawned on me early in my marriage that I could make the same dishes as those boxed meals even tastier and healthier using ingredients I could pronounce and control.

This dish not only reminds me of my newlywed self, flash forward 25 years, it is my most requested dish from our kiddos.  It is quick and easy, and the perfect tasty meal for those busy nights.  

I usually prepare this dish with our Garlic Seasoning, but decided to "pizzazz things up" this time by using our Basil Pizzazz.  Besides mixing up this recipe with different spices, I've also been know to add those unsuspecting veggies to this dish while our kiddos were growing up.

Thank goodness my hubby stuck with me for 25 years because he would have missed out on the "Best Cheeseburger Macaroni yet" (his exact words). God willing, hopefully we will celebrate at least 25 more years, and who knows how good this dish will be then

Thanks for stopping by.  Comment below and let us know what you think. Here's how it's made.

Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) Olive oil

• 1 1/2 lbs. ground meat

• 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) Cherchies® Basil Pizzazz or Cherchies® Garlic Seasoning

• 1 small onion, finely chopped

• 1 cup beef broth (For this recipe, we used 1 Tablespoon Minor's Beef Base in 1 cup water)

• 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

• 1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

• 2 Tablespoons milk to thin (more or less depending on desired consistency)

• 2 cups cooked pasta

• Chopped parsley (optional garnish)

Preparation

Saute onions in oil in a large skillet or dutch oven until onions are translucent.  Add ground meat and Basil Pizzazz and cook until meat is cooked through.  While the meat is cooking, cook the macaroni according to the package directions.

Add beef broth to the meat and stir.  Now for the best part, the cheese!  Add the cheese my friends (Here, in addition to the cheddar and monterary jack cheeses, I threw in the last few pieces of American cheese that I had in the refrigerator).   

Drain the cooked noodles and add to the cheesy beef mixture and stir.  At this point, you may want to add the milk to the thin out the sauce.  

Serve this sinfully cheesy Cheeseburger Macaroni with our Strawberry Spinach Salad and our Savory Wedge Bread (also made with Basil Pizzazz) for a complete meal.  Garnish with chopped parsley and enjoy!  A definite family favorite!

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