Small Plates & Snacks – In Good Taste

Easy Baba Ghanoush Recipe

Maris Callahan — Fri, 22 Feb 2019 06:00:15 +0000

Besides the fact that it’s fun to say, Baba ghanoush is actually quite fun to make, too. Baba ghanoush sounds like it would be overly complicated to make, but in reality, this easy baba ghanoush recipe is simply eggplant blended up with lemon juice, tahini, garlic and sea salt. While most recipes ask you to char the eggplant on a grill or over the flame of a gas stove, you can also use your broiler to achieve smoky flavor while saving time and energy. This tip proves to be especially useful, too, if you have neither a grill nor a gas stove, which is not uncommon for those of you cooking from your first or “starter” kitchen. Baba ghanoush, which resembled traditional hummus, is a Levantine dish of cooked eggplant mixed with onions, tomatoes, olive oil and various seasonings. You’ll find it in Middle Eastern cuisine but you’ll also find it in the supermarket next to the packaged prepared dips and spreads. What’s it taste like? It’s creamy, tastes way more decadent than it actually is and has a balance between slightly sweet notes and savory undertones from the lemon and tahini. It’s naturally vegan and gluten-free so you can serve it to pretty […]

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Hot and Spicy Crab Dip

Maris Callahan — Wed, 15 Mar 2017 05:00:53 +0000

The first time I ever had crab dip was at a restaurant in The Tiger’s Tale, a simple bar and grill where my parents would take us to have dinner if we happened to be north of Princeton. It was nothing special, but probably a fun place to get drinks and appetizers if you live in the New Jersey suburbs and happen to like getting drinks and appetizers. I say this because the one thing on the menu that did stand out to me was the “Varsity Club” hot spicy crab dip. This was most likely my first date with a dip loaded full of cream cheese and mayonnaise, and you know what? It was good. Real real good. The version that I’ve recreated since is not quite as real, real good as the version I remember at The Tiger’s Tale, but that is also not leaving room for the fact that I probably have that one hyped up in hindsight (hindsight tends to do that). At The Tiger’s Tale, the crab dip was loaded with cream cheese and mayonnaise, Maryland crab meat and “secret seasoning” which to be honest, is probably something like Old Bay seasoning and not so secret. In any case, I tried […]

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Healthy Make-Ahead Party Recipes [Hot Double Spinach Dip]

Maris Callahan — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 21:52:07 +0000

I love to go out on New Year’s Eve. Now, I don’t love crowded bars or busy hotel celebrations, but I like to celebrate special occasions, like New Years’ Eve, at friends’ parties and going out to dinner. I love an excuse to get a little dressed up and have a night out. Brad, on the other hand, loves the Ohio State Buckeyes. and they happen to be playing in The Fiesta Bowl on Saturday night. Suffice to say, we’ll be spending New Year’s Eve in and not unsurprisingly, I’ve been spending a lot of time planning our New Year’s Eve menu. Last week, I shared some of my favorite New Year’s Eve recipes on CBS Chicago with Marissa Bailey. If you want to start the new year on a healthy note, preparation is power. Each of these ideas have one thing in common: they are each super easy to prepare and in most cases, make ahead, using fresh Organic ingredients from the O Organics line at Jewel-Osco. O Organics’ mission is to make a wide variety of USDA certified organic foods affordable for all. O Organics features more than 300 items for every occasion throughout the store—from fresh fruits and vegetables, to wholesome […]

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Miniature Macaroni and Cheese Cups with Parmesan Crust

Maris Callahan — Wed, 28 Dec 2016 07:09:20 +0000

One of my favorite, favorite food is macaroni and cheese. I like all versions of it: store-bought, boxed, homemade, from scratch, low-brow, gourmet. It’s comfort food, and it’s celebration food, and so versatile that even Brad, whose culinary abilities extend to making eggs and spaghetti, can whip up a reasonably tasty macaroni and cheese. This miniature macaroni and cheese cup recipe, prepared in ramekins, are the perfect party food or portion-controlled quick weeknight dinner. There are plenty of recipes for from-scratch, homemade macaroni and cheese that are creamy, cheesy and full of goodness, but sometimes you want something that’s going to be quicker, easier and just as delicious. This is where I’ll note that Brad only likes boxed macaroni and cheese, and I’m especially partial to making us the O Organics version from Jewel-Osco, which is fun to doctor up in a bunch of different ways. Jewel-Osco’s O Organics line incorporates fresh fruits and vegetables, wholesome dairy and meats, cereals, snacks and more. With the wide variety of products offered by O Organics, there are so many easy ways to incorporate organic foods into meals. I get my O Organics products at Jewel-Osco, but if you are outside of the […]

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Spicy Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Maris Callahan — Thu, 15 Sep 2016 01:42:54 +0000

For a simple snack, roasted pumpkin seeds are fun, simple and cheap way to embrace the spirit of fall. Mix and match spice combinations to find your favorite, or stick with our favorite spicy variety with cumin, coriander and cardamom. One of the fun things about being a grown up is that you can do all of the fun things you did as a kid, but with a more sophisticated twist. Picnics in the park can mean sandwiches, but also fancy cheeses and your favorite sparkling wine. Movie and pizza nights mean fresh fig, blue cheese and caramelized onion pizza and in the Fall, pumpkin carving parties mean sparkling apple cider sangria and spicy roasted pumpkin seeds. The upside to roasted pumpkin seeds is that they’re cheap, easy and healthy for quick snacks or even adding crunch to autumn salads. The downside is that you have to scoop them out from the stringy flesh inside of the pumpkin, which smells not great. Once you rinse and season them, they have a completely neutral scent, so if you don’t mind getting your hands dirty, it’s worth it in the end. There are dozens – probably hundreds, but let’s not get dramatic here – of ways to […]

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