Blue Cheese-Apricot Bites

Photo by Rachel's Bite, Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial 3.0 US licensed.

Sweet, savory, and crunchy! You do have to be a fan of blue cheese to enjoy these, but I think there's nothing better than a pungent cheese with a bit of sweet. I found this recipe for Blue Cheese-Apricot Bites in a 2010 Better Homes and Gardens Special Interest Publications for Appetizers. It's the perfect party food! And these candied walnuts you end up with, you'll want to make a whole batch of just those. But be careful, they can get soggy.

I have made this recipe several times. I usually make a double batch because you only end up with 16 and I always eat 3 or 4 while I'm putting them together because they are so yummy. I have tried these with organic apricots which is a bit better for you, but the organic apricots are darker and might look strange to some. Being an appetizer people just think they are dark because they are cooked, but I wanted to warn you of the discoloration in case you try those out.

Blue Cheese-Apricot Bites
Makes 16 appetizers

2 tsp. butter
2 Tbsp. finely chopped walnuts
2 tsp. sugar
½ tsp. snipped fresh rosemary or ¼ tsp dried rosemary, finely crushed
¼ cup crumbled Gorgonzola,Roquefort, or other blue cheese (1 ounce)
1 ounce cream cheese
16 dried apricots
Snipped fresh rosemary (optional)

In a small skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add wlnuts and sugar; cook and stir 2 to 3 minutes or until walnuts are lightly toasted. Stir in ½ teaspoon fresh or ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary; cook and stir for 30 seconds more. Transfer nuts to a foil-lined baking sheet; cool.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine Gorgonzola cheese and cream cheese. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth.

Spoon about ¾ teaspoon of the cheese mixture on top of each dried apricot. Sprinkle with nuts. If desired, garnish with additional fresh rosemary.

Per appetizer: 33 cal., 2 g total fat (1 g sat. fat), 5 mg. chol., 24 mg sodium, 3 g carb., 0.3g fiber, 1 g pro.


Love is all around you... Enjoy!

- Rachel

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#51: Nuts + Nuts Roasted Cashews

I am becoming quite spoiled and really starting to enjoy good, gourmet nuts. They are such a satisfying snack! I know people have been saying that for a long time, but I always thought of nuts as something to snack on at a bar, not something to keep in the house unless a certain recipe called for them.

When Food & Wine Magazine listed three types of international nuts on their 100 Tastes to Try list for 2008, I ordered them right away. We went through the Australian macadamia nuts (#50) rather quickly and have since placed three re-orders. More recently we tried the Indonesian cashews (#51). These I ordered from Nuts + Nuts in all four flavors: original (mixture of sweet and salt taste), lightly salted, honey sesame, and spicy (has bits of lime leaves and cut chillies). They are ALL GOOD! Honestly, I do not have a favorite.

The first ones I tried were the honey sesame and I was sure nothing could taste better than those. Then I tried the spicy and I thought there was a tie. Original is unique too and I figured the three flavors will be my preference over the plain ones. I finally tasted the plain ones and who would have though a plain, lightly salted, cashew would taste to good. I think the secret is the freshness. Each package is vacuum sealed.

I have a feeling I'll be ordering another round of nuts from them again. At only $3.00 a pack they are quite affordable. The company website is still not operational but you can order by contacting them via phone or email. Lucky for me I still have a few packs left.

#50: Brookfarm's Australian Macadamias

Everyone knows nuts are supposed to be good for them. They are a "good fat". I happen to love nuts. I got in the habit of having for a snack during diet times. Usually I turn to almonds. I was intrigued that this year Food and Wine list International Nuts for three of their 100 tastes to try in 2008. Listed at #50 are Australian Macadamias and Brookfarm's roasted nuts are highlighted as the example.

I ordered a 3-pack of the Oven Roasted with Kashmiri Chilli Macadamia Nuts from Amazon.com and they are awesome! They come vacuum sealed so they are super-fresh when you open the package. We ate the entire first package in one seating. High quality sea-salt with the fresh macadamia nuts is a great combo, but what really makes these stand out is the chilli flavoring that is added. There is a mild heat that gets stronger the more you eat. These are really great. I think I'm going to order the other versions - one just has sea salt and the other is has bush pepper spice added as seasoning.

Pineapple-Cashew Salad

This recipe for Pineapple-Cashew Salad is a dessert, not a light meal. Soaking it in the wine actually ends up quite a strong alcohol taste, almost like one of those chocolate candies filled with rum. I don't usually like that in my desserts, but for the people who do, this is really a unique dessert that would be fabulous to serve at a dinner party.

Pineapple-Cashew Salad (4 servings) 1/2 cup sweet white wine, such as Riesling or ice wine 1/4 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 golden pineapple, peeled, cored and diced (about 1 1/2 cups) 1/2 cup roasted cashews 4 mint leaves, finely shredded

Pour the wine into a medium bowl and add the sugar, stirring until it is dissolved. Add the pineapple cubes. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.

To serve, stir the cashews into the pineapple. Divide among serving bowls and sprinkle with the mint.