Sundried Tomato and Artichoke Slow Cooker Dip

This is a sponsored review from BlogHer and Kraft.

This is a compensated post by BlogHer and PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese and is part of the Real Women of Philadelphia project. This is the fourth out of four recipes.

Oh my. This will be made again.

I used the Savory Garlic Cooking Creme for this recipe--- and it truly couldn’t have been any easier. The Cooking Creme is perfectly seasoned; no need to add anything but the artichokes and sundried tomatoes.

The Ingredients.

serves 6 (maybe more, but I accidentally ate too much)

1 (10-ounce) container of Savory Garlic PHILADELPHIA Cooking Creme

1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, soaked, then drained and chopped

chips for dipping

The Directions.

Use a 2-quart slow cooker. Scoop out the Cooking Creme and put it into an empty slow cooker. Lick the spoon.

Add the chopped artichokes and sundried tomatoes. Stir (but not with the spoon you licked, because that would be gross). Cover and cook on low for 3 hours, or until fully hot.

Serve with your favorite chips.

The Verdict.

DEEEE LISH OUS.

and super garlicy. Keep gum in your back pocket.

I ended up making this back when school was still in session (EONS AGO!) and had a house full of kids after school. I had kids ranging from 13 down to the baby (16 months at the time) for snack, and the dip was finished before the homework was complete. 

It was easy to prepare, and a great "something new" to bring along to a backyard barbecue or potluck.

Now for some fun!

There is a GREAT BIG HUGE HONKING LIVE EVENT on June 30^th that you should all know about.

For the last few months, women all over the country have been submitting videos and original PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese and Cooking Creme recipes to RealWomenOfPhiladelphia.com in the hopes of competing in a live judging event hosted by none other, than Ms. Paula Deen.

The showdown will occur at the Lucas Theatre in Downtown Savannah at 7pm (eastern) on June 30^th, and will stream live on RealWomenOfPhiladelphia.com (I did not enter this contest). Winning this event is a big deal: winners receive a cash prize of $25,000, recipes featured in cookbooks, online cooking videos, and will participate in publicity appearances.

The good news for you/us is that all of the finalist recipes are available online, for free on the Real Women of Philadelphia  website. Click on over and see which one you should try with your family (slow cooker optional. :-) )

Mark the 30^th on your calendar--- it’s always fun to witness live events in action, and you can participate in the action by joining the online community at Real Women of Philadelphia.  I bet there will be a twitter party, too!

Want even more? There are more blogger reviews and recipes posted on BlogHer’s Promotions & Prizes section. Long live Cream Cheese!


other stuff:

I'm still working on the site redesign and am compiling websites/urls for the "everyone is included" blogroll. If you have a website or blog that you'd like listed (and you aren't a spam bot or anything else ridiculously offensive) send me an email at contact@stephanieodea.com with the subject line: blogroll and your site's name and URL. 
I'm hoping to get the site stuff up and running sometime after the Fourth.


Also, I've got a new interview up on the webTV section. This time it's with Amy Green, of Simply Sugar and Gluten Free. Amy shares how cutting sugar and gluten out of her diet is to credit for her 80 pound weight loss and for completely eradicating the migraines that had plagued her for years.
Also? She's giving away a copy of her new cookbook! click on over and watch Amy's interview and enter to win a book of your very own.


in the crock today: Asian spiced turkey breast (recipe to come--I played around with some new-to-me ingredients for this one). It's starting to smell good---
I'm excited. I've got a hunkering/hankering for a turkey sandwich. 


or three.


have a great day!

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Fruit and Horseradish Cream Cheese Appetizer Spread Slow Cooker Recipe

I'm not a foodie. I am perfectly happy with a can of EZ Cheese and a bag of Tostitos Scoops pretty much always. 

But.

Some of my friends are slightly more sophisticated than this and would prefer to steer clear from cheese in a can (I know, I know, they're missing out...)

so.

Save the canned cheese for another occasion and instead wow your friends with a terribly easy yet pretty-darn-impressive spread that you made all by yourself in your very own slow cooker.

The Ingredients.

serves 8

 

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese

1 tablespoon jarred horseradish

1/3 cup apricot preserves

1/4 cup dried cranberries (the mini boxes are perfect!)

crackers or salted corn chips for serving

The Directions.

Use a 2-quart slow cooker. Unwrap the cream cheese and put it into your cooker. Top with the horseradish and preserves. Pour in the dried cranberries. Cover and cook on low for 2-3 hours, or on high for 1-2. Serve with your favorite crackers (I used plain rice crackers, if you're gluten free, the Nut Thins by Blue Diamond are great, too) or corn chips. Pita chips (obviously not GF) would be good, too!

If you do not have a 2-quart slow cooker, that's okay! Put an oven safe dish directly into the stoneware insert--something like this or this or this. Then load your dip ingredients into it. Use oven mitts when removing the dish!

The Verdict.

These ingredients sound *so* wonky, but I promise they melt together into a really savory dip with a sweet kick from the cranberries and apricot jam. My kids ate kind of a lot more than I expected them to, and Adam and my grandma really enjoyed it.

I'm off to BlogHer Food for the weekend. I don't expect to find many cans of EZ Cheese... :-)

more fun dips:

brie with candied pecans and cranberries

artichoke dip

taco dip

sundried tomato dip

mommy crack

crab dip

super duper garlic dip

Guess what's new at BlogHer? Today, we're learning to decode your teen's texting lingo and how to dissuade bullying, gossip, and all around bad phone etiquette. There are five discussions happening and every comment left equals a $0.50 donation to DoSomething.org. What are your thoughts on teen texting/cell phone use? Share your thoughts, feelings, and opinions!
I am helping to promote this program because BlogHer is paying me GREAT GOBS OF MONEY to do so, and I  : 1) like BlogHer,  2) like money, and 3) DoSomething.org is a worthwhile organization that helps teens start or find a social cause and then go DO SOMETHING about it. win-win-win!!

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Slow Cooker Taco Dip Recipe

Are you ready for some football?

I don't know how ready I am to actually follow the game, but I am ready for some football-watching food. I LOVE Super Bowl day. It's a day to chuck any and all New Year's dieting-type ideas out the window and eat whatever you want.

it would be un-American not to.

I made this dip a few weeks ago for a party, and the adults pretty much fought the kids to get their fill---which is saying a lot, because the oldest kid was 9, and I *know* for a fact there was plenty of double-dipping going on.

There's both Velveeta and cream cheese in this dip, so if your cholesterol is offended by these ingredients, you shouldn't make it. Instead, pick something light and healthy from the archives.

The Ingredients.
serves 12

1 block (8 oz) cream cheese
1 pound velveeta
2 cups jarred salsa (I like the one with beans and corn from Safeway)
1 (1.25 oz) envelope taco seasoning mix (McCormick is gluten free)

The Directions.

Use a 4 quart or larger slow cooker. Dump everything in. It will not look pretty, and that's okay. Cover and cook on low for about 3 hours, or on high for 90 minutes or until the cheeses have fully melted and are heated through. Stir well and serve with your favorite tortilla chips.

or celery, if you must...

The Verdict.

I saw one of our neighbors use his finger to scrape out the bowl. I didn't tell him I was watching.

Happy Super Bowl!

more fun appetizer ideas:
sweet and spicy chicken wings
bbq ribs
philly cheesesteaks
philly cheesesteak soup
cheeseburger soup
taco soup
buffalo wing soup
buffalo wing dip
spinach artichoke dip
sausage, rotel, and cream cheese dip
barbecued shrimp
barbecue pulled pork
cajun pulled pork

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Little Dipper Pizza Fondue Recipe

Day 365, take two.

I was annoyed with the white bean soup with fennel and spinach I made for dinner, but had all the stuff in the house to make a pizza fondue.

So I did.

I used the Little Dipper because I puffy heart LOVE it, but you could use an oven-safe dish inside a regular crockpot to create a smaller cooking vessel. Or you could increase the quantities.

The Ingredients.

--1 cup pasta sauce (my sauce had chunked mushrooms, it was perfect)
--1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
--10 pieces pepperoni, diced
--1 cup shredded cheese (I used a combo of mozzarella, cheddar, and swiss)

The Directions.

Count out 10 pieces of pepperoni. Then eat the rest of the package.
Put the pasta sauce into your Little Dipper, and plug it in. Add the Italian seasoning and diced pepperoni. Shove in the cup of shredded cheese. I promise it will fit. Cover and leave plugged in (there are no heat settings on a Little Dipper) for 45 min or so.

Stir well and serve with tortilla chips, bread sticks, or crustini.

I made some crustini with the Food for Life brown rice bread. I cut the pieces in slices, then brushed olive oil on each side. Sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 min, flipping once half-way through.

The Verdict.

This was great. We spread out a blanket in front of the TV and had a carpet picnic with the pizza fondue and watched Redbox dvds. How come I didn't know about redbox earlier?

good stuff.

Having a fondue party?
you really should.

fancy cheese fondue
chocolate fondue
peanut butter fondue
marshmallow fluff fondue
pumpkin pie dip
cream cheese, sausage, and Rotel dip (AKA mommy crack)

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Little Dipper Cranberry Orange Dip

Day 362.

Raise your hand if you got a Little Dipper for the Holidays.

The Little Dipper is so much fun----here are all of the dips and things I've made this year: Little Dipper recipes. Except the chicken and brown rice casserole. I have no idea how that showed up in there. Weird.

Jen T. sent me this recipe, and the kids and I had it for lunch the other day. When it's cooked, it looks like a big pile of fluffy snow.

The Ingredients.

--8 oz cream cheese
--2/3 cup shredded swiss cheese
--2 T apple juice
--1/2 tsp orange zest
--1/2 cup sweetened dried cranberries

The Directions.

Plug in your Little Dipper to get it started warming up. Shove the block of cream cheese down into it. You may need to squish it in with a spoon. I promise it will fit. Shred the swiss, and add it. Grate the orange and add the zest. Add the apple juice. Cover and let it cook for 45 minutes to an hour. When the cream and swiss cheese have fully melted, stir in the dried cranberries.

Serve with your favorite crackers or apple slices. We're really liking the new nut and rice crackers Blue Diamond puts out.

The Verdict.

Delicious. The original recipe called for 1 tsp of orange zest, but we're not big fans of orange zest, so I only added 1/2 tsp. It was still plenty zesty for us, and I probably could have omitted it all together for us. But then I would have needed to change the name.

The swiss and cream cheese melted together beautifully and were a delicious combination.

Thank you, Jen!

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CrockPot Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Day 357.

It's the first day of Winter Vacation, and the girls and I are sick. Which means this is a very. normal. year. for us.

We'll be fine. We've got a bunch of books and videos from the library, the good tissue with the built-in Vicks, and 4 quarts of spinach artichoke dip.

This recipe comes from Joey in Minnesota who has a nineteen-month-old and is pregnant. She needs a juggling book for Christmas.

The Ingredients.

1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 (9-ounce) bag baby spinach, chopped
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3 T jalapeno slices, chopped

The Directions.

I used a 4-quart crockpot. Drain and chop artichoke hearts, and add to the crockpot. Scrunch the spinach and chop it the best you can---mostly try to get the long stems off if you can. Add to the crockpot. Add mayo, sour cream, and chopped jalapenos. Top with 1/2 cup each shredded mozzarella and Parmesan.

Cover and cook on low for 2 hours, or high for 1. Stir. The spinach should begin to welt. If it hasn't, cook some more. When the spinach is totally wilted, take the lid off and add the other 1/2 cup of each cheese, and let it melt while the lid remains off. The spinach will have created some liquid that doesn't really need to be in there.

Serve with your favorite chips, sliced veggies, or bread cubes.

The Verdict.

I liked this a lot. I couldn't taste the jalapenos at all and whined that it "wasn't working" (I wanted my sinuses to drain. lovely image, sorry. but that's what I was going for) but Adam and the kids could taste them and thought it was plenty spicy. I think though, I'd add many more jalapeno slices next time and maybe switch out the mayo for a half-block of cream cheese.

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CrockPot Crab Dip Recipe

Day 327.

Dip! With crab meat! And cream cheese!

Do better things than this exist?

I don't actually think so.

We had a houseful of people last night and I was thrilled that Christine emailed me earlier in the week with her famous crab dip recipe. I changed a few things, but this is definitely her recipe. Thank you, Christine!

The Ingredients.

--1 pound crab meat (imitation crab meat is NOT gluten free. Go for the real stuff!)
--3 packages (8oz each) cream cheese
--1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce (or you can use 1/2 cup jarred salsa)
--1 can chilies and tomatoes, drained (Rotel)
--1/2 cup milk
--2 lemons, optional

The Directions.

I used a 4 quart crockpot. This feeds 20 people as an appetizer, or one cranky woman as a meal.

Sort through the crab and make sure that there aren't any shells.

Cube the cream cheese and put it into your crockpot. Plug it in and turn to high to begin melting the cream cheese. Add the buffalo wing sauce (or salsa), milk, and the drained can of Rotel.

Put in the crab, and stir gingerly to combine.

Cover and cook on low for 2-3 hours, stirring every 20 to 30 minutes, or on high for no more than 2 hours, stirring often.

Serve with your favorite crackers, cubed bread, or celery sticks.
If you plan on serving out of the crockpot, you can "pretty it up" by inserting slices of lemon all the way around the edge of the dip in the crock.

The Verdict.

This was a hit. The crock was scraped clean.

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