Category: Appetizers


Oct
2016

Sweet Potato Cauliflower Cakes with Dairy-Free Cashew Sour Cream

categories: Appetizers, Gluten Free, Healthy, Vegan, Vegetarian

Sweet and savory vegetable patties bound together with ground flaxseed and pan-fried in coconut oil. These Sweet Potato Cauliflower Cakes with Dairy-Free Cashew Sour Cream are pure veggie delight!

Sweet Potato Cauliflower Cakes with Dairy-Free Cashew Sour Cream Sweet - vegetable patties made with ground flaxseed and pan-fried in coconut oil. Vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free. | QueenofMyKitchen.com

Sweet Potato Cauliflower Cakes with Dairy-Free Cashew Sour Cream takes two popular and trendy vegetables and combines them to create a unique dish with velvety texture and amazing sweet and savory flavor. These cakes, which are gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan, can be served as an appetizer or a side dish. Their texture is similar to that of a crab cake but these little babies are fried in coconut oil, producing a golden-brown crust with subtle coconut flavor.  Sweet Potato Cauliflower Cakes contain just a handful of ingredients, allowing the essence of the vegetables to really shine through. They’re great served solo but a dollop of Dairy-Free Cashew Sour Cream on top elevates the taste with a pleasant tang. (more…)


Aug
2016

Sweet Potato Flax Crackers

categories: Appetizers, Gluten Free, Healthy, Snacks, Vegan

Gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, and vegan with a whopping 7 grams of fiber per serving!

Sweet Potato Flax Crackers are gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, and vegan with a whopping 7 grams of fiber per serving. Made with just 5 ingredients! | QueenofMyKitchen.com

I have a weakness for crackers and so does my husband. Every night when he comes home from work he makes a beeline to the cabinet with the crackers and grabs a handful and I am right behind him snagging a few for myself. There is something so satisfying about crackers. They’re not too indulgent yet they quell that hunger craving that often hits right before dinner. There are some nice brands of crackers available at upscale grocery stores nowadays but even the best ones sometimes contain things like maltodextrin, potato starch, and added sugar. If you’re munching on crackers daily (like my husband and I do) you might want to avoid such ingredients. When I have time I like to make my own crackers for just this reason and Sweet Potato Flax Crackers is the recipe I turn to most often. These crackers contain just 5 ingredients and are gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, vegan, and absolutely delicious. (more…)


Aug
2016

SunGold Kiwi Shrimp Cocktail

categories: Appetizers, Gluten Free, Seafood

I received free samples of Zespri SunGold Kiwifruit mentioned in this post. By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by Zespri Kiwifruit and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.

SunGold Kiwi Shrimp Cocktail – Cool, creamy, kiwi infused avocado yogurt sauce with a hint of lime makes a healthy and delicious sauce for chilled jumbo shrimp and a gorgeous presentation! #thereciperedux #ad | QueenofMyKitchen.com

As a member of The Recipe ReDux  healthy food bloggers group I have the opportunity to participate in contests and sponsored posts for some amazing brands. This month I am pleased to showcase a recipe I created for Zespri Kiwifruit – the world leader in premium quality kiwifruit. Each ReDuxer who chose to participate in this contest had to create a dish using SunGold Kiwifruit – a new variety from Zespri. (Links to all the recipes created are at the end of this post.)  SunGold Kiwifruit has a beautiful golden interior color and a mildly sweet, tropical taste, absent the slightly tart quality that is characteristic of green kiwifruit. Unlike the green variety of kiwifruit, SunGold Kiwifruit have smooth, hairless skin. SunGold Kiwi Shrimp Cocktail uses this versatile kiwifruit in a tropical inspired shrimp cocktail appetizer. Martini glasses are decoratively lined with thin slices of SunGold Kiwifruit then filled with a cool, creamy, kiwi infused avocado sauce. Chilled, jumbo shrimp are then draped over the edge of the glasses, in classic shrimp cocktail fashion, before being garnished with fresh basil and lime wedges. SunGold Kiwi Shrimp Cocktail is not only delicious and beautiful to look at but is chock-full of super healthy ingredients like Zespri SunGold Kiwifruit, Greek yogurt, avocado, and fresh basil. Each SunGold Kiwi Shrimp Cocktail has a whopping 32 grams of protein and only 286 calories! (more…)


Jul
2016

Crispy Oven Baked Eggplant Flowers

categories: Appetizers, Side Dishes, Vegetarian

Crispy Oven Baked Eggplant Flowers are golden brown and deliciously crispy on the outside, yet tender on the inside. Fun, festive, and full of parmesan flavor! This recipe can be adapted to make easy eggplant parmesan too - with no messy stove-top frying! | QueenofMyKitchen.com

For this month’s Recipe Redux challenge (creative cuts – fruits and vegetables) I chose to highlight one of summer’s most abundant vegetables – eggplant. The humble eggplant is among the most versatile of vegetables. It can be grilled, roasted, baked, fried, diced, stuffed, and rolled. You can put it on pasta or pizza, make a sandwich or dip with it, and use it in soups and stews. Eggplant takes center stage in a variety of classic dishes from divergent cultures such as Italian (eggplant parmesan), French (ratatouille), Mediterranean (moussaka), and Asian (stir-frys). And even as I’m writing this I know that I’m barely scratching the surface of the many uses and recipes for which eggplant is well suited. Since eggplant is so delicious and so plentiful this time of year, I’m sure no one will mind that I am adding to the unending list of uses for eggplant with this fun and festive recipe that’s perfect for summer – Crispy Oven Baked Eggplant Flowers. Flower shaped eggplant slices are dipped into a savory egg and olive oil mixture, then breaded and oven baked. The result is golden brown and deliciously crispy-on-the-outside, tender-on-the-inside, pieces of eggplant that will knock your socks off! (more…)


Jul
2016

Sweet Potato Black Bean Avocado Salsa

categories: Appetizers, Gluten Free, Healthy, Salads, Vegan

Sweet Potato Black Bean Avocado Salsa – sweet and spicy, healthy and delicious. Great with tortilla chips or on top of grilled fish, chicken, or pork. Makes a nice, simple side dish too. This is not your average salsa! | QueenofMyKitchen.com

In my recent quest to create a simple summer salsa I relied on three of my favorite foods  – sweet potatoes, black beans, and avocados.  These foods never disappoint me, no matter what recipe I put them in, so I knew they’d make a fantastic salsa.   Sweet Potato Black Bean Avocado Salsa is a sweet and spicy salsa with vibrant colors and a wonderfully zingy taste.  It’s great as an appetizer when served with tortilla chips and crackers, but it’s just as good as a topping for grilled fish, chicken, or pork.  The cool, refreshing ingredients scream “summer” but you can easily make this salsa all year-long. (more…)


Jul
2016

Gluten-Free Spicy Cheese Straws

categories: Appetizers, Gluten Free

Gluten-Free Spicy Cheese Straws – A classic cocktail snack! These are clean tasting Parmesan cheese straws made with coconut oil instead of butter. Crispy and delicious, they go great with wine and mixed drinks. Perfect to set on the bar while entertaining or as an accompaniment to your favorite dip. | QueenofMyKitchen.com

Most cheese straws are made with gobs of butter and cheese making them very rich. They’re likely to crumble a bit when you eat them (especially the puff pastry ones) and they’ll usually leave your fingers really greasy. Gluten-Free Spicy Cheese Straws are quite different.  They’re made with just two tablespoons of coconut oil instead of butter, and contain only a small amount of Parmesan cheese. The result is a clean tasting, crispy cheese straw that won’t crumble when you bite into it, leaving you free to hold a drink in the other hand!  They’re the perfect gluten-free appetizer to set on the bar when you’re entertaining or to serve as an accompaniment to your favorite dip.

(more…)


Jun
2016

Roasted Garlic Avocado White Bean Dip

categories: Appetizers, Gluten Free, Healthy, Sauces, Dressings, Condiments, Vegan

Roasted Garlic Avocado White Bean Dip - Vegan, gluten-free and infused with fresh basil. Packed with protein, fiber and only 111 calories per 1/4 cup serving. | QueenofMyKitchen.com

Recipes for white bean dip abound in cookbooks, magazines, and the food blogosphere, and it’s easy to see why.  White bean dips have huge appeal because they are healthier and lower in calories compared to appetizers made with cheese, cream cheese, pastry, bread, and nuts.  Still, I have found most white bean dips rather bland, consisting only of pureed white beans, garlic, olive oil, and lemon. However, with a few simple recipe tweaks it’s easy to turn a basic, unexciting dip into a sensational, savory one.   Roasted Garlic White Bean Avocado Dip contains fresh basil, avocado, and roasted garlic – ingredients not commonly found in white bean dip, but ones that make this dip truly exceptional.   (more…)


Jun
2016

Roasted Red Pepper Involtini

categories: Appetizers, Gluten Free

Roasted Red Pepper Involtini – a no cook appetizer that’s delicious, easy, elegant, colorful, gluten-free, and low in calories. Great on antipasto platters. | QueenofMyKitchen.com

If someone told you they had a recipe that was delicious, easy, elegant, colorful, low in calories, and required no cooking, you’d want to know about it pronto, right?  Well, here is that recipe – Roasted Red Pepper Involtini.  Sweet, smoky, roasted red peppers stuffed, roulade style, with prosciutto, mozzarella, and fresh basil, then cut into pieces called “involtini”, which, roughly translated means “a small bite of food” in Italian. (more…)


May
2016

Potato Skins Pizza

categories: Appetizers, Gluten Free, Side Dishes

Smashed, roasted baby potatoes masquerade as pizza crust in this seriously addictive rendition of loaded potato skins. You’ll find all of the signature ingredients you associate with classic potato skins in this delicious pizza – cheddar cheese, crispy bacon, and chive infused sour cream. | QueenofMyKitchen.com

Potato Skins Pizza is my newest recipe remix and I’m so pleased with the results! Smashed, roasted baby potatoes masquerade as pizza crust in this seriously addictive rendition of loaded potato skins. In addition to the potato/potato skin base, you’ll find all of the signature ingredients you associate with classic potato skins – cheddar cheese, crispy bacon, and chive infused sour cream. I’m not kidding when I say that Potato Skins Pizza takes “delicious” to a whole new level. (more…)


Apr
2016

Basil Avocado Yogurt Sauce

categories: Appetizers, Gluten Free, Healthy, Sauces, Dressings, Condiments

Basil Avocado Yogurt Sauce - a light and refreshing sauce. The perfect condiment for grilled meat, seafood, and veggies. | QueenofMyKitchen.com

Basil Avocado Yogurt Sauce is my new favorite condiment. It’s deliciously cool with a pleasant tang, and because it’s made with Greek yogurt instead of cream or mayonnaise, it’s light and refreshing. With the warm weather fast approaching here in New England, it’s natural to gravitate toward recipes that are suitable for picnics, backyard barbecues, and all manner of summer time celebrations. This means lots of grilled meat, seafood, and vegetables with accompanying side salads and sauces. Basil Avocado Yogurt Sauce is the perfect summer time sauce for almost anything grilled and can be prepared in a matter of minutes. (more…)

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