Easter Carrot Shaped Cheese Ball

This cheese ball has been awaiting the blog debut for. a. year. I made this last year for Easter and thought it was just so adorable. It takes 10 minutes to mix together and 5 minutes to look cute. Voila! Serve with some wheat thins and some carrots for the best of both worlds! I don’t make too many super theme-y foods for aesthetics but this one tastes so food as proof it isn’t just about looks! This carrot shaped cheeseball goes with your Easter brunchy foods, your Easter lunch spread, or an Easter dinner.

The Three Bite Rule - Carrot Cheese Ball

Ingredients:

8oz package cream cheese (softened at room temperature)
1/2 cup sundried tomatoes, chopped
2 tbs Parmesan cheese
1 tbs garlic, minced
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
1 1/2 cup orange cheddar, chopped
1/2 bunch parsley
1 cup green onion, chopped
carrots
crackers (strong enough for cheese dipping)

Directions:

With a hand or stand mixer, mix together cream cheese, sundried tomatoes, Parmesan, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and rosemary.
The Three Bite Rule - Carrot Cheese Ball
Add in green onion (I originally had less sundried tomato and thought it needed more). Then mix well.
The Three Bite Rule - Carrot Cheese Ball
Refrigerate for at least an hour, or overnight.
The Three Bite Rule - Carrot Cheese Ball
Before serving, form into a carrot shape on a plate. Press cheddar around the outside and wipe away any from the plate.
Position the parsley under the top.
The Three Bite Rule - Carrot Cheese Ball
Serve with carrots and crackers. Enjoy!

This was so good and just so darn cute. I loved how easy it was to mix quickly, let the flavors combine, and then just a quick assembly before eating. Choose the crackers appropriately…ritz will crumble under the pressure.

There are some easy alternatives depending on what cheese ball flavors you fancy…caramelized onions & roasted red peppers; bacon and ranch mix; basil and garlic; jalepeno; or whatver combos you love. Go forth! Make a cutesy cheese ball!

Hot French Onion Dip

Warning: this is not the most photogenic dish I’ve ever made, but it was really too tasty not to share. You can’t miss with caramelized onions. Add fontina and I’m yours. I made this dip for the Superbowl and served it with some bread. My only thought was that half would probably have been plenty for two of us. Mr. J and I barely made a dent! It was pretty decadent but so perfect for a chilly winter night. Leftovers might be pretty good in a rockstar grilled cheese!

The Three Bite Rule - Hot French Onion Dip

Ingredients:

2 medium onions, chopped
1 pkg french onion dip
1/2 cup chicken/beef/vegetable broth
1/4 cup red wine
6 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup shredded sharp white cheddar
1 cup gruyere cheese
1 tsp dried thyme
ground black pepper

Directions:

In a heavy pan over low heat, caramelize the onions in a few tablespoons of olive oil. Stir regularly and be patient. Cook for about 30 minutes until they get soft, light brown, and sweet.
The Three Bite Rule - Hot French Onion Dip
Bring to medium heat and add in the onion soup mix, broth, and wine. Stir well.
The Three Bite Rule - Hot French Onion Dip
Bring to a low boil for about 5 minutes.
Add in cream cheese, sour cream, and stir until it is all melted and incorporated. Then add cheddar cheese just until melted and then put it all into a baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray.
The Three Bite Rule - Hot French Onion Dip
Preheat the oven to 375-degrees.
Shred gruyere onto the top and sprinkle thyme & pepper over the top.
The Three Bite Rule - Hot French Onion Dip
Bake for 15-minutes, or until melted.
Serve with bread. Enjoy!

The Three Bite Rule - Hot French Onion Dip
This was so good, and addicting. It was sort of a meal in itself with the bread. Mr. J made wings so we only made it so far with our sports-snacks.

Ham & Cheese Puff Pastry Pinwheels

Don’t be sad that Christmas is over. I have the perfect use for your leftover holiday ham. This is ideal if you’re in weird limbo of brunch/lunch/dinner over the next few days.

I love the holidays but now I can’t even comprehend that there’s only 3 weeks until my little one turns one. Crazy. I need to catch my breath over here. How do I have a one year old? Sometimes when I go into his room I picture my burrito-wrapped-babe and there he is standing up lifting his arms to get picked up.  Anywho, I can’t wait for his birthday. CAKE!

These ham spirals go together quickly and feature salty ham, buttery puff pastry, and mustard. It is definitely a perk of this that you only need a small amount of ham and a small amount of cheese…whatever is leftover from your apps and your ham!
The Three Bite Rule - Ham & Cheese Pinwheel

Ingredients: (3-4 meal servings, ~6 appetizer servings)

1 sheet puff pastry
2-3 slices of ham, chopped into cubes
1 cup shredded swiss/cheddar
1/4 cup grain mustard
1/4 cup cream cheese
2 tbs butter
water
1-2 tsp poppy seeds

Directions:

Defrost the puff pastry sheet at room temperature (40 min) or in the refrigerator (4 hours).
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Roll out the puff pastry and top with cheese and ham- being sure to get the filling all the way to the edge.
The Three Bite Rule - Ham & Cheese Pinwheel
Roll the puff pastry and pinch the end to close the roll. Then slice into 1-inch pieces.
The Three Bite Rule - Ham & Cheese Pinwheel
Spray a baking dish with non-stick spray and lay the pinwheels face up. Leave some room for them to puff up and expand.
The Three Bite Rule - Ham & Cheese Pinwheel
In a small pan, over medium-low heat, heat mustard, cream cheese, butter, and a splash of water (about 2 tbs or more if needed).
The Three Bite Rule - Ham & Cheese Pinwheel
Pour the sauce over the pinwheels and sprinkle with poppy seeds. Then bake for 30-40 minutes, until toasty and puffed up.
The Three Bite Rule - Ham & Cheese Pinwheel
Serve & enjoy!
The Three Bite Rule - Ham & Cheese Pinwheel
These were dinner one night but the ham has me thinking they’d work well for brunch too. You could put each one into a muffin tin for individual servings.

Lobster Cakes

I made some lobster cakes as a play on a crab cake. They were so good and though I plopped mine onto a salad, they would be great as an appetizer too!

The Three Bite Rule - Lobster Cakes

Ingredients:

1 cup lobster meat, chopped
2 tbs mayo
1 tbs grainy mustard
1 tsp minced garlic
4 chive sprigs minced
1 green onion, chopped
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs

Directions:

Mix together the lobster meat, mayo, mustard, and garlic gently to not pulverize the lobster.
The Three Bite Rule - Lobster Cakes
Add in the chives and green onion stirring gently.
The Three Bite Rule - Lobster Cakes
Heat a large skillet with vegetable oil to medium heat.
Form the mixture into 2-3 patties and roll them in the mixed breadcrumbs.
The Three Bite Rule - Lobster Cakes
To check the oil temperature, drop a few breadcrumbs into the oil and see if they sizzle immediately. If they do, then add the patties in to cook for about 3-5 minutes on each side. Try to let them really crisp on the bottom before flipping so you only have to flip it once.
The Three Bite Rule - Lobster Cakes
Remove from the oil and let them drain on paper towel to get rid of the excess oil.
The Three Bite Rule - Lobster Cakes
Serve on their own or on top of salad! Enjoy!
The Three Bite Rule - Lobster Cakes
This is the best lazy-man’s lobster. It gets crunchy on the outside but is all lobster on the inside. There really isn’t much filler in these bad boys. I ended up adding a 2nd to my plate. I couldn’t resist!

Can you believe I fried them? I never fry things! They’d be good in the oven, if it isn’t too hot to have your oven on. 😉

I served it with honey mustard dressing that is just so easy and worth making yourself:
2 tbs honey
2 tbs dijon mustard
tiniest dab of butter (tiny as in 1/2 teaspoon – this makes all the difference)
shake it up and enjoy!

The Three Bite Rule - Lobster Cakes
Make your own honey mustard dressing. It is perfect to make a tiny bit for one or two servings or double/triple/quadruple this and have enough for a while.

Burrata Bar & Crostini

My August event is a lovely Garden Party. I wanted the burrata bar but got out voted for a raw bar. Bahh. That isn’t my thing but I couldn’t get the burrata bar out of my head! I was all too happy to bring home a little buratta-ball-baby to become the star of dinner.

The Three Bite Rule - Buratta Bar
I could have gone on and on with toppings but decided it needed to be somewhat reasonable. This would be so fun for easy prep for happy hour party.

Crostini Components:

Buratta
Herbed butter
Prosciutto wrapped melon
sundried tomatoes
balsamic reduction
African blue basil
tomato
Prosciutto

Mr. J lightly grilled the bread and it was go-time.
The Three Bite Rule - Buratta Bar

Besides the buratta being amazing on its own, I absolutely loved buratta with tomato, basil, and balsamic.
The Three Bite Rule - Buratta Bar
The melon with the prosciutto didn’t really need to go on crostini but the salty and sweet and crunch is so lovely with a schmear of herbed butter.
The Three Bite Rule - Buratta Bar
I mixed butter, garlic, fresh oregano, and fresh thyme. This is also perfect for garlic bread or to jazz up the outside of a grilled cheese.
The Three Bite Rule - Buratta Bar