Any good "southern" appetizer recipes?

[chop456]

We are going to a Kentucky themed dinner tonight (we were out of town last week, so we are celebrating the Derby this week!) We are supposed to bring an appetizer - any easy suggestions?

 

[ashjohnson80]

pigs in a blanket?

 

[tw1nsmom]

cheese straws

 

[mickeyfan1]

Check FoodTV.com and search Paula Deen, she has a bazillion southern recipies.

 

[debster812]

Check FoodTV.com and search Paula Deen, she has a bazillion southern recipies.

Took the words RIGHT off my keyboard. This Yankee girl LOVES Paula Deen.

 

[ashjohnson80]

Check FoodTV.com and search Paula Deen, she has a bazillion southern recipies.

Her shrimp on grits toast is really good!

 

[powellrj]

cheese straws were the first thing I thought of. I agree with the Paula Deen suggestion. She has lots of great ideas!

 

[L107ANGEL]

What are cheese straws?

 

[Cantw8]

What are cheese straws?

Settle down, you can't drink from them

 

[chop456]

I went to Paula Dean first. Gotta love Paula! It was hard to find an appetizer, though. Most were desserts or main courses. We ended up with smoked sausage stuffed mushrooms. Is that southern? Sounds yummy! Thanks for the ideas. I did see alot of cheese straw recipes, too. Never had them.

 

[L107ANGEL]

I went to Paula Dean first. Gotta love Paula! It was hard to find an appetizer, though. Most were desserts or main courses. We ended up with smoked sausage stuffed mushrooms. Is that southern? Sounds yummy! Thanks for the ideas. I did see alot of cheese straw recipes, too. Never had them.

But what are they?

 

[mickeyfan1]

cheese straws are like light crackers. The dough is forced through a die, kinda like red vines, and then they dry a bit before they are baked. Then they are just broken into pieces, rather than being cut while still damp. They look like straws, I suppose. I had them once, they didn't do it for me. But they are available in many stores, I actually bought them in AZ, never saw them in GA when I lived there.

 

[L107ANGEL]

cheese straws are like light crackers. The dough is forced through a die, kinda like red vines, and then they dry a bit before they are baked. Then they are just broken into pieces, rather than being cut while still damp. They look like straws, I suppose. I had them once, they didn't do it for me. But they are available in many stores, I actually bought them in AZ, never saw them in GA when I lived there.

So like a cracker but in the shape of a straw?

 

[lucyanna girl]

How about: Barbequed Pecans, Hot Turnip Green Dip, or my favorite, Crawfish "Tout Etouffe"

Crawfish "Tout Etoufee"

3 lbs peeled crawfish tails
Creole seasoning
1 cup veg. oil
3/4 cups flour
2 large chopped bell peppers
2 large chopped onions
1 stalk chopped cerery
4 chopped green onion tops
1 clove chopped garlic
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese
2 TBS cornstartch
2 cups water

Sprinkle crawfish with Creole seasoning. Make a roux with flour and water by cooking over med heat, stirring constantly, until the color of peanut butter. Add onions, bell pepper, celery, green onions, and garlic and saute until vegatables are tender. Add crawfish tails and cook 5 minutes. Add cream cheese and stir until melted. Mix cornstartch with water and add to crawfish. Cook on low for 15 - 20 minutes. Serve as a dip in a chaffing dish or over pasta or rice as a main dish.
This always goes over well. It makes 12 main course servings or a large dip.

Penny

 

[mickeyfan1]

So like a cracker but in the shape of a straw?

More like a skinny curro. If you but them commercially made. Here is one recipe to try yourself.

Southern Cheese Straws Recipe
From Jean Brandau

Cheese Straws are a great Southern tradition. In fact, this is the one item that appears most often amid the array of food offered at tea parties, holiday gatherings or luncheons.
INGREDIENTS:

8 oz. Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, freshly grated
12 T. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 egg
1 3/4 C. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
PREPARATION:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
In food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the cheese, butter, egg, flour, salt and cayenne pepper; process until mixed.

Pack the dough into a cookie press fitted with the star-shaped cookie disk.

Holding the cookie press at an angle on an ungreased baking sheet, press the trigger twice, dragging the press away to make a 3" long straw. Space the straws 1" apart. To make straws the length of the baking sheet, continually press the trigger and drag the press away, spacing straws 1" apart.
Bake until the straws are lightly golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer straws to wire racks to cool. Straws may be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Makes about 60 three-inch straws.

Note: The humidity can affect how your cheese straws turn out.

 

[mickeyfan1]

and here is a link with a pic
http://www.cheesesticks.com/

 

[L107ANGEL]

and here is a link with a pic
http://www.cheesesticks.com/

Thanks!!!!

 

[mickeyfan1]

Anytime, I am the queen of southern eating.

 

[L107ANGEL]

That is going in my notebook now!

 

[arminnie]

The proper cheese straw is more like a cheese shortbread in texture rather than a cracker. Most are made with cheddar cheese, but there can be variations.

Too much flour can make for a tasteless cheese straw. Too much cheese or butter is bad tough. It's kind of hard to get the proportions right.

Some of the commercially prepared cheese straws are just terrible. There are a couple (J&M for one) that are pretty good.

They are called straws because of the cookie press thing, but you can use the dough into a roll and cut it like bake and slice cookies. Some people might even put a pecan on top for variety. Many of the recipes call for cayenne pepper.

I'm not posting a recipe because I don't have one that I am totally satified with.