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Baked Southwestern Egg Rolls ::: Party Hors d’oeuvre Series

WHAT. A . LONG. WEEK.

It’s been exciting getting back to work and diving into the new year, but I do miss waking up and only thinking about Bikram yoga on the agenda for those few days.

One more day this week though! Let’s do it.

You know what would make this grueling week-after-an-amazing-break better? If you made these egg rolls. They make me happy. And they made my New Year’s Eve party guests very happy.

::: partaaay egg rolls ::

Whenever I see southwestern egg rolls on a menu I want them, but I am always turned off by the grease from frying. Why not bake them?

Southwestern Egg Rolls. In all their glorious, spicy, flavorful, hot, gooey, and crunchy goodness. They were really a fabulous idea, until I forgot the egg roll wrappers when I was at the grocery store.

#$%$!!!!

We dealt with it and used multiple won ton wrappers instead. That was not easy. Peter got stuck wrapping them because I didn’t have the patience.

So for the New Years Eve party I decided to make them FOR REAL. {seen above}

And it was worth it.

::: the annoying little mini me’s made w/ tiny wont ton wrappers :::

Southwestern Egg Rolls      yields about 10 egg rolls

  • 2 boneless skinless breasts of chicken, chopped small
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 lime, squeezed
  • 1 can of corn, drained
  • 1 can of black beans, drained
  • 1 4 oz can of green chilis, squeezed to drain as much as possible
  • 5 scallion, sliced thin
  • 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • package of  egg roll wrappers
  • eggwash for sealing wrappers
  • Olive Oil cooking spray

Avocado Dipping Sauce

  • 1 -2 avocados (depending the size), sliced
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • squeeze of lemon or lime juice

Spicy Dipping Sauce

  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 2 tablespoons hot sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400° F.

In a pan heat olive oil on medium heat. Cook chicken seasoned with paprika, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne, salt and pepper for 8 minutes or until fully cooked. Should be quick since we diced it small. When cooked, set aside to cool.

While the chicken is cooking combine corn, black beans, green chilis, scallions, and lime juice in a mixing bowl. Once chicken is room temperature add chicken and cheese to the bowl and mix.

To roll the egg rolls, place wrapper facing you like a diamond. Put about 3-4 tablespoons of mixture in the wrapper. Fold up bottom side. Fold in both left and right side and use the egg wash to glue sides to the bottom flap. Pull top side over and seal tightly using egg wash. Make sure there are no holes, seal everything well.  Place on a greased baking sheet. Spray tops of egg rolls with olive oil cooking spray.

Bake for 10 minutes, flip them completely over, then bake for ten more. They should brown on all sides and crisp.

Avocado dipping sauce: combine all ingredients in a food processor and grind until smooth. Salt and pepper to taste.

Spicy dipping sauce: Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Salt and pepper to taste.

::: keelymarie :::

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Cocktail Meatballs ::: Party Hors d’oeuvre Series

These are great cocktail meatballs! I was on the hunt for a fantastic cocktail meatball for our News Year’s party. Criteria: one bite so you can stick with a toothpick, sweet & savory, with some sort of glaze.

Emeril came through when I found his recipe on FoodNetwork.com. To be honest, it was one of the few recipes I found quickly that sounded really appetizing. I did though, just find out that my Kitchen Aid mixer has a recipe in its recipe booklet that is similar, but calls for a cup of strong coffee in the sauce.

I tripled the below recipe since this was for a big group (yes I had 60+ meatballs) and used 1/3 ground pork for flavor. In terms of seasonings, everything from your cabinet is pretty much in here, but it’s because he wants you to use his “Emeril’s Essence.” Rather than have you make this essence (to set aside and only use 1/2 teaspoon of),  I’ve just added a bit of each in my recipe.  I also baked the meatballs and then put them in the crock pot with the sauce for a few hours instead of frying with oil and butter as he would.

{Adapted from Emeril Lagasse’s Cocktail Meatballs}

Cocktail Meatballs  yields 24- 30 meatballs

  • 1/2 pound ground beef
  • 1/2 pound ground pork {You can use all beef just as easily}
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion
  • 1/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs {I used Italian because they were on hand}
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • 2 teaspoons Creole mustard
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • a few pinches cayenne {more or less depending if you want heat}
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 teaspoon hot red pepper sauce {hot sauce}
  • non-stick olive oil spray

Sauce

  • 1 cup ketchup
  • 1/2 cup grated yellow onion
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 375 ° F.

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients for the meatballs, except the non-stick spray…obviously. ; )

Mix well with your hands. Form into individual meatballs, about 1-inch in diameter. Spray a baking sheet covered in tinfoil with olive oil spray and place meatballs on the sheet. Spray the meatballs with some olive oil so they crisp up just a  little (without drying out) while in the oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Put on low broil at the end if needed. {The meatballs should brown on the tops so they stay together in the crock pot.} You may have some grease to drain from the pan once they finish cooking in the oven.

Make the sauce by combining all the ingredients in a medium bowl, whisking to dissolve the sugar and combine. Adjust the seasoning, to taste. While the meatballs are baking, heat the sauce on medium-low heat in a sauce pan on the stove for at least 10 minutes. Pour the sauce over the meatballs in a crock pot on low and let cook for 2-3 hours, stirring carefully occasionally.

* Time saving method: If you don’t have time for the crock pot, pour the sauce over the meatballs on the baking sheet after the first 20 minutes. Bake for 15 more minutes until they have a nice glaze from the sauce.

Do you have a great family cocktail meatball recipe?

This is the first I’ve tried!

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keely marie