Baked Brie Bites

Rose and Eric made up this recipe based on our favorite baked brie!

Ingredients

- brie

- Pillsbury pastry sheet

- jam or topping of your choice (we used a fig-walnut jam and cranberries sprinkled with brown sugar)

Directions

- Cut brie into bite sized pieces

- Place brie on a laid out pastry sheet and cut squares of dough around each piece

- Top brie with a 1/4 tsp or less of jam

- fold up and press corners of the pastry sheet squares together to form a little closed pocket

- Place on a sprayed cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 375 F.

- Let cool for 10 minutes and enjoy!

Tomato-Basil Bruschetta

Ingredients:

• 2 very ripe tomatoes, seeded & finely diced
• 1 tablespoon slivered basil
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
• Pinch kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste
• One 8oz loaf French or Italian bread, cut into 8 slices
• 1 garlic clove, halved

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, combine the tomatoes, basil, vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper. Set aside.

2. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Place the bread on a baking sheet in a single layer; toast until lightly browned, 2-3 minutes on each side.

3. Rub the toast slices on one side with the garlic clove and top with a generous tablespoon of the tomato mixture. Arrange on a serving tray and garnish with the basil leaves (if using). Let stand, covered, at room temperature until the mixture's juices have soaked into the bread, at least 30 minutes (but no longer than 6 hours before serving).

Recipe: Crab Avocado dip

Featured at the May 2010 potluck-- the crab avocado dip is a fun, fresh take on guacamole perfect for the warmer months.

Ingredients:
2 lg avocados
1 c lump crabmeat
1/4c minced onion
salt and black pepper to taste
1 Tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 c chopped fresh parsley as a garnish

Steps:
1. cut avocados in half-- peel and mash them in a bowl with a fork along with the crab meat, onion, salt and pepper, lemon juice. Taste and adjust to your liking.
2. garnish and serve....if waiting to bring it to potluck what you want to do is put it in an air tight container--using a wrap and pressing down on the dip and refrigerate. (If you don't do this, and I didn't the first time, your dip turns an ugly black color--though it is still delicious and you just need to stir it up.)
3. don't forget your dipping tools...chips, veggies etc. Enjoy!

**quick tip on picking avocados which threw me for a long time...you want to pick dark, practically black skinned avocados and give them a little squeeze to make sure they are soft enough to use if you plan on making your dish immediately. I have never had luck buying bright green avocados and waiting for them to ripen, though a guacamole-loving friend did tell me if you put them in a brown paper bag it helps quicken the process.

Enjoy!