Jalapeno Cream Cheese

Jalapeno cream cheese is the best thing for some tortilla chips or crackers, or as a spread on a tasty meaty sandwich.  It’s also good just spread on toast in the morning.

Difficulty rating:  0.2  You need to be able to cut jalapenos into really small pieces and then mash it together with some cream cheese.

Here’s what you need to make Jalapeno cream cheese:

• A brick of cream cheese, softened
• A nice fresh jalapeno.  The longer and skinnier, the hotter

Here’s how to make it:

1.  Take the cream cheese out of its wrapping and let it sit in a bowl for about 30 minutes so it gets a bit soft.

Cream cheese waiting to be taken to another level

2.  Now cut up the jalapeno into really small pieces  If you like your cream cheese nice and spicy, keep the seeds in.  If you’re looking for a bit of a milder flavor, throw the seeds out.

Finely diced jalapeno

3.  Stir it all around until it’s well-mixed.

Yummy!!

Let the flavors blend for at least an hour before you use it.  It’s really good the day after you make it!

Here’s what it costs to make  (spreads on about 7 pieces of bread):

• Cream cheese:  $3.00
• Jalapeno:  $0.20

Total cost to make:  $3.20

   Total cost per delicious serving:  $0.46

Not a bad price for a really tasty and spicy snack!!

I like to take a little container of this and some crackers to work for a coffee break snack.  Makes the afternoon much better!

Jalapeno Pinwheels

I make these bad boys anytime I realize that I have cream cheese and tortillas in the house at the same time.  I always have pickled jalapenos, so that’s never a problem!

These are easy to make and taste amazing.  If you need a gluten-free option, spread the cream cheese mixture on your favorite corn tortilla chips instead of wrapping them in a tortilla.  Absolutely equally awesome.

For this tasty recipe, you need to be able to stir really hard or use a hand mixer, and you need to be able to use your oven or toaster oven.  So it’s really easy – you can do it!

Here’s what you need to make Jalapeno Pinwheels:

• 1 brick of cream cheese
• A good handful of pickled jalapenos
• 2 or 3 8 or 10-inch tortillas

 Here’s how to make them:

1.  Put the cream cheese in a bowl.  To make stirring easier, cut the cream cheese into smaller pieces first.  Also to make stirring easier, have the cream cheese at room temperature.

2.  Put as much chopped jalapeno in there as you think you can handle.

3.  Stir it all around until it’s nothing but a crazy mash of deliciousness.

Crazy mash of deliciousness

4.  Put the crazy mash of deliciousness in the fridge overnight.  Trust me.  It makes the jalapeno get a million times more flavorful in that cream cheese.  It is worth the wait.

5.  The next day, take the cream cheese mixture out of the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for a bit so it’s good and spreadable.

6.  Take a tortilla and glob all the cream cheese mixture onto it.   You should also turn your oven on to something like 400 degrees (I use my toaster oven).

7.  Spread all the cream cheese out, all over the tortilla from edge to edge.  Try not to rip the tortilla.  The warmer your cream cheese stuff is, the easier it will spread.  You don’t have a chance spreading it if it’s cold.  You’ll just end up with a bunch of ripped-up tortillas.

Tortilla wrap all spread with the creamy goodness

8.  Now just start from the bottom of the tortilla and tightly roll it up.  Roll it as tight as you can.  It’s just better that way.

Rolling

All rolled up

9.  Take the rolled-up magic and cut it into slices.  The straighter across you cut, the smaller your pieces will be.  If you cut your pieces more diagonally, you’ll get pieces that are longer.

Cut through the roll

A nice row of tasty Twisters

10.  Spray your cooking sheet with some non-stick stuff and pack all those delicious slices on it.  Then cook them for about 5 minutes.  Then take them out, flip them all over, and cook them for another few minutes, until you can see that they’re starting to toast.

Getting toasty!

11.  Once they’re done to your liking, take them out of the oven, put them on a plate, and devour them.  Amazing snack!

Jalapeno Pinwheels

Yes, you should make these one night ahead, but you know what, it’s worth it!

You can also make a whole lot more of these, using a whole lot more cream cheese, and bring them to a party or serve them if you have people coming over.

If you want to make a less-hot version, use red pepper instead of jalapenos.  Cut really small pieces and mix them into the cream cheese.

  Here’s what it cost to make (for one roll for one person):

• Cream cheese:  $1.50
• Jalapenos:  $.50
• Tortilla:  $0.40

   Total:  $2.40 – not a bad price for a snack that will not only be filling, but tasty!  It leaves a really satisfying heat on your tongue!

   Still hungry for snack ideas?  Help yourself to one of these recipes: 

• Super Perogies
• Outta This World Nachos

Grilled Cheese with Jalapeno

It’s cheesy, it’s crispy, it’s amazing.  And it’s got kick.

It’s a spiced-up grilled cheese sandwich.

Anybody can make this.  It’s super easy.

Here’s what you’ll need to make a Grilled Cheese with Jalapeno:

• A little bit of butter
• 2 slices of bread (I use 12-grain or light rye bread.  If you’ve never tried to make a grilled cheese with rye bread, try it.  There’s just something fabulous about toasted rye bread)
• Cheese!!   You can use whatever kind of cheese you like – chedder, mozzarella, gouda, colby, any kind you have.  You can use slices or grated cheese, whatever you like.  I usually cut out slices from a brick of cheese.  I prefer it grated (melts better) but I’m usually too lazy to get out the grater.
• Pickled jalapenos

  Here’s how to make it:

1.  Put a pan on the stove and turn the heat on to medium.

2.  Butter one side of a slice of bread (I use either 12-grain bread or a light rye) and put the slice of bread into the pan with the butter side down

3.  Stack your sliced cheese on the top of the bread.  Do your best to spread it out evenly so that it melts evenly.

Some nice lookin’ cheese

4.  Pile a few pickled jalapenos on top of the cheese in a delicious fashion.

Oh yeah….

5.  Butter one side of your second piece of bread and put it on top of everything, with the butter side up.

Buttered side up!

6.  Take a spatula and gently squeeze down on the sandwich to compress the cheese into the bread a bit.

A good gentle squish

7.  After about four minutes, use the spatula to flip the sandwich over in the pan.

Nice and toasty, flipped so the other side can get nice and toasty too!

8.  With the spatula, gently squish down the top of the sandwich again.

9.  Flip again after about four minutes.
NOTE:  Keep your eye on how the bottom side is doing by using your spatula to lift up a corner and peek at the bread underneath. 

10.  Once it’s cooked up, flip it onto a plate and slice it in half.

Look at that!!

Ohhh sooo gooey, cheesy, and tasty….

Feel free to help yourself to a little condiment, like ketchup.

Enjoy!!

Here’s how much it costs to make:

• Two slices of bread $0.50
• A bit of butter $0.05
• A bit of pickled jalapenos $0.40
• A chunk of cheese $1.00

  Total cost to make this amazing sandwich:  $1.95

Wow!!  All that taste, gooeyness, and satisfaction for just $1.95!?!??

  Indulge your taste buds in some of these other quick meal ideas: 

• Snappy Snack Plate
• Snappy Nachos

Spicy Scrambled Eggs

They’re great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner!

Eggs are really good for you, and they’re really filling.  And also, they only take about five minutes to make, start to finish!  So they’re a great go-to meal when you don’t feel like being in the kitchen for long.

  These are totally easy to make.  You need to be able to scramble an egg and chop some delicious veggies.

For my Spicy Scrambled Eggs, you’ll need:

1. 2 or 3 eggs
2. A little bit of cooking oil
3. 1/4 of a white onion
4. A handful of pickled jalapenos
5. Pre-cooked Bacon
6. Freshly cracked black pepper

Here’s how to make them:

1.  Put a little bit of cooking oil in a pan (use a good non-stick pan if you have one) and let it heat up for about 30 seconds.  I use medium heat.

Oil in a pan

2.  Crack the eggs into the pan and stir them around using a plastic utensil (a metal utensil is could ruin your pan) until the yolks are all beaten and mixed.

Eggs!

3.   Add the pre-cooked bacon in with the eggs.  Then add some pepper.  Everything is better with pepper.

Bacon and eggs – yum!

4.  Dice up the onion and add it to the mix.

5.  Take some pickled jalapenos and add them too.  You can slice them up if you want – I like them whole!

Looks good!

6.  Stir everything around, making sure it gets all nice and mixed.

Mmmm!! Just another minute and they’ll be ready!

7.  Everybody likes their eggs cooked a little differently – some people like them runnier, some people like them really well-cooked.  Cook your Smokin’ Scrambled Eggs until the eggs are done the way you like them!

That’s it – you’re done!

  Here’s what it costs to make: 

1. Eggs:  $0.75
2. Cooking oil:  $0.03
3. White onion:  $0.35
4. Jalapenos:  #0.15
5. Bacon:  $0.75
6. Pepper:  $0.03

   Total cost per delicious meal:  $2.06

Amazing!  Give them a try!  They take less than 10 minutes to make!

   Try one of these other scrumptious 10-minute meals:

• Snappy Nachos
• Tangy Wontons