10 Appetizers

1. Tortilla Cheese Pinwheels
Ingredients (makes approximately 50):

• 4 tortillas (flour, corn, or flavored - your choice)
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup chopped green onion
• 1/2 cup chopped red pepper
• 1 pkg. dried onion soup mix

Combine softened cream cheese with chopped green onion and red pepper. Add onion soup mix and stir until thoroughly combined.
Spread 1/4 of the cheese mixture on each tortilla.
Roll tortillas, one a a time. Roll tightly.
Wrap rolled tortillas tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for several hours.
Remove tortilla rolls from the fridge and cut into bite sized pinwheels.

2. Rumaki
Ingredients (makes 48):

• 24 chicken livers, halved
• 24 water chestnuts, halved
• 1 bottle of teriyaki sauce
• 24 slices of bacon halved

Marinate the liver and water chestnuts in the teriyaki sauce for several hours (keep them in the fridge while marinating).
Wrap 1 piece of liver and 1 piece of water chestnut with a piece of bacon, secure with a toothpick.
Place rumaki on a broiler tray and broil 20 minutes, turning frequently.

3. Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms
Ingredients:

• 12 large mushrooms
• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 4 tsp. sour cream
• 2 tsp. dried chives
• 1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
• 6 bacon slices partly cooked, halved

4. Shrimp Ball
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup butter
• 8 oz canned, broken shrimp
• 1 tbsp minced onion
• 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 tbsp chopped parsley
• 1/2 tsp. paprika

Cream mayonnaise and butter. Add shrimp, onion, garlic powder and lemon juice. Mix and form into a ball. Sprinkle with parsley and paprika. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill. Serve with crackers.

5. Fresh Veggie Tower
Ingredients:

• Fresh veggies cut into bite sized pieces
  Try cauliflower
  broccoli
  carrots
  mushrooms
  radishes
  cherry tomatoes
  pickled pearl onions
  peppers
  black and green olives
  .
• Use a large styrofoam cone

6. Sour Cream Herb Dip
Ingredients: Combine the following and chill well before serving:

• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp. chopped parsley
• 1 tsp. dried dill
• 1 tbsp minced onion
• 1 tsp garlic powder

7. Quiche Squares
Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped red pepper
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed
• 8 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup pitted black olives, chopped
• 1/2 cup Swiss cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper or chili powder

Squeeze water out of the thawed spinach.
In a frying pan, cook chopped onion, chopped pepper and minced garlic five to ten minutes over medium heat. Add spinach.
In a bowl, beat eggs and milk. Add olives, vegetable mixture, salt and cayenne pepper and both cheeses.
Combine well. Pour into a greased 9 inch square baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees F for 35 minutes or until set.
Cool and cut into squares. Can be served at room temperature.

8. Bruschetta
Ingredients:

• one french baguette
• 2 vine ripened tomatoes
• 1/2 of an English cucumber
• small bottle of Italian salad dressing
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup grated mozzarella or parmesan cheese

Slice baguette into 1/2 inch pieces (slice diagonally for a nicer presentation). Place baguette slices on a baking sheet and toast under the broiler. Make sure both sides of the slices are browned, but not burned. Remove from oven and cool.
Seed and finely chop two tomatoes and half of an English cucumber. You may add chopped green onion, if you wish. Place tomatoes and cucumber in a bowl and add enough salad dressing to moisten them. (Do not create this mixture ahead of time, because moisture from the tomatoes and cucumber will leach out and water down the mixture.)
Spoon about 1 tbsp of the vegetable mixture onto each bruschetta. Top with grated cheese. Place on a baking sheet and cook under the broiler until the cheese is melted and bubbly.

9. Oriental Chicken Wings
Ingredients:

• 3 lbs chicken wings
• 1 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. ginger

Cut tips from the wings and discard. Divide the wings into two pieces at the joint (alternately, you can purchase chicken pieces that have already been cut). Place the wings in a large pan.
Mix the soy sauce, water, sugar, garlic powder, salt and ginger together and pour over chicken.
Bake uncovered at 325 degrees F for 1 1/2 to 2 hours until tender. Turn the pieces over after the first 3/4 of an hour.

10. Easy Pesto Mushrooms
Ingredients:

• Large mushrooms
• store-bought pesto of your choice

Remove stems from mushrooms and clean the caps.
Fill each cap with pesto.
Place on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes.
Serve hot.

8 Desserts

1. Y2K Meringues
Ingredients:

• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted
• 1/2 cup sugar

Beat egg whites until soft peaks form.
Add vanilla and continue to beat, gradually adding sugar until stiff peaks form.
Gently fold in cocoa powder.
Line a baking sheet with parchment or foil.
Put meringue mixture into a piping bag.
Pipe meringues onto baking sheet in the shape of the letters Y and K and the number 2.
Bake at 250 degrees F for about one hour. You may need to bake longer - meringues should be dry and crisp. Cool.

2. Mini Cheesecakes
Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup graham cracker crumbs (or use chocolate crumbs instead)
• 1 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tbsp. butter, melted
• 1 pkg. cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tsps. lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. grated lemon rind
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 egg
• toppings (see recipe below)

Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter with a fork. Spoon 1 tbsp. of the crumb mixture into each of six paper-lined muffin cups (placed in a muffin pan). Press the mixture into the bottom of the cup. Bake at 325 degrees F for five minutes.
Mix cream cheese, sugar, juice, lemon peel and vanilla at medium speed with an electric mixer until blended. Add the egg and blend well. Fill each of the muffin cups with the mixture. Bake at 325 degrees F for 25 minutes. Cool before removing from the muffin tin. Chill well.
Add toppings of your choice.

Here are some ideas:

• crushed candy cane
• cherry pie filling
• chocolate curls
• dollop of whipped cream and a sprig of mint
• candied red and green cherries
• crushed nuts

• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup flour
• salt
• 4 eggs at room temperature
• whipped cream, pudding or other filling

In a saucepan, boil 1/2 cup of shortening/margarine with one cup water. Dump in one cup flour and a dash of salt. Stir until mixture forms a ball. Let mixture cool. Add 4 eggs, one at a time. Beat after adding each egg.
Form mixture into large balls and drop onto a cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes, then bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a rack.
Fill each puff with whipped cream (flavored with brandy), pudding, custard, etc.

4. Pumpkin Tarts
Ingredients:

• 10.5 oz firm tofu, drained
• 2 cups canned pumpkin
• 2/3 cups liquid honey
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ginger
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. cloves
• 12 unbaked tart shells

In a food processor, process tofu until smooth. Add pumpkin, vanilla, honey and spices and process until smooth. Place tarts on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a rack. Chill in fridge. Filling will firm up as it chills. Garnish with a dollop of whipped cream flavored with vanilla.

5. Fruit Pizza
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/4 confectioner's sugar
• 1 cup flour
• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• sliced fruit (strawberries, kiwi, pineapple, grapes, orange slices)
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 cup pineapple juice
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. lemon juice

Mix butter, confectioner's sugar and flour with a fork or pastry cutter. Press into a pizza pan or a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for 8 minutes. Cool.
With an electric mixer, cream the cheese, 1/3 cup sugar and vanilla. Spread it onto the cooled crust.
Arrange sliced fruit to cover the entire pizza. Be creative. You could spell out Y2K with grapes in the middle of the pizza and then surround with other types of fruit.
Mix cornstarch, pineapple juice, 1/2 cup sugar and lemon juice in a small heavy saucepan and cook over medium heat until the mixture is thick. Pour evenly over fruit mixture. Chill the pizza well.

6. Bow Knots
Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp. yeast
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tbsp. grated orange rind
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 cup scalded milk
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 5 to 5 1/2 cups flour

Soak yeast, warm water and sugar together. Let rise 10 minutes.
Add all of the other ingredients and knead well. Let rise until double in bulk.
Roll bits of dough into strips about 10 inches long and 3/4" round. Tie each strip into a loose knot. Place on baking sheet and let rise for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Bake at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes, until brown.
While the knots are still hot, brush them with a mixture of 1 cup icing sugar, 1 tsp. grated orange rind and 1 tbsp orange juice. Cool.

7. Truffles
Ingredients:

• 16 oz chocolate chips
• 1 can condensed milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• finely chopped nuts, chocolate sprinkles, finely chopped coconut

Combine chips and milk in a heavy saucepan and cook over low heat until the chips are melted. Pour into a baking pan and chill in the fridge for two hours. Remove mixture from fridge and form into small 1" balls. Roll each ball in one of the toppings: chopped nuts, chopped coconut or sprinkles. Place on a baking sheet and chill several hours.

8. Cinnamon Wontons
Ingredients:

• 24 wontons, cut in half diagonally
• 2 tsp warm water
• 4 tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp cinnamon

Combine sugar, cinnamon and water.
Brush each wanton half with the mixture.
Place the wantons on paper towel and microwave for approximately two minutes on high.
The wantons should be puffed and brown.