Quick Brazilian Cheese Rolls (Pao de Queijo)

Made these for dinner tonight and they were FABULOUS!!!!!!!!!! I couldn't stop eating them. And it took all of 2 minutes to mix them up-the hardest part (if you can even call it that, was shredding the cheese). Just a heads up-the mixture/batter/whatever you want to call it is SUPER thin, like the consistency of milk-but that's how it's supposed to be, so don't worry~

This recipe also comes from Ourbestbites.com

1 large egg

1/2 Cup milk

1/4 Cup canola oil

1 cup Tapioca flour (YAY-Gluten FREE!!!)

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/4 Cup grated parmesan cheese

1/4 Cup grated cheddar cheese (preferably medium or sharp)

*you can play around with the cheeses-whatever you prefer would probably work

Optional: extra cheese to sprinkle on top and any herbs/flavorings you'd like to add. They suggest rosemary and or garlic powder.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place egg, milk, oil flour, and salt in blender and blend until smooth. Add cheeses and pulse 2 times. Immediately pour batter into a mini muffin tin (if your muffin tin isn't non-stick, spray lightly with a non-stick spray first), filling each well about 3/4 full, or just slightly less. If desired (and they recommend this) sprinkle a bit of parmesan cheese on top and/or a tiny sprinkle of kosher salt.

Bake for 15-20 mins until puffed and golden. Remove from oven and cool for a few mins before removing from the pan. Serve warm. These don't reheat very well so make and eat them fresh!

Yield: anywhere from 18-24 rolls, depending on how full you fill your muffin pan.

Butternut Squash Soup*

This recipe is out of a Williams-Sonoma cookbook (I think???)

Prep: 30 mins Cook: 25 mins

Makes 6 side-dish servings

3 Cups peeled, diced butternut squash (about 1 small squash)

2 Cups thinly sliced carrot (abt. 4 Medium)

3/4 Cups thinly sliced leek or chopped onion

1 Tbsp butter or margarine

2 14-oz cans reduced sodium chicken broth

1/4 tsp ground white pepper (I couldn't find this in the store so I used normal pepper)

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 cup half-and-half or light cream

Optional: Pumpkin seeds, toasted to garnish when serving

1. In a large covered saucepan cook squash, carrot and leek/onion in hot butter over med heat-about 8 mins, stirring occasionally. Add broth and bring to a boil, reduce heat. Simmer covered for 25-35 mins or until veggies are tender. Cool slightly.

2. Place one-third of the squash mixture in a food processor or blender. Cover and process until almost smooth. Repeat with remaining squash mix. Return all of mixture to the saucepan. Add pepper, nutmeg; bring just to a boil. Add half-and-half; heat through. Garnish with pumpkin seeds if you want and serve-Easy as pie (and just as tasty!).

Guacamole dip*

2-3 medium avocados

1 T Fresh lime juice or a good squeeze from half a lime

1/2 t fresh minced garlic-no garlic powder or bottled minced garlic-use the fresh stuff!

2 T finely minced onion

2 heaping spoonfuls of sour cream (appx. 1/4 C)

Salt to taste

3-4 T finely diced tomatoes

Scoop out avocado from skins and mash in a bowl (I used my whisk to mash it and it worked really well). Add remaining ingredients and combine well. Store in an airtight container in the fridge. The recipe recommends making it at least 30 minutes before serving to let the flavors combine.

(apparently the citiric acid in the lime juice helps avocados keep their color but there is also an enzyme found in sour cream that is even better. It not only adds a nice creamy texture and flavor, but also keep the guac looking fresh for several DAYS!

(this recipe is from ourbestbites.com)

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos**

1/3 C (3oz) cream cheese

1/4 C green salsa

1T fresh lime juice

1/2 t cumin

1 t chili powder

1/2 t onion powder

1/4t granulated garlic (I didn't know exactly what this was so I used garlic salt and it was fine)

3 T chopped cilantro

2 T sliced green onions (I accidentally left these out and it was also fine)

2 C shredded cooked chicken

1 C grated pepperjack cheese

small corn tortillas

kosher salt

cooking spray

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray

Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 sec so it's soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice(I just cut a lime in half and squeezed it), cumin, chili powder, onion powder, and garlic salt. Stir to combine then add cilantro and green onions. Add chicken and cheese, combine well.

Work with a few tortillas at a time-heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking (I did about 5-8 tortillas at a time for 1 minute wrapped in a paper towel to hold in the moisture).

Place 2-3T of chicken mixture on the lower third of the tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 in from the edges. Then roll it up tight, leaving the seam side down on the baking sheet.(make sure they aren't touching each other so they don't get stuck and rip when you try to separate them) Spray the tops lightly with the cooking spray and sprinkle the kosher salt on top.

Cook for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends and the ends start to turn brown.

Dip 'em in salsa, sour cream or the yummy guac recipe listed above.

(this recipe was taken from ourbestbites.com)