{yummy} easy, breezy apps.

it's the most wonderful time of the year- and probably one of the busiest. not to brag or anything, but i have a ridiculous amount of holiday parties to attend. i'm just that cool. oooooor people like my potluck choices. either way, i figured i'd share some of my time-tested appetizer recipes with you. who needs to stress about a party and what to bring?! just whip up one of these and people will be begging for the recipe. i swear - pinky promise - scout's honor - and whatever other assurance you need.

i recently went to a ball off at my friend whitney's house. what is a 'ball-off' you ask?! well, it is a potluck party where everything is in the shape of balls. and then we judge everyone's balls. comments from the peanut gallery are welcome, welp, because a party called a 'ball-off' asks for it. lol. so the first two recipes i will share were my submissions to said ball-off. each was finished off with no leftovers to spare. yum in the tum.

the first recipe i'd like to share is by far the easiest and the most requested when i attend a function. i affectionately refer to it as pizza dip. after all, everyone like pizza and dips are easy. i may be lacking in pictures for some of these, but TRUST that the appearance isn't as important as the taste.

pizza dip

2 blocks of cream cheese

pesto to taste

a jar of tomato & basil pasta sauce

melba toast or bagel chips

mix to cream cheese and pesto to taste. form into a log shape or small teaspoon size balls and refrigerate. when ready to serve, pour the pasta sauce on the cheese mixture and serve with the chips of choice.

I AM NOT JOKING. who jokes about food anyway?! it is seriously that easy and it consistently requested by friends- typically by the vat full. ha.

now here's the next app option. mama riner learned this near and dear recipe while we lived in the great state of texas. keep in mind, down there they like it hot and fat-full. no fat-free options here. the name leaves something to be desired, so i give you...

armadillo eggs

2 tubes of HOT sausage

cheddar cheese

a jar of jalapeno slices

i ran out of cookie sheets. it's called improvising, people. ;-)

form the sausage into tablespoon size balls. create a hole in each and stuff with a piece of cheddar cheese along with a jalapeno slice. bake at 350 for 30 minutes, turning them halfway through. then broil on high for 5 minutes on each side. done and done.

the final app option is by far the easiest to assemble and just as tasty. in fact, i'm even making it this evening for a viewing party. it's a tad spicy, but not as much as the previous recipe. we riners like our food hot and HOT. ;-)

hot pepper dip

1 block of cream cheese

a jar of hot pepper jelly (i buy mine from trader joe's)

melba toast or bagel chips

platter the cream cheese block. pour the hot pepper jelly on top. serve with chips of choice.

as you can see, i don't joke around when it comes to easy apps. while i love cooking, i find that appetizers tend to be better the simpler they are. it may be because they get a lot of praise for little effort, but who cares. less time cooking leaves more time for fun. so eat up and spread the holiday cheer!

xoxo Lauren