Oh, and the amount of tortillas change depending on how much filling you use. If you like the filing to be thick, then you’ll need fewer tortillas; but if you like the filling to be light, then you’ll need more tortillas.

Ingredients:
1 (8oz) brick cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 (4oz) can chopped green chillies
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1 tbsp minced jalapeños (about 1 pepper)
Salt (to taste)
Pepper (to taste)
10-20 flour tortillas
Salsa (optional)

Directions:
Combine first seven ingredients in large bowl or food processor and mix well. Spread generously on a tortilla, then cover with another tortilla. Cut into 8 wedge pieces. Serve with salsa.

Don’t get me wrong, the mini cheeseburgers (aka sliders) came out beautifully, but you really need to dice the onions finely and don’t add too many more.  I did what I normally do, not measure the onions, and I had added way to many for this recipe.  Granted, the recipe says to add 1 medium onion and I had half an onion to use, plus I was using 2 lbs of beef instead of 1-1/2, but it still came out way too oniony.  Plus, I didn’t dice them up fine enough.  Usually it doesn’t bother us if the onions are finely chopped, but that made a difference this time around.

That’s another thing, I did change the amount of beef for this recipe.  I like it with 2 pounds of beef instead of 1-1/2.  With the way the beef shrinks when it’s cooked, the 2 pounds gave it more substance.  There was more to the sliders.  I’m almost tempted to double the cheese amount since I love cheese, but that’s a personal thing and honestly, what cheese was there was fine.

While this is technically an appetizer, you could also use this recipe for dinner to.  It’s something different than the normal cheeseburgers or meatloaf and it adds a little more pizazz to the table.  Plus, these burgers were the perfect size for Ian’s hands.  When I normally make cheeseburgers for dinner, I generally make a few “nugget sized” ones for Ian and have to figure out what to do about a bun.  With this, the buns are already figured out and he’s eating the same size as we are.

As of right now, I’m still planning on using this recipe for his birthday party on Saturday, but I’m going to have to double the recipe if I’m going to try and feed 15 people.  While I’m still going to have other food as well, there was four of us at dinner tonight and we ate 20 of the 24 sliders by ourselves.  I’m so going to need more for Saturday.

Ingredients:
1 medium onion, about 1 cup finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 lb lean ground beef
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp salt
6 slices American cheese
8 hot dog buns
24 hamburger dill pickle slices (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Finely chop onion and parsley. Combine beef, onion, parsley, garlic and salt in a bowl; mix well. Press beef mixture evenly over bottom of a large bar pan. Bake 10-12 minutes or until beef is no longer pink.
2. Meanwhile, cut cheese into quarters; set aside. Slice buns apart neatly at seams (do not separate tops from bottoms). Trim about 1/4 inch from each bun end to square off ends (discard trimmings). cut buns into thirds for a total of 24 square mini buns, set aside.
3. Remove bar pan from oven. Pour off juices, if necessary, and place on a cooling rack. Cut beef mixture into 24 squares using a pizza cutter. Top each burger with one pickle and one piece of cheese. Place one bun top onto each burger; top with one bun bottom. Cover bar pan with aluminum foil and bake 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melted and buns are warm.
4. To serve, place one burger with bun top onto one bun bottom using a mini spatula. Repeat with remaining burgers and bun bottoms. Serve immediately.

Yield: 24 mini burgers

Nutritional Information (serving size is 2 burgers): Calories 220; Total Fat 10g; Saturated Fat 6g; Cholesterol 45mg; Carbohydrate 15g; Proein 17g; Sodium 540mg; Fiber 1g

The one thing William did tell me is that the point of putting the salsa in the beans (other than for flavor) is to make them a little more spreadable on the chips.  The cheese layers are there to form a barrier between the meat, beans and salsa.  He also recommends using the medium salsa because the mild will end up tasting more like tomato soup than actual salsa.

Ingredients:
2 lbs ground beef
2 (16oz) cans refried beans
2 8 oz cans of black olives, diced
1 small jar pepper rings (pick your favorite poison)
taco seasoning
1 bag round tortilla chips
2 bags shredded mexican-style cheese
large (64 oz, say) jar of salsa

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 F
2. Spread a layer of chips on the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish, enough to cover the bottom to a layer of 2-3 chips deep (but not too deep, it’s going to be a bottom crust…).
3. Mix 1-1/2 cups of salsa and refried beans in a bowl.  Microwave bowl long enough to heat beans and spread bean mixture on chips, add a layer of shredded cheese, and heat in oven long enough to melt cheese.
4. Cook ground beef, drain, and add 1/4 cup of taco seasoning and just enough water to make it not dry (say 1/2 cup)
5. Remove pan from oven, add ground beef, and another layer of cheese; heat in oven again to melt cheese.
6. Remove pan from oven, add a layer of salsa, black olives, and pepper rings; top with more cheese (mmm, mm, good), and heat until melty. Serve…may require a spoon; holds its shape better the next day

The recipe is pretty basic, but if you’re looking to add some color to it, try adding a bunch of red, yellow, and green peppers. They really add to the color and texture of the salsa and I’ve yet to hear any complaints when I do add them. You can also make this as spicy as you want. My mother’s husband really likes spicy hot foods, so when I made this for them awhile ago, I added as many hot peppers I could get my hands on as well as Habenero sauce and it really came out spicy hot.

As for the directions, I typically use a blender to make it since it’s an easy and effective way to do it. However, this method does liquefy it a little more, so if you’re looking for a chunkier salsa, try using a food processor.

The salsa can be served right away after you make it; however, it’s better when you make it a few hours before you need it and stick it in the refrigerator for a time. The longer it sets in the fridge, the thicker it will be come and the spices have more time to blend together.

Ingredients:
1 large can of tomatoes (whole, stewed, or diced)
1/4 chopped onions (or to taste)
1 chopped jalapeno pepper
Salt
Pepper
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/t tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 clove garlic
cilantro

Directions:

1. Add peppers, 1/2 of onions, and juice from tomatoes in a blender. Blend for about a minute or until onions and peppers are small enough or pureed. Pour into mixing bowl.
2. Add tomoatoes, salt, pepper, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, rest of the onions, and cilantro in a blender. Pulse blend 3 or 4 times, just enough to break up the tomatoes. Add to pepper mixture. Stir.

Directions:
Combine all ingredients into a bowl. Serve cold. Blueberries are a great source of age-defying antioxidants. And they taste sooo good! Note: You may substitute blueberries for ripe mangos, papayas, or even raspberries. For traditional salsa, use organic tomatoes instead of fruit.

Lately, he’s found another really great way to eat it. Meijers has been selling this artisan bread called “Black Bean & Salsa” and Jesse loves spreading guacamole on slices as if it was butter. He’ll eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner until the loaf is gone.

The amount of the onions, tomatoes, garlic, and jalapeños is up to you. I don’t usually measure them, but I do give a rough estimate in the ingredients. I will be honest, about the only thing I do measure is the lime juice and that’s because too much or too little makes a big difference.

Ingredients:
2 large ripe pitted, peeled Avocados
1 medium, finely chopped Roma tomatoes
2 finely chopped Jalapeños
1/4 medium chopped Onion
1-2 finely chopped Garlic Clove
2 tbsp fresh Cilantro finely chopped (or to taste)
2 tbsp Juice, lime
1/2 tsp Salt
dash Pepper, black
dash Pepper, cayenne
1 tsp Onion powder
1 tsp Garlic powder

Directions:
In a medium bowl, mash together the avocados, lime juice, and salt. Stir in cayenne pepper, cilantro and black pepper. Mix in onion, jalapeños, tomatoes, and garlic. Refrigerate 1 hour for best flavor, or serve immediately.