Christmas Eve Appetizers

Christmas Eve is a great night for a lot of appetizers and different foods - nothing fancy, just good, home cooking!

Unfortunately this year I couldn't do as much as I wanted since I had pneumonia. We ended up taking food over to my parents' house so they could do all of the work..thank goodness! We contributed two appetizers - my spinach artichoke dip and Jon's boiled shrimp and homemade cocktail sauce.

My Spinach Artichoke Dip

I tried a few different recipes and finally created my own. Believe me, if you make this one, it will be the best you have ever tried.






Ingredients

• ½ sweet yellow onion finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, pressed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 10 oz box frozen spinach
• 2 cans artichoke hearts in water, drained and coarsely chopped
• 2 packages cream cheese, softened
• ½ cup sour cream
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• ¼ cup mozzarella cheese
• Few pinches of red pepper flakes
• Salt

Directions

• Saute onion and garlic in olive oil and set aside
• Cook spinach according to package directions; drain.
• Mix spinach, onion, and garlic in large bowl.
• Add cream cheese; mix
• Add mayonnaise, sour cream, cheeses, red pepper flakes, and salt. Mix well.
• Add artichoke hearts; mix; transfer to a baking dish
• Top with some cheese.
• Either store in fridge until ready to bake or bake on 350 degrees until hot and bubbly.
• Serve with tortilla chips and/or raw vegetables such as carrots and celery.

Jon's Shrimp and Cocktail Sauce

It is a tradition in Jon's family to have lots of shrimp on Christmas Eve. Jon loves this tradition - it's another excuse to make shrimp!

Here is what he does -

• Add 3 tbsp white vinegar and 1/3 cup of Old Bay seasoning to a pot of water; bring to a fast boil
• Add 2 lbs of shrimp to the boiling water. Cook until firm, approximately 7 minutes.
• Remove from the water and toss under cold water to stop the cooking.
• Clean and de-vein the shrimp (unless you bought them clean)
• Chill in the fridge

Cocktail sauce: Jon mixes ketchup, horseradish, Tabasco, and Worcestershire sauce to make his cocktail sauce. Whew is it spicy!!