Book Club Reception Recipes

The Wedding Machine by Beth Webb Hart inspired a festive reception-style dinner for our summer meeting. Guests brought favorite wedding hors d'oeuvres for our potluck meal, and we hostesses provided punch, sweet tea and wedding cake.

 

Sampling tasty bites of fresh fruit, cheese, nuts and other dainty morsels was a great change of pace for this wedding-themed book club, and isn't this the way most of us want to eat in the summer? Here are a couple of the evening's recipes.


Julie's Fruit Dip

Dubbed Julie's fruit dip since Margie Austin made it for her daughter, Julie Knapp's, wedding reception.

8 oz. cream cheese
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup sour cream
1 tsp. cinnamon

Mix cream cheese and brown sugar together. Add vanilla, sour cream and cinnamon and whip until light and fluffy. Chill. Use as a dip for apple slices or other fruit. Yield: 2 cups

Southwestern Cheesecake

Nancy Itson brought this unique dish, a tasty recipe shared by friend Adrienne Bell.

1 1/2 cups finely crushed tortilla chips
3 tablespoons margarine, melted
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
2 eggs
8 ounces shredded Colby/Monterrey Jack cheese
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies, drained
1 cup sour cream
1 (8 ounce) package jalapeno cheddar dip
3/4 cup chopped yellow and orange bell pepper
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1/3 cup chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup ripe olive slices
Chips and crackers

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Stir tortilla chips and margarine in small bowl and press into bottom of 9-inch spring form pan. Bake 15 minutes. Beat cream cheese and eggs in a large mixing bowl on medium speed with electric mixer until well blended. Mix in shredded cheese and chilies. Pour over crust and bake 30 minutes. Spread sour cream and cheddar dip over cheesecake. Loosen cake from rim of pan and refrigerate. Top with bell pepper, green onion, tomatoes and black olives just before serving. Serve with chips and crackers.

Still to come, a devotional and our latest book club selection.