Yum Yum Sauce

1 cup mayo

2 tsp ketchup

1 tsp rice vinegar

1 tsp sugar

½ tsp onion powder

½ tsp garlic powder

½ tsp paprika

3-4 T water, if needed

Easy Queso

1 lb white American cheese

1 cup milk

½ c butter

2 cans diced green chiles 

Add all ingredients to a saucepan & cook on low heat stirring occasionally until melted & smooth. 

Salted Caramel Sauce

1 cup sugar

6 T butter, at room temperature, cut into pieces 

½ cup heavy cream, at room temperature

½ tsp salt

In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the sugar, stirring constantly. Sugar will form clumps and eventually melt into a thick brown, amber-colored liquid as you continue to stir. This takes about 6 minutes. Stir constantly, especially around the bottom edges, and be careful not to let it burn.

Once the sugar is completely melted, reduce the heat to low and stir in the butter. Cook and stir constantly until the butter is melted and well combined. If you notice the butter separating or if the sugar clumps up, remove the pan from heat and vigorously whisk to combine it again. Keep whisking until it comes back together, even if it takes 3–4 minutes. It will eventually—just keep whisking. Return to heat when it’s combined again.

Once the sugar is completely melted, reduce the heat to low and stir in the butter. Be careful in this step because the caramel will bubble rapidly when the butter is added. (If you’re nervous for splatter, wear kitchen gloves.) Cook and stir constantly until the butter is melted and well combined. If you notice the butter separating or if the sugar clumps up, remove the pan from heat and vigorously whisk to combine it again. Keep whisking until it comes back together, even if it takes 3–4 minutes. It will eventually—just keep whisking. Return to heat when it’s combined again.

Very slowly and carefully pour in the heavy cream, stirring constantly. Since the heavy cream is colder than the hot caramel, the mixture will rapidly bubble and steam when added. When all of the heavy cream has been added, stop stirring, increase the heat to medium, and let it boil for 1 minute. It will rise in the pan as it boils. If you’d like to be precise and use a candy thermometer, the temperature should reach 220°.

Remove from heat and stir in the salt. The caramel will be a thin liquid at this point. Allow to slightly cool and thicken before using. Caramel thickens considerably as it cools.

Turkey Gravy

Turkey pan drippings

¼ cup unsalted butter

¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp dried thyme or rosemary 

1 T chopped fresh parsley leaves or 1½ tsp dried parsley 

Salt & black pepper, to taste

Strain pan drippings through a fine-mesh sieve & discard solids. Reserve 2 1/2 cups pan drippings & set aside.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour and thyme or rosemary until lightly browned, about 1 minute.

Gradually whisk in reserved pan drippings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, whisking constantly, until thickened, about 5-10 minutes. Stir in parsley. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Teriyaki Sauce

¼ c soy sauce

2½ T brown sugar

1½ tsp cornstarch 

2 tsp minced garlic

½ tsp ginger, optional

Whisk together in small saucepan until thick. Pour over desired protein. 

Homemade Chocolate Syrup

Great for gift-giving!

12 C sugar

3 c cocoa powder

6 c water

2 t salt

2 T vanilla 

Bring to a boil for 3 minutes. Ladle into hot ½ pint jars & water bath for 15 minutes

Caramel Apple Dip

8 oz cream cheese, softened

¼ cup brown sugar

½ cup caramel sauce

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 oz Cool Whip

2 T caramel sauce

2 T chopped roasted peanuts

2 T mini chocolate chips

Mix cream cheese, brown sugar, ½ cup caramel sauce, vanilla, and cinnamon together with an electric mixer. Use a spatula to fold in the Cool Whip.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Before serving, drizzle with caramel sauce and sprinkle with roasted peanuts and mini chocolate chips.

Serve with apple slices, graham crackers, and pretzels.

Hot Spinach & Bacon Dip

8 oz cream cheese, room temperature

1 c sour cream

1 pkg (10 oz) chopped frozen spinach, thawed and well drained

1 yellow onion, finely diced (or ½ tsp onion powder)

½ tsp garlic powder 

6 strips of bacon, cooked & crumbled

1 c cheddar cheese, shredded

2 c mozzarella, shredded

½ tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 8X8 inch baking dish, set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sour cream until smooth. Add the spinach, onion, garlic, bacon, salt, pepper, cheddar cheese and half of the mozzarella cheese and stir to combine.

Transfer the dip to the prepared baking dish and sprinkle the remaining mozzarella on top.

Bake dip for 20 to 25 minutes, until bubbly and beginning to brown on top. Let spinach dip cool for 5 minutes, then serve with your favorite dippers!

Dippers: Tortilla chips, veggies or pretzel chips

No Bake Pecan Pie Dip

8 oz cream cheese, softened

4 oz cool whip, thawed

1 cup powdered sugar

½ cup brown sugar

3 T cold butter, diced 

⅓ cup light corn syrup

1 cup chopped pecans

1 large egg

1 ½ tsp vanilla

¼ tsp salt

Apple slices, pretzel crisps, or graham crackers for serving

Combine cream cheese, cool whip & powdered sugar in a mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth.

Spread mixture along the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate and refrigerate while you prepare the topping.

Combine brown sugar, butter, corn syrup, pecans, vanilla extract, egg, and salt in a saucepan. Bring mixture to a gentle boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Cook for 1 minute & remove from heat.

Allow topping to cool for 10 minutes before stirring and pouring evenly over the cream cheese layer. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve. 

Serve with apple slices, pretzel crisps or graham crackers.

Blueberry Sauce

16 oz (2 cups) fresh or frozen blueberries (thawed)

½ c sugar

zest of 1 lemon

¼ cup lemon juice, fresh

1 T cornstarch

Place 1 ½ c blueberries, granulated sugar, lemon juice & lemon zest in a food processor or blender to puree.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the pureed blueberry mixture & remaining blueberries. Cook while stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves completely, about 5–7 minutes. Whisk in the cornstarch and cook for a few minutes until it thickens a bit, stirring occasionally.

This should yield about 1 cup of puree.

Baked Pizza Dip

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 t. Italian seasoning
2 c. mozzarella cheese, grated
1/2 c. spaghetti sauce
1/2 c. bell pepper, finely chopped
tortilla chips or hard breadsticks

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix cream cheese & seasoning together until well blended. Spread into a pie plate. Sprinkle half of the cheese on top. Drop tablespoons of spaghetti sauce on top of that. Sprinkle with peppers & the other half of the cheese. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until cheese is bubbly. Let cool a few minutes. Dip with tortilla chips or breadsticks.

Honey Mustard Dip

We like this with big soft pretzels & chicken fingers. Yummy!

• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp honey
• 1 Tbsp yellow mustard
• 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1½ tsp lemon juice
• ¼ tsp smoked paprika

Combine ingredients in a small bowl & stir well. Refrigerate a few hours before serving. Serve with soft pretzels, chicken strips etc.

Cream Cheese Crepe Filling

INGREDIENTS

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 c sugar or powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 c whipping cream, whipped 

INSTRUCTIONS

• Beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Then fold in the whipped cream just until smooth.
• Spread on top of crepes and add desired toppings.

Copycat "Magic Shell"

https://myheavenlyrecipes.com/magic-shell-recipe/#recipe

1 C chocolate chips

2 T coconut oil

⅛ tsp salt

Add ingredients to a bowl & melt in the microwave for 30 seconds. Add additional 20 seconds at a time if needed. 

Keep refrigerated until using. Reheat until melted to reuse.  

THE Best Honey Butter

8 oz butter, room temp

1/4 cup honey

2 tbsp powdered sugar

Mix together & enjoy!

THE best Hummus

From: www.sweetsimplevegan.com

1 head of garlic

3 cups cooked chickpeas (or 2 cans)

3/4 cup reserved chickpea liquid (aquafaba)

1/3 cup tahini

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

Optional: 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

Optional: black pepper, to taste

Pita bread, to serve

TOP WITH:

Additional chickpeas

Good-quality olive oil

Paprika

Za’atar

Preheat oven to 400°F. Remove the flaky outer skin off of the garlic head and then cut the top off of a head of garlic. Place it into a sheet of foil with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinle of salt and pepper. Wrap it up loosely and then place it into the oven (directly on the rack) for 1 hour and cool until easy to handle. 

Reserve about 3/4 cup of the chickpea liquid (aquafaba) and discard the remaining. 

Place the cooked chickpeas into a high-speed blender or a food processor, along with the roasted garlic (squeeze the cooked cloves out and discard the skin), tahini, lemon juice, 1/2 cup aquafaba, salt, and any other seasonings you’d like. Blend until smooth and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.

Add more of the aquafaba if you feel the hummus is too thick and adjust the seasonings and tahini to taste.

Serve the hummus in a wide bowl and top it with a drizzle of good olive oil. We also added a sprinkle of paprika and za’atar.

Store the hummus in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

NOTES

Keep in mind the hummus will get thicker in the fridge as it sits.

A high-speed blender is recommended for this, but a food processor works as well. Keep in mind that with a food processor, it may not be as smooth and you will need to blend it for about 1 to 1 1/2 minutes.

Chick Fil-A Sauce

From: Spaceshipsandlaserbeams.com

4 tspns yellow mustard

¼ c barbecue sauce

1 cup mayonnaise

2 T honey

¼ tspn garlic powder

Mix all ingredients together & chill

Basic Cheese Sauce

Ingredients:

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

1 ½ cup milk

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese (shredded from a block)

½ tsp salt or to taste

pepper to taste

Instructions

Shred cheddar cheese using a grater and set aside. (Pre-shredded cheese has a filler in it & will make your sauce gritty).

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.         

Whisk in flour and cook for a minute or two.

Whisk in milk slowly.

Bring to a gentle simmer and whisk until thickened.

Remove from heat or turn heat down to lowest setting, and stir in cheese a little add a time. If your heat is too high, your sauce might "break" and take on a grainy texture.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve on top of steamed veggies, mac n cheese, baked potatoes, dip soft pretzels in it etc.

Texas Roadhouse Cinnamon Honey Butter

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1 tspn ground cinnamon

Mix all together & enjoy!

Raspberry Sauce

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons water

3 cups frozen raspberries

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Mix all in saucepan & cook until the sugar is dissolved & raspberries are broken down a bit. Sauce will thicken as it cools. Serve over Cheesecake. Yum!

To make low carb:

Use 1/2 c Swerve sweetener & 1/8 t Xanthan gum or glucomannan to thicken.