Sarah gets cheesyDiehard "American Idol" viewers will remember Sarah Sellers as the geek-chic food blogger who made it to Hollywood Week last year. (Watch her Season 10 audition here.) Sarah has since continued her food-blogging, and has been cooking up scrumptious snack suggestions for any "Idol" viewing party and posting them here in Reality Rocks each week. She was also my special guest on a special South By Southwest version of "The Day After" in Austin recently, which you can watch HERE!
Tonight's top three episode has a homecoming theme, so Dallas native Sarah says of this week's recipe inspiration: "I thought I would make something that's a staple in my hometown, queso! If you talk to anyone in Dallas, I guarantee you they have an opinion on the best queso dip in town. So I thought I would take my favorite dip and turn it into a bite-size snack!"
Queso Bites
Ingredients:
▪ 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
▪ 1/2 cup yellow onion, diced
▪ 1/4 cup red bell pepper, diced
▪ 1 tbsp jalapeno, seeded and minced
▪ 1/4 pd lean ground sirloin
▪ 1 tsp chile powder
▪ 1/2 tsp cumin
▪ 1 can original Rotel
▪ 1 pd original Velveeta cheese (small brick), cubed
▪ bag of Tostitos scoops
▪ 1 tbsp cilantro, minced
Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large Dutch oven. Sauté the onion, red bell pepper, and jalapeno until tender. Add the sirloin, chile powder, and cumin, and sauté until the meat is cooked through. Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the Rotel and cheese. Stirring frequently, cook until the cheese is completely melted and smooth.
Scoop some queso into the scoops and sprinkle with the cilantro. Let them sit for 2-3 minutes. The cheese will congeal slightly, making them into little cheese-bites. Serve on a large platter.
Bon appétit!
Check out Sarah's food and music blogs at http://sarahsmusicalkitchen.com
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Related links:
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