So I lied. I said in previous post that I was going to make pizza dip and my tried-and-true guacamole for a Super Bowl party, but I decided to change things up and make another hot, cheesy dip instead of the guac. Because really, you can never have too many hot, cheesy dips at a party. Particularly ones with bacon in them. This recipe is incredibly easy; I made both dips at home, but didn't bake them until I was at the party location. Here's the cheesy bacon dip recipe:

Hot Cheesy Bacon Dip

• 8 slices cooked bacon, chopped
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 8 ounces sour cream
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• Several dashes Tabasco sauce, to taste

Combine all the ingredients well and spread in a pie plate. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 25 minutes or until melted and bubbly. Serve with potato chips.

When I took both dips out of the oven and put them on the table, there was instant excitement. Everyone loved both dips, but there was a lot of appreciation for the cheesy bacon dip (there were mostly guys in the room). In fact, when I checked about an hour later, the cheesy bacon dip was completely kicked. There was still a bit of pizza dip left, but that was mostly gone too. Wow. Take note: If you're going to a party and you want to be the most popular person in the room, bring either of these dips. Or both. Why didn't I know about this in high school?

I mentioned in a previous post my trip to the Jersey shore, where I spied a whole mountain of Cheez Whiz. Along the same lines, I also enjoyed plenty of bacon-cheddar spread, on this trip, provided by our generous host, Home & Garden editor Michele.

I've seen bacon-cheddar spread before but never, for some odd reason, tried it. It was super-rich, creamy, smoky, intensely cheesy and bacony all at once. And completely addictive. Every time Michele busted out the crackers and spread, even if I was full, I couldn't help digging in. I do love cheese, any kind of cheese, and can make a meal out of cheese and bread. But bacony-cheese and some kind of carb? Even better. (Washed down with plenty of wine, of course.) Consider it the next time you entertain -- your guests will leave very happy. And full.

I recently went to this little deli called Kashkaval that sells cheese, prepared Middle Eastern salads, olives and other gourmet goodies. I didn't go there to buy stuff to take home, though -- in the back, there's a long bar and a handful of tables where you can order a bottle of wine and dine on sandwiches, fondues and platters of cheese, cured meats, dips and spreads. We ordered a few things to snack on, including the cheddar and ale fondue. I'm a huge cheese lover so I never met a fondue I didn't like, but this one was amazing. It was served in a cast-iron pot with pieces of bread, and we polished off the entire thing. I was literally scraping up the last bits of cooled cheese with my fondue fork and bread (slightly more civilized than picking it up and licking the pot clean). If Dad loves cheese and beer, this would make a super-easy appetizer or snack for your Father's Day party.

Kashkaval's Cheddar and Ale Fondue

1. Warm up a fondue pot to medium heat. We prefer to use cast iron as it distributes the heat more evenly.

2. Add about 1 large tablespoon of beer per person. Light, non-sweet beers work the best, such as Corona or Bass.

3. Bright to a light boil and add 1 cup of shredded cheese blend per person. We like to blend different strength cheddars such as Cabot Extra Sharp, Canadian Black Diamond, English Farmhouse, and New York or Vermont Cheddars.

4. Stir slowly until cheese has melted. Take care not to overcook.

5. Enjoy with your favorite dipping items, such as raw mushrooms, broccoli or cauliflower; or, spice it up with sliced chorizo or salami.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Kashkaval

Last week, the good folks at Sabra sent me some containers of hummus. Now, I'm not sure if they knew this, but their hummus happens to be my favorite brand (the roasted red pepper is the best). You can usually find some in my fridge at all times. I told one of my friends about it, and he was surprised that I didn't make my own hummus from scratch. That got me thinking...there are certain things I prefer to buy that are fairly easy to make at home (hummus, salsa, tapenade), and there are some things I'll never buy in a store. One of those is guacamole.

I love fresh guacamole. I make it periodically to bring to parties or to serve friends when they come over, and it's always a huge hit. In fact, people often say it's the best guac they've ever had. It's kind of embarrassing when people rave about it, because it's so incredibly easy and simple to make. The pre-made guac you find in grocery stores always looks sad to me...it's kind of an unappetizing brownish-gray shade, it's mushy, you don't know how long it's been sitting there. Because avocados turn brown so quickly, you really need to serve fresh guacamole within a day or so (though of course it's best to eat it right away).

The guac recipe I originally followed is from Everyday Food magazine, but I've since adjusted it to suit my tastes. These days I don't use a recipe at all; I just buy the ingredients, chop them up and mix, and taste, taste, taste, adding more lime juice, heat, or salt as necessary. But for those who want a basic recipe to start off with, here's what I made last night:

Maggie's Guacamole

Makes about 1 cup, with a little left over for the chef to enjoy

• 3 small (or 2 medium) ripe avocados, roughly diced
• 1 small red onion, minced
• 2 small tomatoes, seeded and diced
• 2 jalapeno chiles, finely minced (you can use just 1 if you don't want it too spicy; I always leave in the ribs and seeds for more heat)
• Handful of cilantro, roughly chopped (to be fair, I'm not a huge fan of cilantro so I didn't add it last night, but I do think it adds a bright, fresh element to your guac and really perks it up)
• Lime juice from 1 or 2 limes
• Coarse salt

 Combine the avocados, onion, tomato, jalapenos and cilantro in a bowl. Mix the ingredients with a spoon; if you like your guac chunky, like I do, mix lightly. Squeeze lime into the bowl and season with salt. Mix, taste, and keep adding lime juice and salt as needed until you get the right balance of flavors. 

I wouldn't say Rachael Ray and I have a lot in common. I don't say "delish" or "yum-o," and I certainly am not perky and peppy every day, all day, perhaps not even for 30 continual minutes at a time and absolutely never before noon. However, we both subscribe to similar entertaining philosophies -- namely, the less time you spend doing work and the more time you spend enjoying yourself, the better. Little tricks and shortcuts can go a long way to making something quite simple look and taste like you put in hours of effort. So when I went to a press event at the Every Day with Rachael Ray test kitchen last week, I was pleased to find some easy, clever ideas for summer entertaining (it was also fun to snoop around their cozy kitchen a bit and check out all their gadgets).

Here's one versatile recipe for a crowd-pleasing appetizer that takes just minutes to make. You can swap in different fruits for the cherries or play around with various herbs to make it your own signature dish this summer.

Grilled Cheese with Fresh Cherries

Serves 8

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 10 minutes

• 2 cups cherries, pitted
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• 1 baguette, thinly sliced
• Two 5-inch wheels camembert cheese, at room temperature
• Extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing

1. Preheat a grill to low. In a food processor, coarsely chop the cherries, sugar and salt; stir in the thyme.

2. Brush the bread slices and cheese wheels on both sides with olive oil. Place the cheese in the center of the grill and surround with the bread. Cover and grill until the bread is goldeon on the bottom, about 2 minutes. Flip the bread slices and grill until golden on the other side, about 2 minutes more. Continue to grill the cheese, covered, until the rind is soft, about 5 minutes more. Using a metal spatula, invert each cheese wheel onto a plate.

3. Spoon the cherry jam over the cheese and serve with the bread.

Recipe courtesy of Everyday with Rachael Ray

It's May 5, and though we don't really need an excuse to sit around drinking margaritas, Cinco de Mayo gives us the perfect opportunity. I'm guessing you've already got the margarita part covered, but you don't want to drink on an empty stomach. Here's a simple veggie quesadilla recipe you can throw together in no time. It's much lighter and healthier than your standard burrito or taco smothered in sour cream and loaded down with cheese and makes a great appetizer or party snack, so try it for your fiesta tonight.

Zesty Corn Quesadillas

Serves 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 (7- to 8-inch) tortillas
• 1 cup low-fat Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
• 1 cup whole kernel white sweet corn
• 1/4 cup salsa
• 1 tbsp cilantro, chopped
• 3 cups baby spinach leaves, washed
• 2 cups mandarin orange segments
• 1/2 cup red onion, chopped
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar

Directions:

1. Heat a 10-inch ungreased skillet over medium heat.  Place one tortilla into skillet and cook until starting to brown; turn.

2. Fill one side of tortilla with 1/4 cup cheese, 1/4 cup corn, 1 tablespoon salsa and some cilantro.  Fold other half over cheese mixture.  Continue cooking until golden brown and cheese is melted. Repeat with remaining tortillas.

3. Combine spinach, oranges and red onion in bowl.  Combine oil, vinegar and reserved syrup.  Toss dressing with salad. Serve with quesadillas.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Just One More for Healthy Living, EatJustOneMore.com