Buffalo Chicken Cheese Balls and Garlic Stuffed Mushrooms

A dinner of appetizers is not a bad thing.  This video makes me think of these two recipes from Big Oven. 

Buffalo Chicken Cheese Balls (www.bigoven.com)

Ingredients

4 cups of cooked chicken; coarsely chopped

4 ounces of cream cheese

½ cup of Franks Red Hot

¾ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon onion powder

Salt and pepper to taste

1 ¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup of flour

3 eggs lightly beaten

2 cups panko bread crumbs

Oil for frying

Ingredients for Bleu Cheese Dip

1 ½ cups mayo

½ cup packed bleu cheese; broken up

½ teaspoon Franks Red Hot

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon salt

½ lemon (juiced)

1 teaspoon chopped garlic

Preparation

Insert metal blade into food processor.  Place chicken into processor bowl and pulse 5-6 times or until chicken is uniformly chopped.  Remove chicken to a large bowl and set aside.  Add cream cheese to food processor bowl and pulse until smooth.  Add hot sauce, garlic powder and pepper to cream cheese and pulse until smooth.  Add mixture to the chicken.  Add the cheddar cheese.  Stir to combine.  Taste to see if you need any salt or more hot sauce.  Shape mixture into ¾ to 1” balls and place on wax paper lined baking sheet.  Heat about 2 inches of oil to 350 degrees.  Set up a work station with three shallow pans.  Place the flour in one pan and season with salt and pepper.  Whisk the eggs and water in the second pan.  Place the Panko in the third pan.  Roll each chicken ball in the flour, then in the egg, then the Panko.  Drop carefully into the oil and fry for 2-3 minutes until nicely browned.  Drain on paper towel.  To make sauce, combine all ingredients in a large bowl and adjust the seasoning if necessary. 

Garlic Stuffed Mushrooms (www.bigoven.com)

Ingredients

12 large mushrooms (white)

2 large Shallots; minced

6 cloves Garlic (or more if desired), minced

½ cup bread crumbs

4 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon parsley

2 dash salt

2 dashes black pepper; ground

½ cup Mozzarella; grated

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a small frying pan, sauté shallots and garlic in olive oil for about a minute or two.  Then mix shallots and garlic with bread crumbs, parsley and a dash or two of salt.  Wash and stem the mushrooms and place them in a medium, greased baking pan.  Add a small amount of butter to the bottom of each mushroom cap.  Then add the bread crumb mixture.  Finally generously top each mushroom cap with mozzarella cheese and a dash or two of pepper, bake until cheese is melted and golden.