Category: Appetizers

Orange Juliuses

It was always exciting when Mom would ask if we wanted to make Orange Juliuses, like those fancy drinks in the mall food court that were too expensive for us. Haha, so I’m not sure if these actually taste like Orange Juliuses, but they’re at least a nice orange treat.

And like most drinks, this one is also naturally gluten free.

Orange Juliuses

  • Servings: 2?
  • Difficulty: easy
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A cold, creamy orange drink that doesn’t require ice cream.

Ingredients

  • 3/4 c. frozen Orange Juice Concentrate
  • 3/4 c. Milk
  • 3/4 c. Water
  • 1/4+ c. Sugar
  • ½ tsp. (at least) Vanilla
  • 20 Ice Cubes or until thick

Directions

Mix in blender until drink is desired thickness and ice is all crushed.


German Adventspunsch

I was introduced to a variation of this on my mission, at a ward Christmas party in Vienna. But it’s in both Germany and Austria. Then I bought Winterzeit tea and brought it back to America to make this at home. We made it every Christmas morning for a few years after my mission while the tea bags lasted, enjoying drinking out of fancy tea cups and a tea pot I bought at a second hand shop in Bayreuth, and eating Lebkuchen or Stollen with it.

And like most drinks, this one is also naturally gluten free.

German Adventspunsch

  • Servings: 8?
  • Difficulty: easy
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A nice, hot punch with the flavors of Christmas.

Ingredients

  • 1 bottle Cherry Juice (or a juice with cherry in its title)
  • 2 Cinnamon Sticks
  • 2 Cloves
  • 1 Lemon (Juice and Peel)
  • 1 Orange (Juice and Peel)
  • 3 Bags Christmas/Wintertime Tea

Directions

Place cherry juice, cinnamon sticks, and cloves in pot on medium heat. Cut peel from lemon and orange into pot (avoid white part or punch will be bitter). Squeeze juice from lemon and orange into the pot. When juice is boiling, place tea bags (tied together) in juice, making sure that strings hang over side of pot. Boil on medium for about 10 minutes. Then remove bags and squeeze out the liquid into punch. Pour punch through strainer into pitcher (to catch cloves, etc.) and serve hot.


Bear Lake Raspberry Shakes

This was adapted from a cookbook, and you don’t necessarily need to stir in the last ice cream and fresh raspberries at the end. It just ensures thick shakes and big pieces of fruit.

And if you’re making it gluten free, it’s naturally gluten free, as long as the ice cream is from a new container or hasn’t been scooped previously with the same scoop as a gluten-filled ice cream.

Bear Lake Raspberry Shakes

  • Servings: 2
  • Difficulty: easy
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Swap out the raspberries to make other great shakes.

Ingredients

  • 3 c. Vanilla Ice Cream, divided
  • ½ c. Milk
  • ¾ c. Fresh Raspberries, divided

Directions

Place 2 c. vanilla ice cream in blender. Add milk and ½ c. raspberries. Blend well. Pour into bowl. Add remaining 1 c. ice cream. Stir in by hand. Gently stir in remaining raspberries. Pour into tall ice cream glass. Makes 2 servings.


Deviled Eggs

Traditional deviled eggs often don’t have pickle relish, but we grew up with these and I find it adds a nice flavor and texture. Deviled eggs are always a crowd pleaser that get gobbled up, but they do take a fair amount of time to make, with boiling the eggs, peeling, slicing, making the filling, and then piping into the whites.

Right now there aren’t specific amounts listed (mostly I’m just listing the ingredients so I remember).

Also, if you’re making these gluten free, they’re naturally gluten free. BUT make sure to use a new jar of mayo or one that’s dedicated to be gluten free, otherwise you could end up with crumbs from double dipping from previous sandwich-making. 

Deviled Eggs

  • Servings: varies
  • Difficulty: medium
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It’s not Easter without deviled eggs!

Ingredients

  • Hard-Boiled Eggs
  • Salt
  • Mayonnaise (or new jar/dedicated gluten free mayo)
  • Sweet Relish
  • Paprika

Directions

Hard-boil eggs for 10 minutes, then cool. Peel eggs and cut in half lengthwise. Place yolks in a bowl and whites on egg plate. Mash the yolks to remove chunks (such as with a pastry cutter), then add a few large spoonfuls of mayo and a few small spoonfuls of relish. Mix together and adjust mayo and relish as desired. Before filling, lightly salt the egg whites. Place the filling in a pastry bag with the largest star tip possible (to prevent clogging). Pipe the filling into the whites. Garnish with a dusting of paprika.


Dill Dip

Growing up, we always had Dill Dip at Thanksgiving with the relish tray. Haha, we probably consumed most of it before dinner with carrot sticks, just as an appetizer.

If you’re making it gluten free, this is naturally gluten free. BUT just make sure to use a brand new mayo jar or one that’s dedicated to be gluten free–otherwise, you could end up with bread crumbs from double-dipping to make previous sandwiches.

Dill Dip

  • Servings: 12?
  • Difficulty: easy
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Great with carrots, celery, and cucumbers.

Ingredients

  • 1 c. Sour Cream
  • 1 c. Mayonnaise (or new jar/dedicated gluten free mayo)
  • 3 heaping Tbsp. Dried Minced Onion
  • 3 heaping Tbsp. Dill Weed
  • ½ tsp. Celery Salt
  • ½ tsp. Onion Powder

Directions

Mix all ingredients well and refrigerate. Best if made the night before.


BBQ Meatballs

Baked first then simmered in a sauce, these meatballs are a go-to every New Year’s Eve. They’re not the roundest meatballs, but you don’t notice once they’re covered in thick sauce. FYI, it does take a lot of ketchup, so make sure you buy a big enough container. One time, we also accidentally left the meatballs in the oven a little long and were afraid that they were too dark and dry to eat. But once they got in the sauce, you couldn’t even tell.

If you’re making this gluten free, just make sure to use gluten free oats. You can potentially pulse the rolled oats a few times in the blender to make them quick oats, but I didn’t bother last time, and the meatballs turned out fine.

BBQ Meatballs

  • Servings: 48 meatballs?
  • Difficulty: medium
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Keep warm in a slow cooker or on the stove for New Year’s Eve.

Ingredients

    Meatballs:

  • 2 lbs. Ground Beef (or 1 lb. beef, 1 lb. turkey)
  • 1 c. Quick Oats (or gluten free oats)
  • 1 1/3 c. Milk
  • 2 Tbsp. Dried Minced Onion
  • 2 Eggs
  • 2 tsp. Salt
  • Pepper to taste

    • Sauce:

  • 2 2/3 c. Ketchup
  • 8 tsp. Dried Minced Onion (8 tsp. = 2 Tbsp. + 2 tsp.)
  • 1 1/3 c. Water
  • 8 tsp. Vinegar
  • 1/4 c. Sugar
  • 8 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce

Directions

For meatballs, combine ingredients and drop by spoonfuls on greased cookie sheet. Bake meatballs at 350° for 30 minutes. For sauce, simply mix all ingredients in a pot. Add meatballs to sauce and simmer for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.


Aunt Josie’s Punch

We make 1 or 2 batches of this punch every Thanksgiving and sometimes on Christmas. The original recipe called for Raspberry Flavor Aid or Kool-Aid instead of cranberry-raspberry juice, but since the Flavor Aid one is no longer available and Kool-Aid only offers blue raspberry (which turns the punch gray), we opted for cranberry-raspberry juice instead. It’s been a delicious change.

And of course most drinks are naturally gluten free–just like this one. 🙂

Aunt Josie's Punch

  • Servings: 8?
  • Difficulty: easy
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A perfect carbonated punch for Thanksgiving or parties.

Ingredients

  • 2 Qt. bottle Cranberry-Raspberry Juice
  • 12 oz. can frozen Pink Lemonade (undiluted)
  • 2 liter bottle Diet Sprite/7 Up
  • Ice

Directions

Mix juice and lemonade. Add soda and ice right before serving.


Sausage Dip

Whenever we take this to parties, it always gets eaten quickly. Just bring the chips or cucumber slices, and you’ve got a great appetizer for any Super Bowl Party, New Year’s Party, or Church potluck. It does tend to get pretty thick, so you may eventually need to add some water or milk.

And hurray, it’s naturally gluten free! Just serve it with naturally gluten free tortilla chips.

Sausage Dip

  • Servings: 8?
  • Difficulty: easy
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We have this every Christmas, as an easy, hot, protein-packed snack, which is a nice break from the candy and sweet stuff.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. Pork Sausage
  • 2 pkgs. Cream Cheese
  • 2 cans Rotel (original)

Directions

Brown sausage in frying pan. Add cream cheese to melt, then add Rotel, stir, and heat until smooth. Keep hot in crock pot or electric skillet. Serve with tortilla chips or cucumber slices for a refreshing crunch.