Cranberry & Goat Cheese Cucumbers with Ginger Dressing

Need some quick nosh food? This would not work for Super Bowl Sunday but any other time its good for a dinner party, a cinch to make and healthy to eat.

Whole Cashews
4 oz of Goat Cheese
2 Tablespoons of dried cranberries, chopped
1 Teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 Cucumber
Ginger Dressing

Procedure:

1. Rinse & peel cucumber.

2. Dice up the cranberries and mash into the goat cheese with a spoon. Ground in the pepper and mix.

3. Scoop up the goat cheese/cranberry mixture onto the cucumbers. Garnish with cashew and ginger dressing.

4. Wipe away all the sweat and tears it took to make this tasty app.

Beer N' Bacon Soup

4-5 Strips of thick cut Bacon
1 Leek, Top trimmed, White part reserved
2 ½ Cups of Beer (Guiness. Smithicks, Murphys or any Dark Malt Ale)
1 Can of Tomatoes and all the juice
Cheddar Cheese
Black Pepper, to taste
*Salt, if needed. Use sparingly

Yield: 1/2 Quart or 2 servings

1. Render the bacon until very crispy but not burned on medium to high heat.
2. Use bacon grease to sauté leeks for 8 minutes appx. Leave the bacon in the pan while sauteeing leeks. If there is any black burnt residue clean it all out and do not deglaze, instead just reduce the beer as in Step 3.
3. Deglaze the pan with beer. Reduce.
4. While the beer is reducing puree tomatoes and add to leek/beer mixture. Simmer for 20-25 minutes.
5. Pass through a fine mesh sieve/chinois.
6. Grate cheddar cheese and serve with a beer.

*If you want to tone down the bacon flavor, blanch it for a 1-2 minutes in boiling water and add to the tomato, leek mixture right before the 25 minute simmer.