I have a group of friends who are very imaginative when it comes to decorating, party ideas and generally emphasizing their creative side in general. Recently I was sent an invitation to what has become a quarterly get-together. It read as follows:
Happy Holidays to My Fellow Frantic Females
Yes, it’s that time of the year. Time for our annual Holiday Get-Together. This year we’re going to do something a little less expensive and definitely less formal than usual but something that I hope you all will have fun with. After all, we’re all about having fun and distressing for several hours every so often, right?
Below is a recipe to make Dry Ranch Mix. I know you all buy the dry mix in the little packets and complain about how expensive it is. Well, I found this wonderful recipe and have been using it in many creative and delicious ways. Since I know you all are creative yourselves, your assignment is to make up the mix then bring a dish to the party that uses the mix. Oh, and be sure to bring instructions on how you used the mix. I’ll have a large salad prepared (with homemade Ranch Dressing, of course) as well as some desserts and drinks. So use your imagination and I’ll see everyone on the 13th.
Ingredients
Dry Mix:
- 16 saltine crackers
- 1 cups parsley flakes dry, minced
- 1/2 cup onion dry, minced
- 1 tablespoon dill weed dry
- 1/4 cup onion salt
- 1/4 cup garlic salt
- 1/4 cup onion powder
- 1/4 cup garlic powder
Salad Dressing:
- 2-1/2 tablespoons Dry Mix
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup buttermilk
Instructions
Dry Mix:
- Put crackers through a blender on high until they turn to powder. Add parsley, minced onions and dill weed. Blend again until powdered.
- Put into a sealable bowl and stir in onion salt, garlic salt, onion powder and garlic powder. Put lid on tightly.
- You may store your mix up to 1 year.
Salad Dressing:
- Combine ingredients.
- Refrigerate. Shake well before using.
- Shake well before using.
What a success this party turned out to be. And what a great array of delicious recipes, all using the Dry Ranch Mix in one form or another.
The hostess had a large salad prepared with both regular homemade Ranch Dressing as well as a low-calorie version using oil and vinegar. She also had some red and white wines available and of course coffee and tea, plus an elaborate dessert table.
The party was great, the company delightful, as usual, and all 10 in attendance had the opportunity to catch up on each other’s lives, careers, family and sample some incredible food.
I have included the recipes used for this Ranch Themed Party.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 cup margarine
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated
- 2 tablespoons Dry Ranch Mix
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease a medium baking sheet.
- In a medium saucepan, bring milk and margarine to boil over medium high heat. Stir in flour and reduce heat to low. Vigorously stir until thick enough to form into a ball. Remove from heat. Beat eggs into the mixture until smooth. Stir in Parmesan Cheese and Dry Ranch Mix.
- Drop the dough by rounded teaspoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven 15 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown.
Ranch Mashed Potatoes
Prepare potatoes as you usually do with butter, milk or cream, etc. Right before serving, stir in some Dry Ranch Mix to taste.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 4 oz jar Cheeze Whiz
- 4 tablespoons Dry Ranch Mix
- pecans Chopped
Instructions
- Combine softened cream cheese, Cheese Whiz and Dry Ranch Mix together in a large bowl.
- Cover and refrigerate approximately 1 hour.
- Remove from bowl and roll into a ball.
- Then roll the ball into pecans until completely coated.
- Serve on a platter with a variety of crackers.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. sausage lean, hot
- 3 cups Bisquick
- 1/2 cup milk
- 12 oz. cheddar cheese sharp, grated
- 1/4 cup Dry Ranch Mix
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- With your hands, knead all the ingredients together in a bowl. (This may take awhile to fully moisten the Bisquick and the cheese.)
- Form mixture into 1-inch balls (or smaller, if you prefer) and place on a baking pan.
- Bake for 15 minutes.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chuck
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 pound ground veal
- 3 eggs beaten
- 1/2 cup Dry Ranch Mix
- bread crumbs Dried
Instructions
- Beat eggs in a large bowl. Stir in the Dry Ranch Mix.
- Add all the meats (one at a time) until well combined.
- (Use your hands to combine.makes it much easier).
- Add in enough dried bread crumbs to make the mixture adhere well enough to form into small meatballs.
- Bake in a 350 degree oven until done (about an hour).
- Serve with dipping sauces such as bar-be-que sauce, sweet & sour sauce or any others you like.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts cubed
- 1 small box frozen broccoli
- 2 carrots sliced
- 1 small onion diced
- 1 green pepper chopped
- 1 red pepper chopped
- 1/2 cup green peas frozen
- 1/4 cup Dry Ranch Mix
Instructions
- Sautee the cubed chicken in a little vegetable or olive oil in a wok or skillet.
- When browned, remove then drain on paper towels. Then cook the carrots, broccoli, onion, green pepper, red pepper and peas together until the carrots & broccoli are tender.
- Return the chicken to the vegetable mixture and stir in the Dry Ranch Mix.
- Serve over cooked rice.
Ingredients
- 8 ounce package cooked pasta shells
- 1/2 pound cooked bacon crumbled
- 1/4 cup frozen peas thawed
- 1/2 pound chopped cocktail shrimp
- 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded
Instructions
- Combine the above ingredients then gently toss in some of the prepared Ranch Salad Dressing until well-coated.
- Serve cold.
Ingredients
- 1 loaf French Bread
- 1 stick butter or margarine
- 3 tablespoons dry Ranch mix
Instructions
- Get your favorite loaf of French Bread. Cut it into slices about an inch thick and put onto a large baking sheet.
- In a microwave safe bowl, melt 1 stick butter or margarine. Stir in 3 tablespoons dry Ranch mix then spread each piece of bread with some of the butter mixture on both sides.
- Bake until browned and slightly crisp on the bottom.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 4 ounces sour cream
- 1 cup cheddar cheese grated
- 1/2 cup pepper jack cheese grated
- 4 tablespoons dry ranch mix
- 1 large flour tortilla
- salsa
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sour cream, cheddar cheese and pepper jack cheese until smooth.
- Stir in ranch mix.
- Spread the mixture on a large flour tortilla then gently roll up. Cut into slices about 1/2 inch thick.
- Serve on a platter with a bowl of salsa in the middle.
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 8 tablespoons butter or margarine
- 3 tablespoons dry ranch mix
- 3 cups Corn Chex
- 3 cups Rice Chex
- 3 cups Multi-grain Chex
- 1 cup nuts mixed
- 1 cup bagel chips garlic flavored, bite size
- 1 cup pretzels
Instructions
- Melt butter in large roasting pan.
- Stir in Worcestershire Sauce and dry ranch mix.
- Stir in cereals, nuts, bagel chips and pretzels.
- Bake in a 250-degree oven for an hour.
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