RITZ Crackers Christmas Tree With Goat Cheese & Fig Bites

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #HolidayRITZ #CollectiveBias

Have you ever been to a party where you aren't 100% comfortable with the other guests? Like you know them well enough to be at a party with them but maybe not well enough to eat and talk with them at the same time? It's always such a dilemma for me especially when there's good food. Do I make myself a plate and then awkwardly try to eat and hold a conversation at the same time or do I skip the food and socialize without my hands and mouth full? Neither one seems like a perfect answer.

This holiday season I decided to save my guests the tough decisions and make an appetizer that can easily be eaten on the go without the need for making a plate or wielding a cheese knife. These Goat Cheese & Fig Bites are the perfect grab and go snack. They take my favorite cheese and spread combo and sandwich it between two buttery RITZ Crackers for an easy to eat treat that leaves your hands free for saying hello to people you haven't seen since last Christmas.

Not only are they ridiculously good but they are also really simple to make. I was able to grab everything I needed at Walmart including the goat cheese and fig preserves. My store usually has both near the deli but also check jelly aisle for the fig too if your deli doesn't have it. Also be sure to use the ibotta app to earn cash back on your RITZ Crackers too. 

What makes these delicious little bites even better is how they can be easily arranged into a Christmas tree to display them for party guests and make them even easy to grab in between conversations. I added a little extra garnish with dried cranberries and grapes but you can skip them all together or just go with whatever you have on hand. I used a cake stand for my display but you could just as easily set it up on a platter or right on your appetizer table. I can't wait to see what other spreads I can try next. I'm thinking cream cheese and pepper jelly or maybe even a whipped feta variety. For now I'll leave you with the 2 step recipe for assembling the goat cheese and fig version.

Goat Cheese & Fig Bites

• 70 RITZ Crackers
• 4oz package of goat cheese
• 1 jar of fig preserves
• green grapes and dried cranberries for garnish 

1.) Beat together the goat cheese and about 2/3's of the jar of fig preserves using an electric mixer. Let it set up in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.

2.) Spread a teaspoon of the mixture on a cracker and sandwich it with another cracker. Let them harden in the fridge for at least 20 minutes. 

3.) To assemble the tree start with a circle of crackers (I used seven with one in the middle) and layer in circles as you stack.

4.) Garnish with dried cranberries and sliced green grapes. Serve immediately.

Light & Easy Feta Dip

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SamsClubMag #CollectiveBias

Would you believe me if I told you we made this dip three times in four days over Memorial Day weekend? Because we did. And the dish was scraped clean at every party we brought it too. I'm a huge fan of cheese dips for parties but once temperatures start rising here in Florida, I start looking for something a little lighter to bring to holiday gatherings.

This light and easy feta dip is the perfect appetizer. Olive oil, fresh diced tomatoes, green onions, feta cheese and Greek seasoning combine to make something that feels savory and rich but is actually a lot better for you than many typical party foods. It takes minutes to put together and can be served with anything from sliced bread, pita chips, tortilla chips or even veggies.

Since I knew we had a bunch of events planned over Memorial Day weekend, I went to Sam's Club and bought my ingredients in bulk. The fresh produce section in my store has an amazing selection of fresh tomatoes and buying them and the feta in bulk allowed me to save money over buying them in the grocery store. My store also has a great bakery where we were able to get the baguettes too.

I brought this dip as pictured to a poolside BBQ on a Saturday night. Made it again with pita chips for a family beach day with friends on Sunday and then brought it to a work potluck party on Tuesday. By prepping the tomatoes and green onions ahead of time, I was able to throw the dip together in minutes before each event.

A lot of people think of fresh tomatoes as something that belongs in pasta dishes and salads but they are exactly what this dip needs to bring it to another level. Sam's Club digital magazine, Healthy Living Made Simple, is currently highlighting tomatoes as the super food of the month and you can check out the current issue for nutritional highlights and lots of great recipe ideas using them.

This recipe is very flexible when it comes to quantities. The recipe below has general guidelines for measuring out each ingredient but you can feel free to add more or less of something as you prefer.


Light & Easy Feta Dip

• 1 cup of feta 
• 2 fresh tomatoes diced
• 3 tablespoons green diced green onions
• 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (more or less to preference)
• 2 teaspoons of Greek Seasoning
• Thinly sliced fresh baguette or pita chips for dipping

1.) Spread out feta cheese in a shallow dish and drizzle with olive oil to completely coat the cheese. 

2.) Add in diced tomatoes and green onions. Use a fork to gently mix everything together and incorporate the olive oil. Sprinkle seasoning on top of mixture and mix to combine.

3.) You may want to add more seasoning deepening on your tastes. Top with a few extra green onions for garnish. Serve with a thinly sliced baguette or pita chips for dipping.

Tips: This dip can be stored in the refrigerator but it looks prettiest when made right before serving. Olive oil can get a little thick when stored in the refrigerator so it may look a little different but it still tastes great!

While shopping at Sam's Club, I noticed that they are having a free hearing health screening coming up soon as well as hosting in store hearing screenings that day too. Turns out they host them every second Saturday of the month with the next one coming up on Saturday June 11th. I love that Sam's Club has everything you need to help keep your family healthy summer- a great selection of food and drinks, free health screenings, an optical department and more.

What is your favorite summer dish made with tomatoes?

Tobins' Tapas: Easy Summer Veggie Tray With Chobani Mezé™ Dips

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #DipintoMeze #CollectiveBias

When it comes to entertaining, I am all about the appetizers. In fact, Justin and I love appetizers and tapas style food so much that we often have our own at home tapas nights instead of making dinner.

Traditionally we throw a huge summer party around Memorial Day but this year with Easton, we really haven't planned anything. I'm am thinking we may play it by ear and have a few people over last minute if we are up for it which means I'll be looking for easy, day of recipes that I can throw together without a lot of prep or stress. And this veggie tray with Chobani Mezé™ Dips is exactly what I'm thinking.

As much as I love making cheese and meat spreads for our guests, summer time temperatures in Florida don't really lend themselves to heavy party dishes. I love serving veggies with lighter dips but hate having to mix up the ingredients myself. We already love Chobani's regular Greek yogurts so when I saw these new Meze dips at my local Walmart I had to try them.

My Walmart has a great selection of organic and traditional pre-chopped veggies which made making this tray even easier. I literally grabbed bags of veggies, some breadsticks, pretzels and pita and a few dips and was done. The best part about all of these things is that even if you don't end up having people over they are all things you can eat throughout the week so nothing goes to waste. 

I keep a couple of large trays on hand at home to use for things like appetizer and dessert trays so I just grabbed my summeriest looking one and put a bright colored placemat on it. I then used an assortment of glass dishes for the veggies and kept the dips in their trays- no extra dishes to wash and they come with handy plastic lids that you can save to store the leftovers back in the fridge with.

For this veggie tray we served:

• Chobani Mezé™ Dips- comes in four flavors: Roasted Red Pepper, Three Pepper Salsa, Smoked Onion Parmesan and Chili Lime 
• Prechopped broccoli
• Carrot chips
• Mini sweet peppers
• Baby tomatoes 
• Sliced cucumbers
• Pita chips
• Crackers
• Pretzel rods
• Breadsticks
• Flatbreads

This tray is so easy to customize based on your preferences or what you have on hand in the fridge/pantry. The Meze Dips are great for warmer weather because they are so cool and refreshing and I love that are made with only natural, non-GMO ingredients. We brought this tray to my cousin's graduation party and people couldn't get over how good the dips were. With all the delicious but not always so great for you party food being served this time of year, I think people loved having a better-for-you option.

Just a heads up, these dips are found in the deli department so don't be discouraged if you can't find them with the rest of the yogurts. Right now you can print out a $1 off coupon so be sure to take advantage of it and stock up!

What are your favorite easy party foods? Any big plans for Memorial Day Weekend?