- [Announcer] This is a production of PBS Charlotte.

- [Presenter] The following episode of "Charlotte Cooks" is brought to you by Central Piedmont Community College and viewers like you.

Thank you.

- Coming up on this episode of "Charlotte Cooks," we're making snacks, snacks, and more snacks.

(upbeat swing music) (audience rhythmically claps) Hello, and welcome to this edition of "Charlotte Cooks."

I'm Chef Pamela Roberts and I am so excited for today's show because I have a very special guest joining me and that is Chef Jill Aker-Ray, and we're gonna make snacks together because we're like the snack girls.

- Yes, we are.

- We love snacks.

- We are.

I'm so glad to be here.

- I'm thrilled.

Thrilled beyond belief that you are here.

- Thank you.

- So, I've watched you for a long time around Charlotte.

You won't believe that, but I have.

- I've been watching your show for a long time.

So I can hardly believe that I'm on this side.

- I'm glad you're- - I can't even believe it.

- on this side.

I'm glad you're here.

So, we're gonna make several things today.

One of the first things we're gonna make is... - [Jill] Classic pimento cheese.

The favorite Southern snack.

- It is a fabulous Southern snack.

- And it's so easy to make.

- Let's tell them the rest of what we're gonna make before we get started.

- Okay.

- We're gonna start with pimento cheese and then we're gonna move to... - [Jill] Crab rangoons with plum dipping sauce.

- Fabulous, and then we're gonna do... - Then, we are going to make spinach and artichoke.

Hot spinach and artichoke dip.

- Spinach and artichoke dip?

Mm mm-hm, and then... - And we're gonna follow it up because we have to have something sweet.

We're gonna make the simplest, called O'Henry Bars.

Peanut butter, cornflakes, chocolate.

- How could you go wrong?

Peanut butter, cornflakes and chocolate.

We're gonna show you how it all comes together.

We're gonna start with our pimento cheese.

So Jill, what do we need to make pimento cheese?

- Well, the first thing that we need is your basic, good quality cheese.

I go with a couple different color of extra sharp, cheddar cheese- - Mm-hmm.

- and a sharp cheddar cheese.

And just try to...

It mixes nicely.

You want that sharp flavor because you have a lot- - Yeah.

- of mayonnaise and other things that kinda blend it.

You know, make it bland.

So you're gonna shred those cheeses, which super easy.

- So, you're using an extra sharp or just sharp?

- I'm using...

This is a sharp.

- Mm-hmm?

- This yellow cheddar, and then I've got a New York extra sharp cheddar.

- [Pamela] Nice, mm-hmm.

- You can use any cheese you want.

I've used pepper jack.

I've used other cheeses.

- Oh, you can use pepper jack?

- You just don't want it to- You can- - Okay.

- and you don't want it to be too mild.

- [Pamela] Ah, okay.

So talk about mildness.

- Ah, for me.

- Okay.

- Well, I mean I guess again, this is such an easy snack to make and it really depends on your preference.

I mean, I might like mine- - Mm-hmm.

- with jalapenos in it.

- Okay.

- You might like yours just, you know, more of a mild flavor.

- Not with jalapenos.

- No.

(Pamela chuckles) - So, it's really nice to know that you can add some other things to the pimento cheese.

I never even thought about adding hot peppers to the pimento cheese, honestly.

- I just love it.

That's my favorite.

I mean, I like it with jalapenos in it or some kind of hot pepper.

- That sounds delicious.

- And then, I have some of it shredded.

So, you know?

- Mm-hmm.

- The cheese is the most important.

And let me say this, it is worth it to shred your own cheese.

When you buy cheese in the package, it usually has flour or some kind of additive.

- Cellulose.

- Cellulose, yes, and we don't really want to eat that.

And also, you want those big, large shreds.

I think that makes- - Mm-hmm.

- a prettier cheese.

- Mm-hmm.

- So you're gonna want to do that.

- [Pamela] So, you added mayonnaise?

So here, we've got our red peppers in there.

- So that's your base.

- That's the base, okay.

- Now when I make mine, I don't add cream cheese unless I'm putting it on a burger- - Mm-hmm?

- or I'm stuffing jalapeno peppers.

- And why is that?

- You need the stiffness of the cream cheese for that.

But as a dip and a spread that's on crackers, I don't like it too thick.

- Okay.

All right, so that makes sense.

- So next, we're gonna add...

I mean, this is also variable.

Whatever you like to do.

- Mm-hmm.

- There's a little bit of dried, chopped chives.

A little bit of fresh parsley.

Granulated garlic.

And I don't use fresh garlic because you don't- - Why not?

- It's just a little too pungent.

You don't want it to take over.

- It does have that hot flavor to it if you don't cook it.

- You have to be 'lil careful.

Yeah.

- Yes.

- This is cayenne pepper.

So I'm only gonna add a little.

(Pamela laughing) - [Pamela] Just a little bit- - Not gonna add all of that.

- of cayenne pepper.

- And then I like to add a little bit of Worcestershire to mine.

- Okay.

- To a lot of things that I make.

So, you've got those ingredients.

You're gonna mix this up and you are ready to go.

If you have fresh mayonnaise and you have nice, fresh cheese, you can put this in a closed container in the refrigerator- - Mm-hmm?

- [Jill] and it's gonna last 7 to 10 days.

- Oh nice.

- So, this is a super nice thing to have.

I've known Southern neighbors that always keep this made in the refrigerator.

- I've known people that say they always have pimento cheese.

I know people who say they give it away as gifts.

They use it all.

I mean, pimento cheese.

It's a Southern staple.

- It is.

- It is definitely.

I'd never heard about it until I came down South, and it's just one of those things that you hear about constantly.

- It's delicious and you can use it for so many different things.

Like I said, on a burger, in a pepper, with crackers, and it's really nice to give as a gift.

- By the spoonful, yeah.

- By the spoonful, exactly.

(Pamela laughs) - Or a grilled cheese.

Makes a great grilled cheese.

- That's beautiful.

Look at all the colors in there.

- And so, yeah- - It's fabulous.

- See the two colored cheeses- - Yeah.

- Make it kinda nice.

- That's a good idea.

The two colored cheeses 'cause then it adds to the red and the green, and that's beautiful.

And so this is ready to go now, isn't it?

- That is ready to go in a vessel and be eaten.

- And the flavors meld and get better?

- They do.

If you leave it a couple hours in the refrigerator?

It's gonna taste even better.

- And overnight, even better.

- Mm-hmm.

- This is ready to go?

Next, we are gonna move on to crab rangoons.

Crab rangoons, you said, is one of your family's favorite Christmas things, right?

- It is one of my family's favorites.

And really, it should be for a dinner party- - Mm-hmm?

- But I made the decision to make them one year, for one of the holidays, and everybody loved them.

- Mm-hmm.

- So now, it's like a big family affair.

However, there are rules.

Like, you have to learn how to wrap them.

- Mm-hmm.

- And now, as we've gotten older and tired of wrapping them over a decade and a half, you have to... You can wrap as many... You can east as many as you can wrap.

- Oh, there you go.

- So- - There you go, okay.

- They are fantastic and they freeze really well before you fry them.

- Okay.

- So, that's...

They're easy.

They're just a little bit of work.

- [Pamela] What's in 'em?

- So, cream cheese is your first ingredient.

- [Pamela] And does this cream cheese need to be soft?

- [Jill] It does need to be- - Okay.

- Softened a little bit.

Then, a touch of salt.

Not too much.

- All right.

- [Jill] Granulated garlic.

Another one of my favorite ingredients.

- I love granulated garlic.

- This is roasted.

You don't wanna put raw, fresh garlic in here because you're frying them- - Mm-hmm?

- And you're gonna have this overwhelming taste.

- Right, right.

- Horseradish, to your taste.

- Oh, horseradish?

- And I recommend putting more than you think.

When you taste the filling- - Mm-hmm?

- And adjust it?

Put more horseradish then you think you're gonna need because it kind of gets lost in that cream cheese and it gets a little bit mild- - Oh, gotcha.

- I don't know if you've ever- - Gotcha.

- Gone to the restaurant where you get the crab rangoon and it doesn't...

It tastes- - Just too mild.

- just like cream cheese.

- Yeah.

- Yeah, yeah.

- Little bit of soy and then what I'm gonna do is... Don't use fresh crab.

I've tried it both ways.

Fresh crab is a beautiful ingredient- - Mm-hmm.

- But it's very watery.

- Mm-hmm.

- SO it dilutes this.

- Makes it?

- Doesn't stay well in the crab rangoon.

It kind of loses.

- Mm-hmm.

- You really don't need that crab in there.

- Mm-hmm.

- So Surimi which is artificial crab is also good when you have people that have shellfish allergies.

- That's a good idea, yeah.

So it's made from pollock, actually.

- Its made from pollock and it's- - So it's not shellfish.

- [Jill] It's a really readily available ingredient to have.

- It really is.

- It's in your grocery stores.

- You find it a lot in some Asian cooking.

- And then, I use this because it helps my hand.

Not to have to do all that work and it shreds it just perfectly nice.

- Breaks it up.

- Mm-hmm.

- [Pamela] And there it is.

- And it's done.

So, this... Again, this can be made up way ahead of time.

- Mm-hmm?

- Put in the refrigerator.

We always do a big batch of this and make it up, and have it ready so that we're ready for wrapping.

So the filling just- - Ready to go, all right.

- Ready to go.

- [Pamela] Jill, how do we wrap our rangoons?

- So, super easy.

What you wanna do is make sure you have like a damp... A little bit damp paper towel- - Mm-hmm.

- Or kitchen towel because as you're wrapping...

These are just simple wanton wrappers that you can buy in the grocery store.

- Mm-hmm.

- No, I do not make my own.

- Right.

- If somebody does it better?

I'm going to buy it from them.

(Pamela laughs) - So- - And the dough is kinda thin, so you can cover it- - Yeah, it is.

- So it doesn't dry out on you.

- What we've done is we've put our filling into a little smaller bowl which will make it easier.

You need just a little dipping bowl of water and I'm gonna go along the top two edges.

Kind of in a triangle there.

So you do not wanna get greedy with the filling because people tend to, and I do the same thing...

I'll probably do it in one of these.

- You want a big, juicy dumpling, right?

- You do.

And what happens is it comes out.

So it pops out of the fryer- - It's too much.

- And it ends up in the oil.

- Mm-hmm.

- So you take that and there's a million ways to wrap these.

This is just how I've done it.

Make that into a triangle.

Get a little bit more water and then we just like to do it like a little purse.

It's easy to pick up that way.

- Like you do little tortellinis.

- It's super easy.

- Let me see 'em.

Oh yeah, they're cute.

- Okay.

And then this process is just... You know.

- Really cute.

- There could be wine involved .

That's okay.

(Pamela chuckles) - How about champagne?

- Wine or champagne.

- I like champagne.

- Bubbles are even better.

- We could do Saki.

We could do all kinds of things, but just have a party while you do it.

(chuckles) - [Jill] So again that, you know, might be a little too much and if it is, just go back and take some out.

- Take a little out.

- So this is just- - This is a really easy- - a pretty easy thing to do.

- Thing to do because- - Right?

- You already have the wrappers made.

The filling is simple.

- Oh, I remember, you had someone on the show that made perogies- - Uh-huh.

- And he was talking about how it was a family thing and that all the kids got involved because young children... Their fingers are limber and small.

So get them started early on the crab rangoons because they end up liking them.

- Mm-hmm.

- So we gotta get 'em involved in the making process.

- Yeah, yeah.

Everybody who's gonna eat them should be involved in the making process.

- So this- - That's just fair.

- It is fair.

(Pamela laughs) - And start early.

These now are ready to either go into the oil- - Mm-hmm.

- At about 350 degrees and they literally take less than a minute to cook.

Your pollock, everything, is safe to eat in the filling already.

- There's really no raw ingredients in there, really.

- No.

- Just cooking the shell.

- [Jill] You're just cooking this.

- Mm-hmm.

- So you do these or the other thing that you can do is if you'd like to do it for a holiday or something like that, you can make these ahead of time to this point.

- Mm-hmm?

- You lay them on sheet pans, freeze them and then you can bag them, and then they can be put right in the fryer from that frozen- - So you don't have to thaw them out?

- No.

- [Pamela] Oh, good.

That's a handy thing too.

- That's a really handy thing.

- Yeah.

- I like to do things ahead because what I found over the years is that entertaining, I really wanted to be you know fancy and make Martha Stewart you know jealous.

(Pamela laughs) - But what happens is people... First of all, I can't do it.

I can't meet the bar.

And secondly, people are not really that comfortable- - Mm-hmm.

- when you do that.

The more you are comfortable- - Yeah.

- And the more you're enjoying yourself, the more your company is.

So anything that can be done ahead is great.

- And if you're planning a party, if you're having people coming over for a big football game or you're having people come over for a family gathering or something?

You know, do yourself a favor and have some of this stuff done ahead of time.

So all you have to do is put it out or heat it up and then you can enjoy the game.

You can enjoy your family.

You can enjoy whatever.

- Of course, the best part of the crab rangoons.

First of all, six of these at the restaurant are expensive.

- Yeah.

- You can make a whole lot for very little money.

- Yeah.

- And the best part about it is the plum sauce that we're gonna make next.

- So what ingredients do you need for the plum sauce?

That just sounds delicious.

- So super simple.

Sometimes it's quite hard to find plum jam.

- Mm-hmm.

- I found it, a little bit, difficult this time.

You can buy prepared plum sauce.

So if you wanna take that step out, it's okay, but this is delicious.

- Mm-hmm.

- It makes a big batch and it's pretty good on some other things, I cay say, as well.

- I could imagine it probably is really good on chicken.

- It is, and fish.

(Pamela laughs) - So you have- - And fish?

- You have crushed pineapple, and if you only have diced pineapple or, you know, pineapple in a can?

Just go ahead and zhuzh it up with a hand blender.

We've got a cup of rice wine vinegar.

A cup of water.

A cup of sugar, and a little bit of soy sauce.

Okay.

- Gotta have some salt.

- And what we're gonna do is we're gonna let this cook to a boiling point and then what we're gonna do...

Which most of the sauces that you see in a good Asian restaurant, they're gonna do something that's called a slurry.

- Okay, what're you gonna do?

- Just cornstarch.

A little bit of cold water.

- Mm-hmm.

- I'm probably gonna make a little mess here because cornstarch tends to- - Mm-hmm.

- I don't know what causes it but it tends, like, to pop around.

(Pamela giggles) - [Jill] I don't know why that is.

- [Pamela] Jill, I'm taking these out.

- Ooh.

- These look fantastic.

- They do.

- Look at them.

- Those look great.

- Just nice and golden brown.

- I've got the sauce boiling.

- Look at that.

Are you adding your slurry?

- So I'm gonna go ahead and add my cornstarch slurry, and that thickens it up.

And you wanna boil that for about a minute, just to thicken this up.

- Yeah, you don't wanna boil cornstarch too long or else it just takes all the thickening power right on out.

- Yeah.

So we're gonna boil that and what I did was once you get it to this point, you want it to coll to room temperature.

- Okay.

- And in order to do that, what I've done is I've made this sauce.

It's already complete.

And so what I'm gonna do is it's room temperature- - So you just gonna switch 'em out.

- So I'm gonna go ahead and add my plum jam.

- So that's how you'd finish.

- And if you can't find plum, use apricot or peach.

- Oh, good idea.

- Plum is the first but don't worry if you can't find it.

- It's like trying to find red currant jam.

You can only find it at- - It is.

- certain times in the year.

- Certain times of the year.

You're right.

So watch how beautiful this ends up being.

The color ends up being.

Let me use my- - Yeah, grab your whisk.

- And once you whisk that plum jam into there, that sauce is ready to dip those- - And that's the cooled one.

- Those piping hot rangoons.

- Right?

- This is the cooled one.

- [Pamela] So why don't you add the plum to the hot?

- [Jill] It's much thicker when you do that.

- Get that jam consistency.

- So it's not melting into there.

- Yeah.

- And see, and that is just- - Oh, look at it.

Oh, it looks fantastic.

- It's so pretty- - It is, mm, that smells good.

- And it's so delicious.

Doesn't it smell good?

- Plum jam's done.

Rangoons are done.

We have two more things we need to make, right?

- We do.

- And both of them are rather quick, right?

- Correct.

- We are making a really popular snack.

Spinach artichoke dip.

- This is my daughter's favorite.

Super easy to make.

Again, make it ahead.

Bake it off on the day-of.

You know, just before the party or whatever.

You can make your own creamed spinach but again, that is also not necessary.

- [Pamela] Mm-hmm.

- But creamed spinach is really easy to make.

It's just basically with a white sauce and some added cream cheese.

You've got your artichoke hearts that we've already chopped.

- Can you buy them already chopped?

- You can buy them- - Right.

- Already chopped now.

- So that doesn't make any difference?

- So that doesn't, mm-mm.

- Okay.

- Creamed spinach.

There's a couple brands I like.

- Mm-hmm?

- But creamed spinach, itself, can be bought in the frozen section.

- Mm-hmm.

- Making this, again, a super- - So you have the option- - I mean, put it together- - Of doing fresh or frozen.

- In five minutes.

- Correct.

- So if you're really clever and you wanna make it at home, be clever.

And if not, you wanna go the easy route?

Buy it.

- Mm-hmm.

- 'Cause I would buy it sometimes.

- I think so- - It depends.

- When you're making a dip.

- If you're making a spread.

Buy it.

(chuckles) - All right.

- A little bit of hot sauce.

Your favorite hot sauce, and that's not gonna make it spicy.

- Mm-hmm?

- It's just gonna give it that little bit of pop.

That vinegary flavor that you like to have.

- That little pepper- - Mm-hmm.

- that come in the background.

- Granulated garlic.

Seems to be a theme in the snack world here.

- Little bit of Worcestershire.

Again, I like that little bit of- - Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.

- Kind of umami flavor.

And then, just a good quality grated Parmesan cheese.

- Nice.

- It needs to be grated, like small.

- Small.

- Mm-hmm.

- Small.

Not like you put on a pizza.

- Not shredded.

- Right.

- Right.

Unlike our pimento cheese.

This is a quick mix.

Quick mix up.

You're gonna heat your oven to 350 degrees.

- [Pamela] Already hot.

- And I'm gonna get a nice vessel to put this in.

- Here you go.

- It cooks for about somewhere between 20 and 30 minutes.

- Will that work?

- Perfect.

- Yeah, that's perfect.

- All right.

- Somewhere between 20 and 30 minutes.

Till it's nice and gold and bubbly on top and possibly about 5 minutes before it comes out, you can put some more Parmesan cheese on top or you can put just 5 Italian Blend, or anything like that.

- Mm-hmm.

- Just to put a little bit on top and then you can even garnish it with maybe some smoked paprika.

- Oh, that sounds lovely.

- Or something like that.

Just to make it look pretty.

And that is one of always the favorite thing- - Oh I know, I know.

- at the parties.

- I know every time I've put it out, people go "What is this?"

You tell 'em and you know it's just a simple ingredient.

- [Jill] This is just a really good recipe.

- Mm-hmm.

- And it's not... A lot of them... A little bit on top.

A lot of them have a bigger ratio of spinach.

- Mm-hmm?

- And I find that that's sometimes a little assertive.

- Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.

- This is a very smooth- - Nice.

- Creamy, mild dip.

- [Pamela] So we'll put it in the oven?

- Mm-hmm, this is gonna go into our 350 degree oven.

20 to 30 minutes, you can check it.

- [Pamela] Next, we are making O'Henry bars.

- [Jill] Super simple.

Peanut butter, chocolate, sugar.

- [Pamela] Let's make it.

(Jill laughs) - Let's make it.

- So- - Into the pot, we put?

- All right.

First, we have one cup of light corn syrup.

Now remember, these are vintage recipes.

They're from the '70s.

- Right.

- We didn't know about corn syrup then.

So it's still a good ingredient.

- But now you can find it- - Nice and sticky.

- With all the non-GMOs and- - Correct.

- all that other kinda stuff.

- And then we add a little sugar, on top of that.

- Just a little sugar.

- And all we wanna do with that is we're gonna melt that.

We're gonna get it to a boil.

- Okay.

- And we're gonna start to add our peanut butter.

I like to add a little bit of vanilla extract, and you can wait and add it toward the end.

You can do it and blend it in.

It just gives it a little more flavor.

- [Pamela] You wanna get this all stirred up before- - Right.

- you add your peanut butter.

Right?

- Right, 'cause our peanut butter's gonna go in and then we wanna be kind of gentle when we put the cornflakes in.

- [Pamela] Yeah.

- So that they don't get all completely crushed.

You know, this is a good stove top treat.

It doesn't have to go in the oven or anything.

So it's nice for those hot days sometimes.

And what you'll see is it starting to bubble.

- It's starting to boil.

- So you want it to boil.

This'll get kind of clear.

- Mm-hmm.

- And as that gets clear.

- Now that means the sugar's melted.

- Correct, so that means the sugar's melting in.

Get it to kind of a clear stage.

It takes maybe a minute or two.

Just be patient, you don't wanna it too high but you do want it almost medium-high, at least.

- Yes, at least.

- Then we have our peanut butter.

I was talking to someone earlier.

Again, use sun butter.

It's perfectly fine.

So if you wanna use sunflower butter, that'll work just as well.

- Almond butter?

- Almond.

- And do you suggest chunky or smooth?

- I, personally, like chunky.

I'm glad you asked that question.

- I like chunky too.

- Most people like smooth, and it's in there like that, but I like the cornflakes have a crunch- - Mm-hmm.

- And the peanut butter or the nut butter have a crunch.

- Mm-hmm.

- Now we can take it off the heat.

We're just gonna melt our peanut butter.

And do be careful with that sugar- - It is hot.

- 'cause once sugar boils, it is hot- - Yeah.

- [Pamela And it will give you a healthy burn.

- [Jill] Mm-hmm.

- And one you will not forget.

- No.

- You'll be wearing that badge of honor for a while.

- For a while.

(Pamela chuckles) - You've done it.

- Probably forever.

(Pamela chuckles) - So, again- - I think we all have at some point, haven't we?

- Yes, for sure.

(laughs) You're just gonna... You're gonna blend that in and if you want to, Pamela?

- I'll stir it.

- If you wanna continue- - Mm-hmm.

- To blend that in.

What I'm going to do is just take the cornflakes- - Mm-hmm.

- Our cornflakes.

I'm gonna put them into a pretty large bowl.

So that we can mix well.

- Now is that a box?

- It's 6 cups.

- Okay.

- So it's about a half of one of the big cereal boxes.

- Mm-hmm.

- The sizes are different now.

So we don't ever know- - Right?

- What we're getting.

- I know.

They look the same size but they're a lot less.

- They look the same but they're not.

So I'm gonna prepare our pan and I'm gonna make it a little bit easier by taking a little bit of parchment paper.

If I was in class with you, I would be cutting it correctly.

(Pamela laughs) - But I did a pretty fast, floppy job here and all of a sudden, I realized that.

But I'm sorry.

- Oh, you're fine.

You're fine.

(Jill chuckles) - You are just fine.

- [Jill] But what you do is if you just layer this with parchment paper, it's gonna make 'em super easy.

They're kind of a sticky... You know, they're kind of like rice krispy treats.

- [Pamela] Right.

- So when you put 'em in the pan, you want a little bit of cooking spray and you wanna be able to take this out easily.

So by putting that parchment- - And leaving it hung over- - [Jill] And letting it hang over- - Become your handles.

- They become your handles and then you can pull that right out and cut those bars so nicely.

- [Pamela] We're gonna show them that too, aren't we?

- Mm-hmm.

- Yeah.

- So I think we're ready for- - Yeah, this is all nice and blended, and melted.

- Ready to- - Let you take over.

- Okay.

Again, super easy to make.

To put together.

It really is like putting together rice krispy treats, And then you have the chocolate layer on top.

Now, kinds will love to be involved if you give them a pair of gloves.

Cooking gloves.

Let them spray their hands with the cooking spray and let them get right in here and mix this all together.

- Then they're gonna wanna lick their gloves.

- [Jill] Yes.

(Pamela laughs) - Yes, and I've seen it done by children, of course.

- Yes, of course.

- Yeah you know, mm-hmm.

- No- - Not me.

- adults would wanna do that.

- I've never done it but- - No, I wouldn't do that either.

(chefs laughing) - [Jill] Maybe if it was crunchy peanut butter.

- [Pamela] Well, maybe.

(Jill laughing) - [Pamela] Maybe, when no-one's looking.

(chuckles) - Okay, so we're gonna... We fold all that in and make sure it's all distributed.

- [Pamela] Nice and coated.

- You wanna make sure- - Right.

- You get all that peanut butter, sugar goodness.

And you do wanna do this fairly quickly while it's still warm- - Yeah because it'll seize up- - and put it in your pan.

- Once it gets cold again.

- Well, what'll happen is you wanna put your chocolate chips in there.

- While it's hot.

- While it's hot.

- [Pamela] Yeah.

(Jill hums) - [Pamela] There you go.

- Now you can use an 8x8 pan and make real thick bars- - Mm-hmm.

- Which I'm doing.

Or you can make a 9x13 and you can make thinner bars- - Mm-hmm, longer but thinner.

- But it goes longer.

- Mm-hmm.

- So it just depends.

Just a personal preference.

- Depends on your audience is, right?

- Correct.

Let's see how these are gonna be.

That you are gonna- - Press 'em down.

- Press 'em down.

- [Pamela] Just like you did with the rice krispy treats.

- Correct, I mean they're just- - Press it in.

- Really are the same.

It's the same method.

Good thing to make with kids.

I mean, you have to be careful with that sugar mixture, for sure.

- Mm-hmm.

And the cereal has sugar in it too.

So if you wanted to do a sugar-free version, you'd have to go with sugar-free everything.

- Yeah, this is a difficult one to do.

- Yeah, it wouldn't- - Then while that's warm- - be O'Henry bars.

- You're gonna... (Jill laughs) You're gonna take 12 ounces of chocolate.

Chocolate chips.

- [Pamela] Which is about a whole bag, isn't it?

- It is a whole bag.

- Yeah.

It used to be a pound.

- I know, yeah.

(Pamela laughs) - It's getting smaller all the time.

So you put these on here.

In a perfect world, if you leave them here five minutes- - Mm-hmm?

- They're gonna melt.

- Okay.

- I've had times where that did not happen.

So if it doesn't, you're gonna stick it in an oven like at 200 degrees- - And just let it melt.

- Five minutes, not even.

And then, you're gonna take a spatula and you're gonna spread that out.

- Mm-hmm.

- And this goes right into the refrigerator.

- Okay.

- And it's all set to go and get cut.

- And they look like this when they're all done.

Jill, show us how to get those O'Henry bars out of the pan.

We've already got those chilled.

Ah-ha-ha!

Look how easy that is.

- See!

Look how easy that is.

So I mean, you can take the- - [Pamela] Parchment paper's your best friend.

- [Jill] The parchment right off of there.

- [Pamela] You've got a clean pan.

- And you've got a clean pan.

I might clean it again, but.

And then, you can cut these any way that you so desire.

We could cut 'em like one for you.

- Okay.

- One for me.

- [Pamela] Yeah, that looks good.

- [Jill] Oh, okay.

(Pamela laughs) - Or we could cut them into smaller squares.

So we could share.

- Hear the crunch.

(Jill chortles) - [Pamela] Ah, hear the crunch.

- It's just that old school.

I mean, it smells a little bit like a REESE's peanut butter cup.

- It really does.

- But it has that cereal texture and everything.

- It really does.

And what an easy dessert, I mean, really.

Put this out for a crowd.

- So okay, now we get the difference.

This is the thicker version.

- And the thinner pan.

- So it depends on what ratio you like.

If you like your chocolate ratio to be, you know, a little bit more- - Can you see?

- [Jill] Or the peanut butter.

- You can see on top, the thicker pan she was talking about and you can see on the bottom, the smaller ones that she was talking about with the 9x13 pan.

Here is your O'Henry bars.

All right, Jill.

Ooh, here's our spinach artichoke dip.

- Whoo!

- Woo-hoo!

Whoo!

- That is- - Now look at this.

- Nice stuff.

- Ooh, yes.

Put it on a plate with some things you could dip in there and get big juicy bites from.

Look at this, y'all.

Here we come with our spinach artichoke dip.

I'm going colorful side towards you.

Here we go.

Spinach artichoke dip.

Ready for dipping.

I can't wait to dip into that.

And then, Jill, you have our... Ooh, you put the jalapeno in there - Then it's safe because you can just eat around it.

- Oh, okay.

Because you wanna dip into that too.

We're gonna do some of these crab rangoons.

We're gonna put these on the plate.

And you're gonna dish us up some of the plum sauce there to go with these lovely things.

- Mm-hmm.

- Oh, these look so fantastic.

- I love the color of this.

- I love it.

I like everything.

- All right.

- [Pamela] I wish I was coming to this party.

(laughs) - Well, I think you should.

- I think I'll invite myself.

- You're invited.

- Here we go, put these on here.

I'll out this up here.

- Okay.

- Here's our crab rangoons.

Look how cute they are, and our plum sauce 'cause you gotta have your plum sauce with your crab.

And there you go, folks.

Thanks, Jill.

Oh my gosh, we did a lot.

Look at what we did.

- We did a lot.

- We did so much.

(Jill gasps) - We did spinach artichoke.

We did the pimento cheese.

Oh, we did crab rangoons and plum sauce, and O'Henry bars.

- [Jill] We got a pretty complete thing here.

- We do, we've got a great little party going on here and we could always add more stuff, and your cookbook is full of stuff that we could add to this buffet to fill it out.

Thank you for watching this episode of "Charlotte Cooks."

If you wanna grab these recipes, you can send me an email at Pamela, p-a-m-e-l-a, dot roberts, r-o-b-e-r-t-s, at cpcc.edu and I will send you a link to all of our season's recipes that you can find on our website or you can go search on our website, yourself, at pbscharlotte.org.

Thank you for watching this episode and thank you, Jill, for joining me on "Charlotte Cooks."

- Oh, thank you so much for having me.

- And we'll catch you next time.

Thanks for watching.

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