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September 25, 2005
Dips!
This weekend was Miss Mary's 40th Birthday party. I gave her the Razor Shell shawl but alas, there are no photos; it was too dark and I forgot to put the photo card back in my camera!
At Mary's parties I am Official Purveyor of Dips. I usually make a variety - some new to me and some tried and true.
Inevitably the one that people eat most is . . . yes, Spinach Dip. Made with vegetable soup mix. They eat twice as much as any other. Foodies, swallow your pride and just make it.
The recipe is on every soup mix envelope, but here it is again:
1 10 oz pkg frozen spinach, thawed
1 envelope vegetable soup mix
16 oz sour cream
8 oz mayonnaise
Squeeze the water from the spinach (it can be used in stock), place the spinach in a bowl and separate with a fork. Add other ingredients, mix and chill for at least four hours. This goes well with chips and crudités. If you're feeling suburban, serve in a hollowed out rye bread.
The other successful dip was a black bean-lime dip. Like the spinach dip, it is best made ahead to give the flavors time to blend.
1 cup grated carrot (I used three carrots)
1/2 cup fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
1/4 cup finely chopped green onions
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, drained
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
Chop herbs in food processor, transfer to a large bowl. Grate carrots, transfer to bowl. Puree beans in a food processor until almost smooth. Combine all ingredients in the bowl, stirring until well blended. Let stand at least 30 minutes, preferably several hours.
Next time I make this I will probably add a bit of cumin and a diced jalapeno as well. It tastes best with tortilla chips. It's also healthier than the average dip.
The next two did not come out as well. For the roasted red pepper dip I pureed a 20 oz jar of roasted peppers (drained) and then added sour cream, a little Tabasco and 1 tsp curry powder and then the fatal error - an envelope of onion soup mix. That totally overpowered everything else - it would have been quite good without it.
The smoked oyster dip uses a standard dip formula: Blend cream cheese with sour cream and mayo, add spices, (in this case horseradish, lemon juice and onion flakes) and seasonings (salt, pepper, Tabasco, Worcestershire sauce). That was dandy. Then I added the smoked oysters. Smoked oysters are nasty little critters with one powerful stink. I won't use them as an ingredient again.
I did not make Beet Relish Spread at this party because beets can stain if spilled but it's a favorite at other parties. It's pretty and tasty, even if beets give some folks the willies. This recipe is from the 1959 General Foods Cookbook.
1 (16 oz) can beets
1/3 cup raw onion
3 hard cooked eggs
1 Tb vinegar
3 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tsp horseradish
1/4 c. sour cream
Combine all ingredients in a food processor and chop finely. Chill for several hours before serving.
Happy dipping!
Posted by Leigh Witchel at September 25, 2005 11:32 PM
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Comments
I remember from several years ago your musings and descriptions of the leftovers from a party you'd thrown. That spinach dip. Yup. How anything chocolate is always gone first, and the cauliflower among the crudites was really only for a show of virtue and variety, because you knew by now that nobody was going to eat it. It was the next day, and you were eating leftover cheese cubes for lunch.
It was an amazingly memorable post to me, maybe because I'm always the one bringing my chocolate torte to various festivities around here. And then eating the veggies first myself.
Posted by: AlisonH at September 27, 2005 1:30 AM
Your memory is excellent, Alison - that post http://www.danceasever.org/oct102002.htm was in fact how Cynthia and I planned this party. I emailed her that exact description to explain how we should do it.
We didn't have the dessert platter this time, because for her birthday one of Mary's friend's, Meredith, who is a dedicated amateur about to edge into pro baking, made the Best. Cake. Ever. Usually cakes that pretty (it was like a wedding cake, which is what Meredith often makes - if you need a weddin cake, she is your gal.) taste like sawdust. This one was a white cake with a fine moist crumb and some sort of praline filling. Incredible. Dancers were going for seconds - and they don't do that.
Posted by: Leigh Witchel at September 28, 2005 1:59 AM
Cool. Can I sneak a piece? I'm thin, I can handle it. (And yeah, I thought it was broccoli and cauliflower there, but I *knew* it was cauliflower, because I don't eat that either...)
Posted by: AlisonH at September 28, 2005 5:11 PM