How About a Little Dip With That Chip?
By Patty Liston
I have no idea who first came up with the idea to make up a dip for chips, vegetables, or what have you. However, I am pretty sure that mothers everywhere are thrilled, as having a good dip around is sometimes the ONLY way we can get children, grandchildren, or spouses to eat their veggies.
I was thinking about this when I was at my local health food store and sampled a wonderful hummus dip. Hummus is made out of garbonzo beans, which are a great source of trace mineral manganese, an important nutrient for energy production, as well as antioxidants to ward off sickness. This is the perfect example of "food as medicine". You will find a great hummus dip in the recipes below.
Another great dip to have in your recipe book is one for fruit. I love to make fruit-ka-bobs, using whatever fruit is in season. Give each of your guests their own little bowl of the fruit dip below, and watch the fruit disappear!
The pizza dip is one I haven't tried yet. However, it looked like a fun addition to the standard onion, dill, or artichoke dips that we usually experience. Brining something new to the table - whether it's yours or someone else's - is always a marvelous adventure.
Hummus
4 cups garbanzo beans, drained
1/4 cup tahini paste
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon chopped jalapeno chile
1/2 bunch cilantro, stemmed
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1 tablespoon agave nectar
1 tablespoon sea salt
Mix everything together in a blender and enjoy!
Brown Sugar Fruit Dip
Makes about 3 1/2 cups
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup coffee liqueur (optional)
1 cup frozen whipped topping, thawed
Garnish: brown sugar
Assorted fruit
1. Beat brown sugar and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add sour cream, vanilla, and, if desired, coffee liqueur, beating until blended and smooth; fold in whipped topping. Cover and chill 4 hours. Garnish, if desired. Serve with assorted fruit.
Hot Pizza Dip
Servings: 10
8 ounces light cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese
1/2 cup finely chopped green pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped sweet red pepper
1/2 cup bottled pizza sauce
Multigrain tortilla chips or whole-wheat Boboli pizza crust (cut into dipping bread sticks)
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9-inch pie plate with canola cooking spray.
2. In medium-size bowl, combine light cream cheese, Italian seasoning and garlic powder' then spread on the bottom of prepared pie plate.
3. In medium-size bowl, combine the two cheese and two types of peppers. Sprinkle half of the cheese-pepper mixture over the cream cheese layer. Spread pizza sauce over the top of this and then sprinkle with the remaining cheese-pepper mixture.
4. Bake for 20 minutes and serve warm with multigrain tortilla chips or whole-wheat dipping bread sticks made from Boboli whole-wheat pizza crust.
