Dips for football season

As football season is wrapping up it also means that Superbowl parties are right around the corner. While I'm a huge fan of Lil' Smokies (shhh, it's my little secret), I love a good dip even more. The following are two of my favorites and the recipes are courtesy of Kors D'Oeuvres, a small company that sells dips at the Brooklyn farmers market.



Spinach & Artichoke Dip
Makes 2 cups

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 small onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 shallot, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 2 tablespoons white wine
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed and drained
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup chopped canned hearts of palm
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Dash of hot sauce, such as Frank's

Directions

1. Heat oil and red pepper flakes in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion, shallot, and garlic; cook, stirring, until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add artichokes and cook, stirring, about 2 minutes more.
2. Add wine to deglaze and let cook until liquid is reduced by half. Add spinach and cook, stirring, until heated through and well combined, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, mix together sour cream, mayonnaise, and cream cheese until well combined. With the mixer on low, add hearts of palm, parsley, cheese, salt, pepper, and hot sauce; mix until well combined. Fold in 3/4 cup of the cooled spinach and artichoke mixture, reserving any remaining for another use. Transfer dip to refrigerator until chilled about 2 hours and up to two weeks; serve with crudite, flatbreads, or baguette slices.

Onion Dip

Makes 2 cups

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 small onions, chopped
• 1/2 shallot, finely chopped
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• Pinch of celery salt

Directions

1. Heat oil in heavy-bottom pan or Dutch oven heat oil over medium heat. Add onions, shallot, and thyme. Let cook until onions are very soft and caramel in color, 45 to 60 minutes.
2. Add vinegar and Worcestershire sauce; let cook until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
3. Meanwhile, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk together cream cheese, sour cream, and mayonnaise until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add cooled onions and celery salt; stir to combine. Transfer to refrigerator to chill at least 2 hours and up to 2 weeks; serve with crudite, flatbreads, or baguette slices.

Easy Apple Crumble!

This recipe is "inspired by" an afternoon of watching the Food Network re-runs at Cath and Chris' house.

I like this dish not only because it is so easy, but also because it uses ingredients that we always have on hand. It gives you the satisfaction of a freshly baked pie without the time commitment and mess of dealing with the crust.

Ingredients

For the fruit:

• 6 medium sized apples
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (optional)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

For the crumble:

• 1 cup flour
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) cold butter, diced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Peel the apples, slice them into thick wedges, and place them in a large bowl. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, granulated sugar, and flour. Toss well. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes. Spoon the mixture into ramekins, custard cups, pie pan - whatever you have. Fill almost to the top, saving room for the crumble topping.

For the topping, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and the butter in the bowl until it looks crumbly (yes, that's a scientific term), then sprinkle evenly over the fruit. Place the ramekins (or whatever baking dish you're using) on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper (not required, but helps make clean up easy!) and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the tops are browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly. Like most things in life, this dish is best served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream :)

Tips: you can change it up by substituting in other fruits (the original recipe called for peaches) or tossing in berries - whatever fruit you have on hand that you want to use! This recipe is also very forgiving if you're not into taking the time to do exact measurements of ingredients, and can easily be doubled or halved depending on how many people you are serving.

Tapas made EASY

I know the tapas craze is so 2008, but, in my house, the trendiness has worn off and it has become somewhat of a week-night staple. I enjoy "meals" where I don't have to construct a plate of protein, starch, vegetable. Cher in "Mermaids" had it right, and there is something to be said for all the slender Spaniards in Madrid.

Here are 3 easy dishes that anyone can whip up, no measuring required

Serves 4

Olive Tapenade

In a food processor combine:
1/2 lb. assorted olives from the deli counter (definitely include some of the blue cheese stuffed ones)
2 anchovy fillets
1 T of capers
A healthy drizzle of olive oil

Spread onto sliced baguette or crusty bread (or better yet, "Pan Gratis", which we know is the best kind of bread)

Spicy Potatoes
Preheat Oven to 400

Cube 1lb. small red potatoes. Toss with 4 cloves minced garlic, salt, pepper and olive oil, and spread out in one layer on a pan. Roast for 40min. until just browned.

Whisk together 1/4C mayo, 1/4C olive oil, 1 chopped chipotle (canned chipotle in adobo), 1 T of the adobo sauce, salt and pepper.

While the potatoes are still warm, toss in the mayo mixture (if you want to be fancy, you can call it aioli)

Shrimp with Red Pepper
Preheat oven to 400

Toss l lb. of shrimp (peeled, tail on) with 4 cloves minced garlic, salt, pepper, olive oil, 2 t thyme, and 2 T of red pepper flakes.

Spread into one layer on a pan and bake for 6 minutes, or until just pink.