Fried Onion Dip

I came across this recipe during a lazy Sunday morning watching Food Network.  There's a new show- Heartland Table which was surprisingly enjoyable.  The host and chef, Amy Thielen, made this fried onion dip and was convincing enough that I decided I needed to make it too.  And I'm certainly glad I did.  With relatively few ingredients, this dip is full of flavor and way better than any store bought or powder onion dip you've had.  There's something magical about browned, caramelized onions and the smell is to die for.  This dip is good to serve at a party or for a game, but also great to snack on all week long if you don't eat it all at once.  Enjoy with chips, bread, or veggies.  

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 large onion, sliced in thick half-rings
• 3 cloves garlic, minced 
• salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/4 cup white wine or dry vermouth
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup cream cheese at room temp
• salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon chopped chives
• dash of cayenne

Directions:

Start by clarifying the butter.  This is done so the onions can be fried at a higher temperature to get a nice color on them.  To clarify the butter, melt it in a small skillet   When the butter has melted, you will notice that there is a white foamy layer on top of clear melted butter.  Skim off the white foam, pour the clear part into a small dish, and you are left with clarified butter!  Pretty easy. 

Next, heat the clarified butter in a heavy bottomed skillet (recommend cast iron) over medium-high and add the onions, breaking them apart to be evenly distributed.  Add about 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. 

Let the onions cook, stirring and flipping occasionally, until they turn a nice dark golden brown, almost with a burnt crust.  Amy's recipe says about 10 minutes but mine took a bit longer to develop this color, I'd say closer to 15.  

Next, add the honey and garlic and cook for about 1 minute, turning the heat down to medium.  

After that minute, pour in the wine or dry vermouth (I used wine) and stir.  Let it thicken as the moisture cooks off, about 3 minutes, and remove the onions from the heat.  

Meanwhile, in a bowl combine the sour cream and cream cheese and stir to combine.  When the onions have cooled slightly, pour them along with any remaining liquid into a food processor and process for a few pulses, leaving some chunks of onion. 

Mix the onions in with the sour cream and cream cheese, adding the chives and cayenne as well.  Stir to combine and refrigerate before serving.  So good! 

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Buffalo chicken dip is a classic crowd-pleaser and we especially like to make it when we have friends over to watch football.  You get the buffalo chicken flavor without the mess of chicken wings.  Mixed with the creamy cheese, I have to say it is far more tasty than eating plain buffalo chicken.  Opting out of the canned and bottled ingredients, we like to use fresh shredded chicken and homemade blue cheese dressing in our recipe.  I also add some diced celery for a little texture and crunch.  This makes enough for about 6, so double the recipe for a big crowd. 

Ingredients:

• 3 1/2 cups shredded chicken (I usually boil the chicken if I don't have any already cooked)
• 4 oz cream cheese at room temperature
• 1 cup blue cheese dressing (recommend home-made, recipe below)
• 1/2 cup hot sauce (recommend Frank's Red Hot)
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 celery rib, finely diced
• salt and pepper

Directions:
 
To make the blue cheese dressing:
 In a food processor, combine 3/4 cup heavy cream with 3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese or gorgonzola, 1/2 cup mayonaisse, and 2 tablespoons white vinegar.  Blend and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Use 1 cup for this recipe and save the remainder for salad dressing.

To make the dip:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  In a bowl, mix the chicken with the celery, cream cheese, and blue cheese dressing until well blended.  

Add the hot sauce and stir to combine.  Fold in 1/2 cup of the cheddar cheese.  Pour the mixture into a small casserole or other baking dish and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.  The perfect opportunity to use our new ceramic dish we got this year for Christmas, which also kept the dip nice and warm long after it was out of the oven.

Bake for about 20-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.  Serve with celery sticks and crackers or chips.  Yum!

Spinach Artichoke Dip

This tasty hot dip is great for parties because it is made in a crock-pot and very easy to make a large batch. All of the flavors blend together as it heats for several hours while you can work on other things before the party starts. We've started making our own pita chips to go with it which is a big money saver.

Ingredients:

2 10 oz packages frozen chopped spinach

2 cans of artichoke hearts (don't have to be the marinated kind... you will find these with the other canned vegetables)

1 large onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 fresh red pepper, diced, OR a roasted red pepper diced
1 cup sour cream
1 8 oz package of cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 cups shredded Parmesan
1 cup shredded cheddar
Salt and Pepper

Directions:
Thaw spinach, and squeeze the water out of it until it is as dry as possible.  Also, drain the artichokes and give them a rough dice.  Gather the diced onion and pepper, and garlic.

Combine all of the vegetables together into the bowl of the crock pot and mix well.  Then, add the sour cream, cream cheese, and mayonnaise and stir until well blended.  Finally, add one cup of Parmesan cheese, teaspoon of salt and some black pepper.  Mix and then even out the surface before putting the remaining cheese on top.  The colors are great for Christmas!

Lastly, put the lid on the crock pot and cook on low for 3-4 hours.  Keep on warm while serving.  This can also be made in the oven.  Just put the dip in a casserole dish, cover and bake at 350 for about one hour or until bubbly.

Pita Chips:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Take your store bought pitas, and slice them into strips or triangles. Put them in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil and mix until they are all coated.  Spread them out onto a baking sheet or stone and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Bake for 20-30 minutes or until golden and crispy.  Check occasionally to see if you need to mix them up for even cooking.

Store in an air tight container or zip lock bag until ready to serve.