Dip

Beet Walnut Dip

categories: Appetizers, Recipes, Snacks

Beet Walnut Dip

I’m generally not a picky eater. Really, I’ll eat just about everything, but there are a few things I just can’t get myself to like. Melons (all variations except watermelons) and beets. I just never liked beets—well, unless they were pickled with turnips. I avoid beet salads, and beets in pretty much any other form. But I decided to give beets another chance. Truth be told, it’s because I had some beets left over from making pickled turnips that I fully intended to give to my mom {an avid beet-lover}, but never got around to, and I just didn’t have the heart to throw them out. I gave them a second life, in dip form. (more…)

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Warm Caramelized Onion Dip

categories: Appetizers, Posts, Recipes

Warm Caramelized Onion Dip

I love caramelized onions {pronounced car-melized, but I guess some people say caramel-ized. It must be my Michigan showing}. I have very vivid memories of my mom in the kitchen caramelizing onions for Mujaddra and sayyadiyeh — a fried fish and rice dish. Despite the fact that she’d close the kitchen door, I could always smell the sweet scent of those onions seeping through the cracks in the door. I’d even sneak in and steal a taste after she scooped them out of the pan. The best part, she always made extra so we could add as much as we wanted to our plates at dinner. (more…)

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Veggie Packed Spinach Artichoke Dip

categories: Posts, Recipes, Snacks

Veggie Packed Spinach Artichoke Dip

 

 

I love dips. Love them. My only issue with restaurant dips and pre-packaged dips, is that I don’t know what they’re really putting in there. And also, why are they filled with so many calories? I got to thinking that there has got to be a better way to make my favorite dips with a lot less calories and without sacrificing taste.  Let’s be honest here, sometimes when calories are reduced, flavors dull. I’m not about that life. I won’t eat something that doesn’t taste good just to cut calories. So I set out to make “skinny/healthy” Spinach Artichoke Dip. (more…)

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Creamy Artichoke Spread

categories: Appetizers, Posts, Recipes, Snacks

Creamy Artichoke Spread

Remember that week I spent in Rome I’m still eating my way through all the goodies I brought back.

While in Rome, I stopped at the local grocery store The Coop. It was perfect because that’s where I bought my 25oz bottle of extra virgin olive oil, that I’m still using. I also made my way to the spreads section of the store. There, I found black olive tapenade, capers in chunky salt and it’s also there I discovered Artichoke Pate. While the jar and ingredients were in Italian, I managed to google translate my way through. I wish I had brought a jar back home with me. Since I wasn’t able to, I decided to make my own artichoke spread with fresh ingredients. (more…)

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Parsley Pesto

categories: Appetizers, Posts, Recipes

Parsley Pesto

I’ll be honest, when I think of pesto, I generally think of a basil-based chunky spread. But that’s because it’s the most popular flavor on grocery store shelves and at our favorite restaurants. What most people don’t realize is, there are so many variations of pesto, basil and parsley pesto being only two of them.

Last year, Bon Appetit showed us that that we can make pesto out of anything. Really, almost anything. Did you know that you can even use arugula?! (more…)

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Buffalo Chicken Dip

categories: Appetizers, Posts, Recipes

Buffalo Chicken Dip_2

It’s been a while, I know. My last post was over two months ago and I appreciate my loyal followers who haven’t given up on me yet! Thank you, thank you.

What happens every once in a while is that I get so caught up with work and other things in my non-blogging life that I don’t take the time to work on new posts. It’s been an action-packed two months, with weddings and birthdays and some fun adventures including rock climbing, kayaking and a weekend trip to Vegas with a pit stop inside the Grand Canyon. I’m happy to report that I can now cross both those off my bucket list. I’ll also admit that since Memorial Day weekend, I’ve been spending my lazy weekends poolside working on my tan – slowly but surely. (more…)

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