My regular readers know that I love to re-cap some great frugal tips from magazines and list them in posts. It helps me to have a place to review all the great things I’ve come across and it seems to help my readers hone in on the best advice that can come from the many (free or cheap) magazines we read monthly.
So, when I came across this wonderful booklet in Food Network Magazine with 50 great party dips, I just had to give it it’s own special post! I made sure to pick out the dips that are not only inventive, but use frugal ingredients. I mean, depending on where you live, a dip made with fresh artichoke hearts might not be the most frugal idea. Here are the ones that I was so impressed with and a few of my own recipes thrown in:
1. Poor man’s Hummus- Add 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter, 1 can chickpeas, 3 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1 minced clove of garlic, and 1/2 cup hot water to a food processor and puree.
2. Deviled Dip- Puree 8 hard-boiled eggs with 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon mustard, 1 chopped pickle, a dash of hot sauce and paprika, salt and pepper to taste.
3. Pimento-Cheese Dip- Mix 1/2 pound grated cheddar and pepper jack, 1/4 cup each mayonnaise and sour cream and 2 tablespoons diced pimentos. Season with hot sauce, onion and garlic powders.
4. Eggplant Caviar- Roast 1 eggplant at 400 degrees until tender, about 45 minutes(roast in a toaster oven to save some electricity!). Once roasted, peel and chop. Mix with 2 tablespoons each olive oil and parsley, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 chopped garlic clove, salt and pepper.
5. Olive tapenade- Pulse 1 cup black olives, 3 anchoives, 2 tablespoons each olive oil and capers, 1 tablespoon of lemon, 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme and one garlic clove in a food processor.
6. Clam dip- Puree 2 cans clams with 8 ounces cream cheese, a handful of parsley, 1/2 cup of cottage cheese and mayo, 1/2 chopped onion, 2 tablespoons clam juice and 1/2 teaspoon celery salt. Add the zest and juice of 1 lemon, salt and pepper.
7. Refried bean dip- saute 1/2 chopped onion, 2 chopped garlic cloves and 2 teaspoons ground cumin in olive oil. Add 2 cans pinto beans and salt; mash, adding chicken broth until creamy.
8. Baked Ricotta- Mix 1 cup ricotta, 1 teaspoon each chopped sage and lemon zest, salt and pepper. Bake in an oiled ramekin at 300 degrees for 20 minutes.
9. Hot Crab dip- Mix 8 ounces each crabmeat and cream cheese, 1/4 cup milk, 1/2 cup parmasan, a splash of lemon juice, 1 minced garlic clove, and a pinch of pepper in a baking dish. Add 1/2 cup chopped basil and parsley. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes.
10. Blue Cheese dip- Puree 1 1/2 cups sour cream, 3/4 cup mayo and 1/2 pound blue cheese. Add chopped chives, dash of Worcestershire sauce, and celery salt and pepper to taste.
11. Wasabi dip- Combine 2 tablespoons wasabi powder and 2 tablespoons water then set aside for 20 minutes(or use the tube of wasabi paste from the store and squeeze out 2 tablespoons of paste). Mash with 8 ounces each cream cheese and ricotta and 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar.
12. Bagna Cauda- Melt 1 stick butter with 1/2 cup olive oil. Add 5 chopped garlic cloves and 8 chopped anchovies and mash together. Serve warm with crudites.
13. Aioli- Whisk 2 or 3 minced garlic cloves with 2 egg yolks. Gradually whisk in 1 1/2 cups olive oil. Add lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste; thin with water as needed. Serve with crudites.
14. Queso dip- Saute 3 tablespoons minced onion in oil. Add 1 can green chiles, 2 tablespoons flour, 1/2 cup beer, 1/2 pound grated cheddar and a handful of chopped cilantro(optional). Cook until cheese melts, then broil until bubbly.
15. Ricotta-Tomato dip- Simmer 2 cups tomato sauce in a small skillet. Add 1 cup ricotta in dollops and warm through. Garnish with basil and a drizzle of olive oil.
16. Pizza dip- Make the ricotta-tomato dip(number 15) in a small ovenproof skillet; top with diced mozzarella and pepperoni, then bake at 350 degrees until bubbling.