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caramelized onion dip

July 10, 2013
appeteaser
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(I wrote this three months ago and, for some reason, never posted…)

This week, I had a few girlfriends over to watch the finale of The Bachelor. Stop laughing! Okay, so we don’t take it seriously (but we kind of do), and it’s really just an excuse to eat and drink and gossip. Being a good hostess, I made my bed (something I don’t believe in), tidied up the apartment, did the dishes, and made a bunch of party snacks that are, at the very least, worth mentioning.

This dip, however, is not only worth mentioning, but it’s worth mentioning again. My friends advised I call it “caramelized onion dip”, because it sounds fancier (i.e., no Lipton soup packet) than “French onion dip”.

1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
1 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 cup plain, non-fat Greek yogurt
Juice of 1 lemon
3 tbsp parsley, chopped

1. Heat the butter and oil in a pan over high heat.
2. Add the sliced onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and dark brown in spots.
3. Reduce the heat to medium-low, add garlic to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes.
4. Season with salt and pepper and continue cooking for another 15-20 minutes, until the onions start to break down.
5. Remove from the heat and cool completely.
6. Combine onion mixture with the mayonnaise and yogurt.
7. Refrigerate overnight.
8. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and serve with crudite, crackers or pita chips.

best salad of 2013

April 8, 2013
appeteaser, somethin' on the side, the underwear diet
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Last year, this was the best salad. This year, some of the same elements remain, but have been reworked into the Best Salad of 2013. Unless I come up with something better. And then that’ll be the new best. I make up the rules, so…

I visited one of my best friends in Philadelphia this weekend. She wanted to make a salad using precooked lentils from Trader Joe’s, but needed some ideas. I offered to make this super easy, fresh salad that took no time to put together.

photo

1 package precooked lentils, or about 2 cups cooked French green lentils
1 hothouse cucumber, julienne
1 small bunch mint, roughly chopped
5 oz feta cheese, medium dice
Seeds from 1/2 pomegranate
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

1. Add all ingredients to a large bowl and gently stir to combine.

citrus and avocado salad

March 24, 2013
appeteaser, somethin' on the side, sweet thang, the underwear diet
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It’s only during the past few years that I’ve developed an affinity for bitterness. Now it’s a taste that I crave, namely in the form of alcohol–IPAs, Campari and sodas, Negronis–but also in grapefruit. Since winter is the time for citrus, I suppose I’m pushing it by posting this during the first days of spring. But, what the hell:

photo(6)

Serves 4, as a starter for brunch (serves 2 as a main course for breakfast)

2 grapefruits
2 oranges
1 small jicama
3 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
1 lime
Pinch salt
Pinch sugar (a drizzle of agave also works very nicely here)
1 avocado

1. Supreme 1 of the grapefruits and 1 of the oranges: cut off the tops and bottoms of the fruit. Cut off the skin, making sure to remove all of the white. Cut in between the membrane to create “wedges” of fruit.
2. Slice the remaining grapefruit and orange: cut off the tops and bottoms of the fruit. Cut off the skin, making sure to remove all of the white. Cut the fruit into slices.
3. Julienne the jicama: peel, thinly slice, and cut into matchsticks.
4. Gently toss the citrus fruits with the jicama, juice of 1/2 a lime, salt and sugar.
5. Slice the avocado: Cut into quarters, remove the pit, peel away the skin and slice into 1/4-inch pieces. Squeeze juice of the other 1/2 of the lime over the slices to prevent browning.
6. Serve the avocado slices on the side. You can arrange the slices on the top of the salad, which would make for a beautiful presentation, but I like the bit of interaction your guests have by finishing their own plates.

edamame hummus

March 16, 2013
appeteaser, the underwear diet
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1 medium or 2 small garlic cloves
1 bag frozen, shelled edamame, thawed, small handful reserved
2 tsp tahini
1 tsp cumin
kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Extra virgin olive oil, for garnish
Black pepper, for garnish

1. In a food processor, pulse garlic until it is broken down into bits.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and whirl, adding water as necessary to achieve desired consistency, until smooth.
3. Spoon into a bowl and garnish with reserved edamame, a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and a healthy crack of freshly ground black pepper.