Sampson - Party dips!: 50 zippy, zesty, spicy, savory, tasty, tempting dips

The Harvard Common Press
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Copyright 2004 Sally Sampson
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Printed in China

Library off Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Sampson, Sally
Party dips! : 50 zippy, zesty, spicy, savory, tasty, tempting dips / Sally Sampson.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 1-55832-278-7 (hc : alk. paper)
1. Dips (Appetizers) I. Title
TX740.S287 2004
641.8'12-dc22

2004003193

1SBN-13: 978-1-55832-278-3
ISBN-10: 1-55832-278-7

Book and jacket design by Elizabeth Van Itallie
Photography by Eric Roth Photography
Food preparation and styling; by David Kasabian
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10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3

For my mother, Sue Nirenberg,
who introduced me to the wonder of dips

For my husband, Mark, who dipped me,
and for my little dippers, Ben and Lauren

As someone who loves to focus my creativity, energy, and time (all of which are limited) on the main course and dessert, I have never really enjoyed making hors d'oeuvres or typical cocktail fare. My goal is to spend a small amount of time on big, delicious foods rather than hours and hours painstakingly preparing canapes, stuffing mushrooms, or skewering shrimp, the end result of which does not, to me, justify the time and precision. Or as my 11-year-old daughter, Lauren, says, "At least if you spend a lot of time making dinner, it will satisfy and fill you up, but little hors d'oeuvres, while they are tasty and look nice, are hard to make and don't satisfy."

And yet there is always that special time, just before dinner, when guests are arriving slowly and either just kicking back or getting to know each other, and they both need and deserve something delicious to eat.

Additionally, my husband, Mark, loves to have "pick-up" food around so that if dinner is late or he comes home starving, he can eat something to bridge the gap. And my children, Lauren and nine-year-old Ben, are always hungry at all hours of the day and, luckily for me, don't go for the usual junk most kids snack on. My solution for all such occasions? Special cheeses, marinated olives, and dips: all I have to do is unwrap the cheeses, sprinkle some spices and oil on some olives, pull out my food processor and whip up a dip, cut up some vegetables, and, voil, I am, as my mother used to say, the hostess with the mostest.

With a fridge packed with a reasonable arsenal of ingredients and a well-stocked pantry, preparing dips is speedy, trouble free, relatively inexpensive, and always a sensation. Moreover, with almost everyone I know on Atkins, the Zone, South Beach, or Weight Watchers, I have found that there is always a dip to satisfy not only every meal and palate but also every diet and special craving.

And truthfully, I have always had a special affection for dips. When my husband and I became engaged to be married, we decided to tell his parents in person. Without telling them the news, we called, suggesting we come for dinner. At past visits, his parents, George and Pattie, were always warm and welcoming to me; however, I was probably nothing like what they had imagined for their firstborn. Older by seven years, Jewish while he was Catholic, New York City born and raised to his more sheltered Hingham, Massachusetts, upbringing, I was independent in ways they found alien.

The dreaded and exciting moment came: we were sitting on tall kitchen stools surrounding a countertop overflowing with appetizers: crudits, dips, hot things, cold things. Mark said, "Mom, Dad: Sally and I got engaged." Dead silence. And then George, not missing a beat, grabbed a platter of artfully cut vegetables, looked up, and said, "Dip?"

Well, yes, the rest is history, but Mark and I can't even look at a dip without a certain amount of amusement. For the past 12 years, we have been on the lookout for great dips, if only to be able to offer each other some and say, "Dip?"

There's a reason dips are part of almost everyone's party repertoirethey're easy to prepare, they can be made ahead or put together at the last minute, and they're always satisfying. This chapter covers the basics-ingredients to have on hand for emergency making, dippers, dip presentation, and some party building block recipes.

The yields for all the recipes in this book are given in cups. When deciding how much dip or how many dips to make for a get-together, plan on a -cup serving per person. Also, all the recipes in this book can be doubled, tripled, or quadrupled to accommodate your particular party needs.

The great thing about dips is that if you have an assortment of items in your pantry and refrigerator, like those listed below, it's easy to throw something delicious together at a moment's notice. Of course, a garden full of fresh herbs also helps, but barring that, a good selection of dried herbs and spices is essential.

• Canned artichoke hearts
• Canned beans: cannellini (white beans), black, garbanzo (chickpeas), dark red kidney
• Canned tuna in water
• Oil-packed anchovies
• Capers in brine or salt
• Fresh garlic
• Olives
• Olive oil
• Mango chutney
• Cream cheese
• Sour cream
• Plain yogurt
• Mayonnaise

Gone are the days when you could just put out one bowl of chips and another of dip made with onion soup mix (not that I have anything against onion dip; see Lauren's Caramelized Onion Dip, ). Not only do dips taste better with a range of fresh dippers, it's also a healthier and more interesting way to eat them. And maybe this will cause you to eat more vegetables (always a good thing).