Party practice
Fall is birthday season for my family. So many are packed in the three months leading up to the holidays I always feel well practiced for end-of-year partying.
We have our traditions and individual favourites, of course. It wouldn’t be September if we didn’t have an Italian blowout with Ceasar salad and baked rigatoni. This October I’m looking forward to family visiting from away and without a doubt there will be Jigg’s Dinner and salt fish at least. The November celebration is for a sibling who makes totally random wishes — I’ve made everything from stroganoff to butter chicken for her.
The meals aren’t the challenge. It’s the “pickies” up front that I always have trouble choosing.
Baked Pimento Cheese and Bacon Dip
Have you ever tried the spread called pimento cheese that is based on a mash of cream cheese and roasted red bell pepper? I love it on sandwiches or as is with crackers, but baked into a hot and cheesy appetizer it is fantastic. The biggest problem you will have with this dish is getting people to stop eating it so they still have room for the main course.
I’m including instructions for roasting a red pepper from scratch but I find bottled roasted peppers just as good in this and a great time saver.
This amount is plenty for 8 as an appetizer or party dip.
1 8 oz. package softened cream cheese
1-1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan, divided
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 large red bell pepper, roasted and diced or ½ cup bottled roasted red pepper, drained and chopped
6 to 8 strips bacon, fried crisp, well drained and chopped or crumbled
1 small yellow onion, minced 1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves or ½ tsp. dried
½ tsp. freshly grated black pepper
1/8 to ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper, to taste
2 tsp. lemon juice
Pita bread triangles, baguette slices or crackers for serving
Combine cream cheese, ½ cup of the Parmesan, mozzarella and cheddar in a large mixing bowl. I find a potato masher the easiest way to blend the cheeses. Set aside.
If using a fresh bell pepper, put it under the broiler for a few minutes, turning it around so that it is completely blackened. Place in a covered bowl for five minutes then rub off the skin. Don’t wash off the little bits of black that are clinging to the surface—they add great flavor. Tear the pepper open and discard the seeds, ribs and stalk. If using bottled roasted dry well on a paper towel.
Dice the red pepper and add it to the cheese mixture along with bacon, onion, garlic, thyme leaves, black pepper, cayenne pepper and lemon juice. Stir gently so the red pepper doesn’t completely disintegrate.
Spread in a small baking dish or divide among 6 smaller ramekins, smoothing the surface. Top evenly with remaining Parmesan.
Bake at 400 degrees F about 30 minutes for one dish or 20 for ramekins, until bubbling hot and the Parmesan is brown and crusty.
One more thing. If you’re lucky enough to have any left, stir in some cooked rotini or penne, bake it a few minutes and you have a whole other dinner.
Homemade Pita Breads
Whether I’m serving that delicious baked pimento cheese dip or something as simple as store-bought hummus nothing impresses like homemade bread on the side.
You can buy pitas in any grocery store, and they aren’t that expensive, but they never taste fresh to me. They are so easy to make it’s dead worth it. You probably have all the ingredients on hand right now.
Five minutes’ kneading is plenty and if you’d like to make them in advance the dough is happy to rise overnight in the fridge.
This makes 6 or 7 round breads.
1 cup warm water
½ tsp. granulated sugar 1 package active dry yeast 3 cups all-purpose flour, divided
½ tsp. table salt
2 tbsp. olive oil
Whisk together water and sugar until sugar is dissolved. Sprinkle in the yeast and allow to sit somewhere warm for 10 minutes, until frothy and creamy.
Whisk together 2-1/2 cups of the flour and the salt in a large mixing bowl. Add yeast mixture and olive oil. Stir to form a shaggy dough. Sprinkle some of the remaining flour on a clean work surface and tip out the dough. Work it with your hands until it holds together then knead until the texture is satiny and there are no lumps on the surface, about 5 minutes, adding from the remaining flour as necessary to keep the dough from sticking to your hands. You will probably use most of the flour.
Place in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. I use a 4-cup measure so I know when it’s doubled. Starting out the dough will take up 2 cups. Allow to rise until doubled, about 2 hours in a cool kitchen.
Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and gently press out the air. Divide into pieces. Roll each one into a circle. For dipping and stuffing pitas you want them about ¼-inch thick. For sandwich pitas go a bit thinner.
Put a baking sheet in the oven while you preheat it to 475 degrees F. Place as many dough rounds as you can fit on a sheet of parchment paper. When the oven is hot lay the parchment and pitas on the hot tray and bake 5 minutes.
Flip them over and bake another 5, until puffed up and golden. They will flatten as they cool.