BE THE HOST WITH THE MOST
The right dips make your party shine
I don’t know about you, but after a year that seemed to wind its way endlessly through one depressing news story after another, all I want this holiday season is a little bit of comfort.
I want to curl up by the fire, wrapped in a cosy blanket, the phone switched off, friends and family all around, sharing the foods that bring us comfort and, yes, joy.
This is not the year for a formal affair with fiddly canapés and fussy ingredients. This is a year for simple pleasures that we can share with friends old and new, dishes that get us out of the kitchen and in front of the warming hearth.
That could mean warm bread, straight from the oven, crusty and fragrant and dripping with melted butter. It could mean a steaming bowl of creamy chowder or a wholesome soup fragrant with exotic spices. It could mean something — in fact, just about anything — covered in rich, gooey melted cheese.
But most of all, when it comes to home entertaining, it means dips.
How wonderful dips can be for a host.
They are almost always easy to prepare. Just toss everything in the Cuisinart and you’re pretty much done. They can be made ahead of time and simply served with bread, crackers or vegetables, which means you can spend your time with your guests, not futzing about in the kitchen. They can be rustic or elegant, simple or fancy, decadently rich or virtuously lowcal, icy cold or molten hot straight from the oven. There is a dip for every occasion, and every occasion is right for a dip.
Best of all, dips are interactive. They demand attention, forcing your guests to put down their phones and share conversation even as they’re diving into, say, a gloriously garlicky hummus or savoury-sweet caramelized onion spread. And isn’t lively chatter what a host wants most of all?
Of course, there’s been lots of lively chatter this past year, plenty of it downright mean and nasty. That’s not the sort of banter you want around your table. Perhaps this is the year to banish politics from the festivities, at least for a few hours.
Instead, remind your guests that no matter where we are from, we have more things in common than things that separate us, and what we share most of all is food. How can you hate a stranger who offers you a piece of bread and something tasty to put on it?
And so look to global cuisines for your dips, to a smoky-sweet baba ghanouj or spicy muhammara from the Middle East, salsa from Latin America, peanut dip from Southeast Asia, hot crab dip from the southern U.S., Tex-Mex queso or herbaceous California-style Green Goddess. Truly, the options are endless, and endlessly global.
You can find plenty of those ideas in this season’s bumper crop of cookbooks — which also happen to make great gifts.
For instance, we found a lovely potted smoked salmon recipe in Rod Butters’ new book, The Okanagan Table (Figure 1 Publishing). In it, he shares some of his favourite dishes from his Kelowna restaurant, RauDZ Regional Table, as well as from his days as the opening chef at the Wickaninnish Inn. His dip is versatile enough to use for fancy canapés — just pipe it on cucumber slices or crostini — or to serve rustically in little jars or ramekins. It would also make a great host gift.
Meanwhile, Toronto chef Lynn Crawford, owner of Ruby Watchco and host of numerous Food Network Canada TV shows including Pitchin’ In, also has a new cookbook out. Farm to Chef (Appetite by Random House) showcases recipes featuring the kinds of ingredients you’re likely to find in farmer’s markets, like the eggplant she grills for her Mediterraneaninspired dip.
If you don’t want to light the barbecue in December, you could always roast it in the oven.
We also love dipping into Aimée Wimbush-Bourque’s new book, The Simple Bites Kitchen (Appetite by Random House), for wholesome mouth-watering dishes we can whip up in a snap. One of them is the Montreal-based chefblogger’s take on classic tzatziki — which is rich, creamy and delightfully dill free. Just serve some pita bread and a bowl of olives alongside, and you’ll have a happy crowd well fed.
Open a bottle or two of wine. Put out a bowl of dip and a basket of bread. Play some festive music like Colin James’ recently re-released Christmas album or the new one from Gwen Stefani. Turn up the fire, and open your door to friends old and new.
Let’s end the year with kindness and comfort and a taste of something delicious.
CLASSIC GREEK TZATZIKI
From The Simple Bites Kitchen by Aimée Wimbush-Bourque (Appetite by Random House). This thick, creamy dip is as close as you will find to what’s served at a Greek taverna. Serve with cucumber spears, grilled pita bread and a bowl of olives.
½ English cucumber
■
1 small clove garlic, minced
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1 cup (250 mL) labneh or plain
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Greek yogurt
2 tbsp (30 mL) extra-virgin olive ■ oil
1½ tsp (7 mL) white vinegar
■ ½ tsp (2 mL) sea salt, or to taste
■ ¼ tsp (1 mL) freshly ground
■ black pepper, or to taste
Slice cucumber in half lengthwise and remove the seeds with a teaspoon. Each half will look like a canoe when you are finished. Grate the cucumber on the large holes of a box grater. Squeeze out the excess water with your hands.
In a bowl, combine grated cucumber, garlic, yogurt, olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Mix well. Adjust seasoning if necessary. Cover and chill well; serve ice cold. Tzatziki will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Makes 1½ cups (375 ml)
POTTED SMOKED SALMON AND BAGEL CRISPS
From The Okanagan Table by Rod Butters (Figure 1 Publishing). This is chef Butters’ take on a classic breakfast bagel with cream cheese and lox. He suggests serving it in little crocks as an appetizer, or piped onto grilled baguette or cucumber slices as canapés.
2 shallots, finely chopped
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1 stalk celery, finely chopped
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½ cup (125 mL) white wine
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1 cup (250 mL) cream cheese,
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room temperature
2 tbsp (30 mL) chopped parsley
■ 1 tbsp (15 mL) chopped tarragon
■ Juice of ½ lemon
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¼ tsp (1 mL) coarsely ground
■ black pepper
3 oz (86 g) sliced smoked salmon
■ 2 tbsp (30 mL) half-and-half
■ (10%) cream
2 tbsp (30 mL) roughly chopped ■ celery leaves
2 unsliced bagels ■ Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
In a small pot over medium-low heat, combine the shallots, celery and white wine and cook for 4 to 6 minutes, until the wine has reduced by two-thirds. Set aside to cool.
In a food processor, combine the cream cheese, parsley, tarragon, lemon juice, black pepper, salmon, and cream and mix until completely smooth. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the sides to ensure everything is mixed evenly. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, fold in the shallot and celery mixture, and add the celery leaves.
Divide the smoked salmon mixture into 2 small crocks or Mason jars. Chill.
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Thinly slice the bagels into disks and place on a parchment-lined or non-stick baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for 10 minutes, until golden and crispy. (Keep an eye not to over-bake.) To serve: Serve the potted smoked salmon with the bagel crisps.
Serves 2