“Peg’s” Spinach & Ranch Dip

hiddenvalley.com

While I am sure I have had this dip many times in the past, our recent trip to Charleston reminded me how downright good it is. I though it so good, in fact, that I told Peg she just had to give me the recipe because I’m always looking for a good cold dip.

To which she replied, “Um sure, Ashley – it’s on the back of the packet.” And then she and the rest of the Davies pointed and laughed as they are wont to do. And that is why I love them.

My embarrassment aside, this dip is solid, and I actually prefer it with veggies for dippers than chips, which is miraculous on its own.Also, you can definitely use light sour cream in this without any adverse effect. I know. My inner fat girl cries out with shame at this suggestion.

And don’t skip the water chesnuts – they are what gives this stuff its cracktastic crunch.

10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well-drained
8 oz water chestnuts, rinsed, drained and chopped
16 oz sour cream (you can go light here)
1 packet Hidden Valley Original Ranch Dips Mix
salt, black pepper and hot sauce to taste
French bread, cut into pieces
fresh veggies

1. Mix first four ingredients (and s&p and hot sauce) together and chill for at least 30 minutes (preferably overnight).
2. Dip the other stuff in it. Pretty straightforward.

Spinach Dip Mini Bread Bowls

Wow we have really been neglecting our nummy site!  To be honest, it is so hot down here in NOLA, new recipes have not been a priority.  However, I am going to start making a much better effort!  

Everyone loves a good spinach dip bread bowl and below is a mini version recipe so you don’t have to worry about germs or sharing with others.   It is incredibly tasty and easy.  I served these at a party recently along with Lacy’s (Grandmother Irene Tucker’s) Award-Winning Tomato Cups.  You don’t really need to follow the directions for the spinach dip step by step and feel free to use your own spinach dip recipe.  Season to your liking and enjoy! – ts

10 oz roll of refrigerated french bread loaf
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 Cups baby spinach, coarsely chopped
1/2 onion diced
1 clove fresh garlic, minced
3 oz softened cream cheese
1/2 Cup light sour cream
fresh shredded parmesan cheese
2-3 cloves garlic finely chopped
salt and pepper
1/3 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
dashes Worcestershire sauce
dashes hot sauce

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray 10 muffin cups with non stick cooking spray.  Unroll package of french bread loaf and slice into 10 equal size slices, about 1 inch thick.  Press each slice into about a 3 inch round, I did this by pressing in between my hands.  Press into the bottom and up sides of the muffin cup.  Set aside.

2.  Heat oil in medium skillet over medium heat.  Cook onions and 1/2 the garlic until soft.  Then add and stir spinach until wilted, about 3 minutes then add rest of garlic, cook and stir for another couple of minutes then turn heat off.

3.  Place cream cheese, sour cream, cooked onion spinach and garlic, Parmesan Cheese, and all seasonings into a medium bowl.  Mix until well combined.  With a medium cookie scoop, scoop dip into each of the centers of bread bowls.  Top evenly with shredded cheese and bake for 15-17 minutes until just turning brown on edges.  Remove and let cool for 3-5 minutes before removing from oven.

Black Bean Soup with Chipotle Cream

I already have 3 problems with this post: 1) I hate beans; 2) It’s officially 71 degrees outside and therefore way too conventionally “warm” to post a soup recipe; and 3) Every idiot I’ve run across recently cannot pronounce the word “Chipotle.” Let’s take these one by one, shall we?

First of all, I think beans are kind of pointless. Refry them and cover them in cheese and maybe we can talk, but for the most-part, I’ll pass.

That is, AHEM, until I had this soup. The Chef brought this home from work for me months ago, and I don’t know if it was my intense love of getting anything for free or the Chipotle Cream on top, but it was GREAT. As for my second point, I have pointed out that soup knows no season on several occasions, so you can take it down the street to another blog if you don’t like it.

And finally, the word is pronounced “Chi-poht-lay.” Yeah, I’m looking at you, Paula Deen, I love your wacky behind more than anyone, but “Chi-POLT-ay” just “ain’t rite,” to use your vernacular. You’re on the Food Network for goodness’ sakes. Get it together girl.

Black Bean Soup:
4 cups of dry black beans
2 yellow onions, diced
1 poblano pepper. diced
1 jalapeno pepper, diced
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp ground cumin
6 quarts of water
salt and black pepper to taste

1. Rinse black beans in cold water.
2. In a large pot, cook onions and peppers in olive oil until they become soft. Add the chili powder and cumin and stir until the onions are well coated.
3. Add the beans and water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for about an hour and a half. (While this is cooking, make the Chipotle Cream.)
4. Puree beans in their liquid until smooth. Thin down with additional water, if necessary.
5. Season to taste and top each bowl of soup with Chipotle Cream.

Chipotle Cream:
4 Chipotles in Adobo sauce
1/2 cup of sour cream
1/3 cup of mayo
juice of one lime
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp of cilantro

1. Place all ingredients in a blender or processor and puree until smooth. (I like to refrigerate this for the cold-hot dynamic you get when you top the soup with it, but it’s your prerogative lady, so do what you will.)

Mexican Crema

The Chef uses this as a garnish on soup, chili, tacos, etc. I can attest to its awesomeness on all of the aforementioned. It was particularly yummy on black bean soup, something I always thought was a totally throw-away lame-A excuse for a soup, but he changed my mind. Recipe coming soon. (That’s what we in “the biz” call a “teaser.” Sup.)

1/2 cup sour cream
‘1/2 tsp grated lime zest
2 tsp lime juice

1. Combine all ingredients and mix well. Boom.

If you need a little more direction as to what to use this on, top Fish Tacos or Tortilla Soup with it for maximum numminess.

Seven Layer Dip

I thought this recipe was a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised how many people ask what the actual seven layers are in Seven Layer Dip. So here ya go.

The secret is using picante sauce where so many people use salsa because it gives you just enough zing to cut through the creaminess.
(It’s also technically 8 layers if you include the tomatoes on the top, but it will be so good that no one will complain.) Now go getcho chips and enjoy.

2 15 oz cans refried beans with green chiles
1/2 cup mayo
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups guacamole
picante sauce (medium or hot), enough to cover the guac layer
2 cups shredded cheddar and monterey jack cheese
4 green onions, chopped
4 oz can sliced black olives
3 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
Fritos or Scoops

1. If you want to serve the dip hot, preheat the oven to 350.
2. Mix mayo and sour cream together.
3. Layer ingredients in order, starting with beans and ending olives.
4. Bake for 30 minutes, top with tomatoes and serve. Or, if you’re of the more impatient variety or you prefer this cold, add tomatoes, sit and chow.

Barrett’s Best Mashed Potatoes – Wasabi, Rosemary, Goat Cheese & More

The Chef likes to experiment… wait, that sounds wrong. What I mean to say is that he doesn’t like to cook the same thing twice. Unfortunately he is SOL when it comes to these taters because they are the bomb. (I’m sorry. That term is stupid and incredibly 1998, but it felt right, so I went with it.)

As Alton Brown would say on the hilariously hosted Iron Chef America, “the chef is here to offer his most succulent variations,” and so it is with Nummy. Here The Chef provides both the basics and some extra jazz for when you’re feeling frisky. My personal favorite is the horseradish, but I can lick a bowl clean no matter what kind is on the menu.

Wasabi Mashed Potatoes
6 Idaho potatoes, peeled
2 cup of half and half
8 tablespoons of unsalted butter
4 tablespoons of wasabi paste*
salt to taste

1. Cut potatoes in half and place them in a pot of well-salted water.  Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are easily pierced with a knife.
2. Drain the potatoes and return them to the pot.
3. In a saucepan, heat butter, half and half, and salt until the butter melts.  Pour over potatoes and mash together.
4. Gently fold in the wasabi paste*. Season with salt.

*To make the other versions, simply substitute the items below for the wasabi. You’ll want to add them a little at a time until you’ve found the perfect amount for your taste. You can also use unpeeled red potatoes for these recipes for added texture and color.

Rosemary garlic mashed red potatoes

• Rosemary and garlic
• Lemon and thyme
• Goat cheese and chives
• Blue cheese
• Pesto (1 tablespoon)
• Dijon mustard
• Truffle oil
• Roasted garlic
• Horseradish and parmesan
• Cooked crawfish tails
• Fresh dill and sour cream
• Caramelized onions
• Green onions, parsley and capers

Carol’s Bean Dip

I’m not usually a fan of beans in general, but all these fixins make for a tasty delight. Plus Carol’s directions included the line “hot and bubbly” and who among us would not want to eat something like that? Or even just be called that for that matter. If I ever become famous enough to create a self-indulgent perfume line, you better believe that will be its name.

1 15 oz. can of black beans
1 tablespoon chopped fresh jalapeno pepper
1-2 spring unions*, chopped (Carol usually adds more)
¼ cup of sour cream
½ teaspoon of salt
2 tablespoons of salsa (or Rotel with a little bit of juice)
1 ¼ cups of grated Monterey Jack cheese or mild cheddar cheese
freshly ground pepper
tomato, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Drain beans and discard juice
3. Mash beans with a fork, leaving some chunks. (do not use food processor)
4. Add remaining ingredients, reserving a ¼ cup of cheese
5. Pour into a one quart baking dish and sprinkle with remaining cheese. (You can do everything up to this point and then refrigerate until party time if you’re the planny type.)
6. Add tomato and bake for 20-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly!

* I left this in the ingredient list because I love that Carol spelled “onion” that way. It’s so krunk. She’s like a rapper. Oh and a spring onion is a fancy word for scallion which is a fancy word for green onions. That clear everything up? Great.

Corn Dip

This is the corn dip that Emily so famously ate the morning after Pat Benatar… after it sat in an iceless cooler all night. Yep. So that happened.

Also, this recipe makes what we in the biz call “a shat ton,” so divide this in half if you’re not feeding a crowd. Or Emily.

3 (11 ounce) cans Mexican-style corn***
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chiles
1 can Rotel, drained
1 bunch green onions, chopped (green parts only)
1/2 (8 oz) container sour cream
1 jalapeno pepper, diced
1.5 cups mayonnaise
10 oz shredded sharp cheddar cheese
hot sauce and Cavendar’s or Tony Chachere’s to taste
Fritos

1. In a medium-size mixing bowl, combine Mexican-style corn, green chilis, green onions, sour cream, jalapeno pepper, mayonnaise, and cheddar cheese. Mix well.
2. Cover and refrigerate (at least half an hour, but overnight is best). Serve with chips and keep away from Lowery.

***I just made this using 4 ears of fresh corn cut off the cob instead of the cans, and I must say DO IT. So easy and yet so much better. (6/30/11)