Mediterranean White Bean Dip

I like the traditional nutty flavored chickpea hummus and its variations well enough to gobble it up every time it's placed in front of me, but I simply adore the rich, versatile creaminess of Cannellini or Great Northern bean based dips and spreads.  In this Mediterranean version of a white bean dip, I've mixed some of my favorite ingredients such as sundried tomatoes, lemon, garlic, basil (although, rosemary and oregano work very nicely, too), olives and feta cheese.  The end result is a dip into which it is literally impossible to stop sticking your fingers, and tastes great with pita bread or crackers, or chunks of fresh whole grain bread. Try it as a spread for a wrap, stuffed with baby spinach leaves, cucumbers, red onions, tomatoes, more olives and feta.  Oh my.

Because I didn't want the garlic to take center stage, I slowly simmered it in the olive oil, infusing the oil with the garlic flavor and taming the spicy bite of raw garlic.  You could skip this step, but the garlic will be more pungent (not necessarily a bad thing).  If you have a clove of roasted garlic left over from another dish, go ahead and use that instead for yet another delicious twist.


Mediterranean White Bean Dip

• 1 garlic clove
• 2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 c cooked white beans (Cannellini, or Great Northern)
• 2 sundried tomatoes (oil packed)
• 2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
• 3 tsp fresh chopped herbs, divided (basil, rosemary, or oregano are nice)
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 -2 Tbs feta cheese, crumbled
• 5-6 Kalamata olives, chopped
• 1 -2 tsp extra virgin olive oil (for drizzling)

Combine garlic and oil in a small saucepan.

I had to cut my clove in half to remove the sprout - you can leave your clove whole if you have a spoutless one

Bring the oil to a slow simmer over medium high heat, then immediately reduce heat to low.  Cook garlic 5-7 minutes, taking care not to "fry".

In the bowl of a food processor, add beans, tomatoes, lemon juice, 2 tsp chopped herb of your choice, salt, pepper, and garlic clove.

Pulse several times until mixture is roughly chopped.  Turn the processor on, and while it is running, slowly pour the garlic oil down the chute.

Continue to process another 30 seconds, or until smooth.

Transfer to bowl.  Top with feta cheese, olives, and remaining 1 tsp chopped herbs.  Drizzle with olive oil.

Serve with pita bread or chips, chunks of crusty bread, or assorted fresh vegetables.  Use as a spread for wraps and sandwiches.



Don't forget that during the whole month of January, the #citruslove blog  hop is going on!  Check out my Lemon Thyme Chicken Strips post for a constantly updating list of fabulous citrus themed recipes and links to all of my fabulous co-host's blogs for more great recipes!

Chocolate Chip Pecan Cheese Ball

I used to think cheese balls were kind of hokey and only showed up on my grandmother's holiday table, destined to be avoided by nearly everyone because it just looked...questionable.  Boy, have I been wrong.  I've been playing around with some different cheese ball ingredient combinations and I think I might actually be in love with the whole idea.  I know I just posted a savory cheese ball recipe (Herbed Olive and Cheese Spread), but this one is sweet and it's too yummy not to share right away.

In other chocolate chip cheese ball recipes, I've noticed many of them call for a lot of additional butter (probably for spreadability), but I decided to use a small amount of coconut oil instead.  The result is a sweet and decadent chocolate chip and pecan spread with just the perfect hint of coconut flavor.  I'm happy to say it's one of those cream cheese spreads you will want to eat with a spoon, but it tastes amazing with firm fruits, graham crackers, bagels, or vanilla cookies.  It makes a lovely holiday presentation centered on a platter surrounded by red and green apple slices, too.

Chocolate Chip Pecan Cheese Ball

• 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/4 c unrefined coconut oil 
(such as Spectrum Unrefined Organic Coconut Oil)
• 2 Tbs raw honey
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 c plus 1/3 c mini chocolate chips (or well chopped semi sweet chocolate), divided
• 1/3 c chopped pecans

With a hand held mixer set to low speed, blend together the cream cheese, coconut oil, honey, and vanilla.  Stir in 1/2 c chocolate chips.

Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

On a plate or board, combine the remaining 1/3 c chocolate chips and pecans.

Form the chocolate chip cheese mixture into a ball.  Roll in the chocolate chip and pecan mixture.

Refrigerate until ready to use.  Serve with apples, pears, bagel slices, graham crackers or vanilla cookies.

Herbed Olive and Cheese Spread

Of all the wonderful food offerings of the holiday season, I must confess that the appetizers are my favorite.  I spend entirely too much time munching from the appetizer tables, it's true, but with holiday bean dips and vegetable dips and cheese spreads and crostini and antipasto and...what's an appetizer junkie to do?  I'd like to promise that this year I will exhibit much more self control, but I know I'd be lying.  I just really can't help myself.

In this festive and pretty cheese spread, both green and black olives are combined with sundried tomatoes and creamy Fontina cheese, and then rolled in fresh herbs.  I used a combination of parsley, thyme, rosemary and oregano, but adding basil or marjoram would taste wonderful, too; they key is to choose at least three different fresh herbs rather than just one or two.

Herbed Olive and Cheese Spread

• 8oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 3/4 c Fontina cheese, shredded
• 1/4 c green pitted olives (I used pimento stuffed for additional color), sliced
• 1/4 c pitted kalamata olives, sliced
• 1 Tbs sundried tomatoes (oil packed), chopped
• 3 Tbs assorted herbs (parsley, thyme, rosemary, oregano, basil...), chopped

With a handheld mixer, blend cream cheese and fontina until blended.  Stir in the olives and sundried tomatoes.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Spread the herbs on a plate or cutting board.

Form the cheese and olive mixture into a 6 inch log (or whatever shape makes you happy).  Roll the log in the herbs.

Keep refrigerated until ready to use.  Serve with pita chips, toasted baguette slices, or assorted crackers.

Spinach Dip

This spinach dip is the cold version - similar to the one notoriously made with a packet of dry vegetable soup mix.  Gosh, I loved that stuff.  Ate the whole bowl myself every time I made it.  That is, until I actually read the ingredients on the vegetable soup mix labels of various brands; along with a few dehydrated vegetables, the mixes are riddled with ingredients such as monosodium glutamate, maltodextrin, hydrolyzed corn protein, disodium guanylate, disodium inosinate, partially hydrogenated soybean oil...you get the picture.  While googling, I saw that some even came with warnings not to feed their mix to children under 1 year old.

Good grief, people.  This food thing - it's not really so hard.  Just use food.

I suppose this entry is a good time to apologize to any of you who interpreted the name of my blog to mean that the "Art" is my photography (something my husband pointed out to me after I had already named my blog) - by now you surely know it is not.  The "Art" refers to something apparently lost over the many years - how to use real, readily available ingredients to produce edible and delicious results.  How many times have we grabbed mixes and packets and and stirred a few other premixed items into it and called it food?  It's easy, and it sure does taste great, so what's the harm?

The harm is that cooking and preparing meals for our families, friends, and others whom we love, has now become an "art" rather than the common knowledge that simply feeding ourselves should be.  The harm is that by using anything other than real, edible ingredients, what we are preparing and serving in the name of love is actually not all that great for our bodies (or our minds, as studies are showing).  The harm is that by introducing our bodies to all manner of chemical concoctions from the beginning of life ensures that we will be treating a plethora of ailments (many of which were not afflicting any living creature just one century ago) with more chemical concoctions at the end of that life.  Without food, there is no life; that's a fact.  Where does "Without chemical flavor enhancers and petri dish grown flavors and preservatives, there is no life" fit in?

Can you tell how passionately I feel about this subject?  I'll be stepping down from my soapbox now, since I expect you came here looking for a recipe, not a sermon.  I did, however, want to clarify that my blog has absolutely nothing to do with the art of photography (although, I must say, I've gotten a tiny bit better at it, and I'm enjoying it enough to possibly consider something other than my daughter's point and shoot camera - but I'm not sure I would know how it worked or have the time to figure it out).

So, back to Spinach Dip.  Real, easy, yummy Spinach Dip.  I use a combination of cream cheese and Greek yogurt.  If you can't find unadulterated cream cheese, or you are opposed to the locust or carob bean gum (which isn't really so awful, comparatively speaking) that almost inevitably shows up in even the organic commercial brands, go ahead and substitute a good mayonnaise (or home made mayonnaise) for the cream cheese.  Sour cream works in place of the Greek yogurt.  For the crunch; if you don't have radishes, use equal amounts of finely chopped celery.  If you don't have red onions, use 3-4 chopped green onions.

While it is not necessary to serve it in a bread bowl and use the excess bread cubes to dip, it's kind of cool looking and the dip is absolutely addictive when smeared on the bread.  If you use the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day method, making the bread bowl is very, very easy.  Too easy, in fact.  The picture is using the European Peasant Loaf recipe because that is what I had premade in my fridge, but the rye bread recipes are beautiful with this dip.  Of course most any cut veggies work very nicely as well.

One last thing - this recipe does not necessarily make enough for a party.  If you are serving it to a lot of people, double it (easily done).  I purposely make this amount because I am an appetizer junkie and much like the Taco Dip, my daughter and I will immediately consume whatever I make almost as soon as it is ready, so this amount is simply a safety precaution.

Spinach Dip
makes about 1 1/2 cups

• 4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 c plain Greek yogurt
• 1 10 oz pkg frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
• 2 Tbs radishes, finely chopped
• 2 Tbs red onion, finely chopped
• 2 Tbs red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp dried tarragon
• 1/4  tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp ground mustard
• 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Combine cream cheese and yogurt in a medium bowl.  With a hand held electric mixer, mix on low speed until smooth.

Add the rest of the ingredients and stir well.

Cover and chill at least one hour before serving.

Serve with rye bread, crackers, and/or cut fresh vegetables such as carrots, celery, bell pepper strips, green onions, etc.

Taco Dip

Nearly everyone in the world is familiar or even madly in love with some type of taco dip recipe.  There are thousands of recipes out there.  Some have beans, some have meat, some have both...and some have neither, which is the case for the recipe I'm going to share with you today.

This is not my recipe.  This is the recipe.  I have no idea where it came from, I'm just glad it came.  This dip has been a staple at every family get-together for as long as I can remember.  We love it so much that when I make it at home just for us, my daughter and I will eat half the tray for lunch, and come back to snack on it all the rest of the day until it's gone.  Sometimes I just make half the recipe because it's so addictive (and something tells me we probably shouldn't share an entire tray between just two people!).

A note about the cheese - I was fortunate enough to find some cheddar without added coloring.  That yellow color of the cheddar isn't actually a natural occurance; it's added, usually in the form of annatto, but I can't for the life of me figure out why.  It does nothing for flavor or preserving.  Maybe it's just because we psychologically connect cheddar and yellow?  Or perhaps it's so we can more easily spot mold?  I tried to do some research about why annatto is added to cheddar, and the best explanation I could find was that once upon a time, when dairy cows were all still grazers, the cheese did have a yellow tinge because of their diet of grass. When factory farming came into vogue and the cows' diets were altered so dramatically, the cheese lost its yellowness, so they added food coloring to make it look like the cows were still healthy and producing a quality cheese product.

At any rate, I like to try to find some unadulterated cheese (I mean, it should be pretty simple, right?), and that's why the cheese in these pictures is white.

Also, this recipe calls for Taco Seasoning mix.  It's very easy to make your own with seasonings most of us have in our spice cupboard already and skip the packaged mixes (which all contain various stabilizers and anticoagulants).  A quick google search will yield several results, all of which are pretty much the same: 1 Tbs chili powder, 1 tsp each: salt, black pepper, cumin, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp each:  garlic powder, onion powder, crushed red chili flakes, oregano.  Mix it all up and this mixture equals the same amount that is in the package.  It's nice to make your own because you can adjust the spiciness of it by increasing or decreasing the chili powder or the crushed red chilies, or adjust the salt, or what have you, so you can tailor it to your liking.  It's also nice to double or triple the recipe and store it in a jar for easy grabbing when you need taco seasoning.

Taco Dip

this is a photo of half the recipe

yields one 10x15" tray

• 1 8oz pkg cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 8oz container sour cream
• 1 pkg taco seasoning mix (or 2 1/2 Tbs homemade mix)
• about 5 cups chopped lettuce
• 8 oz shredded cheddar cheese (I like medium cheddar, but mild is nice, too)
• 1/2 c each of any assortment of the following veggies:  chopped red onion, chopped green onion, chopped red and/or green pepper, chopped tomato, chopped black or green olives
• Tortilla chips for dipping (I like to either make my own, or purchase some great organic blue chips)

Place the softened cream cheese, sour cream and taco seasoning into a bowl.  With an electric hand mixer on low speed, blend well (but don't whip).  Spread the mixture evenly into a 10x15 jelly roll pan (or something of similar size with sides).  Top with chopped lettuce, then the cheese, and sprinkle with your chosen veggies.

Scoop and eat with your tortilla chips.

If you need to store the dip, cover with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator.  It will last for a couple of days.

Cherry Tomato and Feta Crostini

I love those cute little multi-colored cherry tomatoes! They are so pretty,  so sweet, and for being so tiny, they sure do pack an abundance of flavor.  And because of all that flavor, not a lot needs to be done to enjoy what they have to offer.  One of my favorite ways to serve them (and eat them ) is in a lightly dressed salad and topped with some salty feta cheese.  Pile it all on top of little garlicky crostini, and they make a lovely, simple appetizer, or, in my case on the day I made the crostini in the picture, lunch for 4-6 people.

For this recipe, many of the ingredient measurements aren't listed because everyone likes a little more of this or a little less of that, and it's such an easy recipe that's it's literally impossible to ruin it.

Enjoy!

Cherry Tomato and Feta Crostini

• about 30-35 cherry tomatoes (preferably various colors)
• 4 green onions, chopped (white and green parts)
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 12 basil leaves
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• several  1/4" slices day old crusty bread (french, sourdough, etc)
• 1-2 garlic cloves, peeled
• olive oil for drizzling
• Feta cheese, crumbled

Quarter the tomatoes and place them (and all the juice) into a medium size serving bowl.  Stack the basil leaves, roll up tightly, and run a sharp knife through the roll to create thin ribbons.  Like this:

Add the green onions, lemon juice and olive oil to the bowl of tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Gently toss the mixture and set aside.

Prepare your toasts:  Broil each side of the breads until nicely brown.  Rub one side of each with a garlic clove, just to get that yummy fragrance onto the toasts.  Drizzle each toast lightly with olive oil.

Pile the tomato salad onto each toast and top with crumbled feta cheese.