Blue Cheese Dip

I am a huge blue cheese fan, so when I came across this recipe in the Food Network Magazine, I couldn't wait to try it. The magazine suggests serving the dip with vegetable chips (also known as root chips). One of my favorite restaurants serves a very tasty appetizer called "Root Chips" --vegetable chips made from beets, sweet potatoes, radishes, etc--with a hot chevre dip. So I already knew I would like the combination.

While the Food Network Magazine gives the recipe for making the chips, I prefer to go the easier route and just purchase root chips at my local supermarket. If you can't find them in the chip aisle, try the specialty foods or organic section.


BLUE-CHEESE DIP
Food Network Magazine, (not sure what month) 2010

1/2 cup heavy cream
1 8 oz. container sour cream
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 oz. blue cheese, crumbled
2 scallions, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper


Blend the heavy cream in a blender until slightly thickened (I used a hand-mixer because it's easier to clean up). Add all the remaining ingredients except the salt and pepper. Pulse to combine (or beat on low speed with your hand-mixer). Season with salt and pepper.

A bit of advice: Always add salt and pepper in small amounts and taste as you go. You can always add, but never take back. The one thing that I would advise is that your freshly ground pepper is FINELY ground. I came across some larger pieces of pepper while eating the dip and they really bit my tongue.

A couple more notes: I didn't have scallions, so I used Penzey's Chives. This dip could be served in other ways: a topping to a grilled steak, blue cheese dressing for a wedge of lettuce, vegetable dip, baked potato topping, buffalo chicken wing dip, etc. You get the picture.

Yum.

Pesto

Mmmmmmmmm classic pesto. I stocked up on some basil at the farmers market today so that I could make this recipe. Just so happens I picked up this recipe at one of the vendors earlier this summer.

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BASIL PESTO

From the Earthkeeper Farm stand (and they credit Simply in Season)

http://www.earthkeeperfarm.com/

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1 cup packed fresh basil

1-3 cloves garlic (I always go big on the garlic)

1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts

3-6 tablespoons of grated parmesan cheese

2 sprigs parsley

1/3 - 1/2 cup olive oil

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Blend in food processor until smooth. Use immediately or refrigerate.

Tip: Freeze leftover pesto in ice cube trays. Store cubes in ziplock bag in the freezer and you can have fresh pesto all summer long.

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The first time I made this recipe, I didn't have any parsley on hand. No big deal--not a necessity to make good pesto. It still tasted excellent. Here are 10 things you could do with a simple batch of pesto:

1. Mix with freshly cooked hot pasta. Eat immediately!

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2. Spread on inside of bread (touching the cheese) to make Italian grilled cheese. Use a nice white melting cheese like mozzarella, fontina, or provolone as your cheese.

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3. Mix with cold cooked pasta for a pesto pasta salad. Add some diced tomatoes, peppers, hard salami or pepperoni (whatever you normally put in a pasta salad).

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4. Use as your sauce for making pizza instead of (or layered with) the red or white sauce you normally use. Especially delicious when making a chicken/alfredo/spinach pizza.

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5. Jacked-up bruschetta: spread some pesto on small slices of crusty bread, top with ricotta, then add diced tomatoes that have been swimming in balsalmic vinegar for a while.

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6. Stir into cooked rice for a burst of flavor to an otherwise bland starch.

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7. Marinade: My husband marinated some chicken breasts in left over pesto, then grilled them.

After grilling the first side, he added a couple more tablespoons to the top of each piece. Holy cow--some of the best grilled chicken I've ever had. It would be fabulous on fish or shrimp, too!

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8. Soup: Add a tablespoon to a bowl of tomato soup in the winter? Yum.

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9. Alfredo sauce: For a twist on your normal alfredo sauce (either jarred) or homemade, add some pesto. Remember to go slowly and taste often. You can always add more, but you can't take it back!

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10. Go Dr. Seuss: Make some green eggs and ham. Add a bit of pesto to your uncooked eggs before you scramble, or garnish your Italian omelet.

Homemade Alfredo Sauce

A long, long, long time ago (someone just mentioned "15 years ago" on my Facebook page) I found a homemade alfredo recipe in our local newspaper...my hometown Jacksonville Journal Courier. Every Wednesday the JJC had a food/recipe section that I couldn't wait to get my hands on. This Alfredo Sauce recipe has stood the test of time.

Now, the original recipe called for heavy cream, full-fat cream cheese, and 6-8 cloves of garlic. I know, I know...serious garlic. I have since refined the recipe to be a little more to my liking and a little (very little) more heart-healthy. This is not the type of sauce one would want to serve weekly, or maybe not even monthly. But, moderation...blah blah blah. Sometimes it's so good to be bad.

Here's how to be bad:

Homemade Alfredo Sauce

2 cups half-n-half
1 8 oz. block of 1/3 less fat cream cheese
1/2 cup to 1 cup (or more) grated parmesan cheese
1/2 to 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt to taste

Instructions:

In a heavy saucepan, add the half-n-half and begin to heat over medium. Add one half (4 ounces) of the cream cheese. Stir frequently with a whisk to melt the cream cheese. Add parmesan cheese and garlic powder. Continue to heat until cheeses are melted, and sauce is smooth.

Again, I pretty much made up the above measurements, because I like to experiment until I'm satisfied. So taste, stir, add more (in SMALL increments) of any of the above ingredients. More half-n-half will result in thinner sauce. More cream cheese...thicker sauce.

Note: you can use fresh garlic, but even when I put it through a garlic press, it still leaves little pieces in the sauce for a texture I'm not fond of.

As always, this is a sauce that is open to MANY variations:

• Sometimes I add some basil pesto for a pretty green Pesto-Alfredo sauce. You can buy pre-made, delicious pesto in almost any grocery store. I like the "Classico" brand. Add a couple of tablespoons to start, then taste and add more if necessary.

• "Classico" also makes a Roasted Tomato pesto, for a rose-colored tomato-y tasting alfredo sauce.

• Finally, one of my FAVORITE variations: Roasted Red Pepper alfredo. Add a few roasted red peppers (again, you can buy this product in jar at the grocery store) and use a hand-blender to mix into the alfredo sauce. LOVELY over cheese ravioli.

Finally, feel free to use the full-fat versions mentioned above, but don't hold me responsible for your cholesterol levels. I just made the recipe last night with heavy cream instead of half-n-half, because I was trying to use up cream before it expired. My husband RAVED about last night's Alfredo Sauce a little more than usual.