What can I say about Christmas this year? I almost wasn't ready for it since it was 80 here up until a week before. Then when I thought I was ready for it, it just hit me like a ton of bricks or perhaps a pitcher of pomegranate margaritas.
See, I actually had a little accident in the kitchen. I was stupid & wrapped my whole hand around a meat thermometer which had been in the oven for 50 minutes at 450. Yah, it was kinda hot. So, in an effort to relieve the pain or wait until the aloe vera kicked in I downed a few too many, too quickly. And it hit me. Not exactly what I wanted for a special Christmas with my family. I was actually very sad the 1st few days after the holiday knowing that I'd never get it back but I am focusing on all the good parts before the chaos set in, & I'll be sharing those parts in bits & pieces throughout the next few posts so I can savor a bit of Christmas.
And there still were a few treats from the kitchen I'd like to share with you as well. One being this fantastic dip. Once you try this I doubt you'll ever go back to the boxed onion soup mix/dip again. I will definitely be making this for Super Bowl. I served it with pita chips, crudites such as red pepper & celery & potato chips. So good......................
{Not the best picture but this really is the BEST dip. It's a must make}
CARAMELIZED ONION DIP from Barefoot Contessa
2 large yellow onions
4 tablespoons unsalted butter1/4 cup vegetable oil *
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup good mayonnaise
Cut the onions in half & then slice them into 1/8-inch thick half-rounds (you will have about 3 cups of onions). Heat the butter & oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions, cayenne, salt, & pepper & saute for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low* & cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 more minutes until the onions are browned & caramelized. Allow the onions to cool.
Place the cream cheese, sour cream & mayonnaise in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment & beat until smooth. Add the onions & mix well. Taste for seasonings. Serve at room temperature.
{Food for Thought}
You definitely don't need ¼ cup vegetable oil for sautéing the onions. Just a swirl or two around the pan is good enough. Also, I always caramelize my onions on medium high so I never reduced the heat like the recipe stated. I’d leave the onions alone for a few minutes & then I would give a stir & keep doing the same until you get the nice deep brown color, which brings out their sweetness.
Also, I strongly recommend rough chopping your onions once they are done & before adding them to your cream cheese mixture. This way, no one is getting a huge piece of onion.
And of course I wanted to share a few pics with you which I will be doing for the next few posts:
{The table was simple but pretty. I used our everyday clear glass plates but placed them over chargers. I also finally invested in a set of my own cotton tablecloths. I placed one of my folding tables perpendicular to my dining room table}
{I took a higher quality white paper napkin & used clear jewelry cord to wrap a tag around the napkin with everyone's name on it, to act as place settings. Each tag was different}
I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!
