Dips as meals

tasty, tasty goop!

Hellooooo! I am having a surprise crown put on a back molar later today, which I am extremely disgruntled about. 😩 😩 😩 Because of my oral chagrin, it seemed like the perfect time to celebrate soft foods in one of my favorite form, THE DIP.

Before we get to it, though, a couple quick things you might be into!

• This week marks a fascinating astrological overlap where two things that are extremely different but have very similar names come out: Julia Phillips’ phenomenal novel Bear, and the FX show The Bear. Again, these two things could NOT be more dissimilar! But I am so delighted by this confluence of content.

• These miso brown butter rice cakes with corn look AMAZING.

• Chicago folks: I am doing an event with Jenny Slate for her upcoming book tour!!!!!!!!!! Tickets are on sale today.

SPECIAL GUEST GRETA JOHNSEN LOLOL

I dip you dip we dip (I’m so sorry) 

One of the things I love, especially this time of year, is a dip that can be a meal. It’s snacky, but luxurious. It’s colorful. It involves tasty carbohydrates. It’s girl dinner, but less obnoxious. These are my go-to’s:

Smoky carrot dip (Ochre Bakery via Bon Appetit)

I love carrot in all forms, so this one was a no-brainer for me. The smokiness comes from the roasted carrots, yes, but also the smoked paprika, and the almonds and lemon juice make such a lovely goop. I once brought this to a Thanksgiving dinner and my friend’s mom said very enthusiastically that YOU COULD PUT THIS ON SANDWICH!, and I think she is absolutely right. (Hi Marcia! Love you Marcia!) 

Eat it with: For someone reason I love this dip with Back to Nature organic stoneground wheat crackers, but really, any carby vehicle will do. 

Beet dip with labneh (Botanica Restaurant via NYT Cooking)

I ALSO have a deep, dirt-covered love of beets. I love that prepping them in any way invokes a crime scene. I love how saturated their color is. This recipe is particularly great because you use RAW BEETS, which means you don’t have to boil water or turn on your oven. Labneh should be find-able but if not, you can use any sort of thick yogurty situation. The creaminess of the dairy balances out the bright tanginess of the beets beautifully. 

Eat it with: Vegetables I guess, but let’s be honest, perfectly toasted pita is a winner here. 

Spinach artichoke dip (Ina Garten, obviously)

INA. INA!!! This dip has five separate dairy products, which is exactly what you want in a spinach artichoke dip. This will feed one million people and they will all love you forever. 

Eat it with: A good crusty baguette.

Warm 7-layer skillet dip (Shilpa Uskokovic via Bon Appetit)

Full disclosure - I have not actually made this dip, but I aspire to make this dip, because Shilpa is not only a brilliant cook, she is also an excellent eater, and I bet you this is the seven-layer dip of your DREAMS.

Eat it with: Tortilla chips probably, or maybe warm corn tacos?

Avocado Fava dip (Yotam Ottolenghi)

This is an exquisitely verdant tasty goop. Don’t sleep on the lemon-scallion situation, which brightens the whole thing right up. 

Eat it with: Pita chips! 

If you make one of these dips, let me know! I’d love to hear what you think. Please share your favorite dip recipes, too!!!

delightfulAF!

Thanks to all of you who shaed your delights with me! Here are two timely favorites:

• From Whitney: “Recently I have been finding alot of joy from the National Women's Soccer League.  In a time when there seems to be an increase in excluding people, the NWSL feels very inclusive.  Just on my local team there are 10 out queer players- out of a team of 27 players.  The league is great about celebrating pride month as well as Juneteenth.” Learn more about the NWSL!

• From Claire: “Weirdly enough, I got summoned for jury for the first time in my whole life and I am absolutely delighted to do my patriotic duty for some unknown reason.” (Claire, that is SO WEIRD, but I am thrilled for you!)

I’d love to you to share a delight with us, too! Just email me about something that’s making you happy these days.

See you next week,

Greta

P.S. Do you like this email?! Spread the delight and forward it to a friend! (Or spam an enemy, lol!)