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dips, sauces, and spreads

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peanut butter dip spinach dip salmon spread tomato basil sauce cranberry relish

mango salsa quick gravy orange marmalade vinaigrette pickled ginger

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peanut butter dip

1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup hot water
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon garlic
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon parsley
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon paprika

Blend all ingredients together. Chill. Serve with dippers (steamed crispy green beans and broccoli, bell peppers, carrots, corn chips, celery, apples).

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spinach dip

1 package chopped spinach
1 can water chestnuts
1 cup sour cream
1 scallion
1 teaspoon garlic
1/2 teaspoon mustard
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon tarragon
salt to taste

Mix everything together. Refrigerate for at least an hour to blend flavors. Serve with dippers (crackers, bread, chips, veggies).

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salmon spread

1 pack neufchatel (or light cream cheese)
1 pack dry smoked salmon chopped fine (about 1/2 cup)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon (or more) hot sauce

Beat the neufchatel until fluffy. Add the salmon and mix well. Add the lemon juice and hot sauce. Taste. Add more hot sauce. Taste. Add more hot sauce. Serve spread on crackers or toast or bagel.

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tomato basil sauce

3 medium tomatoes, diced or 1 can stewed tomatoes
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic
1 teaspoon olive oil
Salt to taste
1/2 cup fresh basil or 1 tablespoon dry basil
1/4 cup fresh parsley or 1 tablespoon dry parsley
pinch oregano

Puree the tomatoes in the blender. Add the onion, garlic, and olive oil--blend some more. Pour the mixture into a sauce pan and add the rest of the ingredients. Simmer until the mixture thickens and tastes like the tomatoes and onions have cooked enough. Serve over pasta or chicken or steamed vegetables.

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cranberry relish

3 12-ounce bags of whole fresh cranberries
3 medium granny smith apples
1 32 ounce jar of orange marmalade

Chop cranberries (I use the blender--chopping a handful at a time). Put into large bowl. Chop apples (I use the blender for these too). Add apples to cranberries. Add the jar of orange marmalade. Put in ziploc baggie and chill for a few days.

So, this makes a *ton* of cranberry relish. But I love this stuff so much better than what comes in a can. I make it up, decant it into baggies and throw it in the freezer. I'll then take a bag out in the morning and put it on the counter to defrost when I want to eat it with dinner.

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mango salsa

1 mango, peeled and sliced
1 very small onion, chopped fine
1 tomato, chopped
1/4 teaspoon curry
1/4 teaspoon cilantro
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
salt to taste
hot sauce to taste

Mix all the ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for an hour for the flavors to blend. This is very good served on crackers spread with cream cheese. It is also very tasty as a dip for unsalted tortilla chips.

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quick gravy

1 cup water
1 Knorr vegetarian vegetable bullion packet
1 tablespoon flour
2 tablespoons cold water

Boil the water and bullion together. Mix the flour with the cold water. Pour the flour mix into the bullion mix. Stir well until thickened.

In general, I use Knorr vegetarian vegetable bullion whenever I need to make a quick stock for soup or gravy. Since it has no meat flavor of its own, it goes well with whatever you add to it.

Speaking of Knorr mixes, they also make excellent hollandaise, pesto, and alfredo sauce packets. Just make them up with water and they taste great (don't listen to the packet that says you have to add oil, milk, butter, etc. It's not necessary).

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orange marmalade vinaigrette

6 spoons orange marmalade
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt

Whisk together. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. You can adjust for tartness by increasing or decreasing the vinegar.

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pickled ginger

2 large ginger roots, peeled and sliced
1 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons sugar
1 cup rice vinegar or white vinegar

Toss the salt with the ginger and let it rest in a bowl for 30 minutes. Put the ginger into a jar. In a small saucepan, boil the sugar and vinegar together. Pour the vinegar mixture over the ginger. Let cool, put the lid on the jar and refrigerate. When the ginger turns pink (about 1 week) it is ready to eat.