Labor Day officially marks the end of cookout season, but there are many barbecue diehards who don coats and hats to grill in any kind of weather.
I usually serve an assortment of dips whenever my husband, Edward, and I entertain. They run the gamut from chopped eggplant to homemade guacamole.
Dips have come a long way in the past 20 years. In the 1950s, people would dump an envelope of dehydrated onion-soup mix into sour cream to serve with pretzels and chips. Fast forward to a new trend: Dehydrated vegetable soup mix has found its way into a mix of sour cream and cream cheese.
Today, we have an international array of dips for crudités, flat breads, pita triangles and crisp toasty bread; or go to any store and see the shelves upon shelves of crackers.
I always make chopped eggplant this time of year because the Jersey type are big, glossy and priced at about 99 cents a pound. This dip is popular throughout the Middle East and turns up in Greek, Lebanese and Israeli cooking. Speaking of Greece, my favorite cucumber dip just got better now that I can buy yogurt from Greece at Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods and gourmet stores.
Dips have eye appeal when served in brightly colored bowls. You also can hollow out a red cabbage or a round loaf of French bread and fill it with dip.
Place the dippers, from toasted slices of French bread to tortilla chips, in pretty baskets lined with a colorful napkin.
Here are recipes for international dips for your Labor Day party:
Chopped Eggplant
Ingredients:
2 large purple eggplants
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
3 cloves of garlic, optional
1/2 cup olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Handful of fresh parsley, snipped with a scissors
1 large ripe tomato, optional
Directions:
Prick the eggplants with a fork. Place in the microwave and cook on high for 15 to 20 minutes. The eggplants should be soft to the touch and look like they have collapsed. Cool to room temperature. Cut in half and scoop out the flesh.
Place the eggplant flesh in a food-processor bowl fitted with a steel blade. Add the onion and garlic, if desired. Pulse until there is a somewhat rough chop, but do not puree.
Place the eggplant mixture in a bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and blend well. Chill overnight.
Serves four to six.
Note from Phyllis: This recipe can easily be doubled. You can use sweet red onion or scallions, too.
Guacamole
Ingredients:
4 ripe Haas avocados
1 large tomato, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
Juice of 2 lemons or limes
Hot sauce, to taste
Kosher salt, to taste
Handful of fresh cilantro, snipped with a scissors
Directions:
Cut the avocados in half. Whack at the pit using a heavy knife. The pit should pop right out.
Scoop out the flesh of each avocado and place in a large wooden bowl. Cut into bite-size chunks. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend well. If chilling the guacamole, remove about one hour before serving.
Serves six.
Cucumber Yogurt Dip
Ingredients:
1 large English cucumber, chopped
1 (16-ounce) cup of plain yogurt, preferably from Greece
Lemon juice to taste, optional
Snips of fresh dill
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Place the cucumber and yogurt in a bowl and blend well. Add the remaining ingredients and blend to combine. Chill.
Serves six.
Blue Cheese Dip
Ingredients:
1 (16-ounce) container sour cream
4 tablespoons Hellmann’s mayonnaise
8 ounces blue cheese of your choice, such as Roquefort or Gorgonzola, crumbled
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Place the ingredients in a bowl and blend well to combine. Chill overnight.
Makes about 2 cups.
Note from Phyllis: I like to serve this dip with assorted crudités.
Salsa
Ingredients:
6 ripe tomatoes, cut in quarters
3 scallions, chopped
Juice of 2 lemons or limes
Hot sauce, to taste
2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Handful fresh coriander, snipped with a scissors
Directions:
Place the tomatoes in a food-processor bowl and pulse on and off a few times until there is a rough chop.
Place the tomatoes in a bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Stir well.
Serves six.
Note from Phyllis: Salsa has evolved into America’s favorite condiment. This is a freeform recipe. You can substitute chopped onion for the scallions; add a chopped green, red, yellow or orange pepper; or add a handful of chopped pitted Gaeta or Kalamata olives.
