Comfort Foods and Indulgences

I love bean dips for a party, especially layered dips, because of the colorful and flavorful layers that can be created in a bowl. It reminds me of the colored sand I used to pour into jars as a kid. It's exciting and unexpected to see and break through the different layers of one of these dips to discover unique flavors.

Most layered bean dips start with a can of ho-hum refried beans, but this dip starts with a flavorful pinto bean purée made with a quick sauté of onion and garlic. Then comes the Pace Picante Sauce followed by a layer of mashed avocados, which tastes much like guacamole. Cooling sour cream finishes the layers.

The chunky toppings include shredded sharp cheddar cheese, cherry tomatoes, pickled jalapeños, scallions, and cilantro. It's an easy dip that comes together in no time at all. It can even be made a few hours ahead (minus the toppings) and refrigerated before your party guests arrive. This is a must-try recipe to add to your Super Bowl celebration.

It’s just a fact.  If you don’t love these, it’s over between us.  The dialogue will stop.  Okay, it’s been sort of one-sided up until now anyway, but these potatoes are defining.  They are comforting.  They are easy.  I’ve been cooking them for years. Believe me, they taste fabulous. You will thank me later.    

I can eat these potatoes three times a day.  But they are meant for dinner.  Still, I bring this up because the potato is one of the few vegetables that people feel comfortable with in the early morning hours.   Most people hear the word eggplant and see the sunrise and feel the need to go back to bed.  Which is to say, you can make these potatoes for dinner and reheat them in the morning in a skillet with your scrambled eggs and we have what is known as a slice of heaven.  This is not something most people want to do with eggplant parm. 

Which leads me to mustard.  An underachiever.  In so many ways. 

Now we know, from experience, that the potato is simply a vehicle for a sauce, an oil, or a spice. 

This recipe takes advantage of all three propositions.

My friend Jo (Mylastbite) came over for lunch last week. Jo is the ULTIMATE foodie and has eaten in every restaurant across the globe. In addition, she rubs elbows with 90% of the top Los Angeles chefs and confidently calls them her friends!

I wasn’t going to serve Jo a “sissy” salad. Jo likes to eat and I wanted something that was going to stick to her ribs. I have been coveting a recipe for Bacon Tomato Hash.

After reading the ingredients (the best kind, 6 ingredients), I was reminded of one of my favorite sandwiches; a BLT with Avocado!

The end result was perfection. The “BLT bruschetta” was a huge hit. Not only with Jo, but with my boys.

This recipe, with or without the avocado, is a keeper!

At an "early 60's tacky tiki" theme party this weekend, it occured to me how sometimes the most retro recipes can also be very of-the-moment. At this particular party there were modern takes on all sorts of things. In each case very high quality ingredients were used and, you know the saying, "quality in, quality out." There was a cucumber gelatin mold salad, only the cucumbers were fresh from the farm, agar-agar was used to gel it and fresh dill and citrus flavors punctuated the dish. It was so good I took some home!

Another dish that hasn't been popular in a while was the cheese ball, though at this party there were three of them. When made with the best cheeses, fresh roasted red peppers and rolled in nuts, it was positively delicious. The dish I had the hardest keeping my paws out of was nothing more than a premium "seven layer dip". Seven layer dip is made from refried beans, sour cream, guacamole, salsa, cheese, olives and green onions or some similar combination. But imagine a version where each layer was made from scratch or with the best products available. It was a far cry from the versions I've had that were made mostly from mundane canned ingredients.