THERE are days when the automatic cooker (that’s me) refuses to work. People in the house panic. They run to the spare cooker (my Aunt Tita Blitte) for help but to no avail.
Sometimes, my aunt is too tired to prepare a real meal and that is when my cousin Dona comes to the unexpected rescue.
“Why don’t we have a ‘Dip it Day’ today? Our meal will seem as though it’s junk food when actually it is not,” she said last week.
There are days when we have a big bowl of green salad, fresh fruits and newly pressed fruit juice (carrot and cucumber and orange juices, chilled with ice cubes made with orange juice).
One night when no one wanted to cook, we ordered our favorite pizza. With that we had fresh fruit juice, tossed salad and roasted chicken which we bought from a nearby rotisserie.
Some other times we sat around while watching a Netflix documentary, “Healing”—of all things to watch—while munching on corn chips, tortillas and different kinds of dips. We also had ice cold soda, almonds and oranges. My Aunt Tita Blitte also served veggie sticks (carrots, singkamas or jicama, chayote and radish) with a choice of hummus and thousand island dips.
We were not far from the idea that chips and dips can be made into an honorable meal. I heard about a chips and dips celebration that happens on March 23.
Dips come in many varieties, from homemade ones to commercial ones that come in jars.
I learned from Uncle Gustave that hummus came into being around the 13th century. I’m sharing a recipe of a simple hummus dip. I hope you like it.
Have on hand: chickpeas, two cloves garlic, extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, paprika and salt. Puree the ingredients in a food processor until you get the necessary consistency you want. Add cumin and chili if you like some kick.
Other simple dips can be made at home. Thousand island dip is nothing but tomato ketchup mixed into mayonnaise or even sandwich spread. My aunt likes to add white pepper and paprika. At other times, she just adds hot sauce to raise the roof.
The garlic dip I am sharing here is popular in the house. We use it to dip torn up soft tortilla, carrot sticks and homemade potato chips.
Have on hand cream cheese, lemon to taste, hot sauce, three to five cloves of grated garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Mix them well and serve.
Do not limit yourself to recipes. Create your own and enjoy even your mistakes. Happy dipping.