Hot Pizza Dip from a Dairy Princess

Earlier this year, the husband and I attended a local Chili Cook-off which was a great deal of fun. We both liked the white turkey chilis the best out of the local assortment and had fun schmoozing with local restaurateurs and other chili-heads at this tasty do.

The Washington County Dairy Princess was in attendance as well and in between polishing her crown and handing out samples of cheese, she was doling out dairy-packed royal recipes. One of those was for a Hot Pizza Dip, which is a bubbly, luscious layering of various cheeses and seasonings that we have made several times since.

Now that it is the season for watching those interminable Fall sports, namely football, this makes a great excuse to avoid at least one quarter of somnambulistic activity next to my sports-loving spouse by heading off to the kitchen and whipping this up. Another chunk of time can be spent eating this in a recumbent position while nodding sagely at any sports fans as they relate tedious anecdotes and statistics about various football players and teams and you dream about Spring baseball season.

Hot Pizza Dip

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. Italian seasoning (I use oregano)
1/4 tsp. garlic powder (I use at least 1/2 tsp.)
8 oz. mozzarella, shredded
4 oz. Cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup pizza sauce (I use tomato sauce and more oregano and garlic powder)
1/2 cup each red and green bell pepper, finely chopped

Combine softened cream cheese with Italian seasoning. Spread in the bottom of a nine inch glass pie plate.

Combine mozzarella and Cheddar with chopped peppers. Layer half of this mixture over cream cheese. Spread pizza sauce over that and then sprinkle remaining cheese-pepper mixture over all.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Serve warm with those big kind of tortilla chips.

I am submitting this recipe to the Four Seasons Food September Challenge, which is hosted by Delicieux and Chez Foti, two gorgeous French food blogs.

Bejeweled Beans for my GF Football Fan

Despite my husband's funk as he watches his beloved Giants team falls further behind this football season, there must be a hallowed time for him each week to scream at the television set and revel in his sports lust. And there must be accompanying snacks.

Before the gluten-free lifestyle entered our household, the snack fuel for these weekly testosterone-laden sessions primarily consisted of beer and pizza. Now that barley malt and wheat crusts are verboten for my hubby, I try to make sure we have Redbridge Beer (made from sorghum, reminiscent of Killian's Irish Red Ale) around and some tasty dips and spreads for his tortilla chips and vegetable sticks.

I was planning to make some guacamole for his last viewing session, but my avocado was too far gone, so I rummaged around the cupboards for inspiration and decided to make a spicy bean dip for him. It was a hit with the old man, so I made sure to write down what I slapped together to share with you all.



This beany dip was spicy, easy and pretty, so I call it:

Bejeweled Bean Dip

1 (15.5 oz.) Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained (cannelli would work well too)
2 Tbsp. butter
1 tsp. garam masala (substitute curry powder if you want a milder heat)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup snipped chives
1/2 red pepper, seeded and diced
1 Tbsp. mango chutney
Salt and Pepper to taste


Melt butter in frying pan and heat garam masala 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant. Add garlic, chives and red pepper, and cook, stirring, another several minutes, until red pepper is softened.

Add beans, and mash them up a bit, stirring and cooking another several minutes to heat through. Add mango chutney and season with salt and pepper.

Makes 2 cups. Great served warm with tortilla chips.

Go Giants!