Recipe of the Day: Zesty Hot Holiday Broccoli Dip

Love It: I already love artichoke dip, and broccoli’s pretty good, too. Nice to vary the traditions up a bit to keep things interesting. Oh, and there’s melty cheese involved. Enough said.

Fear It: Miracle Whip. Despite this being a relatively healthy take on dip, there’s no call for replacing real mayo with that sweet slop. I would totally be substituting some reduced-fat mayonnaise.

Teach It: Hey, use the variation as inspiration. Why not try other veggies in that creamy, cheesy base?

Eat It: This sort of appetizer seems best suited to a midcentury-traditional sort of Thanksgiving, where the turkey is accompanied by old standards such as green-bean casserole and Stove Top.

Zesty Hot Holiday Broccoli Dip
Source: Kraft Foods
Yield: 3 cups dip

• 1 cup MIRACLE WHIP Light Dressing
• 1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped broccoli, thawed, well drained
• 1 jar (2 oz.) diced pimientos, drained
• ½ cup KRAFT 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1 cup KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Reduced Fat Mozzarella Cheese, divided
• WHEAT THINS Reduced Fat Baked Snack Crackers

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Combine dressing, broccoli, pimientos, Parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese.
SPREAD into 1-quart baking dish or 9-inch pie plate.
BAKE 20 to 25 min. or until heated through. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese. Continue baking 5 min. or until mozzarella cheese is melted. Serve with the crackers.

Notes:

Nutrition Bonus:

Help your friends and family eat right this holiday season. Serve this festive dip at your next party. As a bonus, the cheese provides a good source of calcium.

Diet Exchange:

1-1/2 Starch,1 Fat

Nutritional notes:
Nutrition (per serving) 2 Tbsp. dip and 16 crackers
Calories 170
Total fat 6g
Saturated fat 1.5g
Cholesterol 5mg
Sodium 420mg
Carbohydrate 23g
Dietary fiber 1g
Sugars 4g
Protein 5g
Vitamin A 4%DV
Vitamin C 15%DV
Calcium 15%DV
Iron 8%DV

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Banana Coconut Muffins

Note: This recipe was originally posted on June 23, 2004, on my very first attempt at a cooking blog over at Blogger. Amazing, how time has passed. My dear boyfriend posted a recipe to that site on the same day, and precisely three years later, we were married.

 

This recipe incorporates two of my favorite things: using up bananas too mushy for other uses and using coconut!

 

Banana Coconut Muffins
Makes 8
Active time: 10 minutes
Start to finish: 45 minutes

 

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 very ripe bananas, mashed (3/4 cup)
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut

 

Special equipment: a muffin tin with 8 (1/2 cup) muffin cups; paper liners

 

1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line muffin cups with liners.

 

2. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Whisk together bananas, butter, sugar, egg, vanilla and 1/2 cup of the coconut in a large bowl until combined well, then fold in flour mixture until flour is just moistened (don’t worry about lumps).

 

3. Divide batter among lined muffin cups and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup coconut. Bake until muffis are puffed and golden, about 25 minutes. Transfer muffins to a rack and cool slightly.

 

From the May 2004 Gourmet magazine.

 

Note the Second: What the heck, I’ll post Scott’s recipe from June 23, too. Two for the page of one!

Artichoke Dip

• 1 can artichoke hearts
  
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
  
• 1 cup mayonnaise (approximate)
  
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  

Drain and chop artichoke hearts. Add parmesan and enough mayonnaise to keep the artichoke and parmesan together. Sprinkle on garlic powder. Mix and spread in an 8 by 8 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes (or until cheese melts). Serve with water crackers, Italian bread, French bread or similar. Enjoy!

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