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Delicious Dips (for Half the Price)
Once daylight saving ends we eat earlier and earlier. By June, when it's dark around 5pm, we are eating around 6pm. I love that we can have dinner over and the kitchen and dining room cleaned up and tidied by 7pm. Unfortunately the bottomless pits I have for sons are hungry again by 8.30pm and looking for something to eat.
In the feint hope of them snacking on something with a little good nutritional value I keep a variety of dips and some homemade naan bread for them to nibble on. If you've never tried to make naan, it is so easy and so much cheaper than buying it. You can cook it in a frying pan for a softer, more bread-like naan or bake it in the oven for a crisper naan. Either way I guarantee that once you've made it yourself you'll never bother buying it again.
Our favourite dips are French Onion, Tzatziki, Hummous and Beetroot. You can buy these dips from your local deli or from the deli cabinet at your supermarket but again, they are so quick and easy and cheap to make yourself.
The most expensive is the Hummus, coming in at $4.00 for 900g. The cheapest bought hummus I could find came in at $8.55 for 900g, more than double the price. If you've ever wondered if MOOing dips is worth it, surely that answers the question. All these dips take less than five minutes to throw together, and every recipe makes enough for the hungriest crowd. They also taste better than the bought dips (and as a side benefit you get to adjust the seasonings to suit your tastes).
I make naan and pita chips as something crisp to serve with dips, or cut up a tray of vegetables (carrot sticks, celery sticks, cucumber sticks, broccoli and caulifower florets).
Naan
Cost: $2.23
Ingredients:
½ cup warm water
½ cup natural yoghurt
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups plain flour
Method:
Mix all ingredients into a dough and knead for 5 minutes. Transfer to a lightly greased bowl and cover with a damp tea towel; allow to rise for about 20 minutes.
Knead again and divide into small balls (approximately the size of a golf ball). Roll into thin, flat circles. Cover with a damp tea towel until ready to cook. To bake in the oven (for a crisp naan) butter a baking tray and lay the naan out. They don't spread so you'll get quite a few on a baking tray. Bake in a 200 C degree oven for 10 - 12 minutes, until they are golden brown.
To cook in a frying pan (for a softer, more bread-like naan) heat the pan over medium heat. Melt some butter and brush one side of each naan. Place the naan butter side down in the pan. Brush the tops with melted butter. Cook for approximately two minutes, turn and cook the other side for two minutes. They should be slightly puffed and golden.
Variations:
Garlic Naan: Add 1 teaspoon garlic to melted butter before brushing
Sesame Naan: Sprinkle top with toasted sesame seeds before turning and cooking
Hummus
Cost: $4.00
Ingredients:
3 cups cooked garbanzo beans (or use 2 cans, rinsed and drained)
5-6 garlic cloves, minced
3 spring onions finely minced
1/3 C tahini
1/4 C lemon juice
2 tbsp soy sauce
salt, pepper and cayenne pepper to taste
Method:
Put all ingredients in a food processor or blender and purée. You can cut down the garlic if you don't like it as strong. Serve as a dip or sandwich spread.
Beetroot Dip
Cost: $2.87
Ingredients:
1 large tin beetroots
5 tablespoon of Greek yoghurt
1 clove garlic
a pinch of salt
Method:
Mix the beetroots and the garlic clove in a blender or food processor. Place the mixture into a bowl, add salt and yoghurt. Sprinkle dried mint and drizzle with olive oil for serving.
Easy Tzatziki
Cost: $2.40
Ingredients:
3/4 cup natural no-fat yoghurt
1 Lebanese cucumbers, deseeded, grated
1 garlic cloves, crushed
1 lemon, rind finely grated, juiced
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
Method:
Combine yoghurt, cucumber, garlic, lemon rind, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, lemon pepper and salt in a bowl. Cover. Refrigerate until required.
In the feint hope of them snacking on something with a little good nutritional value I keep a variety of dips and some homemade naan bread for them to nibble on. If you've never tried to make naan, it is so easy and so much cheaper than buying it. You can cook it in a frying pan for a softer, more bread-like naan or bake it in the oven for a crisper naan. Either way I guarantee that once you've made it yourself you'll never bother buying it again.
Our favourite dips are French Onion, Tzatziki, Hummous and Beetroot. You can buy these dips from your local deli or from the deli cabinet at your supermarket but again, they are so quick and easy and cheap to make yourself.
The most expensive is the Hummus, coming in at $4.00 for 900g. The cheapest bought hummus I could find came in at $8.55 for 900g, more than double the price. If you've ever wondered if MOOing dips is worth it, surely that answers the question. All these dips take less than five minutes to throw together, and every recipe makes enough for the hungriest crowd. They also taste better than the bought dips (and as a side benefit you get to adjust the seasonings to suit your tastes).
I make naan and pita chips as something crisp to serve with dips, or cut up a tray of vegetables (carrot sticks, celery sticks, cucumber sticks, broccoli and caulifower florets).
Naan
Cost: $2.23
Ingredients:
½ cup warm water
½ cup natural yoghurt
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups plain flour
Method:
Mix all ingredients into a dough and knead for 5 minutes. Transfer to a lightly greased bowl and cover with a damp tea towel; allow to rise for about 20 minutes.
Knead again and divide into small balls (approximately the size of a golf ball). Roll into thin, flat circles. Cover with a damp tea towel until ready to cook. To bake in the oven (for a crisp naan) butter a baking tray and lay the naan out. They don't spread so you'll get quite a few on a baking tray. Bake in a 200 C degree oven for 10 - 12 minutes, until they are golden brown.
To cook in a frying pan (for a softer, more bread-like naan) heat the pan over medium heat. Melt some butter and brush one side of each naan. Place the naan butter side down in the pan. Brush the tops with melted butter. Cook for approximately two minutes, turn and cook the other side for two minutes. They should be slightly puffed and golden.
Variations:
Garlic Naan: Add 1 teaspoon garlic to melted butter before brushing
Sesame Naan: Sprinkle top with toasted sesame seeds before turning and cooking
Hummus
Cost: $4.00
Ingredients:
3 cups cooked garbanzo beans (or use 2 cans, rinsed and drained)
5-6 garlic cloves, minced
3 spring onions finely minced
1/3 C tahini
1/4 C lemon juice
2 tbsp soy sauce
salt, pepper and cayenne pepper to taste
Method:
Put all ingredients in a food processor or blender and purée. You can cut down the garlic if you don't like it as strong. Serve as a dip or sandwich spread.
Beetroot Dip
Cost: $2.87
Ingredients:
1 large tin beetroots
5 tablespoon of Greek yoghurt
1 clove garlic
a pinch of salt
Method:
Mix the beetroots and the garlic clove in a blender or food processor. Place the mixture into a bowl, add salt and yoghurt. Sprinkle dried mint and drizzle with olive oil for serving.
Easy Tzatziki
Cost: $2.40
Ingredients:
3/4 cup natural no-fat yoghurt
1 Lebanese cucumbers, deseeded, grated
1 garlic cloves, crushed
1 lemon, rind finely grated, juiced
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
Method:
Combine yoghurt, cucumber, garlic, lemon rind, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, lemon pepper and salt in a bowl. Cover. Refrigerate until required.