Three Delicious Dips from Let’s Get Dipping!

Hot Philly Steak Dip

This recipe is inspired by one of the most popular steak recipes in America – a Philly cheesesteak – a steak sandwich made with thin slices of beef, topped with melting cheese.

• 1 green (bell) pepper
• 1 medium onion
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon balsamic glaze or vinegar
• 1 teaspoon caster/granulated sugar
• 6 slices roast beef
• 250 g/9 oz. cream cheese
• 125 ml/½ cup your favourite ranch dressing
• 1 tablespoon creamed horseradish
• 100 g/3½ oz. provolone or Cheddar cheese, grated
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• tortilla chips or crusty bread, to serve

SERVES 6–8

• Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) Gas 4.
• Cut away the top of the green pepper and discard. Cut the pepper in half, remove all of the seeds, then cut into small chunks about 1-cm/½  -in. diameter. Peel and finely chop the onion. Put the peppers and onion in a large frying pan/skillet with the olive oil and fry over a gentle heat until the onions and peppers are soft and the onion starts to caramelize. Drizzle with the balsamic, sprinkle over the caster/granulated sugar, season with salt and pepper and fry/sauté for a few more minutes.
• Cut the roast beef into small pieces and add to the pan. Cook for a minute or so, for the meat to absorb the flavours from the pan. Remove from the heat and leave to cool for a few minutes.
• In a mixing bowl, whisk together the cream cheese, ranch dressing and creamed horseradish. Fold the grated cheese into the mixture with the beef and vegetables.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 20–25 minutes until the cheese has melted and the top of the dip has started to turn light golden brown. Leave to cool for about 10 minutes before serving, as the dip should be served warm and not hot. Serve with tortilla chips or small slices of crusty bread for dipping. Delicious!
• Variation: Spicy hot Philly dip To make a spicy version, fold in some finely chopped jarred jalapeños with the beef before baking.

Spicy Beer Mustard Dip with Maple-glazed Sausages

This delicious mustard dip is classically served with soft pretzels or sausages. Here it’s paired with little cocktail sausages, which are the ideal size for dipping!

• 80 g/3 oz. yellow mustard seeds
• 25 g/1 oz. black mustard seeds
• 125 ml/½ cup strong beer
• 125 ml/½ cup cider vinegar
• 80 g/½ cup soft dark brown sugar
• 40 ml/2½ tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 tablespoon creamed horseradish
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

MAPLE-GLAZED SAUSAGES

• 24 mini sausages or 12 chipolatas
• 12 rashers/slices streaky bacon
• a little olive oil
• 3 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Cocktail sticks/toothpicks

SERVES 6–8

• Put the yellow and black mustard seeds in a bowl and pour over the beer and cider vinegar. Cover the bowl with clingfilm/plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator overnight to soak. The mustard seeds will absorb some of the liquid and become soft.
• The following day, put the soaked seeds and soaking liquor into a food processor or blender with the sugar, maple syrup, ground allspice and creamed horseradish and blitz for a few minutes until smooth. It will still have some small pieces of mustard seed which give a great texture to the dip. Season with salt and pepper to your taste. This recipe makes plenty of mustard, so you may want to reserve half in a sealed jar and keep it in the refrigerator.
• For the sausages, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) Gas 4.
• If using chipolatas, twist the centre of each sausage then cut with scissors to make 24 mini sausages. Cut the bacon strips in half, wrap one half strip around each mini sausage and secure in place with a cocktail stick/toothpick. Put in a roasting pan and drizzle with a little olive oil and roast in the oven for 25–30 minutes until the sausages turn golden brown. Drizzle with the maple syrup, sprinkle with the sesame seeds and bake for a further 5 minutes. Serve the sausages hot or cold with the spicy beer mustard dip.

Layered ‘Nacho’ Dip

One of the all-time favourite sharing plates is nachos – tortilla chips are served piled high with tomato salsa, guacamole, sour cream and grated cheese, then warmed under a grill/broiler. This dip version is layered up in a bowl and then warmed, ready to scoop out with crunchy tortilla chips.

GUACAMOLE

• 6 ripe avocados, halved and pitted
• ½ red onion
• a handful of freshly chopped coriander/cilantro
• 2 fresh red chillies/chiles, deseeded and finely chopped
• freshly squeezed juice of 2 limes
• 2–3 pinches of sea salt flakes
• Tabasco and cayenne pepper (optional), to taste

TOMATO SALSA

• 6 ripe medium tomatoes
• freshly squeezed juice of 1 lime
• 10g/¹⁄³ oz. fresh coriander/cilantro
• 2 spring onions/scallions, trimmed
• 1 fresh red chilli/chile, trimmed and deseeded
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

TO ASSEMBLE

• 200 ml/7 fl . oz. sour cream
• 125 g/4½ oz. strong cheese, such as mature/sharp Cheddar, grated
• a handful of jarred jalapeño slices (optional)
• Tortilla Chips, to serve

Scoop the flesh out of the avocados with a tablespoon into a shallow bowl. Add the onion, coriander and chillies. Add the lime juice, then mash everything together with a fork, leaving the texture quite chunky. Season with salt to taste. Add a few dashes of Tabasco and a few pinches of cayenne, if using. Cover with clingfilm/plastic wrap until ready to use.

For the salsa, cut the tomatoes in half then scoop out and discard the seeds. Put in a blender or food processor along with the lime juice, coriander, spring onions and chilli and pulse for a few seconds to roughly chop the tomatoes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover with clingfilm until ready to use.

To assemble the dip, spoon the guacamole into a shallow serving bowl and spread out in a thick layer. Top with the tomato salsa, then spoon over the sour cream, scatter over the grated cheese and fi nish with jalapeños, if using. Gently warm under a preheated grill/broiler just until the cheese starts to melt. Serve straight away with the tortilla chips.

These recipes are from Let’s Get Dipping! 

See also: Ursula Ferrigno’s Aubergine and Parmesan Bake