Perfectly portable, our delectable dips and spreads are always on the guest list.
Hot Spinach Dip
White-Bean Dip with Toasted Pita Chips
Blue Cheese and Walnut Spread
Lemon-Thyme Dip
Three delicious cookies -- chocolate-almond spirals,
lemon-oatmeal lacies, and cowboy cookies (chock-full of nuts, coconut, and chocolate chunks) -- meet one clever wrapping idea: Line easy-to-make paper envelopes with waxed tissue, and seal with punched-paper labels.
Folks enjoy this satisfying Louisiana gumbo during winter, particularly when they're trying to recover from months of rich holiday foods. Each cook has his or her preferred version. I like mine with a small amount of meat added for flavoring, and I love the combo of collards and mustard greens. The story goes that for each type of green in it, a new friend will be made in the coming year, so feel free to throw some of your favorite greens into the pot and make some more friends!
Get the Recipe for Gumbo Z'Herbes
Text by Emeril Lagasse
Why settle for ordinary eggs and toast when you can show your love with this version?
Using a 3-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter, remove the center of a thick slice of bread, and toast it. Melt 1 1/2 teaspoons butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Place bread slice in skillet, and cook until underside is lightly browned. Add another 1 1/2 teaspoons butter, and flip bread. Fit cookie cutter, coated with cooking spray, in bread's cutout heart, and crack an egg into cutter. Cover skillet, and cook until egg is set, 2 to 3 minutes. Use tongs to remove cutter. Serve with toasted heart for dipping into yolk.
The name of this caramel-like confection, from Argentina and Uruguay, loosely translates to "milk candy": In a traditional process, sugar and milk are cooked over low heat for hours, until the mixture becomes thick and golden. Make your own dulce de leche, or find it in the international aisle or a Latin-foods market. It's great spread on toast, drizzled over tropical fruit such as mango, used as a dip for apple slices, or whipped into butter and spread on cornbread.
