Pan-Fried Onion Dip

from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

• 2 large yellow onions
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter (I used 2 T)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil (I used 2 T)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature (I used light)
• 1/2 cup sour cream (I used light)
• 1/2 cup good mayonnaise (I used light)

Cut the onions in half and then slice them into 1/8-inch thick half-rounds. (You will have about 3 cups of onions.) Heat the butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions, cayenne, salt, and pepper and saute for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 more minutes until the onions are browned and caramelized. Allow the onions to cool.

Place the cream cheese, sour cream and mayonnaise in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat until smooth. Add the onions and mix well. Taste for seasonings. Serve at room temperature.

My Review: From what I've read about this dip, I expected something close to the second coming. It was good, but I don't need to make it again. We didn't even come close to finishing it and we can power down some dip! It might be completely my fault for making it lighter. Still, I couldn't imagine eating something so fattening!

Cheddar and Hard Cider Fondue

From the Food Network

Serves 6

• 1 (12-ounce) bottle hard cider
• 3/4 cup chicken broth, homemade or low-sodium canned
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped (I actually ran out of garlic so I used garlic powder)
• 1/2 pound Gruyere, grated (I could not find this so I subbed with Swiss)
• 1/2 pound sharp Vermont or New York yellow cheddar
• 3 tablespoons corn starch
• 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (I used paprika and red pepper flakes)
• Salt
• 1 tablespoon Bourbon, whiskey or apple jack, optional (I used whiskey)
• I also added a little spicy mustard because Swiss is milder than Gruyere

Fondue Dippers:

Cooked chicken and apple sausages, chorizo, or mini hot dogs; sliced baguette or black bread, radishes, roasted shallots, roasted mushrooms or small fingerlings or baby potatoes, pears, apples, or pretzels. (I used pumpernickel pretzels, apple slices and Lil' Smokies)

Heat cider, broth, Worcestershire, and garlic in a medium pot over medium heat and simmer for 5 minutes.Toss the cheeses together in a medium bowl. Sift the corn starch over the cheese, and toss to coat lightly.

Using a wooden spoon, sprinkle some cheese mixture into the warm liquid and continue to stir in small amounts of cheese until it is all incorporated and the fondue is smooth and melted, about 15 minutes. Stir in cayenne, salt and Bourbon, if using.

Transfer to a fondue pot or double boiler and serve with desired dippers.

My Review: I took this to a Halloween party over the weekend. It had a good flavor, but I must have done something wrong when I put it together. The recipe said it was an 'intermediate' recipe - maybe I'm still at a beginner level!

The texture was more like soup than fondue so it was hard to eat. I didn't want to bring a fondue pot to the party so I used a little crockpot instead. (That might have been the source of the texture problem!) It was OK - but I don't think I would make this again.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

This recipe is a family favorite - and perfect for football season! I'm sure my mom got it from somewhere. Your guess is as good as mine!

SERVES 20 (about 144 calories, 9 g fat, 0 g fiber - doesn't include chips and celery)

• 2 (10 ounce) cans chicken (You can also use leftover cooked chicken)
• 2 (8 ounce) packets light cream cheese
• 3/4 cup hot sauce (I've used regular hot sauce and the buffalo wing hot sauce)
• 1 cup light ranch dressing (I've used light blue cheese dressing before - that's good too)
• 2 cups reduced fat cheddar cheese
• Baked tostitos and celery sticks

Drain canned chicken and combine with hot sauce in saucepan. Cook on medium until heated. Add cream cheese and stir until blended thoroughly. Add ranch dressing and mix. Add most of the cheddar cheese and heat for a few minutes until mixed and melted. Put dip into a small slow cooker and sprinkle remaining cheddar cheese on top. Keep on low heat. Serve with baked tostitos and celery sticks.

I have also simply combined all ingredients in a bowl (except chips and celery) and put in the slow cooker to heat.

Review: This is a family favorite, so obviously I love it! It's not pretty, but it smells wonderful, tastes even better and is great to have around for football games. And it goes without saying that this is a boy-friendly recipe!