january 17, 2014

It’s that time of year again, when gyms are at full capacity and holiday excess gives way to spartan diets and promises meant to be broken, eventually.  The time of year when we divide foods into two groups : good, and bad.

Good are vegetables, low glycemic index carbohydrates and water.  Bad, well, bad is everything else.  Snacks would fall into that latter category. Full disclosure here – personally I try to avoid labeling foods as bad or good, unless they are highly processed, and I am not crazy about associating food with guilt since I see most real foods as good, in moderation, and to be consumed without self-flagellation.

Hours spent watching football, or nesting by the fire curled up with a good read, just won’t feel the same with celery sticks and a glass of zero calorie beverage.

Super Bowl Sunday is right around the corner, which got me thinking about a tasty snack that is colorful, crunchy, creamy and tangy.  Although this dilled vegetable goat cheese spread has its share of fat, you’ll be sharing it with others, right?  And it can be paired with lovely bits of vegetables for dipping, or, if you go for crunchy crisps, homemade tostadas that mimic tortilla chips without added oils or salt. See breakfast tostadas for how to make these crispy treats.

The very bottom line : here is a creamy dip made with love by you, not placed in a tub by the manufacturer with mysterious binders and “natural flavors” that are anything but.  We have all had our share of these processed dips, usually served with vegetable crudités which camouflage their toxicity.  Knowing the ingredient list of today’s snack will make you feel better about snacking overall, and perhaps bump this one into the good category.

Dilled Veggie Goat Cheese Spread

recipe by Michele Humlan, The Good Eats Company                                                                         

makes about two cups

ingredients

one 10.5 once log goat cheese, softened at room temperature
½ cup best quality mayonnaise (I like Hellmann’s canola or Spectrum canola)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 scallions, chopped
¾ cup loosely packed chopped parsley
¾ cup loosely packed fresh dill (from one standard herb pack)
1 small clove garlic, grated on zester
tiny two-finger pinches each of fine sea salt, sugar and ground white pepper
1 cup very loosely packed grated carrot (from one medium large carrot)
¾ cup finely diced green bell pepper

directions

1. Place all ingredients except carrot and green pepper in large bowl of food processor and process until smooth, stopping a couple of times to scrape the sides, about 30 seconds.
2. In small mixing bowl add grated carrot and diced green pepper.
3. Allow mixture to chill several hours or overnight before stirring well and adjusting seasonings.