Dips, Dips And More Dips

We had excess beetroot, pumpkin and kale from the garden that all needed eating. So as a quick easy way of using some of them up I made a trio of dips to enjoy on crackers as a snack.

Beetroot Dip

Ingredients

1 medium beetroot or 2 small beetroot

1 cup of thick natural yoghurt

2 crushed cloves of garlic

a pinch of fresh thyme leaves

salt and pepper

toasted cumin seeds to sprinkle on top

Place the whole beetroot (skin and all) in a saucepan and cover with cold water.

Bring the water to boil and simmer until the beetroot is tender.

Once the beetroot is cool enough for you to handle without burning your fingers peel the skin off the beetroot.

Roughly cut the beetroot up and place it in a food processor with all of the other ingredients apart from the cumin seeds.

Blend until you get the consistency you like.

Sprinkle the toasted cumin seeds on top to serve.

Pumpkin and Cashew Dip

Ingredients

half a medium sized pumpkin cut into small cubes

olive oil

salt

1/2 cup of cashew nuts

2 cloves of garlic

2T grated parmesan cheese

Place the pumpkin, oil and salt in a bowl. Toss until the pumpkin is well coated.

Roast the pumpkin in a 180 degree oven until tender.

Place the cashew nuts in a food processor. Blend until you get a texture that you like. If you blend them to a fine mixture you will tend to get a creamier dip, if they are a bit chunkier you will get a more textural dip.

Add the rest of the ingredients to the food processor and blend until the pumpkin forms a smooth texture.

Kale Pesto

Ingredients

a handful of kale leaves - middle stem removed

1/4 cup of walnuts - toasted

a clove of garlic

olive oil

juice and zest of one lemon

salt and pepper

Blanch the kale leaves for about 30seconds in boiling water and refresh in ice cold water. 

Attempt to remove as much excess water from the kale as possible.

Add the kale and the rest of the ingredients to a food processor and blend until you get a consistency that you like.

Add as much olive oil as you need to get the texture that you want. I used about 1/4 cup. The smoother you want your pesto the more olive oil you will need.

The measurements of the ingredients in these recipes is only a guide. You can play around with them as you please to get the flavours that you want. 

I served my dips as part of a plater with cured fish (see previous post), home grown and brined olives and crackers. It was delicious and healthy!