Creole Shrimp Dip

Dip is one of those dishes that everyone seems to enjoy at a party.  Served cold, this appetizer will surely get your palate moving.  Inspired by the cuisine of New Orleans, Creole Shrimp Dip combines the familiar flavors of a remoulade, with Cajun flare. This recipe might look difficult because of all the ingredients, but it’s very easy to prepare. I promise!  If you like shrimp and spicy flavorful dips, be sure to try this one at your next gathering. Bon Appetit! 

Creole Shrimp Dip

• 2 bags (12 oz.) of Cooked Small Shrimp
• 8oz. Cream Cheese 
•  2 Cups of Mayonnaise
• ½ Cup of Sour Cream
• Juice from ½ a Lemon
• 4 Gloves of Chopped Garlic
• 2 Tablespoons of Ketchup
• 2 Tablespoons of Ground Course Mustard
• 2 Tablespoons of Fresh Ground Horseradish
• 1 Tablespoon of Hungarian Paprika
• 1 Tablespoon of Smoked Paprika
• 1 Tablespoon of Garlic Powder
• 1 Tablespoon of Onion Powder
• 1 Teaspoon of Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 Teaspoon of Celery Salt
• 1 Teaspoon of Dried Thyme Leaves
• 1 Teaspoon of Dried Oregano
• 1 Teaspoon of White Pepper
• ½ Teaspoon of Cayenne Pepper

Optional

• Chopped Parsley for Garnish

Step 1: In a food processor, combine all ingredients listed above EXCEPT FOR the shrimp.  Mix thoroughly until ingredients are evenly distributed.  You may need to manually wipe the sides of the food processor down to completely incorporate everything.

 

Step 2: Once the ingredients are all mixed together, add half of the shrimp to the food processor and blend it together until all shrimp is minced within. Again, wipe down the sides of the food processor to completely incorporate everything.  

Step 3: With the remainder of the shrimp, coarsely chop them up into bite size chunks and add to the mixture. This will give the dip more texture.  Mix with a spatula and pour the dip into a serving dish.  

Step 4: Lastly, garnish with the chopped parsley and serve.  Dip is served best with tortilla chips or bagel/toast points. To intensify the flavors, refrigerate the dip for 4 – 6 hours before serving. 

I am always trying to learn and improve my recipes, so feel free to comment once you've had a chance to make this yourself.  I always enjoy feedback from others.

Your Community Food Chef Follow me on Twitter: @yourcfchef 

 

Hosting the Big Game

Super Bowl Sunday is upon us and many football fans have plans to entertain their family and friends by getting together and partying.  Whether you’re a San Francisco 49ers or a Baltimore Ravens fan, we can all agree on one thing:  a proper host must have great food and drink for this event.  More specifically, lots of mouth pleasing appetizers and drinks to quench your thirst.  There is a high probability that most Americans are going to indulged themselves into one or more of the following Super Bowl favorites that we all love to eat: wings, pizza, soda, beer (lots of it), chips, dip and some sort of dessert.  As a side note, this is the same day that all New Year’s diets go out the window. Sorry, it’s just reality!  But for an event such as this, it is important to have a variety of food and an appropriate quantity for each dish that you plan to serve.  There is nothing worse than running out of something in the middle of the game and you still have hungry guests asking you if there is more of something.  A simple way to figure out how many pieces of food you need from each appetizer is by using this simple formula (sorry for those who hate math):

(12 pieces per person x # of guests) ÷ # of different appetizers you choose to have

For example, if you are having 10 guests and serving 5 different appetizers for your Super Bowl party, it will be 12x10 = 120 pieces, divided by 5, equaling 24 pieces for each type of appetizer. 

This formula is standard across all caterers, so I cannot take credit for this one.  I wanted to pass this useful information onto those that need it.  You can use this as a tool to measure how much you want to serve; however, please remember that you can always use a little extra.  The more is merrier, especially when the food it good!  

Since the Super bowl has approximately 4 hours of broadcasting time (this includes the half time show), I like to ration the food so that it will last and you keep your guests satisfied throughout the night.  If you make an abundance of something, set the extra aside and serve the remainder after the half time show.  Or, if you make an equal amount of appetizers (lets use 6), you can serve 3 the first half and 3 the second half. For those items that are not as quantitative, like chips and dip, use your judgment.  Typically, the dip is what usually goes first; which is always disappointing. 

Lastly, always remember “Fire and Ice.”  What does this mean, you say?  It means, try to keep your hot food warm and your cold food/drink cool.  No one likes lukewarm soda and beer, or cold chicken, at least I don’t.  If you have chafing dishes, that’s perfect!  If you don’t want to get fancy, you can always arrange your stove and set it to the warm setting or put it on 150 to 200 degrees.  Also, remember the ice!  But to be honest, if you’re a few brews in, you might not care about the temperature of what you’re consuming. 

So, am I having a Super Bowl party? And if so, what am I serving, you ask?

This answer to the first question is yes, my wife and I will be hosting several friends for the big game. 
  

Here is what we are serving our guests:

• Wings (purchasing from a local restaurant)
• Pizza (purchasing from a local restaurant)
• Chicken Meatballs with White BBQ Sauce (inspired by my recent visit to Big Bob Gibson’s restaurant down in Huntsville, AL. A similar recipe can be found here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bbq-with-bobby-flay/big-bob-gibsons-alabama-white-bbq-sauce-recipe/index.html)
• Creole Shrimp Dip (an original recipe – recipe coming soon!)
• Charleston Cheese Dip (a Trisha Yearwood recipe from the show Trisha’s Southern Kitchen, in which the recipe can be found here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/trisha-yearwood/charleston-cheese-dip-recipe/index.html)
• Blueberry Cobbler (a Trisha Yearwood method, but I made it my own.  The original recipe can be found here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/trisha-yearwood/easy-peach-cobbler-recipe/index.html)
• Various Alcoholic and Non-Alcoholic Beverages

Feel free to share to your tips for having a great party.  Enjoy the game!

Your Community Food Chef Follow me on Twitter: @yourcfchef