Binder Challenge Recipe: Do the Dip

Between our monthly Girls Nights and the random evenings entertaining all the guy friends coming over to the condo, I have amassed a little stack of go-to appetizer recipes that please a crowd while keeping me out of the kitchen. You may remember the guac bites; they may reign as one of the all-time favorites amongst my family and friends. I also love anything that I can put into a puff pastry cup, like this great Southern Living recipe that fills them with red pepper jelly and goat cheese. Yum!

Since I highly recommend you take advantage of the summer and host more friends in grown-up gatherings at your place, whether by the pool or by the grill, I want to share another easy and tasty appetizer recipe that is sure to wow the crowd. This one is perfect with pita chips (make your own by slicing up pita or flatbread and baking until crisp!), pretzel sticks or tortilla chips. I love the added bite of the hearts of palm; it upgrades your basic spinach dip into something special.

Caveat: this one may not be 100% WW-friendly once you realize you want a lot more than the serving size :)

Garlicky Spinach Dip with Hearts of Palm
Recipe amended from Cooking Light, March 2005
WW points per 1/4 cup with 8 pita chips: 3

2c. shredded reduced-fat Italian cheese blend - the one with Asiago, Parmesan and Mozzarella
1/2c. fat-free sour cream
1 14-oz can hearts of palm, drained and chopped
1 10-oz pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 8-oz block fat-free cream cheese, softened
1 6.5-oz. tub light garlic and cheese spreadable cheese (like Alouette Light)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients, reserving 1/4 c. of shredded cheese. Spoon into a 1 1/2 quart greased baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese, and bake for 40 minutes or until bubbly.

Note from KJM: I didn't have time to soften the cream cheese, so I cut it into blocks and just stirred it to blend together once it had baked. Then I sprinkled the remaining cheese on top at the end, instead.

At-home entertaining: some quick ideas

Over the past few weeks, I have played Hostess a few different times. I had family in town, had some gal pals over, and even hosted a lot of men for a movie night. Each is a different crowd, but I have some simple things that I like to do to prep the condo before they come over to make sure it's a welcoming place for them, no matter who is coming.

Light a candle. This is the easiest one. Do this about 20 minutes ahead of time, and your place will smell divine. I particularly like this Yankee one during the fall months, it really smells like home. 

Clean up the sink area. You will already have a bunch of dirty dishes once the party ends, so why not make your life easier and empty/load up the dishwasher ahead of time with anything that you used while making appetizers. Plus, if you are like me, your guests might hang out in the kitchen while they arrive, so make it a clean, welcoming space.

Speaking of, make a few appetizers. This doesn't have to be complicated, or expensive. Pick up some hummus and pita crisps at your local Trader Joe's. Throw a thin crust white pizza in the oven and then slice it up into little squares. I love Pillsbury for some easy things to do with crescent rolls. For under $10, you can give your guests something to munch on, and displaying it on a pretty serving platter makes it extra classy.

Put on some background music. I am a fan of putting on Coldplay or some Bruce, but maybe your friends like classical, or jazz, or rock. Whatever works.

Have a cocktail and enjoy the party. I like to have a glass of wine while I am getting ready before people come over, but at least be sure to sit back and enjoy your martini, your club soda, or your beer with your guests when they do get there. Be your own guest!

These tips help me enjoy my get-togethers without feeling stressed out - hopefully they will help you do the same this week for Thanksgiving! Enjoy!

Four Square Fun

This past Saturday we held the Four Square Tournament party at my condo and it was a great success! Almost 20 people were able to stop by, many bringing excellent dishes to share, others bringing just their sense of fun for the game. The game itself is so easy to play - and since everyone knows a different set of rules, familiarize yourself with the basic set beforehand, and then make the rest up as you go!

Even though the party was going to be mostly outside on the patio decks, I knew people would arrive and mingle first upstairs, so I did a good clean-up that morning. Then I got myself ready for the party - I always have sworn by getting myself ready before other little things. Sure, putting some food in the oven early on is necessary (we had ribs in the oven by 1pm), but straightening up magazines and cutting vegetables can all be done while guests are arriving for one of these types of laid-back parties. Getting dressed when guests are knocking on the door makes it instantly more stressful! For this party, my mind wandered and I was thinking it was a 4pm party... but I had actually written 3pm on the invite! So when people showed up at 3:15, I was at the very least dressed, and could just go with the flow.

As the first guests arrived, we socialized in the kitchen while I prepped the Buffalo Chicken Dip (recipe below) and a batch of brownies. For the brownies, I added a gratuitous handful of semi-sweet chocolate chips to the mix, and they were divine. I also made sure I had wine chilling in the fridge.

This dip is always one of the most popular things at any gathering - you can switch it up and add ranch dressing, if you like, or use reduced fat blue cheese crumbles and cream cheese to make it lighter.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

1 8-oz package cream cheese, softened (I use Neufatchel)
1/2 c. blue cheese crumbles
1/2 c. blue cheese dressing
1/2 c. Frank's Hot Sauce
Approx. 2c of shredded cooked chicken (Grab a rotisserie chicken from the deli to make this even easier)

Mix all ingredients together in a dish, and bake at 350 degrees until hot and bubbly. Stir, and serve with corn scoops, celery sticks, and/or chips.