Lydia Kautz: Spinach dip or bean dip
Jun. 22—It is blazing hot outside right now — too hot for the oven. Let's have some chips and dip.
Both of these dip recipes come from my mother.
The spinach dip is still popular at the elementary school she retired from at the end of 2019. She brought some by and several of her former coworkers actually hid it from their friends — it's that well-liked.
When she first brought it to a work potluck, it had a somewhat mixed reception. She used to tell the story of a coworker — she can't remember who — that exclaimed "ew! Spinach!" before taking a big dollop of the dip and putting it on her plate. Perhaps she wanted to try it so she could yell about how horrible it was later? Who knows.
But she would end up eating multiple servings of the dip.
It was the only way this coworker would eat spinach, she'd tell my mom later.
Most of these kinds of recipes are forgiving. This one is not so much. You want to follow it as exactly as you can for best results.
The bean dip has a less storied history. She received it from one of my brother's substitute teachers when he was in second grade.
It many not have any fun anecdotes associated with it, but it's still good.
Spinach dip
Ingredients
16 oz frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1-2 cans of water chestnuts, chopped fine
1 package of Lipton dry vegetable soup mix
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
Instructions
Drain thawed spinach in a colander and press into the colander with paper towels to remove as much water as possible.
Mix spinach in with the rest of the ingredients.
Refrigerate for about four to eight hours, stirring several times in the process to make sure the soup mix reconstitutes properly.
Serve with chips or crackers.
Black Bean Dip
Ingredients
1 can black beans drained
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
4 roma tomatoes
Red onion to taste (I use about half an onion)
Cilantro to taste
1 8 oz. bottle of catalina dressing
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Toss all ingredients together in a bowl. Allow to marinate together for at least four hours before serving.
LYDIA KAUTZ is the Managing Editor of the Junction City Union.
