Putting Lipton to Shame...

I was asked to bring a couple of appetizers to a holiday gathering.  While reviewing different recipes online, I came across this recipe... Pan-fried Onion Dip.

Growing up, I used to LOVE Lipton's Onion Dip.  I tasted numerous onion dips that did not come close all.  Lipton's Onion Dip was the absolute best.  If I saw it, it would be impossible to keep it away from me.  Yes, it was that addicting.  Eventually, I outgrew that phase... as I learned later in life that processed foods are.... bad.  I still could not forget that taste.  Let's take a look at the ingredients of Lipton's Onion Dip:

Dehydrated onions, salt, corn starch, onion powder, sugar, soy sauce, caramel color (sulfites), maltodextrin, dehydrated corn syrup, yeast extract, high oleic sunflower oil, disodium guanylate, disodium inosinate.  Quite a mouthful here.  My first thought... sugar PLUS corn syrup!?!  Why add sugar and sweeteners that are not necessary?  Dear ol' America--- sugar, corn syrup, and sweeteners are constantly being sneaked in food.  Next, soy sauce... has fermented soybeans, wheat/gluten, and salt.  I cannot have soy but I think it's what gives it the brownish color.  Yeast extract is usually added to processed foods create a savory flavor but is it really needed?  I think not.  High oleic sunflower oil ... I am pretty sure a few years back, they used trans fat such as a partially hydrogenated vegetable oil but a ruling set forth by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that all food manufacturers stop using trans fats in their food by the year 2018.  Kudos to Lipton for being early in their game by not using trans fat in 2016.  High oleic sunflower oil is typically used in processed foods... so is it safe/ good?  Generally speaking, processed foods should be avoided as much as possible.   Finally, the weird words: disodium guanylate and disodium insoninate.  Disodium guanylate is produced from dried seaweed and is usually added to processed foods to add "salty" flavor.  So is it okay?  According to my research... it's not safe for babies younger than 12 weeks, people with asthma, and people with gouts.  If it's not safe for certain populations, it's not safe in my book.  Disodium insoninate is also another common food additive to add the "salty" flavor.  It is produced from either bacterial fermentation of sugars or from animal sources.  Both additives are not recommended for vegetarians and vegans because of the potential animal sources.  You'd be surprised by how many vegetarians and vegans think they are eating animal-free products but it's difficult with processed food.  Carmine is a common food coloring (red) in yogurt that many vegetarians think they would be okay to eat. Think again. Carmine is actually derived from crushed shells from cochineal beetles.

I tried this recipe: http://www.blissfullydelicious.com/2011/02/pan-fried-onion-dip/.  While I am aware that sour cream, cream cheese, and mayonnaise do not make this a healthy recipe, it is however a safer and healthier alternative to Lipton's Onion Dip.  And my friend, Tabitha and I were pleasantly surprised by how much better it tasted!  I used less butter and oil to fry the onions.  I made my own mayonnaise.  I used light cream cheese.  And the best part- no sugar, no sweeteners, nor food additives were added!

I served this dip with crudités and crackers. The dip was quite a hit at the gathering.   Yum. I loved that I found something far better than Lipton.  If I am feeling nostalgic for a favorite childhood snack, I can simply make this one again.

Getting Egged!

I am sitting outside enjoying the cool Floridan morning as I am happily blogging again. I recently returned to teaching after a 10-year hiatus.  I love it!  I was reminded of how time-consuming it is.  With my full-time job, my dissertation work, and teaching, there was almost no time for me to blog.   I have been mulling several posts for this food blog.  I look forward to writing quite a bit. 

Eggs.  How eggciting!  Eggs are eggtraordinarily and eggquisitely versatile.  Enough with puns. :)

I seriously love eggs.  Who does not?  Eggs are high in protein and can be cooked in many different forms.  I like them hard-boiled, medium-boiled, soft-boiled.  Poached… Baked… Scrambled… Fried…

I have baked eggs in avocados, tomatoes, and baguettes created with holes for a fun breakfast presentation. 

                         

I love frittatas.  I think dinner leftovers make amazing frittatas.  I use up leftover potatoes and vegetables and mix them in with eggs, some cheese, and herbs then pop in the oven to bake.  This works quite well with kids who refuse to eat their vegetables at dinner.  I have found that they are more willing to eat the vegetables INSIDE a frittata.  Give it a try! 

I make egg souffles.  I tried one with hash-brown crusts which came out very well.  For single-serving souffle, I use a ramekin.  I love to layer the bottom with spinach and then add eggs to the top before topping with caramelized onions and maybe a dollop of pesto.  

I discovered my love of chilaquiles on my trip to southern Mexico.  It is a dish of scrambled eggs cooked with tortilla chips, queso fresco, and either green or red salsa.  I enjoy it with my homemade salsa verde.  In southern Mexico, they do add grilled chicken strips as well. 

Ironically, it took me YEARS to learn how to properly poach and fry eggs.  Phew.  Take a look at my artistic self…. If I am to create something in an art class, I am abstract.  I don’t like to follow instructions to the T.  I love to color outside the lines.  Sometime I create something without knowing what the outcome would be.  Last year, I took an art workshop for cancer patients and survivors.  I collected the materials and jumped in.  The teacher highly recommended that I figure out the design of my project before jumping in.  I did not listen.  Yes it may mean I face some obstacles as I figure out the next step in the creation.  My project turned out beautifully, by the way.  My ‘abstract’ nature is very much alive in the kitchen.  I often groan when I am excited to try a new recipe and realized that I forgot to read that something needs to be soaked overnight, marinated for a few hours, yada yada.  It was like when I made the ice cream with Danny.  I told him that he had to come back the next day after the mixture has ‘matured.’

A friend in San Diego, Deb took on a challenge to teach me how to fry eggs a few years ago.  I asked how I could make over-easy eggs-- my favorite without destroying the yolk.  It requires patience and precision, something I did not have.  The lesson went well. But I went through many destroyed yolks.  Ah well.  Sometime I am successful, sometime I am not.  I might have to settle on sunnyside up eggs as a quick shortcut.  But there is hope for me still.  Sometime I get lucky with an intact over-easy egg like this one time when I made a Korean beef stirfry with an over-easy egg on the top.  Isn't this beautiful? 

Another friend, Christina, claimed that poaching eggs was easy.  She tried to explain to me how to do it but I did not succeed after several attempts.  My struggle lies with trying to keep the egg stay together in the water.  I lose some egg white along the way.  I finally found the best shortcut in making poached eggs:  http://www.purewow.com/food/poached-eggs-trick.  I can't help but wonder if Christina would end up using this shortcut or will she continue to do it the Julia Child way? 

Shortcuts are not necessarily bad.  The outcome is the same.  It is how you get there that is different.  Writing that just now reminded me of my math teacher who always said there are different ways to get the same answer.  If it means I fail any chance to be admitted to a prestigious culinary school because I use a plastic wrap to poach my egg, so be it.  What matters most to me is the aesthetic presentation to ensure the happiness of my diners' and my palates.  That is far better than serving a plate with an broken egg.