4–6
This dip is based on the creamy, cheesy Tex Mex dip ‘queso’, which is usually made with shedloads of orange American cheese. Here, I make it with roasted butternut squash with charred jalapeño, and serve it with spiced, popped pumpkin seeds for some much-needed crunch.
2 garlic cloves (skin on)
1 shallot (skin on)
500g butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cut into chunks
pinch of cumin seeds
leaves from 2 sprigs of thyme
3 tbsp olive oil
1 red jalapeño chilli
2 tbsp water
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp cream cheese
50g Parmesan (or vegetarian hard cheese) grated
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the toasted pumpkin seeds
1 tbsp rapeseed oil
1 tbsp pumpkin seeds
½ tsp cayenne pepper
To serve
1 tbsp Fermented Green Chillies (see here)
1 tbsp coriander leaves
tortilla chips, to serve
1 Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6.
2 Put the garlic cloves, shallot and butternut squash chunks in a roasting tray and season with salt and pepper. Scatter over the cumin seeds, thyme leaves and pour over the olive oil, tossing to coat everything well. Cover the tray tightly with foil and roast in the oven for 40 minutes, or until a skewer can be inserted into the squash and meet no resistance.
3 Meanwhile, heat the rapeseed oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat and fry the pumpkin seeds for a couple of minutes until popped. Transfer to a bowl and season with cayenne and salt.
4 Scorch the jalapeño chilli over a gas flame until softened and partially blackened, then rub off the skin with kitchen towel, split it lengthways and remove the seeds.
5 Remove the squash from the oven and allow it to cool slightly for a couple of minutes, then squeeze the shallots and garlic from their skins and transfer them to the bowl of a food processor. Add the roasted squash and all the remaining ingredients (including the scorched, deseeded jalapeño) and blitz on high for a few minutes until you have a creamy, smooth dip. Season to taste and adjust the acid and salt accordingly. Scrape into a bowl and top with the fermented chillies, toasted pumpkin seeds and coriander. Serve with tortilla chips.
Charred onion and sour cream
Serves 4–6
This is an update on one of my favourite classic dips – sour cream and onion – which did the rounds at the parties of my youth, scooped hungrily into mouths on the curve of a similarly flavoured Pringle. This is great with proper potato Kettle chips.
2 tbsp rapeseed oil
4 medium white onions, thinly sliced
big pinch of sea salt
pinch of caster sugar
2 tsp pomegranate molasses
200g sour cream
50g mayonnaise
3g chives, finely chopped, plus extra snipped chives, to garnish
flatbreads or raw veg, to serve
1 Heat the oil in a heavy-based frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the sliced onions, salt and sugar and cook, stirring every now and then, for 10–15 minutes, until the onions are charred, softened and delicious. Stir in the pomegranate molasses and allow to cool.
2 In a bowl, combine the sour cream and mayonnaise. Slide in the cooled onions and chives and stir to combine. Taste for seasoning and leave to infuse in the fridge for a couple of hours to allow for the flavours to develop (if you have time). Serve in a bowl garnished with extra chives. Serve with flatbreads or raw veg for dipping.
Broad bean, mint and feta
Serves 4–6
Broad beans are one of the first things I successfully grew on my allotment, following in my father’s footsteps as he was an avid fan of the ‘broads’. They are very easy to grow. You simply bury the seeds (as early as February) and after a few months the green shoots start to emerge. I make this perky dip to celebrate my allotment haul, but it’s also very agreeable made with frozen broad beans that have been blanched and peeled.
500g broad beans (fresh or frozen)
2 garlic cloves, peeled
small bunch of dill fronds, reserving some for garnish
small bunch of mint leaves reserving some for garnish
2 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
1 slice of preserved lemon (shop-bought or (see here)), chopped
100g feta
juice of 1 lemon
sea salt and ground black pepper or pink peppercorns
1 Bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil, add the broad beans and garlic and cook for 3–5 minutes, until tender. Add the herbs at the last minute just to blanch them until wilted. Drain, reserving the cooking water. Peel the broad beans and discard the skins.
2 Place the beans, garlic, cooked herbs and all the remaining ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and blitz until smooth, adding a little of the cooking water to loosen, if needed. Taste for seasoning and acid and adjust accordingly. Transfer to a bowl and leave to infuse in the fridge for a couple of hours to allow for the flavours to develop (if you have time), then serve in a bowl, drizzled with more extra-virgin olive oil and garnished with the reserved herbs and pink peppercorns.
TIP: This also makes for a lovely breakfast topped with a crispy fried egg and some rose harissa.
Chermoula cannellini bean
with crispy fried artichokes
Serves 4–6
Chermoula is traditionally a North African marinade for fish, but the
