In the midst of the papers I'm supposed to be grading and the evaluations, reports, and syllabi I'm supposed to be writing (our next term begins on the ninth day of Christmas: Ladies dancing, all around.) come the parties.
We hope to get together with friends sometime this weekend for a little birthday brownie pudding, and on Sunday we have our annual Christmas gathering at school, a catered dessert buffet before the Christmas concert. Monday, the dean has invited us over for heavy hors d'oeuvres. It looks like we have a break until Thursday evening, with cookies and punch at a campus event, followed by Friday's last-day-of-classes feasting in various forms.
I'm sure I've overlooked a few, and that's only the next week.
I do love party food.
Given the opportunity, I try to make sure it's reasonably healthy, since I know that the snacking can add up to much more than it might seem to on the surface. When we manage it ourselves, we lean heavily toward hummos and veggies, fresh chunky salsa and chips, and stuffed mushrooms.
My favorite, though, is baked artichoke dip, a variation that goes something like this:
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Baked Artichoke Dip
1 can artichoke hearts (not marinated), drained and chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 C. grated parmesan cheese
1/2 C. plain yogurt or light sour cream
Mix ingredients together until they are thoroughly combined. Top with 1/4 C. breadcrumbs mixed with 2 Tb. olive oil and another 2 Tb. parmesan cheese. Bake in a 9x9 dish at 375 until hot and bubbly (about 25-30 minutes).
Serve with bread, crackers . . . spoons . . .
I make your dip every year. Yum!
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