mediterranean dip

Thank you thank you @annies-eats for this recipe! I went to a friend’s house on a lake last weekend and promised to bring a dip along. I haven’t made any dips in a while and wanted to try out something cold since Atlanta summer isn’t the best environment for hot buffalo chicken dip. Also – this could be a dairy free dip if you want to eliminate the feta.

In my family, we LOVE a Mexican 7-layer dip, so if you’re one of those people who likes a big mound of dip on your chip, tune in! This is pretty versatile too – you could really add a variety of different veggies – bell peppers, small chopped broccoli, some whole chickpeas or roasted chickpeas, etc.

I cheated a bit and used store bought hummus, but I think the homemade pesto and fresh veggies make up for it. I think I’ll be bringing this recipe back for the 4th of July weekend and hopefully trying some different variations. Anyone think there’s some way to make a Chinese 7-layer dip? Penny for your thoughts.

Mediterranean 7-layer dip, adapted from Annie’s Eats

Cilantro pesto:

1 1/2 cups fresh cilantro (I used stems and leaves)

2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided

4 TBS walnuts

1/4 cup crumbled feta

Dip:

3/4 of an English cucumber, diced

half of a red onion, diced

banana peppers, chopped in half

kalamata olives, sliced

julienned sundried tomatoes (I think you could also used diced cherry tomatoes)

crumbled feta cheese (about 1/2-3/4 cup)

1. Make the cilantro pesto: Add the garlic, cilantro, walnuts, some fresh cracked pepper, and 2 TBS olive oil to the bowl of a small food processor. Pulse until not quite a paste, but everything is mixed evenly. Then, slowly drizzle in your olive oil. I didn’t end up needing the whole 1/3 of a cup, but I do like my pesto thicker. After you’ve finished pulsing, mix in your feta (don’t pulse in the food processor, just slowly mix into the mixture)

2. Assemble! I used two different kinds of hummus so I spread them both together in the bottom of a pie plate. After the hummus, add your cilantro pesto in the middle and spread out in an even layer. Then add your toppings! Cukes, red onion, pepps, olives, tomatoes, and you can either end with the feta or add it in batches.

For some reason, I’ve always been more successful with the white bean dips over chickpea hummus. But I really wanted to make this after I found olive hummus at Publix the other day and forgot to buy chickpeas, so white bean dip it is!

Let me tell you about a little creation that was the first recipe I ever wrote. And I apologize to my loving family for forcing them to eat this. I guess I was a super salty child because this was an appetizer composed of round tortilla chips, penne pasta, and kalamata olives. Here goes: Set out some round corn tortilla chips on a tray. Chop up your kalamata olives into really tiny pieces like tapenade. Stuff the olive pieces into cooked penne pasta and set two atop each tortilla chip. Serve. Cold. Hence, the beginning of my kalamata olive love.

I like my hummus thick but not really chunky so I’ve adapted from this lovely recipe.

Kalamata Olive Hummus

makes about 2 cups of hummus

1 1/2 15 oz. cans of white northern beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, including some juice from the jar

2 cloves garlic, minced

6 TBS tahini

4 TBS lemon juice

2 TBS olive oil

1/4 cup water

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp salt

pinch of cayenne

cracked black pepper to taste

1. Whisk together tahini and olive oil until smooth in a small bowl. Combine lemon juice and water in a separate bowl.

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2. Add beans, spices, olives, and garlic to the bowl of a large food processor. Pulse until fairly smooth and then scrape down the sides before adding the lemon/water mix.

3. Stream in the tahini/olive oil and add more beans if you like your hummus even thicker than this. Add some cracked black pepper at the end.

4. Refrigerate to let flavors meld or eat immediately with pita chips, carrots, other veggies or on a sandwich.

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Tag Archives: mediterranean dip

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