Pan-Fried Onion Dip

I had planned on making risotto for dinner on Thursday night, but there was so much pasta left over, we just had that again. It was just as good the second time. The husband had thirds, the boy had seconds. I added some balsamic vinegar to it--just a splash or two--and it was really yummy.

Now I have a reprieve from cooking until Monday! There will be some good recipes coming up, too. I just got a new cookbook with a ton of recipes I'm dying to try, so I think the next couple weeks will be meals solely from that.

Last night I had some friends over to scrapbook, so I didn't have dinner, just snacks. I made Chex Mix and a dip from the Barefoot Contessa cookbook. I heart Ina Garten...I heart her a lot. I'd like to be her, just for a day. I also wouldn't mind being Gayle King for a day, I decided yesterday as I was watching Oprah. Anyway, I had seen this recipe in her cookbook and wanted to try it for a long time. I'm a sucker for Lipton Onion Dip, so I thought a made-from-scratch version would be worth trying.

Pan-Fried Onion Dip
2 large yellow onions
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup good mayonnaise

Cut the onions in half and then slice them into 1/8-inch thick half-rounds. (You will have about 3 cups of onions.) Heat the butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions, cayenne, salt, and pepper and saute for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 more minutes until the onions are browned and caramelized. Allow the onions to cool.

Place the cream cheese, sour cream and mayonnaise in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat until smooth. Add the onions and mix well. Taste for seasonings. Serve at room temperature.

*****

I was a bit shy on the sour cream, so I added in a little extra mayo to make up for it, and I could really taste the mayo. I think next time I'd cut back a bit on that and maybe add in a touch more cream cheese and sour cream to compensate for it (or maybe Miracle Whip Light doesn't count as "good mayonnaise"?). I also thought the onion slices were a little too big, so instead of half-rounds I think I'd cut them into quarters. It wasn't really comparable to the Lipton dip, but it was really good, and my friends all liked it. Or at least they said they did. ;) Oh, and I used Vidalia onions because they were the only yellow onions I could find at the store, and they were on sale for cheap. They were maybe a little too sweet for the dip. But, again like I said, it was pretty tasty. There's quite a bit left, too, so I'll be snacking on it all weekend!