Pumpkin and Feta Dip
ritz with poop topping
My caption on this one was not flattering and the dip is excellent, which is the joke. Orange, smooth, on a cracker, with white cheese crumbled over.
Roast the pumpkin, never boil it. Boiled squash is water with flavour dissolved in it, and the dip comes out thin and bland. Roasted hard at 425°F it loses moisture and concentrates, and you end up with something that holds its shape on a cracker.
Feta on top rather than blended in. Salty, sharp, in distinct crumbs against something soft and sweet — blend it and both of those disappear.
- Makes
- About 3 cups
- Hands-on
- 20 minutes
- Roast
- 45 minutes
- Feta
- On top, crumbled
What you need
The roast
- 1 small pumpkin or butternut squash, about 3 lb, halved and seeded
- 1 head garlic, cut across the middle
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp salt
The dip
- 1/2 cup cream cheese
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp cayenne
- Juice of half a lemon
- Salt and black pepper
To serve
- 6 oz feta, crumbled
- Ritz crackers
- Olive oil, chilli flakes and chopped parsley
How it goes
1 — Roast it cut side down at 425°F
Halves oiled and salted, face down on a tray with the garlic beside them. Forty-five minutes until the flesh gives completely and the cut faces have caramelised against the metal.
2 — Let the roasted flesh steam off before blending
Scooped into a sieve or a bowl and left ten minutes. More water comes out than you expect and all of it would have thinned the dip.
3 — Squeeze the garlic out of its skins
Soft, golden and sweet. Roasted garlic is what gives this depth; raw garlic would make it sharp and one-note.
4 — Blend with the dairy and the spices
Pumpkin, garlic, cream cheese, sour cream, oil, maple, paprika, cumin and cayenne into a processor until completely smooth. Lemon and salt last, to taste.
5 — Chill it at least an hour
It is loose and flat straight out of the blender. An hour in the fridge thickens it enough to scoop and lets the spices settle into one flavour.
pro tip — Taste it again cold before serving. Cold food needs noticeably more salt and acid than warm food.
6 — Scoop onto the crackers, do not spread
A rounded spoonful per cracker, kept proud. Spread flat it looks like paste; in a scoop it holds the feta.
7 — Feta, oil, chilli and parsley on top
Crumbled over by hand so the pieces stay distinct, then a thread of olive oil, chilli flakes and parsley. Assemble within twenty minutes of serving or the crackers go soft.
Ritz with poop topping. His words. Make it anyway. LFG.