Monday, March 30, 2015

California Dip and a Classic Manhattan for the Virtual Mad Men Finale Party #PartyLikeAMadMan

California Dip! Different brands of soup mix resulted in dips of many colors.
Are you a Mad Men fan?

The season finale is April 5, and those wacky people who wrote The Unofficial Men Cookbook  are hosting a Mad Men Blogger Virtual Dinner Party. Because, well, why not?

I can't pour you a drink, but I can entice you with some virtual snacks and a classic cocktail.

I also have a GIVEAWAY of the cookbook at the end of this post. Parties with prizes are fun, right? And you don't have to play Twister or anything.

Oh, and I can also introduce you (virtually) to Judy Gelman and Peter Zheutlin who wrote the book. I wrote about them and the "inside story" about the book, here.

I've already made quite a few recipes from the book, and I blogged about some of them as well.

Way back in March of 2012, I made (and wrote about) the Steak Tartare and my own version of the Brandy Alexander.

I was pawing through the book looking for something new to make, when I spotted a recipe that I remember my mom's (much hipper) friends would make - California Dip. I remember thinking it was really fancy.

Heh.

I hadn't had this dip in years. Heck, I seldom buy potato chips. But then I saw this recipe and figured it would be good for nostalgia's sake.

Let me warn you. DON'T MAKE THIS RECIPE. Just don't.

If you do make it, you will become obsessed. You will decimate the potato chip aisle. You will buy giant tubs of sour cream. And you will buy every brand of onion soup mix you can find, followed by all the brands of onion soup dip mix, because soup mix makers know their soup mix is likely to become dip.

Well, maybe that won't happen to you, but it did happen to me. And I'm still obsessed.

Did you know that not only is there French onion soup-dip mix, but there's also a green onion dip? It's madness, I tell you. Delicious, creamy, crazy madness.

In my defense ... ah, never mind. There is no defense.

Welcome to the party! Have some snacks!

California Dip
Adapted from The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook by Judy Gelman and Peter Zheutlin

You want this dip. You want this dip. You want this dip.
1 envelope onion soup mix
2 cups sour cream*

Mix well.

Yup, that's it. That's all the magic that you need to make this insane dip.

This is best if you let it sit for at least an hour or so before serving, so the mix hydrates and the flavors get all friendly with each other.

I think it's really best if you make it the day before you need it.

Keep it refrigerated until you need it.

*If you don't want to consume vats and vats and vats of sour cream, you can make this a little healthier by substituting Greek yogurt for some or all of the sour cream. Although I love Greek yogurt, I think this dip is better if there's at least some sour cream with the yogurt.


Oh, but let's not stop at a snack. Let's have a cocktail, too.

Manhattan
Adapted from The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook by Judy Gelman and Peter Zheutlin

I see a snowman. It was accidental, but I thought it was a cute photo.
2 ounces rye whiskey (I used Templeton's)
1/2 ounce sweet vermouth
2-3 dashes bitters (I used a cherry bitters)
Cherry, for garnish (I used my own home made cocktail cherry)

Pour whiskey, vermouth, and bitters into a glass with ice.

Stir well, then pour into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with the cherry.

Or, I know some folks who simply drink it over ice.

If you like ice and don't want a watery drink right away, use large ice cubes. There are plenty of ice trays and molds for large cubes - or rounds.

GIVEAWAY is now over.
Yum