Robin: My mother, Joy, absolutely loved “relish trays”—that is, platters of raw vegetables, pickles, olives, crackers, and cheese served as an appetizer or light lunch. There would be one of these trays of good things in a prominent place anytime she was entertaining, and this delicious dill dip was almost always on it. Who knows where and when she originally found the recipe (and how much she altered it to her own specifications), but this mixture certainly was a fixture of our family life beginning in the 1970s.
Though great with chips and crackers, dill dip really comes into its own when served with raw veggies. Yes, carrots, celery sticks, and cucumbers are the basics, but there are so many other vegetables that are delicious raw—try sliced bell pepper, fresh mushrooms (whole or halved), and zucchini and yellow summer squash cut into sticks or thick slices, or get adventurous with some raw broccoli and cauliflower florets. The creamy nature of the dip and the bright flavor of the dill really jazz up the raw produce.
Since this dip keeps extremely well in the refrigerator and is delicious day after day, my mom would always take just a portion of the batch out at time. She’d have the tub of dill dip in the fridge and spoon just about a fourth of it into a serving dish to be used; as it got eaten, she would replenish the little serving bowl from the refrigerated reserve. That way, any leftover dip stayed fresh, to be enjoyed another day. This stuff is too delicious to spoil by double dipping!
You know, dried dill weed is not an herb that I reach for very often. It is used frequently in the cuisines of Eastern Europe, India, and Scandinavia, but rarely, if ever, in Latin America, which is probably why I don’t take better advantage of this tasty ingredient—a shortcoming I may need to overcome, now that I think about it. Currently, I may occasionally sprinkle some dried dill on a piece of fish (though the fresh form of the herb is much better for that purpose), use it with cucumbers and sour cream, and count it as an important ingredient in a mushroom soup that I love, but I mostly just keep a jar of dried dill weed in the cupboard so that I can make this dip. (And it’s totally worth it!)
Note: If you are not very familiar with this herb, be sure not to confuse dried dill weed (called for here) with dill seed, which is also tasty but is a different ingredient, one often used in pickling.
More fabulous recipes that I got from my mom:
Joy’s Dill Dip
Ingredients
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 16-ounce container cottage cheese
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup dried dill weed
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 clove fresh garlic, finely minced OR ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
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Beat all the ingredients together, preferably with an electric mixer, until relatively smooth. Place dip in a covered container and refrigerate it at least overnight to allow the flavors to meld.
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Serve as a dip for raw veggies, chips, and crackers.
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Unused portions will keep well, covered, for at least a week in the fridge.
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