Thanks to Good Health Snacks for providing chips and inspiration for this post!
I’ve tried two new things this March!The first is March Madness. I had never filled out a bracket before because I care approximately negative zero percent about watching college and/or professional basketball. I should like it, but I’m just not that into it. Here’s my history with basketball: when I was in 5th or 6th grade, all I wanted in life was a Space Jam basketball, and I got one for Christmas (along with a black bomber style jacket with Looney Toons characters on the back, and fake brown leather sleeves. Around the same time, I had my first sort-of French kiss outside the gym during a high school basketball game…that my silly parents somehow let me go to unsupervised. But clearly that jacket was the hot fire, amiright!?). My Space Jam basketball was black and had the logo and characters painted on it. What I didn’t have was a basketball hoop. My dad installed one, nailed to a wooden post on the top, flat part of a sloping dirt and poky weed-covered hill on our country property. And every time I missed the backboard, I had to run down the little hill into a thorny thicket and hope the ball didn’t go into or under the barbed wire fence. I played basketball in school, from 5th-ish to 8th grade, and scored exactly once. When I was in high school, I was a basketball cheerleader for two years, and I became weirdly good at making three point shots. One time, at a basketball tournament in the middle of nowhere in Oregon, I won a 3-point contest at half time. In my cheerleading uniform. My prize was a two liter of soda. I’d like that to be my claim to fame, but literally no one has ever talked about it since basically the moment it happened. All of this is to say, I know about basketball. I don’t hate it? I don’t know.
So this year, for the first time, I’m participating in March Madness at work. And while I haven’t watched one game, my competitive spirit has taken over, and I’m checking the leaderboard constantly. If my team makes it to the end, I might even tune in to a game. We’ll see.The second new-to-me thing of the month is salsa macha! I had it for the first time at a restaurant a couple weeks ago, and fell in love. If you’re not familiar: it’s an oily paste of ground dried chilis, nuts, garlic, and sesame seeds… things I never would have thought to combine. It has a unique nutty-smoky (but not spicy!) flavor.
When I saw that Good Health’s Organic Black Bean and Rice Tortilla chips pair well with salsas and the like, I knew I had to try my hand at salsa macha. But then I read that their Sea Salt Eat Your Vegetables chips pair best with hummus-type dips, I decided to kill two birds with one stone, and make a creamy white bean dip swirled with oily salsa macha. The bean dip has lemon for acidic tang, and garlic for a slight bit of bite, but I kept it pretty mild, compared to other white bean dips out there, since we’re topping it with salsa macha and I wanted the flavors to jive. The combo is really, really good. Even if my team loses the sports thing, I’ll consider myself a winner (I’d like my coworkers to consider me a winner as well, since we put money on this).
March Madness. Good Health chips. Creamy white bean dip with salsa macha swirls. This is essentially the chip and dip version of winning a 3-point contest in a cheerleading uniform with a Space Jam basketball.White bean dip with salsa macha swirl
Salsa Macha slightly adapted from this recipe
This makes extra salsa macha, but not to worry, it’s fabulous on roasted vegetables, eggs, chips, tacos, a spoon…
This makes extra salsa macha, but not to worry, it’s fabulous on roasted vegetables, eggs, chips, tacos, a spoon…
White Bean Dip 2 cans of white beans (I like Great Northern), drained and rinsed 2 cloves garlic, diced ¼ cup fresh lemon juice ¼ cup olive oil 1/8th teaspoon salt (plus more for taste, as desired) Salsa Macha 1 cup olive oil ½ cup peanuts (or almonds, if you’re allergic) + 1 tablespoon chopped for garnish 5-6 cloves garlic, chopped 5 mild dried Mexican chili peppers (I used 4 guajillo peppers and 1 ancho, but feel free to add a spicy pepper into the mix), stems and seeds removed, torn or cut into smaller pieces 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar 1 teaspoon salt 1 heaping tablespoon sesame seeds | For the White Bean Dip In food processor or high power blender, pulse together dip ingredients until smooth and creamy. Taste, and add more salt as needed. For the Salsa Macha Heat a large, high-sided skillet over medium heat, and add olive oil. Add 1/2 cup of peanuts and the garlic, and cook a couple of minutes, until lightly golden and fragrant. Add peppers, and cook another minute or two. Make sure garlic and nuts don’t burn. Remove from heat, let cool about 10 minutes. Add vinegar and salt, and add to blender or food processor. Pulse until you have a well incorporated but slightly gritty paste. Stir in sesame seeds. To serve, scoop dip into bowl, and top with a swirl of salsa macha. Add extra peanuts for garnish. Serve with Good Health chips! |
Salvadoran Chimol by Sour Then Sweet
3 Dips en menos de 5 minutos by The Blog By Taina
Mango & Pineapple Salsa by BearsnUnicornsLA
Roasted Red Pepper, Thyme, and Goat Cheese Dip by Appeasing a Food Geek
Poza Rica-Style Peanut and Chipotle Salsa by Flan & Apple Pie
Sambal Tahini Carrot Dip by Wit & Vinegar
Charred Carrot and Avocado Dip by Sun Diego Eats
Chunky Guacamole by Chicano Eats
