Creamy Dill Vegetable Dip Recipe

This may be just the thing you need to make it easier getting all those servings of vegetables Canada’s Food Guide now recommends.

I know around here it sure gets us eating way more vegetables than we would otherwise!

 

What You’ll Need:

• 2/3 c of mayonnaise

• 1 1/2 c sour cream

• 2 tablespoons dried onion flakes

• 2 tablespoons dried parsley

• 2 tablespoons dried dill weed (or substitute as shown below)

• 1 teaspoon celery salt

• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

• fresh vegetables for serving

Substitutions you can make if you don’t have dried leafy dill on hand

use ½ c minced fresh dill

or you can substitute

2 tsp of dill seed for dried dill weed and then reduce the celery salt to half. Adjust amounts to suit your taste.

What To Do:

Mix all the ingredients together in bowl. Then set it aside to chill for 30 minutes or longer. Serve with your favourite fresh veggies… and watch them disappear.

Now, if you’d like to get more creative in using the dill you have on hand, read on so you can get the most out of what you have.

 

Dill has a long history of use in medicine. According to experts at Purdue University, the name, ‘dill’ is derived from the Norse word meaning “to lull” a term that refers to the plants anti-flatulent properties.

It is still used in this manner today. Herbalists also recognize dill as an effective treatment for bad breath. All three forms possess these qualities to varying degree, yet each is unique.

 

Three Forms Of Dill You Can Find And How To Use Them

• Fresh Dill
• Dried Leafy Dill
• Dill Seed

Of the three forms of dill, it is the seed that has the most intense flavour. The seed should be kept in a covered container in a cool dry place. It can be stored for many months this way.

Leafy dill, also called dill weed, refers to the leaf and stem of the plant, usually in a less mature state. Fresh leafy dill stores well in a plastic bag in the freezer.

You can also set it into a brown paper lunch bag, loosely packed and set it in the refrigerator to dry our over a few weeks to make dried leafy dill.

Dried leafy dill tends to have or that unique dill flavour, but it holds up better in dishes requiring longer cooking times. It also can be stored in a cool, dry place without refrigeration.

At this time the fresh green foliage becomes less available at farmers’ markets, so the seed is more readily obtained. You can use ground or whole seeds to flavor dill pickles, make flavored vinegar, and give a flavour twist to sauerkraut, breads and rolls, cakes and cole slaw.

Try using a little dill seed to add a little zip to roasted root vegetables, or bring sweet pungency to curries.