Tuna Dip With Dukkah

Here's a fishy dip for Christmas entertaining.  It includes tuna and anchovies but don't worry, it's not all that "fishy" in taste.  I found it fairly mild, but I guess if you're not a fish fan ...  But I definitely am, and I also like a fishy phrase.  One of my faves is about slapping an annoying person in the face with a wet herring.  Which reminds me of that Monty Python sketch.  But I digress ...  

This recipe calls for Philly (cream) cheese, which I have not used in a very long time.  I found that it is no longer the cheese I remember, sadly.  Okay for dips and cheesecakes, but the texture has clearly been dumbed-down.  After discussing it on a FaceBook group, we decided it is now full of water and 'fillers', rather than delicious milk from the cow.  Sigh! ...  And the texture is just so gummy and squishy and bluuuurrgghhh.  Anyways, it's fine in a dip where it gets blitzed up.

Merry Christmas and happy festive season to all.  See you in the New Year, my friends.  Thank you for all your support this year!

c. Sherry M.

(Recipe from Donna Hay's Christmas Feasts and Treats)

Makes one good-sized bowlful:  see Notes

ingredients:

185g./6.5 oz tuna in chilli oil - drain it but keep the oil 

3 white anchovy fillets  -  see Notes

250g./8 oz Philly cream cheese (use any brand), cut into chunks

2 Tbs lemon juice

2 Tbs EV olive oil

sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste

dukkah, for sprinkling on top

baguette or ciabatta stick, to serve with

lemon wedges, if you fancy (I didn't)

Method:

Basically, you will chuck everything into your food processor, scraping down the sides as you go - for 3-4 minutes! says Donna.  Now this seems like a very long time to me; I guess it's to emulsify the mixture but I only did it for 2-3 minutes max.

Whack it in the fridge for at least 1 hour (longer in humid QLD), then sprinkle with the reserved chilli oil, and throw on the dukkah

Serve with the sliced up bread, and lemon wedges if using

Notes:

Donna says this makes 2.5 cups of dip; I guess it did :=)

I hunted around for white anchovies but they were nowhere to be found, so I bought some good quality, organic regular variety

Add a bit of lemon zest, and maybe a few chilli flakes, if you fancy - 'cos I did!

ingredients gathered

drain the oil, and set aside till later

chuck everything into the food processor

and give it a good blitz - for 2 or 3 (or 4) minutes :=); shove into the fridge

chill it well, splash with chilli oil, sprinkle with dukkah, and serve with bread

c. Sherry M.