helpful hints
Serve these dips with crispy crackers, warm pita bread, French bread, thick potato chips or vegetable crudités  

For the bread: Use a bread that is thick and textured such as sourdough, whole wheat or pheasant; not white sandwich bread

make ahead tips
Make dips up to 2 days in advance.  Store in tightly sealed container in the refrigerator.  Bring to room temperature and stir before serving

An easy must have appetizer for your next cocktail party menu

If you like this recipe, then try:
Pan Fried Onion Dip
Rich Hot Crab Dip
Spicy Hot Crab Dip

 All Appetizers Recipe Index

Out of this World Garlic Dip
Makes about 2 1/2 cups
1/2 small Idaho potato, cut into 2-inch chunks
2 cups stale thick-sliced bread, crusts removed and torn into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup blanched whole almonds (about 3 ounces)
5-8 large garlic cloves, puréed
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
3/4 teaspoon sugar
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Minced fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish (optional)

In a small saucepan of boiling salted water, cook the potato until tender, about 15 minutes; drain. Let cool, then peel the chunks and cut them into 1/2-inch cubes. In a bowl, cover the bread with water and let soak until completely saturated, about 2 minutes. Transfer the bread to a plate.

In a food processor, pulse the almonds until very finely ground. Add the garlic, lemon juice, vinegar and sugar, season with salt and pepper and process until smooth. Lightly squeeze some of the water from the bread and add half the slices to the food processor. Purée until incorporated. 

The mixture should be very thick but pourable, like thick pancake batter: if it's too thick, add a bit of the water; if it's too runny, squeeze more water from the remaining bread. Add the remaining slices to the processor and purée, then check the consistency again.

Add the potato and process the mixture until smooth. With the machine on, add the oil in a steady stream until incorporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.  Garnish with parsley and serve.

Sesame Garlic Dip
Makes about 1½ cups
See How To Roast Garlic.  Follow these directions using 2 heads of garlic
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons sesame seed paste
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

When garlic cloves are cool enough to handle, peel and chop finely

Heat oil in a pan and cook the garlic and onion over low-heat, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 8 minutes.  Remove the pan from heat

Mix in the lemon juice, sesame seed paste and parsley.  Season with salt and pepper.  Transfer dip to a serving bowl.  Serve warm or at room temperature