Update Your Party Nibbles

by Jennifer Iserloh, Posted Jan 1st 2010 @ 1:00PM

Jennifer Iserloh, Skinny Chef

Craving party or bar foods? Make it at home with real, honest to good ingredients! Most store-bought party foods have little or none of the real ingredients that would make it flavorful. These recipes are the perfect way to get the holiday spirit going into the new year while sticking to your New Year's resolutions.

Cheesy Bites

Zucchini Bites are a nice alternative to your run-of-the-mill cheese and crackers. Compliment the juicy texture of zucchini by combining it with a light layer of salty, flavorful tapenade. It can be assembled ahead of time and popped in the oven while you are serving your guests' drinks.

More recipes after the jump.

Creamy Dips

Make creamy dips chunky and satisfying without adding loads of extra fat, using canned diced artichokes or mashed white beans. Artichokes and beans are both high in fiber and taste and texture, just remember to drain them and rinse well before using. Caramelized onions are flavorful and healthy – a great base for your own, French onion dip.

French Onion Dip
Makes 1 cup of dip

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium Vidalia onion, chopped
1 teaspoon brown sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1/2 cup reduced-sodium beef broth
¼ cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 tablespoons 2% Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon onion powder

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions, brown sugar and salt. Reduce the heat to medium low, periodically adding tablespoons of the beef broth to keep the onions from sticking. Cook 20 to 25 minutes until the onions are dark brown and very soft. Set aside off the heat.

In a medium bowl, whisk the sour cream, yogurt, Worcestershire sauce and onion powder until smooth. Stir in the onion. Cover and refrigerate one hour before serving.

Nutritional Information Per Serving (3 tablespoons):
108 calories, 3 g protein, 9 g carbohydrates, 3 g fat (1 g saturated), 5 mg cholesterol, 3 g fiber, 146 mg sodium.

Filed Under: Entertaining
Tags: hors doeuvres, onion dip, skinny chef

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

1-03-2010 @12:12AM Aaron said... I've really been into Alton Brown's tuna dip lately. It sounds weird, but it's really good and I love the healthy protein you get from it.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/tuna-dressing-recipe/index.html
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