Game nights, book club meetings, and movie nights are all incomplete without our delish chips and dips. You need something to munch on during those moments of joy (and sometimes sorrow when our favourite team doesn’t win). There are so many dishes in our everyday life that could be made better with some sort of dip or spread. Worried about having to eat that dry chicken roast? Just spread some cranberry cider sauce on it to make it more succulent. Those baked herb nachos don’t have much flavour in them, use some lemon herb tahini dip. The best part about sauces, dips, and spreads is that they pair incredibly well with literally any dish. You need a bit of spice, creaminess, or sweetness; just add any of them. This recipe is the way to enhance all those sandwiches, chips, nachos, and every meal that could do with a bit of oomph factor. You can store them up in a glass jar for up to a week so feel free to enhance your regular meals with these six delicious dips and spreads.

Cranberry Cider Sauce

Ingredients:

• 14 oz bag of cranberries
• ½ cup water
• ½ cup apple cider
• 1 cup sugar

Preparation:

1. Put a pot over medium flame, then add in the cranberries, sugar, and cider in the pot until the concoction reaches a boil.
2. Lower the temperature to a simmer, and keep cooking for approximately twenty-five minutes after this mixture reaches a boil.
3. Keep stirring throughout until the cranberries break down into chunks. Once this mixture reaches that chunky, thick consistency, your work is done.
4. Let it come to room temperature before consuming or storing for further meals.

Spanish Romesco Sauce/Dip

Ingredients:

• 2 red bell peppers
• 2 slices white sandwich bread, crusts removed
• ½ cup almonds
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar (or red or sherry vinegar)
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 tomato
• 6 garlic cloves
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1 teaspoon salt

Preparation:

1. Preheat the gas burner or barbecue grill to high heat. Chargrill the capsicum until it is black and blistered all over. Put in a bowl and keep it covered for at least twenty minutes. As the capsicum cools and begins to sweat, the skin will come off more readily. Place the seeds in a blender after peeling and discarding the skin.
2. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Drizzle 2 teaspoons of oil over the tomato and garlic on the foil, then cover.
3. Line a tray with a foil package, then top the tray with bread and nuts. Bread should be brown after 5 minutes of baking; take out the bread and nuts. Break the bread into pieces and add it to a blender along with the almonds.
4. Bake the tomato and garlic for another twenty-five minutes, until the tomatoes are really tender. After baking, unwrap the foil and let it cool for a while. Check if you can handle them when cooled.
5. Add the peeled tomatoes to the food processor or blender. Before putting the garlic in the blender, remove its skin.
6. Whizz the remaining ingredients until they are smooth. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper.
7. Keep it in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

Ingredients:

• 2 small garlic cloves, minced
• 2 small white onion, roughly chopped
• 1 ½ teaspoon sugar
• 2 pounds tomatillos husked and rinsed
• 4 Serrano chiles, seeded and chopped
• ½ cup cilantro
• 2 teaspoons salt

Preparation:

1. Preheat the broiler. Use aluminum foil to line a baking sheet. Arrange the tomatillos on the baking sheet in a single layer. For approximately ten minutes, broil until one side is tender and browned.
2. Flip the tomatillos and broil them for an additional ten minutes on the other side. Allow to cool fully.
3. Blitz the roasted tomatillos and their juices in a high-processing blender or food processor. Add in the garlic and the chile peppers; pulse it a few times to puree them.
4. In the food processor, combine the tomatillo mixture with the onion, cilantro, salt, and sugar. Continue pulsing until the salsa reaches the desired chunkiness and consistency. You can add up to ¼ cup of water if the salsa is too thick.

Lemon Herb Tahini Dip

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup tahini
• Zest of one lemon
• 1 ½ cups whole Greek yogurt
• Pinch of freshly ground pepper
• Pinch of salt
• ¼ cup fresh mint
• ¼ cup fresh dill
• Juice of one lemon
• Drizzle of olive oil (to garnish)
• Some fresh herbs, like mint and basil (to garnish)

Preparation:

1. In a food processor, combine the tahini, Greek yogurt, lemon juice, lemon zest, fresh mint, and fresh dill.
2. Blitz until the herbs are minced into the dip and the ingredients are well blended.
3. After transferring the dip to a platter, decorate it with salt, pepper, fresh herbs, and a little olive oil. Serve with sweet potato fries, pita chips, etc.

Creamy Shrimp Dip

Ingredients:

• ½ pound shrimp meat, divided (can substitute with small can shrimp)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• ¼ cup onion, grated
• ½ cup chili sauce
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 teaspoon creamed horseradish
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1-2 teaspoons of Tabasco sauce

Preparation:

1. Add the cream cheese and chili sauce to a large mixing bowl. Beat this mixture with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy.
2. Add the remaining ingredients, excluding the shrimp, and process in a food processor until the mixture is well blended.
3. Mix in the chives along with most of the shrimp, saving some of the shrimp for garnish. Let the mixture sit in the refrigerator for at least two hours before serving.
4. Add the shrimp that was set aside in the middle of the dip. Serve with pita bread, chips, sandwiches, or anything that your heart desires.

Chimichurri Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon dry crushed red pepper
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ½ cup olive oil
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 cups flat-leaf parsley, packed
• 5 large garlic cloves
• ¾ cup cilantro, packed

Preparation:

1. Blend the parsley in a blender or food processor. Transfer to a medium-sized bowl.
2. Repeat with the cilantro and garlic.
3. In the same bowl, combine the olive oil, black pepper, and crushed red pepper. Mix.