For someone who is neither pregnant nor a growing adolescent, I have some unusual food fascinations.
It’s been six weeks and counting, and I’ve been compulsively buying fresh dill because I can’t get enough. Before you suggest growing it, take a look at my basil plant — I accidentally moved it into the shade and watered it once. Let’s just say I’m not confident in my future gardening skills.
At the risk of sounding like a certain poofy-haired Jersey girl stereotype, I’m pretty sure my love for dill began with pickles.
Man… I loooove pickles.
Not the sweet bread-and-butter type — the dill ones. Bread-and-butter pickles always taste unnaturally sweet and soggy to me. Dill pickles, on the other hand, are bright, tangy, and addictive.
My pickle habit has always come in phases. Sometimes I’ll polish off two jars in a week. Other times I forget about them entirely. When I was a kid I ate pickles straight from the jar — often alongside olives and cheese — and later I moved on to dunking salty potato chips into the leftover pickle juice on my paper plate at summer cookouts. This was before pickle-flavored potato chips were common; I remember the thrill when a girl on my school bus showed up with that chip bag one morning. Jealousy for potato chips is a real thing.
One sandwich I never tried was peanut butter and pickles, a childhood favorite of my dad. He’d probably still eat one today. I can’t even imagine it, though I Iike people who love odd combinations. If the aversion I feel toward peanut butter and pickles is how some of you feel about bacon, I’m genuinely surprised.
Lately, dill has shown up in other ways in my kitchen. One of my favorite preparations is a simple roasted garlic and dill white bean dip. It’s fresh, garlicky, and herb-forward — honestly, if you rubbed roasted garlic on a piece of bread (or anything else) I’d probably eat it.
Roasted Garlic and Dill White Bean Dip
Makes about 1 cup
Ingredients:
– 1 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (or about 1 1/2 cups cooked beans)
– 2 bulbs roasted garlic
– 3 tablespoons fresh dill
– 1/4 cup olive oil, plus more if desired
– 1/2 teaspoon salt
– 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions:
Combine the beans, dill, roasted garlic, salt, and pepper in a food processor and blend until smooth. With the processor running, stream in the olive oil. Scrape the sides and bottom a few times to ensure everything combines evenly. Serve in a bowl garnished with extra dill and a drizzle of olive oil.
I might need a dip intervention, but I’m not ready to give it up.
If you’re putting together recipes for a holiday or a gathering, this dip is an easy, flavorful addition to a party spread.