Everyone knows that Thanksgiving dinner (or lunch) doesn’t start right when you get to your host’s house. At least wherever I go, there is a table of dips and fruits and cheeses before the turkey and potato salad are pulled out. So this is a great appetizer for any Thanksgiving meal.
In lieu of Alex McLelland’s visit to the Golden Isle’s a few days before Thanksgiving Day, we decided to make him a feast! So, I figured if anyone is struggling with what to bring to your thanksgiving, I’d share what we did!
First off, this Thanksgiving Dip came from Alex’s aunt, so all the credit goes to her – but it’s so easy anyone could make it. It’s almost like a fall/autumn spin on a 7-layer Mexican dip, but even more addictive – it’s savory and sweet.
Ingredients:
1 block Philadelphia Cream Cheese
1 jar White House Apple Butter – we would have used pumpkin butter, but couldn’t find any
7 strips of bacon
12 oz bag pecans
3 green onions
Pull your cream cheese out of the fridge immediately and let it get soft. Putting this dip together is the easiest part. First, go ahead and put on whatever pan you like to cook bacon in. We used an awesome All-Clad skillet. It has a griddle type surface so it gives great marks and has room for the bacon grease to drain off (you better keep that bacon grease!).
While the bacon is rendering (I like to do it on medium heat) put your pecans on a baking sheet and drizzle some oil on top. Throw them in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes for a nice roasted flavor.
Hopefully, your cream cheese is soft enough at this point. It’s really easy to take a cheese spreader or butter knife and apply the cream cheese as the first layer. If you don’t use the whole block of cream cheese, I’ll call you a cheater. There’s a reason it’s called “Holiday Weight.”
Next, apply a nice layer of your apple butter.
Once the bacon and pecans have cooled off, chop them up and sprinkle them on top of the apple butter with the three green onions (cut on a bias).
It’s that easy! Be careful though, it is addictive-ly delicious. Don’t ruin your turkey dinner. Check back tomorrow for great side dishes- Brown Butter Mashed Potatoes and Lima Bean, Bell Pepper Casserole! And….our roasted prime rib masterpiece!
Tryptophan can’t stop me,
Coleman
