Upside-Down Pear

I invented this one on a Sunday afternoon. I had a BBQ to go to, and nothing to bring except beer. Fortunately, my pantry and fridge stood ready to assist me, along with the pot of basil on the windowsill.

It’s a very on-the-fly recipe - not for people who are uncomfortable with spicing to taste, or with adjusting textures. (If you’ve successfully made hummus before, this should be a snap.) It is also one of those things that I constructed almost entirely in my head before making it - a pleasant pastime, highly recommended for lazy afternoons on the porch with a beer and a friend to bounce the ideas off of.

Curry bean dip

• 3 cloves garlic, smashed with the side of a knife
• 2 cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• salt, black pepper, red curry paste, Thai garlic chili sauce, lemon juice, tahini, honey, and cayenne pepper, all to taste.
• extra-virgin olive oil
• a bit of fresh basil, chopped

Unless you are a big fan of raw garlic, sweat the garlic in a little oil until translucent, or cook it over higher heat until the edges are a tad browned. This really requires that you know your garlic, so if you don’t…don’t.

In a food processor, combine beans, garlic, and all the seasonings. Go easy on the seasonings at first, because too much is hard to correct. I’d say start with a pinch of salt, a few good grinds of black pepper, 2 tsp. curry paste, 2 tsp garlic chili sauce, 1 tsp each of lemon juice, honey, and tahini, and 1/4 tsp of cayenne. Whir it all together, and slowly pour in extra-virgin olive oil until the texture is a little bit rougher than you want it to be at the end. Taste-test, and adjust the seasonings if you need to, and whir again, adding more olive oil if necessary to smooth out the texture.

I recommend making this dip less spicy than you think you want it; after three hours in the fridge, it was substantially more intense.