Ah, to host.
My sister and her boyfriend are visiting for a few days, and while they’re staying in our living room, on an air mattress pushed up against our couch that we’re all pretending is about the same as a double bed, I’m dreaming of a time when I can make all my hosting dreams come true. I actually think that I’m pretty good at working around my current space limitations. It all comes down to comfort and snacks.
Most importantly, and the point of this entire newsletter (and let’s be real, my whole life), is the food. What are we whipping up when it’s 4pm, everyone is starving, and it’s 95 degrees outside? The answer? Easy. My dreamy, creamy dip.
My dip is a simple dip, and if you’ve been paying any attention at all, you know it’s going to involve sour cream. If you want to do it with greek yogurt, be my guest, but don’t say that I didn’t say that you’re losing some of the ~je ne sais quoi~ of the whole thing.
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Since there are like, four ingredients, each one counts. Chili crisp is everywhere these days (cough, momofuku’s insane cease and desists, cough), but some products are definitely on the top of my list. If I’m buying, I’m extremely partial to Lao Gan Ma, but like Fly by Jing as well. When I’ve got even a little time, I tend to make chili garlic crisp, which dips up quite excellently - the recipe will be down below for paid subscribers!
my dip, or seasoned sour cream with chili crisp swirl
2 cups sour cream (or greek yogurt, if you must)
1 lemon
Kosher salt and black pepper
1/4 cup chili crisp, preferably Lao Gan Ma - paid subscribers peek below for a recipe for your own chili-garlic crisp
Potato chips, for serving
Dump the sour cream into a bowl. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon into it and season generously with salt and pepper. Taste, and adjust any of the seasonings up to your liking. Swirl the chili crisp on top, making sure to leave pools of oil here and there.
side notes // comfort
How else am I obsessively providing comfort to those who stay with me?
Wrapped over our air mattress and couch combo-bed are some of my nicest sheets. I love the linen and color offerings from Bed Threads. I’m a rust and terracotta girlie myself, but the new creme color is whippin’ me right up. Mixed right in with the linen are older, checkered Brooklinen sheets in Luxe Sateen.
Comfort doesn’t just come down to sheets, obviously. I’m (probably annoyingly) constantly putting glasses and glass bottles of water on the coffee table. If I were smarter, I would have already bought this fish pitcher. I’m buying snacks aplenty - for this round, it’s two college students training for varsity sports, so I’m picking up bagels, eggs, Oreos, cereal, candy, mac and cheese, avocados….anything with enough caloric punch to try and make a dent in what they’re burning. I would be lying if I said that Ethan and I weren’t enjoying the spread too.
If I were hosting less athletically inclined adults/non-college students, I’m grabbing meats and cheeses from Di Brunos, bottles of natural wine and seedy crackers. I’m marinating chevre in pink peppercorns and making amaro spritzes. I’m always making extra big pots of coffee, and putting mugs out in an obvious place.
Either way, I’m making my dip!
Keep reading below for a lights-out chili garlic crisp recipe! I appreciate your support.
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