A few weeks ago I attended a trivia night. I'm not sure how things are where you live, but in St. Louis, trivia nights are a popular form of entertainment and a frequently used mechanism for fundraising. I actually help run a trivia night for YoungLife College St. Louis each year (writing the questions) so I'm quite familiar with them. This trivia night, however, I was on the other end of things, as a participant.
Our table of eight put up a pretty mediocre performance. We went in thinking we had a decent amount of knowledge about a variety of topics (medicine, science, sports, food, etc...), but the questions were written for a demographic a good twenty years older than us. We certainly gave it our best fight and we had a ton of fun, despite what the scoreboard showed (cough--third from last--cough).
Besides the company, the best part of the evening was definitely the food. We all pitched in and came up with quite an assortment, from homemade chocolate chip cookies to chips and salsa to this layered Asian dip. This kind of reminded me of Mexican Layered dip, but instead of ground beef, tomatoes, and lettuce it had chicken, carrots, and peanuts. Topped with a tangy sauce, this was a refreshing change from the Mexican-version. The only change I'd make next time would be to add some additional hot sauce! Served with crackers, this dip is sure to help you forget your trivia woes!
One Year Ago: Eat & Repeat: Salt
Two Years Ago: M&M Dream Bars
Three Years Ago: Carrot Cake Pancakes
Layered Asian Dip
from the Always Superb Cookbook
Ingredients:
for the sauce-
-1/4 cup packed brown sugar
-2 tsp cornstarch
-1 cup water
-1/4 cup ketchup
-2 tbsp vinegar
-1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
-3 drops Sriracha or other hot sauce
for the topping-
-3/4 cup chicken, cooked and shredded
-1/2 cup finely shredded carrot
-1/4 cup chopped unsalted peanuts
-3 tbsp sliced scallions
-1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro (original called for parsley)
-2 tsp soy sauce
-1 tsp grated fresh ginger
-1 garlic clove, minced
for the base-
-8 oz cream cheese, softened
-1 tbsp milk
Directions:
1. To make the sauce, mix the brown sugar and cornstarch in a small saucepan and stir. Add the water, ketchup, vinegar, Worcestershire, and hot sauce and cook over medium for 5 minutes or until mixture has thickened slightly. Transfer to a bowl and allow to stand until cool. Cover and chill until ready to use (mixture will thicken in the fridge).
2. To make the topping, combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and chill for 2-4 hours.
3. When ready to assemble, beat the cream cheese with the milk until smooth. Spread cheese over the bottom of a 10-inch round serving dish. Sprinkle the topping over the base and drizzle with 1/2 cup of the sauce (you will have leftover sauce). Serve with assorted crackers.