I Pinned It & I Did It: Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip

Yesterday was Thanksgiving.  We had a wonderful day at my sisters house with lots of immediate and extended family.  I was responsible for the green bean casserole, pumpkin bread and cranberry sauce.  Most of our family enjoys the gel from the can variety, but a few of us can't do without the real thing.  So I decided to use half a bag of cranberries to make a small dish of sauce.  With half a bag of cranberries left over, I set out to find a use for them.  



Of course, I headed straight for Pinterest and it did not disappoint.  I found a pin for Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip.  (link to the original source here)  It was super easy to assemble, and most importantly, everyone loved it!  I halved the recipe and it was more than plenty for 15 adults and a few kids to snack on before Thanksgiving dinner.  Also note, that even though many of the ingredients have a kick to them, this really was not a spicy dish at all.  The cranberries and sugar counteracted the heat nicely.  I will definitely be making this again soon.  

Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip

Time: 15 minutes prep + 4 hours refrigeration

Yield: 15 servings

Recipe adapted from Heather Peterson

1  12 oz package fresh cranberries, chopped

1/4 C green onion, chopped

1/4 C cilantro, chopped

1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped

1 1/4 C sugar

1/4 t cumin

2 T lemon juice

dash salt

2  8 oz packages cream cheese

1. Put your cranberries in a food processor or mini chopper.  You could also, just chop them up.  

2.  Combine all ingredients EXCEPT the cream cheese.   Refrigerate at least 4 hours.   

3.  Spread softened cream cheese onto platter.

4.  Top evenly with cranberry mixture.

5.  Serve with Wheat Thins, Ritz Crackers or Tortilla Chips.

  

**Remember I halved this recipe.  It served 15 of us and I still have some leftover!   

The Problem with the Re-Pin

About a month ago, I discovered the wonderful world of Pinterest.  For those of you who are not familiar, Pinterest is a unique social networking sight.  Instead of posting a personal status, you create virtual bulletin boards where you can post pictures of projects you are working on, recipes you are baking, products you love, or fashion/interior design/home decor styles that you either currently have in your home or simply dream about having one day.

You can follow the boards of people you know, and of others you don't know on the site. It is brilliant!  There is an endless supply of beautiful things to choose from to get your creative juices flowing.  Since joining Pinterest, this non-crafty girl started her very first wreath.  I have framed printable artwork just for the holidays.   A picture on pinterest inspired me to organize closets in my home that otherwise would never have been touched, and would probably be busting at the seams.  It is a good thing!


I have a confession, though.  I rarely post original ideas.  If you search my boards, only two or three of my pins are original.  Every other photo on them, is a result of the Re-Pin.  A Re-Pin is where you re-post someone else's  photo onto your own board.  On one hand this is a great thing.  You see a beautiful project you would love to duplicate in your own home, or a recipe you think your family would love, and you Re-Pin it to your own board to save the idea for later.  So when the mood strikes, it is easy to find and easy to get started.  But on the other hand, how do you know if the project is really as simple as it seems?  Or if the recipe is really as delicious as it looks?  There are rarely follow up posts to let you know if the undertaking was a piece of cake, just one giant headache or something in between.


And that is the inspiration for this latest blog post.  I am going to keep track of the Pinterest projects I actually decide to tackle, and give an honest review of how an everyday un-crafty, somewhat skilled cook is able to succeed or fail at them.  You can see them on this blog and on my Pinterest board:   I Pinned It & I Did It! 

Happy Pinning!