Smoked Paprika & Chipotle White Bean Dip

Smoked Paprika and Chipotle White Bean Dip

Sometimes a woman just needs a good snack.  A few days ago, I had a loaf of corn pudding sourdough baking in the oven, pushing its fragrant fresh bread smells out past the kitchen and into the living room where I was trying to get stuff done.  It was clear that once the bread was out of the oven and cooling on the rack, some sampling would need to happen and I probably would need something to sample it with.

I had been planning to make a white bean soup for dinner, so the beans were already bubbling away on the stove top.  Meanwhile, I’d been distracted reading a story on London’s best brunches and noted that one of the recommended restaurants served white bean hummus as part of the brunch.  And so of course the wheels started turning in my head about how I too could whip up a batch of white bean hummus to go with my soon-to-be-ready corn pudding sourdough, and off I rumbled to the kitchen to get started.

The dish quickly turned from hummus to bean dip when I decided that the wonderful flavor of Tahini was not what I was in the mood for, and I decided to kick it up with some spices instead.

Go ahead, get started on this one.  If you plan ahead, you can soak & cook your own beans.  If that feels like too much bother, use canned beans, but I recommend warming the beans up in their juice on the stove so that the juices just begin to bubble, and the proceed with the recipe.  Best served warm.  With fresh bread.

Except there’s one more thing:  by the time the bean dip was done, the bread was still too hot to eat, so I spread the bean dip onto croutons I’d made from the previous batch of bread.  That was delicious.  So was the corn pudding bread with bean dip a little later in the day.  You really can’t go wrong with this, no matter what kind of bread receptacle you put it on.

Smoked Paprika and Chipotle White Bean Dip

Enjoy.

Smoked Paprika & Chipotle White Bean Dip

If you start with dried beans, the night before, combine in a bowl:
1 cup dried white beans 
3 cups cold water

The next morning, drain and rinse the beans, cover with about 1 inch of water in a pot.  Bring to boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer so the water just barely bubbles.  Simmer for 45 minutes and then add:

1 teaspoon table salt
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and cut in half

Continue simmering for 15 minutes.  The beans should be very tender.  If not, cook an additional 10 – 15 minutes.  Remove from heat.

If you start with canned beans, do this:
1 can of white beans – should equal about two cups, with liquid
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and cut in half

Pour beans into a pot, with liquid.  Add garlic cloves.  Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and simmer for 15 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Proceed with recipe.

Pull out your food processor or blender.  Pour the beans and their liquid (if more than 1/2 liquid, reserve some and add later if needed) in the processor/blender bowl.  Process until the mixture is smooth, then add:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle
6 grinds fresh black pepper (about 1/4 teaspoon)

Process until the mixture is thoroughly combined.  Taste to see if you need more salt. Adjust as necessary. Tip out into a bowl and serve warm or at room temperature.  You can make this ahead and store in the refrigerator for up to a few days, and then warm it up slightly before serving.

Makes 2 cups.