Down a Rabbit Hole for a Dip

Originally published a few years ago. With vacation coming up and potato chip season in full swing, this rabbit hole felt worth revisiting.

No skinny dipping here. Full fat… and a secret ingredient.

I started thinking about my upcoming vacation and how much I love snacks. Especially chips.

Potato chips.

I’m particularly fond of them with cottage cheese.

That combination used to qualify as one of my weird Food Union pairings. But apparently I’m not alone. Cottage cheese and chips have become a thing, and cottage cheese itself is having quite the resurgence.

Actually the weird FU would be those Jell-O molds with cottage cheese.

Hmm… a comeback?

There’s another blog post.

thanks to Plowing through Life I found a recipe and photo click HERE

Card Parties and Pink Dip

I loved helping my mom get ready for her card parties.

That’s when the dip came out.

I wasn’t even sure I liked it at first. But I liked potato chips, so I kept dipping, and eventually it grew on me.

We’d skewer salami and cheese cubes onto toothpicks, there were always bars for dessert, and everything fit perfectly on one very trendy rectangular glass plate.

You know the one.

Little glass balls all around the edge.

A ribbed bottom.

Every 1960s hostess seemed to own one.

Why?

Because there was a place for everything.

Your snacks.

Your dessert.

Your coffee cup.

And…

Your cigarette.

Yes.

Built-in ashtrays.

Dip Your Toe In With Me

Anchor Hocking made the Berwick pattern, better known as Boopie. The dishes were wildly popular.

There’s also a very similar pattern made by Imperial called Candlewick. The easiest way to tell them apart is the glass beads. Boopie’s beads sit close together, while Candlewick’s are spaced farther apart.

I believe my set is actually Hazel Atlas Candlewick, circa 1940–1950.

The official name?

A “Snack – Sip and Smoke” set.

Because the design includes a section for food, a place for your cup…

…and an ashtray.

Note the ashtray.

So Mad Men, right?

My kids have zero interest in them, so they’ll probably end up in the shop sooner rather than later.

If you’re looking for vintage plates that double as ashtrays, let me know.

Oh my gosh…

I just realized I might also have the punch bowl that goes with this set.

Now I have to dig that out because I think it actually has some value.

Back to the Pink Dip

I remembered the dip being very oniony.

I was also pretty sure French dressing gave it that unmistakable pink color.

Time to Google.

I found a recipe from Plowing Through Life that looks pretty close.

Except I’m positive ours had minced onion in it.

Their version is much prettier than ours ever was.

Our 1960s version was a very pale Pepto-Bismol pink.

The secret ingredient?

French dressing.

I’m trying to remember the bottle.

Maybe Kraft.

Maybe Wish-Bone.

Definitely orange.

Not Western.

Not Catalina.

And definitely don’t confuse it with Casino.

Wait… How Did French Dressing Become Orange?

Ready to descend another rabbit hole?

In the 1896 Boston Cooking School Cookbook—the original Fannie Farmer Cookbook—the section on salad dressings begins with French dressing.

The recipe?

Simply oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper.

So where did the orange stuff come from?

There’s some debate, but most roads lead to the Milani brand, which began commercially producing its orange dressing around 1920. They called it 1890 French Dressing.

A 1947 New York Times article says:

“…made according to a recipe that originated in Paris…”

It also contained tomatoes and sold for 29 cents an eight-ounce bottle.

I couldn’t find a photo or advertisement for the bottle.

But of course…

There was a matchbook.

Kraft Joins the Party

In 1925, Kraft—then primarily a cheese company—expanded into salad dressings after purchasing several regional mayonnaise companies, including Milani.

By 1931 Kraft was making French dressing under its own name.

By the 1940s they introduced Miracle French Dressing, which contained just a “leetle” garlic.

(Please say that with an exaggerated fake French accent.)

By the 1950s, “French Dressing” had wandered even farther from its vinaigrette roots with paprika, chili sauce, ketchup, and even tomato soup finding their way into recipes.

The Joy of Cooking devotes more than three pages to variations.

Let’s Get Back to Dips

The best dips usually have a secret ingredient.

The simplest?

California Dip.

Also known as French Onion Dip.

Sour cream.

Lipton Onion Soup Mix.

A ruffled potato chip.

Still delicious.

Clam Dip

Clam dip was everywhere during the ’60s and ’70s.

My mother-in-law swore by a mysterious powdered green onion mix she could only find in Florida and had shipped to Minnesota.

That’s honestly all I remember.

If anyone knows what that magical ingredient was called, please tell me.

The rest of the recipe was cream cheese, canned minced clams, garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and that mystery seasoning.

Spinach Dip

By the 1980s, I was making spinach dip.

This recipe is on the back of Knorr Swiss Soup mix and that is exactly how I made it.

Most people think the secret ingredient is Knorr Swiss Vegetable Soup Mix.

For me?

It’s the water chestnuts.

Don’t leave them out.

Ever.

We served it with Fritos.

So. Damn. Good.

Hormel Chili Dip

Speaking of Fritos…

We also made the classic Hormel Chili and Velveeta dip.

Yes.

I actually made it.

I actually ate it.

And yes…

I reheated it.

More than once.

I may or may not have given both myself and JZ food poisoning.

That little detail will remain our secret.

Artichoke Dip

Then restaurants discovered hot artichoke dip.

It showed up everywhere.

Personally?

I’m over it.

I wouldn’t make it.

I wouldn’t order it.

Although, to be fair, it never really belonged in the potato chip dip category anyway.

Your Turn

I’d love to do a Part II featuring everyone’s nostalgic favorites.

Email me (hello@thisisfoodunion.com) your family’s dip recipe.

Especially if it includes a secret ingredient.

And while we’re at it…

What’s your favorite potato chip?

Wavy?

Smooth?

Kettle cooked?

Extra crispy?

These days I don’t eat chips very often.

But if I’m going to, they’re going to be amazing.

My current favorite isn’t wavy at all.

It’s Route 11 Chips.

I rotate three flavors in the shop, but Mama Zuma’s is always a mainstay.

Oh hey…

Speaking of rabbit holes…

That vintage display piece in the photos has its own story.

Want to read about it?

Go HERE. the also became a rabbit hole in that first I edited this old post. The the one I want to link to needs help. But I gotta get out of town. Wditing will come later. Enter at your own risk.