Crudités with Indian Curry Dip

Bland, boring broccoli florets and carrot sticks have given crudités a bad rap. But when you serve crudités with interesting flavors, colors, and shapes and a scrumptious dip, your guests will devour them. Our mom turned us on to this dip. She found the original recipe in a Southern Living Party Cookbook that’s almost as old as we are. Good recipes survive forever!

For the crudités

1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
1 orange bell pepper
1 hothouse (seedless) cucumber
20 to 30 asparagus spears
20 to 30 snow peas

For the dip

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon mild curry powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon, crushed
2 tablespoons grated onion
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon minced chives
3 dashes Tabasco sauce, or to taste
salt and pepper

Prepare the dip

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Prepare the crudités

Quarter the peppers and remove the core, seeds, and ribs. Cut each quarter in half diagonally so you have two triangles, each with a curved base.

Score the cucumber lengthwise with the tines of a fork to remove strips of skin, creating stripes. Cut the cucumber crosswise in half or in thirds, depending on how long it is, to make 4- to 5-inch-long sections, then cut each section lengthwise into slim wedges.

Blanch the asparagus spears and the snow peas at the same time: Drop them into a pot of generously salted, boiling water and cook until you can pierce the asparagus spears with a fork but they’re still crisp, 3 to 5 minutes depending on the thickness of the spears. (The snow peas are more forgiving, so focus on whether the asparagus spears are done.) Immediately plunge the vegetables into a bowl of ice water until they’re no longer warm. Pat dry with paper towels.

To make an appealing display, serve the vegetables standing up in a bowl instead of laying them flat on a plate or tray.

Makes approximately (very approximately!) 100 pieces and about 1 1/2 cups of dip.

Make-Ahead Factor

All the vegetables can be cut and blanched (if necessary) 1 day ahead. Keep them in the refrigerator loosely wrapped in damp paper towels. The dip can be made 3 to 4 days ahead and kept covered and refrigerated.

From Cocktail Parties, Straight Up! Easy Hors D'oeuvres, Delicious Drinks and Inspired Ideas for Entertaining with Style by Lauren and Anne Purcell.