3 Ingredient Artichoke Dip and Chicken Artichoke Baguettes

Writing a blog is time consuming. Don’t get me wrong; I really enjoy it. But I’m not sure that readers always know what is involved. It may seem easy-writing, taking a few photos, bim, bam, bop, you’ve got it. But when you become addicted to the act of blogging, it takes some thought, too. How do you make it better? Technology always kills me. That I got this far sometimes amazes me. I think if I’d read A blog before starting this venture I might not have set sail. But writing the blog, at least when I began, was an act of preserving myself. It kind of, at least in my head, was a bit like a living will. Something that might mean something to my kids or even their future kids, somewhere down the road. The funny thing is that I’m not even sure they read it. Well, I know they do sometimes. But maybe one day they will know that when I write, I write with them in mind. I mean right now they are only 22, from their perspective it could be that I seem like I’ll live forever. Puhleeze! I’m happy to make it to tomorrow.

There are tons of blogs out in the statosphere. And there are mucho tons of good ones. Some write on trends, on fashion, on crafts, on raising kids, on cancer, on money, on special diets, on books. I mean I could fill my time just reading and commenting on others blogs. And that’s part of being a blogger. It’s kind of professional courtesy to read others blogs. And that took me a long time to figure out because I didn’t really know where I was going when I started. Not that I do now either. But reading is good for me. It gives me great ideas and tons of problems to solve. Like how did they take that picture? Or how do they get the picture in the heading of burning the feed? Or where did that gadget come from? And don’t even get me started thinking about YOU TUBE or Twitter or Facebook. Or Stumble Upon or Pinterest. I mean does it really matter? Well, it does if you want other people to see your blog. And when you start spending a lot of time on it; it becomes a bit like a kid. You want to watch it grow. You want to see what it will become. And so the addiction grows. And that keeps one writing and trying to become better at those skills which we lack.

And sometime that is a good thing. They (I never know who they are) say that you must do new things to keep your brain young. And I am hoping all this helps. Like trying to figure out why my blog has a weak feed and not a good link. Or why it doesn’t go to some people who subscribe all the time. And the newest tip I read is that I should write on Blogger and not write in Word to start and then transfer it to Blogger. (Which also explains the different font today!)This will help keep your code clean. See what I mean? I mean if you don’t write a blog do you even have a clue what I’m talking about? Not that it much matters, because I’m still don’t. And how do you get more subscribers? Well, don’t even go there!

And today I read a blog about where to store your props for your blog. I mean I would love to have props. Like fancy plates and antique dishes. Yeah, I WOULD really love that. Add antique table linens and old wood tables and, well, I could go on and on. A beautiful garden would be quite lovely and so would old copper pots. When in actuality I could just use some lights. And photography lessons. But reading blogs with photo tips does help. Even if I don’t understand what I read the first time! And my husband did finally locate the old tripod in the basement we call his office. We’ll see if that helps!

And with the thoughts of all the above filling my head the weekend came and went. But last night I still made dinner and it was pretty, pretty, good. (Thank you Larry David.) It was quick and satisfied my need for artichoke dip even though it wasn’t artichoke dip. My son snatched the artichoke dip that we had leftover from visiting him last weekend. And with it he snatched away from me a ton of calories. And that was definitely a good thing. 

 

I love, love, love artichoke dip. My mom used to make it for Thanksgiving way back when; when I ‘m not even sure I knew what a fresh artichoke looked like. For all I knew they grew in a can. And artichoke dip was one of the first recipes I made when I went off to college. By now it is everywhere and most of the recipes are a bit more complicated than the one below. But in the belief that simple is better I will give it to you today.

If you are still in college or a recent grad you should always keep all three ingredients on hand for those days when everyone ends up in your kitchen drinking beers and getting hungry. It will impress the easily impressionables and satisfy all those who can’t cook and even those who do. It is an easy recipe to remember even if you have had too many beers. (Maybe that is why I ate to much of it?) You can make it in a blender or you can just mash it up with a fork. Or you could be way cool and go buy one of those hand held blenders and whirl away. Just watch your fingers, please. (I had a friend  that I miss, who needed stitches once because somehow her hand got in the way. Ouch!) And always serve this dip with potato chips because potato chips are my favorite junk food.

And then on to these gratifying chicken artichoke baguettes. This started in the back of my head with the snatched artichoke dip still lurking in its recesses. And this is what that artichoke dip became. Definitely perfect for a lazy Sunday night supper. You might even have a beer with it as you ponder the making of a good blog. Or not.

 

(I do not have a picture because it disappears too fast.)
Time to Make: About 10 minutes
Time to Bake: About 30 minutes
Ingredients:

1 can artichoke hearts in water, well drained

1 c  parmesan cheese (in the plastic container or fresh if you are flush!)

1 c mayonnaise (light or not)

Directions:
Using a 4 cup measuring cup or a medium sized bowl,  place drained artichokes, cheese and mayo in it. I use an immersion blender and blend this until smooth. You can also put this in a blender or food processor to achieve the same results. Scoop into an oven proof dish. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes until it is gold on top. Serve with potato chips. (true confessions-if there are leftovers they are good baked on toast for breakfast)

2 poached chicken breasts or the equivalent of 2 1/2 c cooked chicken

5 green onions thinly sliced

1 8oz can artichoke hearts drained well and chopped

1/2 c hearts of palm drained  and chopped OR 1 8oz can water chestnuts optional

3/4 c mayonnaise

3/4 c parmesan in container (This is embarrassing)

3/4 t garlic powder

2T sour cream

1 t oregano

Salt and Pepper

3 halved 6″ baguettes or your favorite roll

Chop or shred chicken. Mix green onions, artichoke hearts, hearts of palm or water chestnuts, mayo, parmesan and seasonings. Add chicken and stir well.

Cut baguettes lengthwise through center. Scoop out inside of bread so you have more room for filling. (You are creating a shell to hold the filling.) Spoon in filling until full. Top with a sprinkle of parmesan.

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until bread is crispy and filling is golden brown. Sprinkle with a little green onions and ponder the cyberspace.

And a few other goodies: