Fast Fruit Dip

An unexpected discovery, this fast and easy fruit dip has become something of a recurring character in my dessert rotation. Given, there is not chocolate involved, so its claim as a dessert is tenuous, but there is a sweetness to it that will sate a post-meal hankering.  It’s got just enough sweet to scratch that sweet craving without sabotaging your healthy diet, and significantly less sugar than the pre-packaged stuff.

This year’s Superbowl was going to be quite the non-event at our house: Hubs was in tech rehearsals for a show and I just didn’t care enough to make plans. Our sole family member in town, however, called up and wanted to get together, but my instructions were strict: Do not make this an event. Ooooooookay.

I behaved myself, mostly; the day of the Superbowl, I did end up running to the store for a fruit and veggie assortment. Just a little something to munch on, ya know. I returned with some veggies and hummus, some fruit and an idea.

While I was at the store I wanted to find a healthy fruit dip. I know, I know, it’s the Superbowl, but there were some dietary constraints to be considered amongst those assembled. So, fruit dip: the packaged stuff didn’t seem to meet the criteria – too much sugar. Certainly I could do better. I grabbed a big tub of some greek yogurt and headed home with half a notion of how to make it an acceptable dip for my yogurt-hating Hubs.

Veggies washed, chopped, and arranged on a tray. Check. Fruit chopped and arranged on a tray. Check. Now for the dip. I wanted it sweet but tangy, smooth and thick – too runny and it wouldn’t cling to the fruit and I’d have a big mess on my hands. From the blank canvas of the yogurt, I started by adding some sweet with agave nectar. I love agave nectar for things just like this; unlike honey, it blends completely into cold things like yogurt and iced drinks. After tasting, it seemed two-dimensional. It needed some tang, something a little sour: enter lemon juice. After monkeying around with the ratios, I found a nice balance and served my low-key Superbowl spread.

Since then, I’ve made the dip again in the small, individual size yogurt cups, as pictured above. It works wonders for winter melon, you know, that melon that’s mostly texture and very little taste. Yeah, that. Think how much better it will be later this summer when the melons are fresh from the farmers’ market?!

Fast Fruit Dip

1 carton of Greek yogurt

Lemon or Lime Juice

Agave Nectar

Now, for the VERY PRECISE measuring and mixing method:

Remove lid from yogurt. Squeeze in lemon or lime juice until a small film of juice is covering the top of the yogurt. Squeeze about twice that amount of agave necter on top. Gently stir. Dip fruit piece. Enjoy.

Monkey around with your proportions until the flavors balance the way you like them. I especially like the brightness that the lemon juice brings to the dip. I’ve been known to make this my lunch, actually, or breakfast, not just my dessert.

(And, for the record, I am not in the habit of buying winter melon. But it was the Superbowl. And the dip was that good, that it drove me to buy another winter melon.)