I could write an ode to smoked salmon dip at this point. My whole family has fallen in love with this snack. We dip vegetables into it, crackers, and even chips. I’ve smeared it on a bagel and eaten it off a spoon straight from the fridge. You can not go wrong with this one, my friends.

Smoked Salmon Dip Recipe

We love the smoked trout dip at Hudson29 so much, it inspired me to figure out how to make smoked salmon dip at home for unlimited access. This recipe would work every bit as well with smoked trout, if that is an easily accessible ingredient for you. Where I am, smoked salmon is readily available almost everywhere.

This creamy dip starts with a simple creamy smooth base of blended cream cheese and sour cream. And then you’ll add bright tangy lemon juice, briny capers, fresh dill, even a little horseradish for some subtle heat, before mixing in the salmon for rich, smoky flavor.

If you’re looking for a snack or appetizer that feels kind of fancy (with the bare minimum of effort) next time you have friends over, this is it. And while my kids have never been super fussy eaters, I was shocked how much they liked this. My oldest even asked it I could make it again a few days later because he enjoyed it so much.

Smoked Salmon Dip

We serve salmon dip with crackers, crostini, tortilla chips, pretzels, even potato chips. (And yes, my boys will eat this with absolutely everything – no judgement here.)

I love it with fresh vegetables, the crisp cold vegetables pair perfectly. And believe it or not, while celery may not be my favorite vegetable pretty much ever, I LOVE it with this dip. I will happily eat an entire plate of celery alongside some salmon dip.

My favorite way to make this is with visible chunks of salmon scattered throughout the creamy dip. However, you can also blend everything together until it’s a smooth and creamy spread, perfect for spreading on sandwiches or bagels. The dip is terrific made both ways.

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Cottage cheese dip is a great tasting savory snack that just happens to be high protein and good for you, too! Scoop it up with cracker, crudités, bread, or chicken bites, but do make it!

Cottage Cheese Dip

Cottage cheese is just having a great big moment of fame lately, isn’t it? And I am so very much here for it. I love cottage cheese. I eat it pretty much every day, so whenever I learn of a new way to enjoy it, I’m likely to try that immediately.

When my friend Rebecca was visiting a few months back, she shared this cottage cheese dip with me and I was hooked. It became an instant favorite not just with me, but with my family, too.

We’ve been making ours mostly with these ranch seasonings or with a packet of onion dip, but you can make this with just about any seasoning or spice mix you like. It’s awesome to have a high-protein snack food that’s so easy to put together and so tasty, too! Not only is it delicious, but it’s also much more budget friendly than protein bars and protein shakes.

Whipped Cottage Cheese

You can use whichever cottage cheese is your preference: small curd, large curd, lowfat, or full fat. Small curd has a tangier flavor and less moisture while large curd usually has a milder, sweeter taste and more moisture. That will affect the thickness and tanginess of your dip, so choose accordingly.

If you’re a cottage cheese vegetable dip fan, you may want to give our Cottage Cheese Eggs and Cottage Cheese Pancakes a whirl. And don’t forget the sweets! Believe it or not, those fabulous little curds are great in Cottage Cheese Ice Cream, too.

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Give your regular tuna sandwich a high octane upgrade with this spicy tuna salad recipe. A little bit of hot sauce and some jarred jalapeños bring the heat to this anything-but-boring tuna salad. You’re going to look forward to lunch all morning long!

Spicy Tuna Salad

I have always loved tuna salad, but sometimes I just feel the need to change it up. This zesty tuna can be as hot or as mild as you’d like it, depending on the oomph your jarred jalapeños pack.

Many major brands label their canned peppers as mild, medium, or hot, so choose accordingly! And if you -like we do- love some fire, use “hot” canned peppers, go for it with the hot sauce, and add the optional cayenne pepper.

Whatever you do, don’t skip the crunchy celery and onion! The texture they bring to the party makes this tuna salad hard to stop eating! And the cilantro adds a burst of freshness that really makes you want more.

Spicy Tuna Fish Salad

My first thought after eating a giant serving of the salad plain was that it would make a killer pasta salad and boy was I right! To turn this into a pasta salad, double the dressing and add 8 ounces of bite-size pasta.

Spicy Tuna Salad Recipe

Not a fa

Sweet berries, spicy jalapenos, onions, cilantro, and a squeeze of lime combine to make this strawberry salsa. This comes together in about 15 minutes and the salsa disappears almost faster than that every single time I make it.

Strawberry Salsa

You may be wondering what you serve this with. The truth is that we usually descend on a bowl of this and it never gets eaten with anything other than a handful of tortilla chips.

Each time I make it, I think that strawberry salsa would be awesome on chicken or fish. However, it has never lasted long enough for me to actually test that. Somebody let me know if you try it.

Between this salsa and my pineapple salsa, I just can’t stop making fruit salsas this summer! They’re hard to resist and there’s no good reason to resist them, anyway; they’re great for you!

Strawberry Jalapeno Salsa

To whip up this fantastic fruit salsa, you’ll need the following ingredients:

• strawberries
• jalapenos
• green onions
• cilantro
• limes
• salt
• pepper

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Pork, shrimp, and vegetables are folded into a paper-thin lumpia wrapper and then fried to crisp golden perfection in this traditional recipe for Filipino lumpia. Almost 30 years ago, I tasted lumpia for the first time and I fell in love with them at first bite.

Filipino Lumpia

Unfortunately, I lost touch with the friend who introduced them to me. Luckily, I remembered lumpia a few years ago and realized that I might be able to make them at home.

Then I ran into a problem. Where would I find the recipe? I looked online and didn’t find anything that sounded quite right. The lumpia I remembered was not your average eggroll.

There wasn’t cabbage or an abundance of vegetables in them. I simply remembered that there were a lot of different flavors packed into a very thin wrapper.

I mentioned my lumpia craving to a friend, (thanks, Sandra!) who told me to look for one of her friends on Facebook. I did that and proceeded to message back and forth with her friend, Irene, who was happy to chat about lumpia recipes for a bit to make sure I had it right.

The lumpia turned out fabulously and my middle son immediately requested them for his birthday meal the following year. We like to serve lumpia with this simple Asian-inspired Rice and bowls of Egg Drop Soup.

In my house, a birthday request is the very highest of food compliments. Everyone in the family devoured these and my youngest actually cried when they were gone. There wasn’t a single one left or we probably would have eaten more.

Over the years, I’ve made traditional lum