Recipe: Bagna Cauda (3) for Anne Stinett

Bagna Cauda
Servings 8

1/2 cup olive oil
1 stick (1/4 pound) butter
3 to 5 cloves garlic, chopped fine
6 anchovy fillets, chopped or mashed
pepper

Heat the oil and butter together in an earthenware pot over hot water or in a double boiler. In another pan cook the garlic in a bit of the oil until it is soft. Add the anchovy fillets, and cook until the fish dissolves into a paste, about 5 minutes. Add all to the pan of hot oil and butter.

The bagna cauda is kept hot in the middle of the table. Guests dip celery, cooked and cooled artichokes, endive, cucumbers, green onions, and Italian bread into this lovely mixture.

Creamy Bagna Cauda
recipe by papergoddess
Creamy version of a classic Italian vegetable dip. Great for a fondue pot. Serve with bread cubes or bite size vegetables.
4.5 cups dip

1 lb real butter
3 cans anchovy fillets
3 heads garlic, mashed
1 quart whipping cream
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Saute garlic in butter until light brown but NOT SCORCHED. Add anchovy filets, then cream. Hold out about 1/2 cup cream and combine with cornstarch. Stir thickener into mixture. Bring to a SIMMER but DO NOT BOIL. Stir constantly until thickened. You can place this in a fondue pot and serve with small, bite size assorted veges or bread cubes. Some suggestions are carrot slices, artichoke hearts, cherry tomatoes, celery slices, cabbage leaves, Belgian Endive, broccoli florets, etc. Guests can dip their choice into the warm sauce.

Bagna Cauda
Source: The Onion Harvest
Yields 1 1/4 cups; serves 8
Warm bagna cauda resounds with garlicky, anchovy-intense flavors that will either expand or reduce your circle of friends--that's what some people say. Yet this sauce repeatedly finds its way to tables in Italy, France, and the United States. This intense and simple starter apparently originated in Piemonte, Italy, only to cross European borders as well as oceans as its popularity grew. I prefer to serve it in cooler weather when the soul and the palate need a little extra warmth. Serve it with chunks of crusty bread and your favorite raw vegetables.

2 ounces crostini
1/2 cup baby carrots
1/2 cup of 1-inch by 2-inch strips of red or yellow bell peppers
1/2 cup thinly sliced zucchini
2-3 stalks celery, cut into 2-inch to 3-inch pieces
1/4 tablespoon virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
6 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 can chopped anchovy filets packed in olive oil
3/4 cup heavy cream

Arrange the crostini, carrots, peppers, zucchini, and celery on a platter and set aside.

In a small saucepan, heat the oil and butter over medium heat until the butter is melted. Blend with a whisk, then add the garlic and anchovies with 2 teaspoons of their oil. Cook the mixture over low heat 5 minutes, using a wooden spoon to mash the garlic and anchovies as they cook. Blend in the cream with a whisk. Transfer the bagna cauda to a fondue pot or warming dish. Serve immediately.