This creamy, vegan dip is deceptively good and very versatile!
TIME: 5 minutes prep, 35 minutes total (if garlic is roasted ahead of time) YIELD: 10 servings RECOMMENDED VARIETY: Belarus or Music
INGREDIENTS
2–4 teaspoons olive oil
1–2 whole bulbs of garlic (depending on how much you like the flavor of roasted garlic)
2 cups white onion, peeled, cut in half and finely sliced
2 teaspoons white granulated sugar
12 oz silken tofu
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
2 teaspoons white miso paste
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon white ground pepper
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon dried or fresh thyme
¼ cup plain plant-based milk
INSTRUCTIONS FOR ROASTING THE GARLIC (This step can be done one or two days in advance. Store your roasted bulb in the refrigerator until ready to use.)
Preheat oven to 375ªF.
Keep the garlic bulb(s) in one piece, and slice about ¼-½ inch straight off the top of the bulb(s), exposing the inside of the cloves.
Drizzle the cut side of the cloves/bulb(s) with 1–2 tablespoons of olive oil.
Take a square of tin foil, put one garlic bulb cut-side down in the middle, and wrap it tightly. Repeat for additional bulbs you are roasting.
Bake garlic in the oven on a cookie sheet, cut side up for around 40 minutes. Check that the cloves have softened completely.
If the cloves are not soft enough, bake for 5–10 more minutes.
Once the cloves are completely soft, remove the bulb(s) from the oven and allow to cool in the foil.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR ASSEMBLING THE DIP
Add 1–2 tablespoons olive oil to a sauté pan over a medium-low heat. Once hot, add the sliced onion.
Cook onion slowly for 25 minutes, stirring frequently.
Once the onion is very soft and starting to look golden, add the sugar and stir well.
Continue to cook onion slices for another 5 minutes until they are a deep golden brown. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Add the tofu, nutritional yeast, white miso, vinegar, sea salt, white pepper and lemon juice to a food processor or blender. Pulse for 2-3 seconds to combine.
Gently squeeze the roasted garlic cloves out of their papery skins into the mixture, along with half of the onion and a small splash of the milk.
Process the mixture until completely smooth. Check the consistency and add a little more milk if you prefer a slightly thinner dip; you may not end up using the entire ¼ cup of milk.
Add the thyme and the rest of the onion, then stir by hand to distribute. (If you prefer your dip to be completely smooth, blend all the onion and thyme into it using your food processor or blender.)
Spoon into a serving dish. Keeps for up to one week if refrigerated in a sealed container.