Tomato Dip and Bagel Chips: Summer’s Perfect Snack

I remember when I first discovered bagel chips; they were like a hip more flavourful version of my grandmother’s Melba Toast. In Canada, we had great bagel chips from our local bagel shop and then, over the years, all kinds of versions popped up. The thick dry ones were almost chewy and tooth-breaking, the thin ones were sawdusty and too airy. I lost interest in bagel chips until now. Cali Bagels makes delicious vegan bagel chips in four different varieties Cali Bagels sent me a sample of their Pacific sea salted bagel chips and my love of these skinny, round, crunchy slices of bagel came rushing back. Cali bagels are the perfect thickness and have just the right ooomph and crunch. You can snack on the Cali Bagels plain or dip them into my favourite summer dip: Samantha’s Bubbe’s Creamy Tomato dip.

I am usually a strict recipe person and prefer when I have all the quantities and directions, but for this recipe you can play with the proportions based on taste. Don’t skimp on the onion though. If you want the dip thicker and more spreadable, then increase the amount of cream cheese. If you want a softer dip, then keep the ratio of cream cheese and mayonnaise as is.

Ingredients

• 1/2 a block of cream cheese (4 oz)
• 1/4 cup of mayonnaise
• 1/4 of a small white onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1-2 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
• 1/2 tsp of salt
• 1/4 tsp of pepper

Directions

1. In a bowl, add the 4 oz. of cream cheese and 1/4 cup of mayonnaise.
2. Mince the garlic and add it to the cream cheese mixture. With a hand mixer, mix the cream cheese, mayonnaise and garlic. (If you bring the cream cheese to room temperature you can mix this with a fork instead of a mixer.)
3. Finely dice the onion and add it to the mixture. Then, seed the tomato by slicing one end and scooping out the seeds and core with a spoon like you would a melon.
4. Finely dice the tomatoes. Sprinkle the diced tomatoes on the board with a little salt and pepper. Add the tomatoes to the cream cheese mixture. Season the dip with salt and pepper and chill until ready to serve.