Green Goddess Veggie Dip Cups are fun portable appetizers or healthy snacks to keep in the refrigerator for when the munchies strike.
green goddess veggie dip cups are party problem solvers!
I was put on appetizer duty for a friend’s barbecue today. She wanted to solve the problem of the appetizer table that sits untouched while all her guests spread out around the yard talking and drinking. She asked me to come with something more portable that people could take with them instead of being tethered to a table.
I came up with these little veggie dip cups. I love them. They’re colorful and healthy, and they completely avoid the whole communal dip in the sun issue. I hate that. Everybody gets their own personal, portable, appetizer which makes for happy guests who are free to mingle…your parties just got 100% better.
what you’ll need
- green goddess dip
- a thicker version of my classic green goddess dressing. You can use a readymade dressing if you like.
- fresh veggies: your choice of any vegetable that can be cut into similar lengths to fit into your cup.
- asparagus
- bell peppers
- carrots
- beans
- jicama
- cucumber
- green onion
- snap peas
- cherry tomatoes, stuck onto a toothpick
how to assemble veggie dip cups
I started with a dip version of my homemade Green Goddess Dressing. I layered it at the bottom of each cup.
TIP: Anchovy paste comes in a tube and lasts forever in the fridge. It doesn’t taste ‘fishy’, and gives the dip a wonderful flavor. The paste and the tarragon are key to the Green Goddess experience.
Then I julienned the most colorful bunch of veggies I could find. Rainbow carrots, peppers, jicama, thin asparagus, English cucumber…anything that was crunchy and long enough to stack in the cup.
Most of the veggies are served raw, but for vegetables like asparagus and green beans I blanched them in boiling water for just about 30 seconds to take the raw ‘edge’ off, and then put them into ice water to stop the cooking and keep their bright color. Pop cherry tomatoes on the end of long toothpicks.
tips for making green goddess veggie dips cups
- For outside entertaining use plastic cups.
- Choose cups with high sides so your veggies stay put. The shape should flare out slightly for easy noshing.
- Make sure to layer enough of the dip at the bottom, you don’t want your cup to run dry before all the veggies are gone.
- Make sure your veggies are fresh and thinly cut.
- Pay attention to color so your cups are vibrant.
more fun appetizers
- Whipped Basil Ricotta with Spring Crudité
- Crudité is the new charcuterie!
- Jarcuterie!
- peach prosciutto & ricotta crostini
- Baked Feta Bruschetta
- Cowboy Caviar Recipe
Veggie Dip Cups with Green Goddess Dip
Ingredients
dip
- 1/3 cup parsley leaves
- 1/3 cup fresh dill fronds
- 1/3 cup tarragon leaves
- 1/3 cup chives
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 clove garlic, smashed
- 2 Tbsp mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/3 cup soft goat cheese
- 1-2 tsp anchovy paste, optional but I recommend it
- salt and fresh cracked black pepper
veggie cups
- 8 oz clear plastic party tumblers, mine were about 3 1/2 inches high
- assorted colorful veggies:
- asparagus
- green beans
- rainbow carrots
- jicama
- bell peppers
- English, or Persian cucumber
- skinny green onions
- sugar snap peas
- cherry tomatoes to put on the end of long toothpicks
Instructions
green goddess dip
- Rinse your herbs well and put them in the bowl of a small food processor. Run the machine until the herbs are finely mined, scraping down the sides as you go to get all the herbs completely processed. This is going to give your dip that lovely pale green color.
- Add the lemon juice, garlic, and mayonnaise and continue processing until everything is blended well and there are no larger pieces of herbs left. You will still have to scrape down the sides.
- Add the yogurt, sour cream, goat cheese and anchovy paste. Process until blended.
- Taste the dip, and add the salt and pepper. Add extra lemon if needed.
assemble the cups
- Peel and slice the veggies into sticks. Cut them to a length where they will just peek out from the tops of your cups when stacked.
- For tough vegetables like the beans and asparagus, plunge them in a pot of boiling salted water for about 30 seconds to a minute after it comes back to a boil. Then put them directly into a bath of ice water to stop the cooking and retain their bright color.
- Layer a little dip on the bottom of each cup. Then arrange an grouping of vegetable sticks on top. Keep cold and covered with a damp paper towel until ready to serve.
Make it your own ~
- Make it with your favorite dip. Use your favorite salad dressing, hummus, or guacamole.
- Make it ahead. If you slice up your veggies ahead of time, wrap them in damp paper towels to keep them from drying out.
Currently pregnant and craving crunchy vegetables and this recipe is AMAZING!!!! I can’t stop eating jicama and snap peas dipped in it. Thanks for this tasty recipe!
My favorite 2 veggies for crudité!
Can you make these the day before the event, or do the vegetables get soggy?
I think if you covered each cup with a damp paper towel and then plastic over them they would keep. Otherwise you could prep the veggies separately, keep them in damp cloth and plastic, and assemble the cups the day of.
If one is not a fan of goat cheese can it be omitted or should something else be added to keep the same volume of dip? Thanks.
Feel free to increase the amount of yogurt or sour cream. You could also use any other soft creamy cheese you like.
Where did you find your cups?
I find mine in my regular grocery store, Renee, and if you have a party store near you they’re great sources for all shapes and sizes of plastic cups. Amazon will have them as well.
Love the idea. Where did you get the tumblers. I have not been able to find this size.
This is an old post, Dara, so I don’t recall exactly where I got them,but I’ve seen them in other large grocery stores a lot. Any medium, slightly flared cup should work.
I would SO love to see these on a table at a party. I’d be grabbing 2 just for me!
Something so cool about individual cups of deliciousness. Easy to get your veggies in when you make it looks so pretty!