Minty Yogurt Dip Could Be Memorable Experience

Some people remember significant events in their lives by associating them with a certain song. I remember landmark events by associating them with food.

My college years will always be associated with mountains of Persian food. My roommate was an exchange student from Iran and one of the best home cooks I have met. Interestingly, a large portion of his repertoire was vegetarian.

One of my favorites was called Chaser. It’s an all-purpose dip or sauce made from caramelized onions, spinach, plain yogurt and mint. For years, I dipped my French bread into it, poured it over my rice and ate it out of the bowl.

But one day, as my friend was in the middle of whipping up the Chaser, he asked: “Aren’t you curious why this is called ‘Chaser’?” Indeed, I was about to find out. As the perfume of fresh chopped mint and browned onions filled the air, he pulled a bottle of Russian vodka embedded in a block of ice from the freezer. “Whenever we drink vodka, we eat Chaser,” he said.

The cooling effects of the yogurt and fresh chopped mint had a definite purpose. Remember, the mint is an important ingredient; vodka an option.

Yogurt Chaser

1 tablespoons pure olive oil

1-1/2 cups chopped onions

Water, optional

1 (10-ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed

1 (32-ounce) container plain fat-free yogurt

3 ounces fresh mint leaves, minced (1/4 to 1/2 cup loose-packed minced mint)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil and let heat. Then add the onions and cook 5 to 8 minutes or until caramelized and very brown; do not initially stir the onions but wait until they begin to color.

Add a few drops of water, if needed, to prevent sticking. Add spinach and saute 1 minute. Cool this mixture to room temperature; stir in yogurt, mint, salt and pepper. Refrigerate. This dip/sauce will keep well in your refrigerator for 1 week.

Yield: 6 cups.

Note: You can make a cream cheese substitute by draining off the excess liquid or whey from plain yogurt. Do this by placing the yogurt in a strainer lined with a paper coffee filter over a bowl; refrigerate overnight. The next day you can discard the liquid in the bowl; the thickened yogurt can be used in place of fat-free cream cheese in recipes or as a spread.

Nutrition information per (1-tablespoon) serving: 8 calories, .17 grams fat (19 percent fat calories), 1 gram protein, 1 gram carbohydrate, 35 milligrams sodium.