Garlic, Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar Dip

I might send an entire paleo and gluten free community in utter shock today with our family’s traditional appetizer recipe – a mixture of organic extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar of Modena, local garlic and himalayan pink salt served with fresh local organic bread for dipping. We make this dip almost every time we entertain, I mean whenever we do that.

I have to say we used to be WAY MORE social people before our 2nd boy was born. After that, time became of an essence, I started working from home and generally I think we feel very entertained just the 4 of us. Friends became more of a quality than quantity priority and we just don’t make friends with anyone who likes to drink wine or else anymore. But we love our 10 wine lover friends very much (you know who you are!).

I think we got this to-die-for dip recipe from the same friends we got the Thai Salmon recipe from. A bazillion years ago when we used to live in Calgary. This dip is pure fat, a healthy fat made with ingredients you more likely always have on hand. I can guarantee you everyone will love this dip because seriously who doesn’t love fresh crusty bread and garlic?!

You know my view on bread. We eat local organic bread, mostly sprouted. I eat a few slices a week, boys eat way more. This time I picked up a loaf of sourdough bread which is not really Clean Eating but to me it tastes the best with dip. I would have picked up a multigrain one if the store had it. Once in a while it is OK to eat white bread or pasta, in my world. I always choose organic because it is not grown or harvested with RoundUp that causes those digestive and many other health issues including cancer. I grew up in Ukraine which was “a bread basket of Europe” and nobody will convince me that organic bread I ate all my life is so bad for me unless I’m diagnosed with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.

In addition to being super delicious this balsamic olive oil dip is a powerhouse. You just have to choose the best of the best ingredients to make it.

Olive Oil: I buy organic extra virgin olive oil in a dark bottle at Costco. We eat it raw in salads and dips like this one. The rumour is that all health benefits of olive oil are destroyed when heated and more than that it becomes carcinogenic. It also depends on a cooking temperature and type of olive oil. So, to be safe we consume olive oil raw and cook with avocado and coconut oil that have high smoke point.

Balsamic Vinegar: Contains antioxidants that can prevent cancer and heart disease. Because balsamic vinegar is made of grapes that have very thin skin, the pesticides sprayed on them make it into the vinegar as well. I choose organic and because a little goes a long way it is cost effective.

Garlic: Garlic is a natural antibiotic and antiseptic. I can talk about garlic all day long. You can’t even imagine how good it is to eat raw garlic. Kills all “unfriendly” bacteria inside you, especially if you let it sit crushed for 10 minutes to let enzymes develop and make garlic really powerful. By the way, to let flavours sit and “marry each other” is in the recipe directions.

We stock up on local organic garlic in Summer/Fall at the farmer’s market because 90% of garlic in grocery stores is from China. We do not eat Chinese food I hope you understand for which reasons. There is organic garlic available in grocery stores, it is expensive though. The amount of garlic we eat is astonishing. My neighbour knows because I always borrow it from her when I’m out LOL.

Salt: I can’t tell you how many times I have heard “My doctor told me to cut back on salt”. More often than not to reduce salt it means to cut out processed foods, clean up your tastebuds and you won’t need salt at the table. In fact, sea salt is good for you because it contains many minerals and trace elements. What you should ditch is factory processed cheap table salt that is heated to 1000 degrees and has added chemicals.

Sea salts I use are Himalayan pink salt, Celtic salt and Real salt depending on where I’m shopping. Yes, it costs more but like with anything you get what you pay for.

So, here you have it, budget friendly healthy dip that you can refrigerate up to a month and use as a salad dressing.

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 12

Amount Per Serving = 1 tbsp:
Calories: 86.0
Total Fat: 9.7 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 52.1 mg
Total Carbs: 0.7 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.0 g
Protein: 0.0 g
WW Points+: 2

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