If you like caramelized onions and need a tasty appetizer for any of the upcoming holidays, consider Caramelized Onion, Gruyere, and Bacon Spread.  This creamy dip can be spread on crackers, crusty bread, or crisp vegetables.  Onions are slowly sautéed until soft and golden brown before being mixed with gruyère cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, chives, and bacon.  I used light mayonnaise, fat-free sour cream, and turkey bacon in this dish which helped to lighten it in calories without sacrificing any flavor.  I really like the addition of the chives in this dip – I just wish I liked onions more.  Before I started this blog, I usually either left onions out of a recipe or used shallots instead.  I’ve come a long way since then and cooked onions don’t bother me as much anymore but this dish was a little too ambitious for my taste buds.  Don’t get me wrong, this is a tasty dip.  Just make sure you like onions.

The ingredients:

Sauté chopped onion in non-stick spray over medium-high heat for 5 minutes.  Reduce heat to low and cook onions for 20 minutes until golden brown. 

Once onions have cooled, combine them in a bowl with cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, chives, salt, pepper, and crumbled bacon.

Pour into an oven-proof dish and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of reserved cheese.

Bake at 425° for 20 minutes.

Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:

• Light mayonnaise
• Turkey bacon

Overall Rating:  Like It

Source:  Cooking Light Magazine