It seems that on any given day, at any time of year, you’ll be at a mates place (or anywhere really) and someone will put out a cheese platter complete with meats, dips and crackers. There’s no question, you’re straight into it … Over and over again.

Generally, you might bring chips and a shop-bought dip to contribute, brie and some wafers, or some kind of nice cured meat, but for something different what if you could include beer in the platter and not just as an accompaniment?

Enter the Fig Jam IPA Cheese Dip …
This little beauty is an adaptation of something our fearless leaders Brennan and Peta tasted at a cracking little bar in New York.

It goes perfectly with unsalted crackers and beer – a good IPA like our Fig Jam particularly – but, not only will it compliment just about any platter, you’ll look like a hero/heroine when you slap a little bowl of this down for all to enjoy. Oh, and you can finish the beer yourself once you’ve made the dip …

Prep time: 5 minutes (if grating the cheeses)
Creation time: 3 minutes
Cost: $10-$20 (depending on chosen cheese brands)

Ingredients:
• 250g cream cheese
• 1 cup of reggiano or parmesan cheese (grated from a block is best)
• 100g of gouda cheese (grated)
• Fig Jam IPA – approx 1 cup (ad slowly until consistency is as desired)
• Sliced green onions (stir in a little and leave some to garnish)
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Method:
• Grate parmesan and gouda and slice the green onions
• Stir the cream cheese into a mixing bowl (VERY slightly heat first if it’s a bit too solid)
• Ad grated parmesan & gouda and stir through, gradually adding your IPA as you go to control the consistency
• Ad the sliced green onions and stir through
• Taste-test, and ad remaining IPA and a pinch of salt and pepper if it needs either
• Garnish with green onions and a little of the grated cheeses
• Enjoy with friends

If you’d like to experiment with the level of bitterness you want bring out of the beer, you could also include:
• Garlic
• Honey mustard
• Horse radish
• Worcesteshire
• Cayenne pepper
probably not all together though …