Vegetable platters are beautiful, healthy and easy to prepare. However, it isn't the tasty, creamy dip full of fat and calories that is feared at social gatherings. Nope, I'm talking about something much more insidious - the flu, or worse!
All it takes is that one person to double-dip...you know, the one who isn't feeling great and may be 'coming down with something' (like bubonic plague), and the whole vegetable platter is considered TOXIC in my mind. Sure, I may be overreacting, but unless I hover over the platter (and that's not weird AT ALL) to make sure it hasn't been compromised, then yeah, I'm out! It's like seeing a chocolate fountain at a party and getting excited about it until you see the kid with the drippy nose running their fingers through it. I. Can't. Even.
Or, on the less germaphobe view, there is the messy dipper. They go in for a scoop and then drag their dippy mess across the rest of the pristine vegetables. Again, contaminated and off-limits in my O.C.D. mind.
I've TRIED to prevent double dipping by including lots of small serving plates and spoons inside the dips so people can serve dip onto their plate. Time and time again, I've watched Einsteins just dip 'around' the provided serving spoons. @#^&%@(. Honestly.
So, now I just go dipless. How boring, right?
Actually I still provide dips, but on the side, in separate little paper cups. Everyone gets their own sanitary little serving! And, no more goop dripped across the pretty vegetables!
I've seen some people put a few veggies inside a cup with dip, but I prefer to just load up a healthy portion of dip and let people select their own veggies to dip in. Double dip away! (in your OWN container!)
Keep your veggies pristine and dip separate! Now, after writing this, I can see my party invites starting to decline as my friends read this and think I'm a total germ freak. The bright side, at least I won't have ebola from contaminated dip. Right?
