oh, delicious december. you are maximalism at its finest. your tamales, i've discovered, fit nicely in my purse, your egg nog makes me wonder why all beverages don't coat the back of a spoon. you give purpose to the paper plate: christmas cookies. even your words are tasty. it is enough just to say plum pudding, bûche de noël, toffee trifle, gingerbread boy, buñuelos. and let me not forget hamborgarhryggur! when you smoke and cure a christmas pork roast in iceland i imagine you spend the day shouting this word with your fist pumping in the air. december, thank you for being so delicious and simultaneously cold. baggy sweaters are warm and forgiving. you are the only month i would venture to place luscious mounds of ricotta, crisped pancetta, and spoonful after spoonful of slow-cooked, caramel-hued onions in a baking dish with just a smidge (or several smidges, shhh...) of cream cheese. i probably won't even turn you down later if you offer me a cup of hot cocoa with vanilla marshmallows. in fact, i will think how nice it is that even chubby little marshmallows get cloaked in roomy, flattering chocolate.
warm ricotta, pancetta, and caramelized onion dip
(serves 10 as an appetizer)
3 medium sweet onions, sliced into 1/4 inch half moons, then quartered
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
kosher salt & pepper
1/4 pound pancetta, diced into 1/4 inch cubes
2 cups whole milk ricotta, at room temperature
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups shredded parmesan cheese, lightly packed
baguette, ciabatta or crackers for serving
heat the olive oil in a heavy, medium-sized saute pan over medium heat. add the onions and stir to coat in the olive oil. cook for a few minutes, stirring so as not to burn the onions, then turn the heat to medium-low. season with the thyme leaves, a generous pinch of salt and several cracks of black pepper. cook the onions, stirring from time to time, for 45-70 minutes, until they are deeply golden and shrunken down in size. make sure to watch the heat so they do not burn. set the onions aside in a bowl to cool to room temperature.
wipe the saute pan clean with a towel and place the pancetta in it. set the pan over medium heat and cook the pancetta, stirring often, until it is lightly crisp. remove the pancetta to a plate lined with paper towels to drain and cool.
preheat the oven to 375. grease a small to medium sized baking dish (enough to fit about 4 cups of dip in) with olive oil. place the ricotta and cream cheese in a large mixing bowl, and stir to combine. add the cooled onions, pancetta, and parmesan to the bowl and fold all the ingredients together. spread the dip evenly in the baking dish. bake for 30-45 minutes, until golden brown on top. serve with bread or crackers.
notes
* color is a good indication of when your onions are done. i like mine just past golden.
* although this dip is quite decedent, the ricotta makes it divinely light in texture
* if you cannot find sweet onions, use yellow onions. if you cannot find pancetta, bacon is perfectly acceptable substitute. don't use reduced fat cream cheese. just get a baggy sweater.