Dips and Dustings

For Dolly's birthday dinner, she asked for a Calamari appetizer. I was pretty happy with how it turned out, so before I lose the scraps of paper I made my notes on, I thought I'd write it all down here where I can find it a lot easier later.
And while I'm in a recording mode, let it be noted that Dolly made dinner by herself (mostly) Monday night. Tuna Casserole (she followed a recipe out of her new cookbook) and perfectly cooked green beans. She'll never understand what a treasure to me that milestone was, but it's one I'll savor for a long time.

Deep Fry Calamari Appetizer
Serves 8

• 680 g. calamari pieces
• 1 red pepper
• ½large onion
• 1&12;c. flour
• &34;tsp. ground black pepper
• &3tsp. salt
• 2tsp. paprika
• vegetable oil for frying

Thaw (if frozen) and drain calamari. Slice pepper into ¼" strips. Thinly slice onion across the grain to make ¼" or smaller half-ring strips. In a separate bowl, mix flour, salt, pepper and paprika. Heat oil to 375° in a large skillet. In turns, dust and fry calamari, peppers and onions for 2-5 min until golden. Drain and keep in a low temp oven until ready to serve. Layer peppers and onions throughout calamari on a platter and serve with a dip of your choice.

Chipotle Dip
Makes about 2 cups.

• 2 Tbs. pureed Chipotle peppers in Adobo sauce
• ¾c. mayonnaise
• ½c. plain yogurt
• ½c. sour cream
• 1 tsp. Liquid Smoke

Mix all ingredients together and serve! Super easy, and delicious!