MONTEREY JACK DIPPING CHIPS

Out of the oven - crispy and gorgeous!!  The front chip shows the underside.  Notice the lovely ribbed pattern that just naturally occurs while the chips bake for 10 minutes. 


 Before they go in the oven!





MONTEREY JACK DIPPING CHIPS

This is such a cool, easy recipe, but it’s not even a recipe as such…it’s simply a method to make really lovely chips for dipping or for spreads out of pure finely shredded Monterey Jack Cheese!  When you allow these ribbed (so amazing – they actually have ribs like real ribbed chips!) chips to cool, they will be crispy and perfect for spreads.  Refrigerated, the next day, each chip will be a mix between crispy and chewy and they will be very sturdy to be perfect dipping chips. I can't remember if they were perfect dipping chips freshly made and cooled, but I used them for my spread. I will make them again and let you know soonest!  The day after that, they will still be able to be used to dip, but they will be primarily chewy and still very tasty.  My DH made me breakfast – eggs and bacon, cooked and broken up, served on the chips (cold out of the fridge, but they warmed up perfectly with the warm egg and bacon). That was delicious. (Edited to add, I'm having that again for supper right now!!) I did not miss my low-carb English muffin at all. The Pineapple Cracker and Chip Spread is perfect served with the Monterey Jack Dipping Chips.  It adds a bit of sweet to the treat, making it a combination of savory and sweet.  I love combining those flavors!
Or you could have something more elaborate, like my Chicken Enchilada Dip or my Bacon Cheese Spread. This recipe is great for folks who don’t want to go to the trouble of making regular, low-carb crackers (click highlighted words to see the recipes).  However, I think these chips are RICH, so better served with something like salsa or pizza sauce or marinara sauce....so as not to be too fatty...believe it or not too much fat at once can cause heartburn for some folks, so keep that in mind! I think I will have a pet name for these:  Monterey Jacks!  Enjoy the Super Bowl, my low-carbing Friends!  Thanks a million trillion times over for your support!!  

NOTE:  I just popped the chewy, older chips from the refrigerator on the cookie sheet lined with parchment paper into the oven at 375°F (190°C) for 4 to 5 minutes (remember mine were golden on the edges and pale in the center)... and NOW they are as crispy-crunchy as any chip you would buy (almost like taco chips in the texture), so they are now perfect for dipping!  They are completely golden in color and not bitter...just very tasty still.  Woweee!!!  What a breakthrough, easy peasy recipe!!  Why did I never think of this before?


4 g grated Monterey Jack cheese, (0.2 oz)
  finely grated*  

Preheat oven to to 375°F (190°C). Spray a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray.  Spread a piece of parchment paper (this is essential!! Please don't use wax paper.) over the cookie sheet.  Drop 11/tsp (7 mL) of grated cheese on the parchment paper – about 4 in a row, to leave enough space for the chips to spread.  Bake about 10 minutes, or until golden on the edges and pale in the center.**  Allow them to cool completely before removing the chips.  They will be very hot immediately out of the oven.

Helpful Hint:  *I used the fine grating tool that comes with my food processor.

**I did experiment with baking these longer and they turned bitter - golden all over, but I'm guessing I baked them waaay too long.  To be honest, I forgot them in the oven, so I'm guessing they baked a further 8 minutes and were super-crispy but too golden brown.  So one can bake these too long.  Keep that in mind.  If you bake them less, like I did, put the cooled chips in a tupperware container in the fridge and bake them the next day for 4 to 5 minutes....they are hard like taco chips almost - very strong and perfect for dipping.

Did you notice the carbohydrates in these chips?  Of course, if you eat tons of them, there will be some carbs (whatever is in Monterey), but it will be negligible and they are good carbs for most of us!

Yield:  1 chip
1 chip per serving
14.9 calories
1.0 g protein
1.2 g fat