Spicy Sweet Onion Dip

Thanksgiving is in two days you say? Really? How did that happen? The last few weeks of my life has been an endless sea of beer, wine, and liquor bottles. Don't worry, I'm not writing to you from rehab! I am finally comfortable announcing that I have a new job. I hope to talk about it more later, but after much thought I decided to make a major career change. My position is Beer Sales Manager at a brand new store here in Fairbanks. Besides the fact that I feel like I have been doing aerobics twelve hours a day for weeks (because I have), I'm really loving the job. Now that the place is open I am enjoying chatting with customers about beer and seeing the excitement over such a huge selection. I'll soon be teaching beer education classes every week and I'll have opportunities to improve my own knowledge as well. Not to mention that my next "business" trip will be attending the Beer and Barley Wine Festival in Anchorage.
So, to say the least...I'm totally not prepared for Thanksgiving. For our first Thanksgiving together David and I had chips and salsa for dinner. I had just returned from a long trip the night before and he worked all day on Thanksgiving. We were both exhausted, so we stopped at the grocery store and picked up a bottle of wine and some chips and salsa. To remember that first year, we now have a Mexican/American Thanksgiving every year by spicing up some of those traditional dishes. It is the one time each year I make mole sauce. This year I'm so exhausted that chips and salsa and a bottle of wine sounds pretty good. I'd have plenty of wine to choose from!
I think I could also muster up enough energy to make this Spicy Sweet Onion Dip as well. This dip is incredibly easy and very delicious. It was the very first recipe I bookmarked from Todd and Diane's new book called Bountiful. It's a really beautiful book full of recipes from their home garden and mini orchard. I spiced up the original recipe with some hot sauce and red pepper flakes resulting in a sweet and spicy combination that is hard to resist. Make sure you use the sweet onions from the grocery store and not the regular brown/yellow onions. They are usually labeled Mayan Sweets and this year our Fred Meyer store had a huge display of them. This would make a perfect appetizer to keep the hunger pangs away while waiting for Thanksgiving dinner, or if you are having a week like mine, the perfect dinner.

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Spicy Sweet Onion Dip
adapted from Bountiful by Todd Porter and Diane Cu

1 (8oz.) package cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup diced sweet onions
1/2 teaspoon of hot sauce (I used Tapatio)
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or to taste if you like things spicier)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl with a wooden spoon until evenly and thoroughly combined. Scrape the mixture into a 6-8 inch cast iron skillet or other similarly sized oven proof dish. Bake 45-50 minute until the top is dark golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes before serving. Serve dip warm with sliced baguette, crackers, or tortilla chips.