Launch of Chris' Down 2 Earth dips (by invitation)

It was an explosion of colour and healthy eating at the launch of Chris' Down 2 Earth dips.  On the rooftop of Feast of Merit, with a zingy ginger digestive tonic in hand, and a few sun salutations later, we sampled the new range of totally vegetarian and vegan friendly and gluten-free dips.

I'm loving the four new dips as they're literally jam-packed with veggies and legumes - not hint of fatty cream cheese or oily nuts to give the dips their oomph.  For those following the health food scene, the dips have been developed with local chef and nutritionist, Samantha Gowing.

Japanese style eggplant and miso (middle bowl)

My personal favourites were the Japanese style eggplant and miso.  It's so unlike any dip that's in the supermarkets.  Eggplant is one of my favourite veg, and I love how the miso gives the depth of umami flavour, while the hint of wasabi gives the dip a nice warmth to it.

A nice big plate of spice roasted carrot and turmeric dip

My other favourite was the spice roasted carrot and tumeric dip.  Brilliant in colour and the best tasting carrots I've ever eaten - I'm not a fan of carrots (in almost any form) but I loved this dip!

Mexican style bean and corn salsa

While these weren't the stand-out stars to me, the other two dips were also tasty.  The Mexican style bean and corn salsa is a much healthier version than any jar of salsa you'll find in the shops.  Pleasingly, it wasn't spicy at all.

Sweet potato and harissa dip (far right bowl)

The sweet potato and harissa hommus had a lovely middle eastern flavour and a slighty spiciness from the aromatic harissa.

What was really noticeable with all of the dips was that they were chunky in texture and not at all watery, greasy or oily (big plus!).  I loved that the dips are simply just full of veg - you feel full but not bloated.  With no artificial nasties in them, you can feel very pleased with yourself by eating these dips - indeed, each of the dips have a healthy star rating that tells you the satiety (feeling fuller for longer) score.  Keep an eye out for them as they'll be on sale at Woolies soon.