commitment fulfilled

For the last two years, I’ve served as the vice-president of our HOA. I decided not to run again so yesterday my term ended. On Monday night, I hosted our annual meeting to vote on new board members.

I love my neighbors and I love my neighborhood, so it’s always a joy to cook for them. These next few days I’ll share the dishes I made for the meeting, beginning with this easy and yummy dip.

Pictured above are the main ingredients, less than one package of the Boursin. Boursin comes in this three-pack at Costco and I made the recipe to use it up before the expiration date. I had bought it back in December, thinking I’d use it in some holiday cooking and entertaining, but no. Any savory flavor of Boursin would be just fine in this recipe.

Hot Italian Spread

• 1 pound spicy ground Italian sausage
• 2 (5.2 oz) packages Garlic & Fine Herbs Boursin Cheese
• 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup drained and chopped sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/2 cup drained and chopped pepperoncini or mild pepper rings
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1 baguette, sliced on the bias and toasted

In a large skillet, cook Italian sausage until well browned, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks. Remove from heat and drain on paper towels.

In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to blend the Boursin cheese, cream cheese, and mayonnaise together until smooth.

Stir in the sun-dried tomatoes, pepperoncini, and the cooked sausage.

Mix together the Parmesan and the Italian seasoning in a small bowl.

Transfer the mixture to a 1-quart baking dish and sprinkle the top with Parmesan mixture. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Bake for 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Serve with the toasted baguette slices.

Makes about 4 cups