this makes up for the spinach/chicken incident of 2004

Admittedly, I am not the best cook. Though I like to eat good food, I do not enjoy the assembly process. The same goes for cleaning. Perhaps it has something to do with the merciless teasing I've received over the years. Deep emotional scars that prevent me from enjoying housework. Yes, I'm sure that's it. Anyway, we were invited to a party for my nephew and everyone was bringing a dish.

I'm sure you can imagine the pressure. I'd stumbled upon a delicious-looking spinach/chicken recipe but was scared. (The last time I'd attempted to *WOW* the family with a spinach/chicken appetizer, the results were spit-in-the-napkin disappointing.)

Not this time, thanks to Taste of Home. The recipe is below:

Sesame Chicken Dip

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

4 tsp. sesame oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

4 cups shredded cooked chicken breast

3 pkg. (8 oz. each) reduced-fat cream cheese

8 green onions, thinly sliced

1/2 cup chopped salted peanuts

2 cups chopped fresh baby spinach

1 jar (10 oz.) sweet-and-sour sauce

Sesame rice crackers

In a large resealable bag, combine the soy sauce, sesame oil and garlic; add the chicken. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Spread cream cheese into a large serving platter; top with chicken mixture. Sprinkle with onions, peanuts and spinach. Drizzle with sweet-and-sour sauce. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Serve with crackers.

For those of you who'd seen THIS CHRISTMAS VIDEO, you'll be happy to know the little guy received his Nintendo DS.