Party Snacks- Fiesta Taco Dip

I had my first taco dip at an office food day, so it seems fitting that for food day at work today I would bring taco dip. Why not- it's easy, many ingredients I already have on hand, and almost everyone loves it. It's definitely not fancy but it's good home cooking and sometimes that really hits the spot.

So my first taco dip- for a number of years I worked for an abstract company in Des Moines. I didn't work in the main office though, instead I was in an office deep in the courthouse basement. Not by myself though, I shared the office with five other women. Pam, who worked for the same company as I did, Chris and Sheila who worked for one of the other two abstract companies, and Janet and Shari, who worked for the third company. We were like a little world of our own down there. Even though our employers were competitors the six of us were more like co-workers. We helped each other out if we had trouble figuring out some verbiage in a court file or if we couldn't find something on microfilm. We worked together and had a lot of fun doing it.

Likewise, the people who actually worked for the county and the Clerk of Court also regarded us as an extension of their staff. They included us in every activity from the Christmas Name Draw to office food days. It was one of these food days that Janet brought her famous taco dip, and life as I knew it would never be the same.

I used my own heirloom tomatoes so there are pops of color
like crazy just from the tomatoes- purple, red, yellow,
orange- just gorgeous!! Plus three colors of bell pepper.

You may recognize the name Janet from some other posts. She is my good friend and canning/gardening buddy/enabler and we spend loads of time chatting online or visiting in person, talking canning, cookbooks, travel, politics, gardening, cats and of course, the good old days in the courthouse basement. She visited the Smithsonian recently and shared pictures of Julia Child's kitchen with us. As Janet is a master at gardening she always has the most amazing variety of fresh vegetables every summer. Her garden is HUGE and she generously shares with friends and neighbors every season. I'm always bringing something home- we trade canning jars, jars of food, zucchini, tomatoes, you name it. Anyway, Janet's taco dip is legendary. Taco dip itself is a pretty common recipe- beans, sour cream, seasoning of some sort, and toppings. Janet's garden always yielded the best tomatoes, the most beautiful peppers, fabulous onions and fresh cilantro, and those made her taco dip THE absolute best of all. 

This recipe is not Janet's famous recipe, but my family's favorite version of taco dip. It's a regular all during football season and at family get-togethers like holidays and picnics. Even the youngest members of our family munch up the fresh vegetables like crazy. The best part is, it's easily changed to meet your family's likes and dislikes, or food allergies. Add what you love, and leave off what you don't. Use fat free refried beans and fat free sour cream or yogurt if you are watching fat and calories, or go with dairy-free versions if you need to avoid dairy. For me the veggies are the best part, so I really load up on peppers, tomatoes, sometimes lettuce, and don't forget the salsa!

Fiesta Taco Dip

1 can refried beans

1 1/2 cups sour cream

1 package taco seasoning mix

8 oz bag shredded cheese

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

small bunch scallions, sliced

handful cherry tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cup sliced ripe olives

1/4 cup chopped bell peppers

salsa

additional toppings as desired

In a medium bowl combine the sour cream and taco seasoning. Mix well. 

Spread the refried beans onto a large plate. Something with a rim works great. For parties at home I have a great big glass platter, and for a snack to take along I use a Tupperware cupcake keeper I have had for years. Top with the sour cream mixture and spread that out.

Layer on the cheese and then the toppings. I spoon a few spoonfuls of salsa on top and serve the rest on the side.

Serve with tortilla chips.

Additional toppings are totally up to you. We like spicy foods so I always add some sliced jalapeno, and use hot hot hot salsa. Sometimes I sneak a little teeny bit of finely minced super hot pepper- like ghost pepper in the sour cream making sure it's well distributed. WARN any guests if you use a super hot. I love avocados and if I'm making this to serve right away I'll add cubed avocado to the toppings, or spread some guacamole under the sour cream layer. Sometimes I'll scatter a handful of lime wedges on top too. Lime is a flavor that goes so well with Mexican and Tex Mex foods. Some other ideas include roasted corn, crumbled queso fresco, sliced or chopped hot banana peppers, sliced radishes, shredded lettuce- pretty much anything you might put on a taco.

The Family That Cooks- Janelle's Crab Dip

My family is full of great cooks. Holidays and get togethers with my family always include some amazing homemade foods, especially appetizers and snack foods. We definitely love our snack foods. My son in law is the cheese ball master. The girls in the family make fancy cheese plates, delicious appetizers and all kinds of different dips and spreads. In fact, it's not uncommon for us to eat up all the snacks and appetizers and have no room for the turkey and trimmings!

You know when you get together with friends, maybe it's a Super Bowl party, or a neighborhood barbeque, or even the office potluck, and you have to sit and think about what to make? Do you have a go-to recipe for a great dish to share? I have a couple but I like to switch it up and try new things once in a while as well. My daughter in law shared this recipe with me, as well a sample before she brought it to a friend's house for a party, and it was awesome! 

Normally I am a strong and loud spokesperson for real crab and protest loudly against the use of fake crab, or surimi as it's sometimes called. My mind is changing! Besides being a common ingredient in sushi, which I love, and several delicious recipes that my friends have shared with me, I'm really beginning to appreciate this often maligned ingredient as a pretty good replacement for the real thing!

That's where my daughter in law, Janelle's dip come in. Loaded with finely chopped artificial crab, fresh veggies and a lime-infused mayo from the Hispanic market, piled high on a crispy cracker and topped with the slightest drizzle of spicy hot sauce, it's absolutely scrumptious. You can use any hot sauce you like, but Janelle recommends Valentina brand. 

This sauce was smooth, thick and spicy and not messy when drizzled over the top of the dip. It had a smoky quality to it too that went really well with the sweetness of the crab. If you like, you could spread the dip out onto a plate instead of a bowl and drizzle the sauce over the entire dip instead of individual bites.

Janelle's Spicy Crab Dip

1-2 lbs crab meat (imitation is great in this recipe)

2 Roma tomatoes, diced

1/2 medium onion, diced

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

1 cup Mayonesa with lime (in the Mexican aisle)
Hot sauce of your choice

Chop the crab meat into small pieces. Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Chill to blend flavors. Serve dip with saltine crackers.

This dip was perfect on top of a saltine cracker. You can use any type or brand of cracker you like but choose one that won't compete with the dip's flavors. Throw in a handful of chopped ripe olives or diced bell pepper, or even jalapeno if you like. I especially like that it's not the usual hot crab dip. The tomato is so fresh, the onion adds a little crunch and the cilantro makes it herby and bright. I was also once a cilantro hater, but I have learned to embrace this beautiful herb.

Note: If you can't find the mayo in a Mexican store, you can substitute regular mayo with the zest and juice of a lime added.

A family classic with an inside joke

With an ice and snow storm in the forecast for tomorrow I can't help but long for comfort foods. Anything that means I need to fire up the oven, I'm all for it. This recipe is one of my family's favorites. We like to make it for holiday meals, or just because we feel like it.

You might be wondering about the unusual name. Well.....some people call this Brunch Potatoes, Funeral Potatoes, or Potato Casserole. My daughters and I have a weird sense of humor. Just looking over the ingredients and I think you will catch on to the joke. Butter, cheese, sour cream, cream of naughty soup..... well we just can't use those normal names. We have to be smart alecs every chance we get.

This is DEFINITELY not health food, so we don't make it more than a handful of times a year. Too many servings of this and.......well.......you get the idea!

Mom's Famous Fat Ass Potatoes

1 2 lb bag frozen hash browns
1 small bunch green onions, sliced or 1/4 chopped onion
salt and pepper
1-2 cloves minced garlic
couple tablespoons chives
1 stick butter, melted (use BUTTER not margarine, because margarine is mostly water and doesn't perform well in this dish)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup sour cream
1 small bag shredded cheddar cheese

Melt butter, combine with sour cream, onions, seasonings and soup.

Add cheese and frozen hash browns. Mix thoroughly.

Pile into 9x13 dish that's been sprayed with cooking spray.

Bake at 400 degrees about an hour. If you have a roast in the oven at a different temperature, you can bake these at the same temp, just add more time as needed. I also make these in the crockpot a lot- on high for at least 4 hours or low at least 8 hours.

Some people like to top this with crushed potato chips, but I think they are naughty enough !! They get a nice brown top and browned crusty edges, I think the topping is just not necessary, but if you like to add that, by all means, do so.

WARNING: Fat Ass Potatoes are addicting. And the crusty brown edges.......like heaven !!!

****NOTE !!!!  This recipe is also shared on our sister blog Rockin' the Kitchen.