Dip Recipes.

Recipes:
As promised, here are the recipes for 2 EASY party favourites.

#1. “Hot Artichoke and Spinach Dip”
I rarely follow recipes all the way, so I’ll add in my edits as we go! Feel free to play and let me know if you make any changes yourself!

Ingredients:

1 250g tub of cream cheese, softened
¼ cup mayonnaise (I use sour cream instead)
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese (fresh grated is best, but, also expensive- you can use the parm in your fridge)
¼ cup Romano Cheese (just use mozzarella, it will save you money)
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
½ teaspoon dried basil
¼ teaspoon garlic salt
Optional: I add 1 Jalapeno, seeded and chopped finely
salt and pepper to taste
1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped (I use two 170ml/6oz jars of artichoke hearts- because that’s what I can get!)
½ cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained. (FROZEN? No thanks, use fresh! And more than ½ a cup please! I use a couple big handfuls, maybe about 2 cups?. For me- the more spinach, the better!)
¼ cup shredded mozzarella

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together cream cheese, mayonnaise (or sour cream), parmesan cheese, Romano cheese (or Mozza), garlic, basil, garlic salt, jalapeno, salt and pepper. Gently stir in artichoke hearts and spinach.
3. Put mixture in a baking dish, top with the Mozzarella. Bake for 25 minutes, until bubbly and lightly browned. YUM YUM YUM!


Recipe #2Layered Taco Dip

This is even easier and my measurements are just off the top of my head, you can change them for your taste.

1 tub (250g) Cream cheese, softened
½ package of Taco seasoning (or more if you feel you want to)
1 ½ cup salsa or more,(SEE BELOW FOR MY FRESH SALSA RECIPE, YUMM!!!)
1 cup Sour Cream
Enough grated cheddar cheese to cover top.
OPTIONAL: a can of re-fried beans, yummmm beans!

Directions:
1. In a small bowl, mix Taco seasoning with cream cheese. Transfer it to a bigger, shallow bowl.
2. On top of cream cheese, Layer (those optional beans), Salsa, Sour cream, and top with cheddar cheese.
3. EAT!

Julia’s Fresh Salsa:

This makes about enough for the recipe above, but it’s better to just double it, and have some extra!! for the amount of time this takes, it's SO worth it!

Ingredients:
2 medium ripe Tomatoes, seeded and chopped
½ an onion, finely chopped
1 cloves garlic, minced
½ Jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped (or more if you want it spiiicey!)
Lots of finely chopped fresh cilantro! I think cilantro makes the salsa, I use about 1-2 cups depending on my mood.
½ Lime, Juiced
1 Tablespoon olive oil (I’m telling you, it adds a lot!)
salt and pepper to taste

Mix it all together and let it sit for a couple hours if possible.


ENJOY FRIENDS!!