Homemade Salsa in the Blender

It's that time of year where we are either entertaining, going to parties or we are just so darned busy we don't even want to mess with cooking a full meal.  Sometimes we just have snack night and we will eat mini naan breads with hummus, or little freezer tacos with queso.  Or <GASP> pizza rolls.  I'm not too much of a food snob to hit the freezer snack section of the grocery store once in a while, BUT the one thing I am picky about it store-bought salsa.  There is really only one kind I like, and I swear everyone in town must like it too, because it is always out of stock.  Only a couple of stores around town even carry it, and on the rare occasion I do see it, I'll buy several jars.  When I can't find it however, I prefer to make my own.  I love this version because not only is it super easy, it's made with canned whole tomatoes.  Of course I love salsa made with fresh from the garden tomatoes, but now it is the time of the year the grocery store tomatoes are mealy and white in the middle with no flavor.  This version has much more flavor and you can control with spice with how many jalapenos you use.  It's great for Mexican food night, or company because most of the ingredients are items you probably have on the pantry shelf.  Grab a bag of chips and give this a try - it might just be your favorite (or in my case, my second favorite!)

This is so quick and easy to make.

Just a few ingredients.  Use as many or as few
whole pickled jalapenos as you would like to 
make your salsa milder or hotter.  I usually use
around 6-8 PLUS the juice from the can.

Grab some chips and enjoy.

HOMEMADE SALSA IN THE BLENDER

1 (28 ounce) can whole tomatoes
1 small can whole pickled jalapenos (AND the liquid from the can)-use as many as you want to make it hotter or milder

1 small red onion (or part of a red onion if it is larger)
1 garlic clove
handful of fresh cilantro (to taste)
juice of one lime
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar (this helps the canned tomatoes not taste so canned)
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt (or to taste)

Combine everything in a blender or food processor and pulse until everything is chopped and combined.  Check for seasoning and add more salt if necessary.  Will keep in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.

Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cake Dip

If you don't have any holiday spirit by now, here's your chance.  What's better than a Little Debbie Christmas Tree Snack Cake?  A whole bunch of them made into a festive dip.  This dip is decadent, fluffy and delightfully sweet.  And it comes together quickly so it is perfect for holiday parties, Christmas Eve snacking and last minute guests.  I served my dip with graham crackers for dipping, but this would be ideal with fruit or pretzel sticks too.  It's such a fun presentation of a nostalgic treat.  It's full of red and green sprinkles as well as holiday spirit.  

Isn't this just the cutest dessert?
Perfect to get everyone into the
holiday spirit.

I somehow lost my pictures of the 
ingredients, but the first step is 
blending the cakes, cream cheese,
milk and vanilla.

I like to make my own whipped cream 
in lieu of using whipped dairy topping.
Feel free to use either.

Carefully fold in your whipped cream
or whipped topping.  You want to keep
the dip light and fluffy.

Transfer to your serving dish and cover 
and refrigerate if you aren't using 
right away.

Or, if you are using right away, garnish with 
red and green sprinkles and plop that remaining
Little Debbie Cake right in the middle.

LITTLE DEBBIE CHRISTMAS TREE CAKE DIP

(8) Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes (they usually come 5 per box.  You'll need 2 boxes and have a few for snacking or decorating)

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla 
8 ounces heavy whipping cream + 1 tablespoons sugar OR (1) 16 ounce carton whipped topping (like Cool Whip) *SEE NOTE
Red and Green Sprinkles

Remove the wrappers from the tree cakes.  Set one aside for garnish.  Break up the remaining 7 trees into the bowl of a stand mixer (Or large bowl and a hand mixer) Add the softened cream cheese, milk, and vanilla.

Mix the ingredients on medium until the mixture is well-blended and smooth.  

 *NOTE: Beat the 8 ounces of whipping cream with the 1 tablespoon of sugar until you have a nice, stiff-peaked whipped cream.  I do this step because I really like the texture and flavor of freshly whipped cream instead of using a whipped dairy topping.  If you want to skip the whipped cream step and use a 16 ounce carton of whipped dairy topping please do.

Fold in the (already) whipped cream or the whipped topping carefully so your dip will become light and fluffy,

Transfer to a serving dish.  If you're not using it right away, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

When ready to serve garnish the top with red and green sprinkles and add the remaining Christmas Tree Cake.

Bloomin' Onion Dip

I'll have to admit, it's been years since I've had a Bloomin' Onion.  It's been years since I've eaten at an Outback Steakhouse.  Don't get me wrong, from what I remember it's pretty tasty.  I just have my own guy cooking steaks "OUT BACK" in my own backyard.  When Mr. Devilish Dish and I were first married, I used to make the bloomin' onions all of the time.  I would carefully cut the onion, batter and fry it.  I would even make that delicious horseradish-infused dipping sauce.  So when this dip recipe went viral, and I've seen it allover the place, I decided that the holiday season was the perfect time to bring this tasty appetizer back.  Even better, is the flavors are combined in a tasty dip form, so there's no mess of dipping into batter or frying.  It even features the kick of horseradish just like the dipping sauce.  And, the best part is the topping of those crispy French fried onions.  I love a good hot dip recipe for a party, and I know we will be making this viral sensation again during the holidays, or even out back, next summer lol.

All the flavors of that famous
Outback Appetizer, in an easy
hot dip form!

Here's the line up.  It seems like a lot of 
ingredients, but it all gets stirred together in one
bowl. So easy.

Simply stir it all together.
Much easier than cutting and frying
an onion.

Spread the dip mixture into the prepared
dish and top with the fried onions and bake.

Garnish with chopped green onions and
serve with pita chips.

No wonder this recipe went viral!
So good.

Bloomin' Onion Dip

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
8 ounces sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 cup finely chopped white onion
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup Panko breadcrumbs
1 1/2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
2 teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce
1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup crispy French fried onions
chopped green onions

Town House Sea Salt Pita Chips for dipping

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Lightly grease a deep pie dish or casserole dish and set aside.  Combine the cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, chopped onion, Parmesan cheese, panko breadcrumbs, horseradish, Worcestershire sauce, cayenne, oregano, paprika and salt and pepper in a bowl.  Stir well.  Spread this mixture into prepared dish and top with the fried onions.  Bake approximately 20 minutes, until browned and bubbly.  If the onions are starting to get too brown, cover with foil for the last few minutes of baking.  Remove from oven and garnish with chopped green onion tops and serve hot with pita chips.

Dirty Martini Dip

We took a Fall break to Colorado to see Devilish Nephew and Fam.  Well really to see those Littlest Devils.  My Oklahoma Sooners just happened to be playing a big away game, so of course a huge watch party ensued.  The night before the big party however, we wanted to have a nice family dinner.  Mr. Devilish Dish made Chicken Saltimbocca and Garlic Bread.  It was a late meal, because of course I have to make sure the Littlest Devils get their bath, put on their jammies, brush their teeth, say their prayers and then I get conned into reading about a dozen books and singing a whole lot of lullabies.  I probably should not admit their favorite bedtime songs include "Boomer Sooner", "Oklahoma" and "You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma." By the time and literal song and dance is done, sometimes we don't eat until 8:00 pm.  In addition to Mr. Devilish Dish and I making the trip out to Colorado, Little Devil and her boyfriend came to visit, along with one of the Devilish Nephew's fraternity brothers and his wife and children.  Once the kids were all down, we had nice grown up meal planned for 8 adults.  The Chicken Saltimbocca is so good, it stands alone, and we decided all we needed to serve with it was some crusty bread.  But I thought while Mr. Devilish Dish was preparing dinner we could use some kind of appetizer or antipasto.  Literally on the fly I the grocery store I settled on a Dirty Martini Dip.  I was so tired from cooking, shopping, singing and dancing I needed a simple appetizer to prepare.  I've seen this several times, with the olives chopped up and served in martini glasses, but I thought serving it on a big platter would be fun with a couple of different kinds of olives.  Honestly I wish I would have doubled the recipe, spread the dip onto a big charcuterie board and added several kinds of olives.  That's definitely happening soon.  It was truly a fun appetizer, light and tasty and not too filling before our delicious main course. 

A great party appetizer.

Combine the ingredients in a 
food processor or mixer and blend
until smooth.

Spread mixture onto a platter.
Drizzle with good quality 
olive oil.

Top with your favorite
pitted olives.
We love the Castelvetrano olives.
I opted for the Jalapeno stuffed since the
dip already contained blue cheese.
(Normally blue cheese stuffed
olives are my go-to for a good martini.)

This is such a pretty alternative to
just chopping the olives and 
serving the dip in a bowl.

DIRTY MARTINI DIP

8 ounces cream cheese
4 ounces crumbled blue cheese
2-3 tablespoons olive brine
1 tablespoon vodka
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
zest of 1 lemon
good quality olive oil for drizzling
1 jar of olives (Your choice - or use several different kinds.  I used Castelvetrano Olives and Jalapeno Stuffed Olives)
Chips of your choice for dipping

In a food processor or mixer combine the cream cheese crumbled blue cheese, olive brine, vodka, white pepper, garlic powder and lemon zest.  Mix until smooth.  Spread the dip onto a plate or platter.  Drizzle with olive oil and place the olives on top.  Serve with pita chips, crackers, pretzel chips or tortilla chips for dipping.

Spooky 7-Layer Dip

 A while back we had a "Nacho Bar" for our tailgate.  Which is honestly an easy way to feed a large crowd.  We all bring crockpots full of queso and chips and then pile on the toppings.  Grilled chicken, taco meat, pico de gallo, pickled jalapeno peppers, sour cream, guacamole.  The ideas are endless and it's a hearty treat that is always a hit with our football friends.  I had a few toppings leftover, and spent an entire day creating a feast of frightening treats.  Traditionally a 7-layer dip features layers of refried beans, guacamole, sour cream, salsa, shredded cheese, diced tomatoes and black olives.  Served with tortilla chips for dipping of course.  Since I had a host of nacho topping leftovers, I decided to get creative with what I had on hand, to create my own spooky version of a 7 layer dip.  I made a large batch of my Homemade Mexican Restaurant Relish, and even used some pickled carrots and jalapenos to make a cute little spooky spider to top off the dip.  It turned out really cute, and honestly what is not delicious about a layers of Mexican ingredients in dip form?  You could make your own version with whatever you have on hand, including leftover refried beans, salsa, queso, cooked chorizo etc...Just make sure you your top layer is a ghoulishly green guacamole and you have some sour cream to pipe the spider's web!

Your favorite Mexican Dip with 
a spooky twist for Halloween!

I made this with things I had on hand
leftover from our Nacho Bar Tailgate.
Feel free to use your favorite
Mexican ingredients.

Spread a layer of refried beans or 
bean dip into the bottom of a 
shallow dish.  Top with shredded cheese.

Add a layer of your favorite salsa or 
even chopped tomatoes.

Make your last layer a spread of 
ghoulishly green guacamole.

Make a little spider from pickled 
jalapenos and carrots.

Pipe on a sour cream web as your last layer.

Serve with your favorite tortilla chips
for dipping.

Isn't he cute?

I added a little garnish around the edge of my
dip with the pickled carrots and jalapenos from
my Homemade Mexican Restaurant Relish.
Honestly I did not have a single platter or dish to
serve this in that was remotely appropriate for Halloween,
so I decided to use the carrots and peppers to add 
a pop of Halloween color.  

SPOOKY 7-LAYER DIP

Refried Beans or - I used a can of Frito Lay Bean Dip

Your Favorite Salsa
Shredded Cheese
Guacamole
Sour Cream
Mexican Relish or canned Mexican Carrots & Jalapenos for the spider
Candy eyeballs for the spider
Tortilla chips for dipping

Spread the layer of refried beans or bean dip into the bottom of a shallow dish.  Top with a layer of your favorite salsa, and then a layer of shredded cheese.  Spread a layer of guacamole over the top.  With a pastry bag and thin pastry tip, pipe sour cream on top of the guacamole to create a spider web look.

Optional, use a pickled carrot slice and some pickled jalapeno pieces to create a spider and legs.  Top with candy eye balls.  Serve with your favorite tortilla chips.

NOTE: The sky is the limit on the ingredients you can put in this.  Add some leftover taco meat, or black beans.  I literally just used what I had in my fridge leftover from a Nacho Bar party.  

Neiman Marcus Dip

I have no idea why this is called Neiman Marcus Dip.  It's not expensive to make or luxurious like a dark chocolate sauce.  It's just a super tasty dip that's awesome on crackers, great for snacking and a hit at any party.  A great friend of ours celebrated a birthday a while back.  I asked his sweet fiancée (now wife) and his sweet mother how I could help for the surprise party they were throwing him.  They know I love to cook, and asked if I could bring some chips and dips.  I wanted a great variety, so I decided on three hot dips and three cold dips.  Queso, Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip, and Buffalo Chicken Dip when into my three-section slow cooker.  Fresh salsa, Homemade French Onion Dip, and Neiman Marcus Dip went into my favorite crystal bowls I received as wedding gifts.  While everything was a big hit, I have to say the Neiman Marcus Dip was the biggest hit of all.  Well besides surprising the birthday boy.  And the giant ice carving luge for doing shots in the backyard.  If you don't have a surprise and an ice luge, then this is sure to be the BIGGEST hit at your next get together!

The best dip and biggest hit at the party!

Well except for that ice luge...

What's a birthday party without
some Neiman Marcus Dip AND
and ice luge???

Here's the birthday boy, Ross
his beautiful fiancée, (now wife!)
The got married quite a while ago.
I've had this recipe in draft form for ages.

Make your next party special

Our Family's Favorite Cheeseball

This cheeseball has been a family tradition as long as I can remember.  My mother-in-law makes it every Christmas and it is a favorite of Mr. Devilish Dish.  This past Christmas, she prepared it for the Christmas Eve meal, and the next morning I caught my husband eating the leftovers after breakfast.  When I got together with my college girlfriends for our belated holiday celebration, Jenny said, "I don't care what we eat but can we please have some kind of cheeseball?  I went the entire holiday season without any cheeseballs or dairy-based dips." I knew right away what  I was making.  It's so simple and the ingredients are fuss free.  I think that is what makes it so surprisingly tasty.  No fussy ingredients.  It is simple to make with items we all have on hand.  Everyone loves it.  And yes, Jenny and I ate the leftovers for breakfast.  I hope this becomes a tradition for your family.  I even made it again for a football watch party.  It's definitely ideal for tailgating and game days. And why wait for the holidays to make it?  Why can't we just make a cheeseball and watch TV?  Or eat the leftovers in the morning like we all seem to around here.  Whenever you make it, don't wait until December to enjoy it!

Simple ingredients come together for an appetizer
everyone will love!  Whether it's a holiday tradition or
a game day treat, this cheeseball is sure to be a hit with
your family just like it is with mine.

Roll in chopped pecans.  Or get crazy and
roll in chopped green onions, toasted sesame seeds
or anything else you can dream up!

I used chopped green bell peppers, but red
and green would be perfect for the holiday
entertaining season.  Don't save this tasty
appetizer for just the holidays though!
Vary the bell peppers: green, red
orange or yellow would be ideal too!

Marshmallow Fruit Dip

Mr. Devilish Dish golfs and fishes.  A lot.  And when he's been at the golf course or the lake all day, he usually doesn't want a huge, heavy dinner.  Especially when the weather is hot.  Those are the nights we have something like chicken salad sandwiches.  Which I like to think is healthy.  And sometimes I use yogurt instead of mayonnaise so they are a bit healthier. And then I offer fruit as a side dish.  But in order to pass fruit off as a side dish to my family I have to serve it with something yummy like fondue or Marshmallow Dip.  To offset the times I try to feed them healthy things.  Fresh veggies?  NO.  Ranch Dip?  Yes! So on hot days when I serve fruit as a dessert, you can imagine the excitement when they see this dip alongside the fruit! You won't believe how easy this is.  It's only three ingredients.  One of which is marshmallow fluff.  Which could be a meal on it's own.  (Not that I would know, because I would never do something like eat marshmallow fluff from the jar with a spoon.  I mean who does that?  Not people that make healthy chicken salad sandwiches for dinner.  Well okay maybe.  It's called balance.) Whether you consider Marshmallow Fruit Dip a side dish or not, we can all agree it's fabulous.  And spoon worthy! 

It's a side dish, people.

Look how fluffy and yummy it is!

Strawberries, bananas, grapes, and apple slices.
That part is definitely good for you!

Marshmallow Fruit Dip...
Almost as good as eating the marshmallow fluff
out of the jar!

Homemade Ranch Dressing

Ranch Dressing is the quintessential Okie condiment.  I'm not positive but I think the trend of putting ranch salad dressing on pizza started in Oklahoma.  I remember doing it in high school much to the chagrin of my parents and Pizza Hut waitresses everywhere.  As I've gotten older though my tastes have changed and while you'll still catch me grabbing a bottle of Ranch Dressing when we order a pizza, it's not something I really put on a salad anymore.  Mainly because I like to make things from scratch.  In fact, we make so many things from scratch around here when I do eat something like a store bought cookie all I can taste is preservatives.  So the other night we made lovely salad for dinner.  I brined and baked some chicken breasts, fried and crumbled some bacon, chopped some hard boiled eggs.  We had Romaine lettuce, chopped celery and carrots.  It was quite colorful and refreshing and lovely to look at and then I realized I had no dressing to put on it.  What would have been perfect was Mr. DD's Blue Cheese Dressing but I didn't have any blue cheese on hand and I sure wasn't changing out of my pajama pants to make a trip to the store.  So I came up with a quick little version of Homemade Ranch Dressing that was an absolute hit.  The secret ingredient?  Pickle Juice. Mr. Devilish Dish loves anything with lots of dill and while I did add dried dill to the recipe, I wanted to boost the dill flavor and thin the dressing just a little.  The result was delicious and we ate salad for days.  This is my new favorite go-to dressing and I just might have to order a pizza for old times sake and try it out! 

Oklahoma's favorite condiment: HOMEMADE!

Delicious on salads, veggies, as a dip
and of course on pizza!

Buffalo Ranch Dip

Golf season is here and once again I'm a golf widow.  I actually don't mind because Mr. Devilish Dish is assisting with the NCAA Regional Tournament.  He's volunteering his time so I volunteer to make him dinner when he gets home.  It's a lot of time in the sun and heat, and very long hours so he never wants anything heavy.  My go to golf tournament meals are usually something simple like chicken salad sandwiches or easy meatball subs with chips.  We had a big bag of wavy potato chips that were screaming to be dipped in something yummy so I whipped up a batch of tangy Buffalo Ranch Dip.  Everyone loves Ranch Dip and who doesn't love Buffalo anything?  There are all kinds of tasty Buffalo sauce flavored treats here at The Devilish Dish, including Buffalo Chicken Meatballs and one of my very first blog posts, and most popular recipes: Buffalo Chicken Casserole.  I'm game for anything with Buffalo sauce and Mr. DD really likes anything with dill so this was a foolproof combination.  The perfect dipper, fresh with that familiar kick of Buffalo flavor.  It goes together in minutes, but make it ahead so it has a couple of hours for the flavors to meld.  It's fabulous with chips, but I even dipped a couple of fresh cherry tomatoes from my garden, so I can report it's wonderful with fresh veggies too!

Buffalo Ranch Dip -
the ideal accompaniment to your
potato chips. 

Fresh and creamy
with the familiar kick of Buffalo flavor!

Is that towel not a hoot?
My friend Amy gave that to me for Christmas.
I told her it would make a
blog post appearance!

Check out today's harvest of Tumbling Tom
Tomatoes: They were yummy dipped in
the Buffalo Ranch Dip.

Buffalo Ranch Dip

2 cups sour cream
1/4-1/2 cup buttermilk (depending on how thick you want the dip)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
4 tablespoons buffalo sauce (I use Frank's)
2 teaspoons dried dill weed
Kosher salt to taste
freshly cracked black pepper to taste

Whisk together all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour prior to serving to allow flavors to blend.  Serve with chips and fresh vegetables for dipping.

Prep Time:  Approximately 5 minutes     Cook Time: 0 allow to chill