Southwestern Layered Dip

 From: Pillsbury Annual Recipes 2007 cookbook

Ingredients:

• 1 16oz can vegetarian refried beans
• 4 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
• 11oz mexican corn in a can with red and green peppers, drained
• 8oz sour cream
• 1 1-oz package taco seasoning mix
• 1/2 cup shredded taco cheese
• tortilla chips

In the bottom of a 9-inch deep-dish pie pan, spread refried beans. Sprinkle three tablespoons of the cilantro over beans. Spoon corn evenly over cilantro. In a small bowl mix sour cream and taco seasoning mix. Spread over corn. Sprinkle with cheese and remaining one tablespoon cilantro. Serve with tortilla chips.

Verdict: Thumbs up! I have bought similar dips at the store that I liked, and this was super easy to put together! The biggest flaw is that it did not taste very good leftover for some reason!

What I did differently: I left out the cilantro because I was making it for Bible study and I knew there would be people who don't like cilantro. 

Cheesy Bean Dip

From: My Life As a Mrs

Ingredients:

1 (8 oz) block of Cream Cheese, softened
1 (15.5 oz) Can of Bushes Chili Starter Beans
1 Jar of Salsa (8-12 oz)
1- 1 1/2 Cups Grated Cheese of Choice (Cheddar, Colby Jack, etc...)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350º. Spray a 9 inch pie plate (or any equal sized oven safe dish) with Non-Stick Cooking Spray. Spread the cream cheese evenly in the bottom of the dish. Next, using the lid of the can, gently drain of the liquid from the beans (do not rinse), and then evenly spread on top of the cream cheese. Pour salsa on top of the beans, using just enough to cover them (about 8-10 oz).
Place into preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes until the edges begin to bubble. Remove from oven, add the shredded cheese (enough to cover the salsa). Place back into oven just long enough to melt the cheese (about 5-8 more minutes). Remove from oven and serve with Tortilla Chips.

Verdict:
Thumbs up! This was such an easy and delicious bean dip recipe! I spread the whole 8 ounces of cream cheese on the bottom of the dish. I couldn't find this type of bean that was in the recipe, so I used refried beans and spread them on top. Then I put just a thin layer of salsa on top. Mine bubbled after 30 minutes and then I loaded it down with cheddar cheese. It took almost 10 minutes for my cheese to melt the way I wanted it to. It was definitely so good and I'll make this again!