Saturday Down South: Creamy Taco Dip with Taco-Ranch Sour Cream, Shredded Colby Jack Cheese, Crunchy Hearts of Romaine, Homemade Pico de Gallo, + a Drizzle of Salsa Verde Crema

I don't have many recipes that require very little work... but hey, I've got one for you today! It is literally so easy-peasy, that it took me less than 20 minutes to whip up. Hell, you could easily make it faster if you buy a store-bought pico de gallo instead of making it from scratch! Essentially this has all of the components from a bite of a taco. What doesn't sound good about that? We've been on a real Mexican kick as of lately... nearly eating it every other day. So when the weekend came, I knew I wanted to make this. The dip starts off with a cream cheese + sour cream layer that is fortified with loads of flavor from taco seasoning, ranch seasoning, and hot sauce. Spoon this mixture onto a serving plate, and then sprinkle the colby jack cheese on top, followed by scattering the shredded romaine all over the dip. Next, make a mound of the pico de gallo and finish it off by drizzling some of the salsa verde crema + a sprinkle of chili powder. That's it... it's all done! All you have to do is serve it with some tortilla chips and you're gold as gold! Enjoy y'all :)

For the Taco-Ranch Sour Cream:

8oz Cream Cheese, Softened

8oz Sour Cream

1 Package of Taco Seasoning

¼C Ranch Seasoning

¼C Hot Sauce

For the Pico de Gallo:

5 Whole Roma Tomatoes, Diced

1 Small Red Onion, Diced

2 Jalapeno Peppers, Minced

¼C Candied Jalapeno, Minced

4 Cloves of Garlic, Minced

¼C Fresh Cilantro, Chopped

1 Lime, Zested + Juiced

1T EVOO

Salt + Pepper, To Taste

For the Salsa Verde Crema:

½C Mexican Crema

½C Salsa Verde 

For the Creamy Taco Dip:

Prepared Taco-Ranch Sour Cream

8oz Colby Jack Cheese, Shredded

1-2 Hearts of Romaine, Shredded

Prepared Pico de Gallo

Prepared Salsa Verde Crema

Chili Powder, For Sprinkling

Directions:

1. For the Taco-Ranch Sour Cream: In the bowl of a standing mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the softened cream cheese until smooth. With the mixer running on low, start adding the sour cream a little at a time. Next, toss in the taco and ranch seasoning, followed by the hot sauce. Beat to combine.

2. For the Homemade Pico de Gallo: Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and toss to combine. Refrigerate until you are ready to serve.

3. For the Salsa Verde Cream: Whisk together the salsa verde and sour cream. Spoon this mixture into a squeeze bottle and set it aside.

4. Assembling the Creamy Taco Dip: Spoon the Taco-Ranch sour cream onto a serving plate. Sprinkle the shredded colby jack over the sour cream and scatter the shredded romaine on top of the cheese. Top the lettuce with a mound of the homemade pico de gallo. Finish the dip by sprinkling on some chili powder and drizzling the salsa verde all over the dip. Serve with tortilla chips and enjoy!

"Mountain Man Pleasing Chicken" with Peach Preserve-Honey Mustard Marinated Chicken, Colby Jack Cheese, Mushrooms, + Bacon

"Mountain Man Pleasing Chicken" with Peach Preserve-Honey Mustard Marinated Chicken,
Colby Jack Cheese, Mushrooms, + Bacon

This is one of those feel good meals... that the men in your life will thank you for. And on top of all of that it's something you marinate a day before or overnight and slop it all into a baking dish until it's cooked through + perfectly browned. After the chicken is done, you top it with some slices of Colby Jack cheese, browned mushrooms, & smoky bacon and bake it again, under the broiler, till the cheese is melty and beginning to crisp around the edges (a.k.a. the best part). If you're smart like us, you'll drizzle a little bit of that peach preserve-honey mustard marinade on the chicken before you start layering on the cheese, mushrooms, and bacon. It adds a little extra sweet + savory taste and boosts up that flavor profile just a tad bit more. First, you start by marinating the chicken in a homemade sauce; it is composed of different mixed mustards (or whatever you have on you), maple syrup, peach preserves, apple cider vinegar, worcestershire, garlic cloves, seasonings, and sprigs of fresh rosemary. I like the balance between the mustard + peach, it's like a fruity honey mustard... and who doesn't like that? Also, don't leave out the fresh rosemary, pretty pretty please? I love the aromatic element it brings to the whole dish. 

marinating the chicken thighs in garlic, rosemary, and peach preserve-honey mustard 

You can start this whenever you want, but the longer it marinates, the better it tastes. Marinate + bake the chicken thighs in the same pan, so you don't waste a bunch of different dishes. Less clean up=happy people, agreed? Agreed. Yes this dish is simple. But it packs a lot of flavor AND it has cheese + bacon on it, which automatically makes it, "man-pleasing chicken". Make it tomorrow, make it next weekend, or make it whenever you can. It's perfect for Autumn/Fall weather too!! Enjoy :)

after baking...

it looks perfectly brown + juicy

garnish it with chives and serve it with potatoes, and you're good to go

For the Marinated Chicken:

6 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs

2/3C Mixed Mustards (I used Dijon, honey mustard, and yellow mustard)

1/3C Maple Syrup

1 Jar of Peach Preserves

2T Apple Cider Vinegar

Couple Dashes of Worcestershire Sauce

4 Cloves of Garlic, Thinly Sliced

2-4 Sprigs of Fresh Rosemary

Salt, Fresh Cracked Pepper, & Red Pepper Flakes (for sprinkling the chicken)

For the Chicken Topping:

6 Slices of Colby Jack Cheese (one slice per chicken thigh)

Sautéed Mushrooms (I like a good golden brown color)

12 Slices of Cooked Bacon (two slices per chicken thigh)

Leftover Peach Preserve-Honey Mustard Marinade, For Drizzling

Fresh Minced Chives, For Garnishing

Directions:

1. Preparing the Marinated Chicken: Spray a 13x9-baking dish with Pam and lay the chicken thighs into the pan. Season the tops of them with some salt & fresh cracked pepper. Thinly Slice 4 cloves of garlic and scatter them across the chicken.

2. Making the Marinade: Whisk together the mustards (of your choice), maple syrup, peach preserves, apple cider vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce until thoroughly combined (this should make about 2C of marinade). Pour half of the mixture over the chicken, so that they are completely covered (save the remaining marinade for another batch or use all of it for a double batch). Top the entire dish with the fresh sprigs of rosemary. Cover and marinate for 4-6 hours.

3. Baking the Chicken: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Remove the tin foil from the baking dish and place the chicken in the hot oven. Cook them for roughly 30-40 minutes. Allow the chicken to rest in the pan for at least 5 minutes.

4. Finishing the Chicken: Increase the heat of the oven to broil and remove the chicken from the baking dish and place onto a silpat-line baking pan. Spoon a little of the extra marinade over each chicken thigh, and then top with two slices of cooked bacon, a slice of Colby jack cheese, and a pile of sautéed mushrooms. Drizzle a little more sauce on top. Broil in the oven (while keeping a close eye, so that nothing burns) for about 5-10 minutes or until the cheese has completely melted and everything looks gorgeously brown.

5. Spoon a little more marinade over the top if you wish and garnish with chives. Enjoy it while it’s still hot!

Fancy Southwestern Marinated Cheese Dip with Whipped Feta, Colby Jack + Pepper Jack Cheese Cubes, + Marinated Herby Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette

Fancy Southwestern Marinated Cheese Dip with Whipped Feta, Colby Jack + Pepper Jack Cheese Cubes,
Marinated Herby Roasted Red Pepper Dip

There is something about this dip that everyone just adores... and I'm not sure I get it. Well, I didn't until I made a schmancified (adjective of shmancy) version of it. That's what I like to do, so deal with it. The original recipe comes from here and involves a task-worthy cutting & stacking of cream cheese and cheddar cheese. I hated it. You have to practically freeze the cream cheese in order for it to look correct after cutting or it gets all schmeary (adjective of schmear). Also, that means you had these clunky blocks of cheese and drippy dressing that you have to handle with your hands, which is NOT good for a party. Lemme tell y'all, that shit gets all over your dress. Nonetheless, it was still the hit of the party and my family couldn't stop raving about it. I decided to revamp it some to make it more party-friendly. It did the trick and is even more of a success than the first recipe. Instead of boring cream cheese, I made a whipped feta cheese and spread it onto a plate to form cloud-like piles of fluffy cheese. You could also just use whipped cream cheese or even some yummy Boursin Cheese (or my version of whipped goat cheese would do it all up just fine). In replacement of creating blocks or stacks of cheddar cheese, I cut up some Colby Jack + Pepper Jack Cheese into tiny cubes, which makes it impossibly easy for dipping!! YAY for easy dipping. Then here comes the best part... the Marinated Herby Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette. In a large mixing bowl, you just toss in some olive oil, red wine vinegar, lime, fresh parsley + cilantro, green onions, garlic, finely diced roasted red pepper, minced candied jalapeno, honey, and spices... and it's all done! I let the mixture marinate overnight at least, but it gets better with age. The other recipe suggests marinating the cheese in the vinaigrette mixture, but whenever I did that it made our cheese uber-rubbery and chewy. But, even then, it was still gobbled up at every chance. Thus, I decided to make the vinaigrette and marinate it, then the next day, I added the small cubes of cheese to it and let it soak for about an hour so that it absorbs some of that delicious flavoring. Then you just top your whipped feta schmear with the marinated vinaigrette + cheese cubes, making sure that you get as much of the peppers, herbs, and onions you can. It's really up to you if you want to add some of the "juice" to the dip. While it certainly adds a whole bunch of flavor, it also gives way too much moisture to the whipped feta and can get a little deflated. We serve our dip with some toasted pita chips or Triscuits because it seems to match the flavor profile. You can easily change that up though if ya want. So get on to the store, grab the ingredients, and make the dip... tonight. Or tomorrow if you can. Because it's perfect for any occasion honestly!! Enjoy :)

For the Southwestern Marinated Cheese:

1C Olive Oil

1C White Vinegar, Red Wine Vinegar, or Apple Cider Vinegar (whatever is your preference)

1 Lime, Zested & Juiced

4T Fresh Parsley, Minced

4T Fresh Cilantro, Minced

5 Green Onions, Minced

4 Cloves of Garlic, Smashed into a Paste (using a little sea salt will help this along)

2C Roasted Red Pepper, Drained & Diced

¼C-½C Candied Jalapenos, Finely Chopped

1-3T Sugar or Honey

½t Cumin & Dried Oregano 

Salt & Pepper, To Taste

1 8oz Block of Pepperjack Cheese, Cut into Small Cubes (about ½-inch pieces)

1 8oz Block of Colby Jack Cheese, Cut into Small Cubes (about ½-inch pieces)

For the Whipped Feta Cheese:

8oz Creamy Feta Cheese, Room Temperature (or very soft)

2oz Cream Cheese, Room Temperature (or very soft)

3T Cold Heavy Cream

Pinch of Salt & Pepper

For the Southwestern Marinated Cheese Dip:

Prepared Whipped Feta

Prepared Southwestern Marinated Cheese Cubes

Any Extra or Excess Marinade, For Spooning Over the Top of the Dip

Crackers or Chips, For Serving

Directions:

1. For the Southwestern Marinated Cheese: In a large mason jar, add in the olive oil, vinegar, limejuice & zest, parsley, cilantro, green onions, garlic paste, roasted red peppers, candied jalapenos, and sugar. Cover the jar tightly and shake vigorously until well mixed and incorporated. Taste to see if it needs some salt & pepper, to your liking. Place the small cubes of Pepper Jack & Colby Jack cheese into a Ziploc bag. Pour the prepared marinade over the cheese cubes and let them marinate in the refrigerator overnight or at least 6-8 hours.

2. For the Whipped Feta Cheese: In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat together the softened cream cheese and salt until thoroughly mixed. Scrape down the sides and turn the mixer to medium-high speed and add in ¼C heavy cream. Continue whipping, while continuously adding a little bit of a crumbled feta cheese at a time, until the feta cheese is combined throughout. Add in the remaining ¼C heavy cream and beat on high until it is light & fluffy. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Spoon this mixture onto a serving plate.

3. For the Southwestern Marinated Cheese Dip: After the cubed cheese has marinated, beat together the two cream cheese blocks until whipped. Place the cream cheese into a serving platter or dish in a thick, even layer. Strain out the marinated cubes of cheese and arrange them over the cream cheese (pressing the cubes in slightly, so they adhere to the cream cheese). Using a spoon, spoon over as much or as little of the marinade as you like, just make sure to get all of the roasted red pepper, candied jalapeno, herbs, and green onion (that’s all the good stuff that adds a delicious flavor a beautiful pop over color). It is up to you how much of the liquid marinade that you want to pour over, some people don’t want all of it on there because it can make the dip a little runny or messy, but I like to spoon almost all of the marinade, just because it has too much flavor to waste! It’s all up to your preferences.

4. Serve the dip cold or at room temperature with some crackers for dipping!