Lori’s Bean Dip

Okay, we made it through Christmas with quite a few entries on the plus side of the ledger.  We shared a Christmas Eve worship service, celebrated the holiday with friends and family, gave and received some neat gifts, enjoyed a lot of holiday music, and ate well.  But for me at least the plus side also included a noticeable plus in the poundage category.

Even though I limit myself to half portions on the second round of turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole and bread; and even if my wife serves me an inadequate piece of lemon pie to start with and a really skimpy piece of apple pie I try only to be polite; and even though I confine myself to just one martini before and two glasses of wine with dinner, the bathroom scale is not my friend the morning after.

Vigorous walks and a tedious diet of leftovers are just starting to take effect when suddenly it’s time to welcome the new year with more food and drink.  And there’s the Rose Bowl, an event designed to put pounds on any loyal Wisconsin fan.  We all could benefit from a low calorie dip that tastes good.

Here’s a delicious bean dip recipe that’s relatively low in calories that I learned from Jerri’s niece Lori.  She makes it during the college football season when husband Dan cheers on the Auburn Tigers, but it will go well on New Year’s Day when the Badgers wow fans at the Rose Bowl.

If you think bean dip is something that looks like milk chocolate paste, you need to try this recipe.  It’s a simple but delicious dip that looks great and is a perfect complement to tortilla chips.

INGREDIENTS

1 can (12-16 oz.) black beans
1 8 oz. can of whole kernel corn
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1 small  red or yellow onion (about 2 1/2  inches in diameter)
1 medium sized firm tomato
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 small can of chopped green chilies
Salt and pepper to taste

PROCEDURE

Drain and rinse the black beans and corn and put them in a mixing bowl along with the can of chopped green chilies.  Remove the stem scar,  seeds and pulp from the tomatoes and peel the onion.   Chop these fairly finely and add them to the beans and corn.  Chop the cilantro fine and add it along with the cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper.  Mix well and serve with tortilla chips.

NOTES:  For a hotter dip, add some vinegar-type hot sauce or substitute chopped jalapeños for the chilies.   For a milder taste, omit the chilies.  And of course, you can always vary the proportions of the spices to suit your taste.

I think that the flavor of this dip improves if it is made a couple of hours before being served.  Store it in the refrigerator until your guests arrive.

Garnished with sprigs of cilantro and slices of cheddar cheese, this dip will make a great addition to your Super Bowl snack table.