Bring it to the Party!

Last weekend hubby and I were invited to a "Twilightathon" party at friends', Sean and Heidi, home. While not big fans of shiny vampires, the chance to get out and socialize with other adults was the real treat. Anyone attending was asked to bring a snack to share which is only fair and I had planned on making my Mexican 4-layer dip. Heidi though was hankering for a 7 layer dip and who was I to deny her? Now I'm not going to claim that 4 or 7 layer dip was originally started by me; there are just so many different versions out there, so I'm just posting my take on them.

Anyway, then I was thinking about this little snack treat that I've been dying to make, but it makes so many that it's only good for a party. Hello, did someone say party? I first had this treat way back in 1997 when a coworker brought them in for a Christmas party. They were great and the recipe, only 3 ingredients, was passed around to everyone. Now you can find it on the internet everywhere, so if anyone is declaring they were the inventor....well who really knows by now? Anyway, at Heidi and Sean's party, they went faster than the dip, that's for sure.

So here come the recipes and next time you need a party snack idea, you've got a couple of more recipes to choose from. Enjoy!

Mexican 4 or 7 Layer Dip

4 Layer Dip

Ingredients:
1 (8 oz) container French onion dip (Helleva Good is the best)
1 (8 oz) jar medium, chunky style salsa
2 cups shredded lettuce
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend
Tortilla chips

Preparation:
Using a 12 inch round aluminum pizza pan, spread out the onion dip evenly out to the edges; next spread out the salsa over the dip. Evenly spread out the lettuce, then the cheese blend.
Serve with tortilla chips for dipping.


7 Layer Dip

Ingredients:
1 (14.5 oz) can refried beans
1 (8 oz) jar medium, chunky style salsa
2 cups shredded lettuce
1 (12 oz) bag shredded Mexican cheese blend
1 ½ cups sour cream
1 ½ cups guacamole
1 cup each sliced black olives and diced onions, mixed together
Tortilla chips

Preparation:
Using a glass or plastic 2 quart rectangular dish, evenly spread out each ingredient, in order, over the next. Refrigerate for an hour to let the layers settle together. Serve with tortilla chips.

Note: For either dip, using a spatula to spread ingredients allows for smoother, more even layers.

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3 Ingredient Pretzel Chocolate Snack

Ingredients:
1 (10 oz) bag square or round waffle pretzels
2 (13 oz) bags Hershey’s Kisses (any one type or a mixture), unwrapped
1 (14 oz) bag plain chocolate M&M’s

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 180F; line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper.

Spread pretzels onto parchment paper; place an unwrapped Hershey kiss in center of each pretzel. When all pretzels have a kiss on them, carefully place on center rack of oven, so they do not shift about.

Within 5 minutes the chocolate will get a glossy sheen to it; carefully remove pan from oven. Gently press an M&M candy in the center of each kiss; the chocolate will squash down and adhere to the pretzel.

Place pan in a cool place to let the chocolate firm up and set. The snacks can be stacked inside a plastic container; place a piece of waxed paper between each layer.

Makes about 75 - 100 pieces; dependent upon using whole pretzels only, not broken pieces.

Mary Cokenour