Simple Salsa

This is a great salsa recipe! It's really easy, especially if you have a 3 cup mini food processor. (I'm pretty sure my mini food processor cost less than $15 at Wal-Mart.) Even though this recipe uses canned tomatoes, the other ingredients give it a boost a fresh flavor. I've always used kosher salt for this recipe, so be careful if you use a different type of salt because you may not need as much. And I personally use quite a bit of cilantro, but you can adjust the amount to suit your tastes.

1 can (14.5 oz) Mexican stewed tomatoes
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
juice from one small lime (or half of a large lime)
handful of fresh cilantro leaves

Dump all of the ingredients into a mini food processor and pulse until the cilantro leaves are all chopped up and everything is well blended. Enjoy!

Creamy Sausage Dip on Melba Toast

This creamy, flavorful dip is wonderful served on crunchy Melba Toast. I love a good dip and this one is definitely a keeper!

1 lb sausage
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup real mayonnaise
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown and crumble sausage until no longer pink. Remove from heat, drain off drippings and add all remaining ingredients. Pour into baking dish. Bake 20 minutes or until bubbly. Keep warm (a small slow cooker comes in handy here) and serve with Melba Toast.

Peanut Butter Dip

This dip is delightful. It goes great with fruit, crackers, and pretzels. I especially like it with apples. Yum!

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup milk
1/2 tsp vanilla

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy.

Shoe Peg Corn Dip

My friend Deb shared this wonderful dip recipe with me. It's really yummy. You can substitute many different types of shredded cheese. I've also made it with plain shredded cheddar and shredded pepper jack...it's all good!

1 (11 oz) can shoe peg corn, drained
1/2 (11 oz) can sweet yellow corn, drained
1/2 (15 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
1 (10 oz) can Ro-tel tomatoes, drained
1/2 cup shredded taco style cheese
1 cup shredded Mexican style cheese
Tortilla chips or Fritos Scoops

Drain and mix corn, beans, and Ro-tel tomatoes. In separate bowl, beat cream cheese, then fold in the taco style cheese and corn, bean, and tomato mixture. Pour into casserole dish (9 x 9 or close) and cover with shredded Mexican style cheese. Bake at 350 until bubbly - 10 to 20 minutes. Serve warm with chips.