A few weeks ago Philadelphia Cream Cheese asked me if I would be willing to try a recipe out of one of their cookbooks and let them know what I thought. They offered to send me the coupons for the cream cheese I would need.
I have never been one to turn down cream cheese. Free cream cheese.
So I got the book and the coupons and set out to fix something in it. There were a lot of cheesecakes but I am pretty partial to my recipe so I went on to the appetizer section. The book is called A Taste of Heaven, by the way. I love Layered Mexican Dip and decided that it would be a perfect choice for a quick lunch with homemade tortilla chips. I got out the ingredients.

I doubled the recipe because I needed to. As you can see, it is pretty straight forward and simple. I decided that homemade tortilla chips would be the perfect addition to make this a quick meal for the kids. After all, who doesn’t like chips and dips? The Kraft recipe called for low fat items, and I am putting those in parenthesis in the recipe. I chose regular items because we do not have weight problems and I personally find low fat things icky. Feel free to make it either way.
This is great for your Superbowl party of course… you can serve it with vegetables, chips, crackers, and/or toast depending on what type of meal you are serving it as.

Mexican Dip
Ingredients:
- 2 8 oz packaged Philadelphia Cream Cheese (Neufchatel for low fat)
- 1 cup Salsa
- 1 cup shredded colby-jack cheese (Kraft 2% milk shredded reduced fat cheese)
- 4 green onions sliced
- 1/2 cup sour cream, optional (my addition)

Instructions
- Soften the cream cheese for about 30 minutes.
- Spread cream cheese on the bottom of a 8×8 inch casserole dish.
- Top with salsa, cheddar cheese, and the onions in layers.
- Put a dollop of sour cream on the top.
- Serve with crackers, toast, chips, or veggies to dip.
This makes an 8×8 inch panful. It serves 6 hungry kids.
Probably more if you are serving it as part of an appetizer table. For Superbowl Sunday I would consider doing this with several types of things to dip in it and then a few other sandwiches and appetizers.


Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on t.v. Philadelphia Cream Cheese sent me coupons to get the cream cheese at no expense, as well as a cookbook to work out of. I was not compensated for this post, but they are not asking for the cream cheese or book back. The opinions stated herein are the unadulterated opinions of a twisted mind. The entire post should be read with caution. You have been warned.
images:Marye Audet