Spicy Mexican Bean Dip (Two Ways!)

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Enjoy Spicy Mexican Bean Dip two different ways! Perfect for Game Day munching, Hot Pepper Jack Bean Dip will satisfy your creamy, cheesy cravings, and Spiced Up Mexican Seven Layer Dip is a fresh take on a classic.

Hello! We’re flying full speed ahead into fall, and that means a few things. One: pumpkin (hard to avoid that one), two: the promise of cooler temps (please, Nashville, any day now…), and three: Gametime!

Brian and I both have (different) hometown allegiances when it comes to football, but we grew a little fond of the hometown team while living in San Diego, and now here in Nashville. Basically come football season, we always have a team to watch and root for. And good thing, because we are ALL about the homegate.

The art of the homegate is simple: don your jersey of choice, invite friends over, sink into the couch, revel in the fact that you won’t be dealing with any porta potties today, and ready yourself for enjoying all of your favorite traditional Game Day bites.

We love dips, and thanks to Pace® we have two different and delicious takes on Mexican bean dip. One is served warm and blended while the other is served cool and in layers, so there’s a surprisingly SIMPLE dip for everyone in your crowd.

Pace® Salsa is guaranteed to kick up your eats any time of the day (except for maybe dessert…) with its genuine southwest flavor. I’m partial to it on scrambled eggs in the morning with a few avocado slices, in a wrap for lunch with grilled chicken, cheese, and spinach, and even as the “dressing” on homemade taco salads, which is one of our go-to, quick weeknight meals. Adventurous eating going on in my house. 🙂

Creamy blended dip

First up we have Hot Pepper Jack Bean Dip. Warm, cheesy dips are one of my favorite indulgences, and the steps can be boiled down to “heat and stir all ingredients until melted”. Pepper jack cheese, refried beans, cream cheese, and Pace® Picante sauce are all you need to make this creamy, crowd-pleasing dip!

I’ve been making variations of this dip forever, and because texture sensitivity is sometimes a thing with my crowd, I usually blend the salsa before mixing it into the other ingredients I’m using so it’ll be nice and smooth. No longer! Pace® Picante sauce is already blended together with handpickled jalapenos and onions for a zippy and easy ingredient to use in this dip. I chose the medium spice level here, but it’s also available in mild or hot for a dip your whole family will love.

Plus there’s no need to wash the blender afterwards – now that’s a Game Day win.

A twist on classic seven layer dip

Aaaand next we have Spiced Up Seven Layer Dip. This fresh variation on seven layer dip is for all of us chunky salsa lovers out there, and I must report that it in fact converted a few of my ‘smooth salsa only’ audience tastebuds. Pace® Chunky Salsa is my kind of salsa – thick, not watery, and chock full of those handpickled jalapenos and onions that the Picante sauce also has. I mean, just look at all the flavor-packed goodness it’s got going on!

As an accountant I’m feeling the need to prove out the seven layers here, so here we go:

• Refried beans are on the bottom.
• Next, avocado is mashed with smoked paprika (!) and salt for a smoky twist. Smoked paprika is my favorite seasoning to add when I make avocado toast, and its been creeping its way into my other avocado dishes.
• Then we have spiced up sour cream, featuring sour cream mixed with chili powder, ground cumin, and garlic powder. Bringing the southwestern flavor!
• The fourth layer is short but mighty – finely chopped jalapenos. They amp up the spice level and give this dip a little crunch.
• Fifth we have a layer of black beans.
• Next is Pace® Chunky Salsa in medium (mild is available, too).
• And last but not least is the top layer, which consists of a heavy sprinkle of queso fresco and chopped cilantro. I sprinkled a few extra black beans over top as garnish instead of black olives because we’re not huge olive fans. Those would work if you’d prefer!

All that’s left is to put some tortilla chips in a bowl and/or cut up some vegetables (I did celery and peppers) and you’re set.

Spicy Mexican Bean Dip (Two Ways!)

Enjoy Spicy Mexican Bean Dip two different ways! Perfect for Game Day munching, Hot Pepper Jack Bean Dip will satisfy your creamy, cheesy cravings, and Spiced Up Mexican Seven Layer Dip is a fresh take on a classic.

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Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Southwestern

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 15 (or more)

Author: Alyssa

Ingredients

Hot Pepper Jack Bean Dip:

• ▢ 12 oz Pace® Picante sauce medium
• ▢ 8 oz refried beans
• ▢ 4 oz cream cheese or lower-fat Neufchâtel
• ▢ 4 oz pepper jack cheese shredded (about 1 cup)

Spiced Up Mexican Seven Layer Dip:

• ▢ 1 16-oz can refried beans
• ▢ 2 ripe avocados
• ▢ 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• ▢ 1/8 tsp salt
• ▢ 12 oz sour cream I used light
• ▢ 3/4 tsp chili powder
• ▢ 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• ▢ 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• ▢ 1 jalapeno pepper seeds removed and finely diced
• ▢ 1 16-oz can black beans rinsed and drained
• ▢ 18 oz Pace® Chunky Salsa medium
• ▢ 3 oz queso fresco crumbled
• ▢ 1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

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Instructions

For the Hot Pepper Jack Bean Dip:

• Add all ingredients to a sauce pan set over low-medium heat. Stir to break up the cream cheese and beans, and then stir every now and again as the cheese melts. Dip is ready when it's mostly smooth and heated throughout, about 10-12 minutes. Serve warm!

For the Spiced Up Mexican Seven Layer Dip:

• Spread refried beans in an even layer in a serving dish. I used an 8x8" clear dish so the dip wouldn't be too tall and you can see the layers.
• Cut and scoop the flesh of the two avocados into a bowl. Add smoked paprika and salt and mash everything together with the back of a fork until the mixture is cohesive but still a bit chunky. Spread spiced avocado mixture evenly over top of the refried bean layer.
• In a separate bowl, stir together sour cream, chili powder, ground cumin, and garlic powder. Add sour cream in an even layer over top of the avocado.
• Sprinkle the diced jalapeno pepper over top of the sour cream, using more or less jalapeno to adjust the spice level to your taste.
• Evenly spread black beans as the next layer over top of the jalapeno pieces.
• Pour Pace® Chunky Salsa over top of black beans and spread until even.
• Top with crumbled queso fresco, chopped cilantro, and additional black beans if you like. Serve cold!

Notes

I used a clear 8x8" (2 qt.) dish for the Spiced Up Mexican Seven Layer Dip so that you could see the different layers. I suggest using a wider, shallower dish than a standard serving bowl. This way the dip isn't so tall and you have a better chance of scooping up multiple layers at once onto your chip!

I err on the side of caution and wear disposable, powder-free gloves when chopping jalapeno peppers so that I don't burn my fingers.

The Hot Pepper Jack Bean Dip can be made ahead of time and then reheated for serving. Because of the avocado in the Spiced Up Mexican Seven Layer Dip, I suggest preparing it soon before serving.

Feel free to scale up/down the quantities of ingredients here to yield a smaller or larger quantity of dip(s).

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Nutritional information is provided as an estimate. As it can vary due to many factors (brands used, quantities, etc.), we cannot guarantee its accuracy.