Score with a Snack Buffet

From upper left: Cheese Popcorn, chips (purchased), Toffee Snack Mix, Wholly Guacamole, Chipotle Raspberry Black Bean Dip, shrimp cocktail (purchased), Recipe links are at the bottom of this post.

 

It's NCAA tournament week. It's time for basketball and for the hoops version of a tailgate party.

The tournament won't look the same this year. The stands won't be packed with fans. The teams are all congregating in "bubble format" at venues near Indianapolis.

And it's likely the big watch parties of years gone by will be "bye-bye" for another year. But after 2020 when the NCAA tourney was stopped before it ever started, it's still good news for basketball fans to contemplate hours of watching the Big Dance.

We had our own Super Bowl watch party back in February. Yes, just us two. (That's where the photo above originated with some tweaks for round ball.) So we may just have to have our own NCAA snack buffet, too ... even if my K-State Wildcats will not be making an appearance this year. I have the Big 12's teams circled on my bracket so I don't miss any of the action. And Wichita State University attempts to play into the tournament in a game tonight.

One of the new snacks I tried for our Super Bowl party was a Chipotle Raspberry Black Bean Dip. I had a hankering for a dip that's popular at So Long Saloon in Manhattan. (Ah, the pre-pandemic days of restaurant dining ... and trips to Manhattan!) And I even found a recipe from Cooking for Keeps blog that mentioned So Long and Aggieville by name!

The blog's author - Nicole - is a fellow K-State alum. So I was excited to try her version of the restaurant dip. It didn't disappoint. 

Photo from Cooking for Keeps. For more information and lots more about the recipe, go to the Cooking for Keeps blog.

Nicole's version used fresh raspberries as the base for the sauce, rather than purchasing a bottled salsa or sauce. Score!

Chipotle Raspberry Black Bean Dip

From Cooking for Keeps blog

1 tbsp. olive oil, divided
1/2 cup diced onion
2 large garlic cloves, minced and divided
10 oz. raspberries
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp water
1/8 cup white sugar
1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
2 tsp. adobo sauce (from the canned chipotles)
1 14-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. salt, divided
6 oz. cream cheese
1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Heat an oven-proof medium skillet to a medium heat. (Cast iron works well if you have it, but don't worry if you don't.) Add 2 teaspoons olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add onion and 1 garlic clove and cook until slightly softened, about 2 minutes. Add raspberries, 1/4 cup water, sugar, chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, and salt. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer until the raspberries break down, stirring occasionally, about 5-7 minutes.

Transfer the mixture to a blender or use an immersion blender and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. If you want your sauce a little bit spicier, add more adobo sauce or chopped chipotle peppers until you reach your desired heat level. (It was plenty hot for Randy and me, but our kids tease us about our low spice threshold!)

Rinse the pan you cooked the sauce in and wipe clean. Add remaining olive oil to the pan. Heat over a medium flame. Add remaining garlic; sweat 1 minute. Add black beans, water, chili powder and remaining salt. Saute until garlic is softened, about 2-3 minutes.

Push the black beans to the side and put the cream cheese in the middle. Cover with sauce. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake until the dip is hot and bubbly, and the cheese has melted, about 10 minutes. Serve with tortilla chips. 

 

NOTE: As I indicated, I don't have a cast iron or oven-proof skillet, so I just assembled the components in a square glass baking dish. You can still bake until the dip is hot, bubbly and melty. 

 

For the other snacks pictured at the top, visit the links below:

 

WARNING: Neon yellow fingers are a side effect of this snack. Cheese Popcorn.

 

If you want to get really fancy like a popcorn specialty shop, combine cheese popcorn and Caramel Corn. (Click here for the Caramel Corn recipe.) 

Wholly Guacamole

 

Toffee Snack Mix

You can always search my blog for tried-and-true recipes. Type in "sandwiches," "meatballs," "snack mix," "drop cookies," "dips," "bar cookies," etc., in the search engine in the upper lefthand corner of the blog. It will give you lots of options.