Five Layer Mexican Dip

One of my favorite things in the Food Universe is to either develop or discover a recipe for something that is NOTORIOUSLY bad for you and make something good, without sacrificing flavor.

Actually, I prefer this version to it's more fattening, seven-layer counterpart.

5-Layer Mexican Dip
Recipe from Ellie Krieger
Prep time: 20 minutes   Cook time: 8 minutes

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (15.5-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon minced chipotle pepper in adobo
4 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups frozen corn kernels
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves
2 ripe avocados
4 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallion
1 tablespoon finely diced jalapeno pepper
3/4 cup shredded extra-sharp Cheddar

1.  Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook until they soften, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 2 minutes more.

One step for TWO layers!

2.  Put half of the onion mixture into a food processor with the black beans, chipotle pepper, 2 tablespoons of the lime juice, cumin, water and salt. Puree until smooth. Set aside.

Prepare to be pulsed.

3.  Add the corn to the skillet with the remaining onion mixture and cook for about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro leaves.

I heart cilantro.

4.  In a small bowl mash the avocado with the remaining lime juice. In a medium bowl toss together the tomatoes, scallion and jalapeno, if using. Season tomato mixture with salt and pepper, to taste.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

It was REALLY HARD to keep from snacking.

5.  Spread the black bean dip into the bottom of an 8 by 8 glass baking or serving dish. Top with the corn mixture, spreading it out to form a single layer over the beans, repeat with the avocado, then the tomatoes. Top with cheese.

Now, is this version as easy as putting together a 7-Layer Dip?  No.  I'll admit it!  It's much easier to open up some cans and plastic containers and layer them all together for a fantastic party spread.  But if you'd like to feel a twinge less guilty eating a yummy Mexican dip, sometimes the tradeoff is doing just a little bit of work, like cooking up the bean and corn layers in this recipe.  I'll say though that these layers are WORTH the few extra minutes to put together!!  The beans are smokey and spicy from the chipotle pepper.  I love how the corn kernals burst in my mouth.  And the avocado and tomato layers are so cool and refreshing; and the cheese just brings it all together.

SUPER YUMMY!!!

p.s. At the party I went on Saturday, after two hours there was only about a cup of this left.  And I'm fairly certain that the rest was consumed not long after I took my boys home for bed. ;)