Recipe: Easy Cheesy Hot Corn Dip

It's so good, you'll want to stand by yourself in a corner and shove it into your mouth with just your hands.

I love dips. Few things offer more of a taste and texture wallop than a hot cheesy dip that you can load onto a salty chip and then cram inside your pie hole. The only problem with this dip is that when you serve it to your family or at a summer garden party, turn your back for even a minute, and you’re going to be looking at an empty plate.

It’s the irresistible combination of spicy peppers, Colby jack cheese and sour cream that will do you in. And here’s the best part: you can just throw all the ingredients into a slow cooker for 1-2 hours until bubbly, and voila! Molten goodness.

It’s a substantive dip, so you’re going to want to give some thought to the best method for conveying said dip into greedy mouths. I like tortilla chips for this one, but you can also use pretzels, a non-flimsy cracker, Fritos, carrots or celery. Some potato chips are okay, but it’s better to get them thick-cut. Otherwise, your chip will break off and you’ll have to fish it out using a spoon, which you can then use as a perfect excuse to dig into even more of the dip.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp. olive oil

• 1/2 onion diced

• 1 red pepper diced

• 1 jalapeño (seeds removed) and diced

• 2 15-oz cans sweet (not creamed) corn

• 8 ounce cream cheese softened

• 3/4 cup sour cream

• 2 cups Colby jack cheese, shredded and divided into 2 equal parts

• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder

• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1/4 teaspoon paprika

• salt and pepper

• chopped green onion for garnish

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium sized saucepan add the olive oil, onion, red pepper, and jalapeño. Cook over medium high heat, stirring as you go, until the onion is tender.

2. In a medium sized bowl add pepper-and-onion mixture, corn, cream cheese, sour cream, 1 cup cheese, chili powder, garlic, paprika, salt and pepper. Stir until combined.

3. Spread in a 2-quart casserole dish. Sprinkle remaining 1 cup cheese over the top. Bake for 15-20 minutes or the dip is a bubbly golden brown. Garnish with green onions, if desired. Serve hot.

Buon appetito!

What’s your favorite dip—I’m talking food, not people. Let me know in the comments section below.