What’s a great day in front of the TV without a great snack?  Whether it’s movie night, game day or just an evening of watching TV with the kids (every Saturday they get to pick the shows), a snack is called for and in my opinion it’s hard to beat a good homemade bean dip.

Aside from being a lot healthier than sour cream based dips, bean dip tends to hold up better to serious snacking, especially when there are two pre-teen boys or a group of men involved.  it’s more filling, far more savory and suited as a condiment for a slew of different applications, including burritos.

This is a simple recipe that tastes best if allowed to sit for a few hours before serving.  The flavors never seem to come together unless it has a chance to rest.  When ready to serve just sprinkle with some cheese, bake for a few minutes and enjoy!  You’ll be glad you did.

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Popularity: 4% [?]

If you’re looking for an alternative to a nice hot bowl of chili on a cool evening (or better yet, a hot summer’s evening) you might want to consider using something other than beef as the main ingredient.  In this case, I chose the American bison, or Buffalo, and I couldn’t be happier with the results. I’ve actually been dying to try it since I found that I could purchase bison at the base commissary.

While this is just a riff on my normal chili recipe, there are several ingredients that I omitted, both to be true to the bison itself and because I wasn’t sure that those additions would do any justice to the slightly gamy flavor of the meat.  In my opinion, I made the right choices.

We tried to keep the ingredients to something that native Americans might have had on hand if they had decided to make this dish.  since the primary crops of many tribes were beans, corn and squash, I used these things as the secondary cast in this production, with stellar results.

The end product is most definitely chili, but with an ever so slightly gamy back note and a deep, rich flavor that I doubt could ever be achieved using beef. It is, in my humble opinion, everything that chili should be, and If you can find buffalo or bison locally I urge you to try it, you won’t be disappointed.

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Popularity: 7% [?]

Texas has its own rules when it comes to cuisine. I’ve seen foods here that I’d never heard of prior to meeting and marrying a Texan, then moving to her state as well. (O.K. She’s an Expat, we’re just stationed here, her license plates are Alaskan.)

This little gem is a tribute to football games, warm Texan nights and the fact that foods, especially snack foods, change by region.

Ladies and gentle-people, I give you the venerable Frito Pie!

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Popularity: 2% [?]