Cafe Rio; Ranch Dressing

1 Ranch packet

1 c. butter milk

1 c. heaping cup mayonnaise

1 (7 oz.) can of salsa verde

1/4 bunch cilantro

1 clove garlic

juice of one lime

1 jalapeno (without the seeds)

Blend all of the above in a blender and chill in the refrigerator. This is really good with veggies, crackers or on salads when you have leftovers.

Serve with Cafe Rio Pork and Cafe Rio; Rice, recipes on this blog.

This recipe is from from my friend Jen. Super good.

*You can make your own buttermilk by mixing 1 Tbsp. of vinegar with 1 c. of milk and let it set for 5 minutes.

*If you love it so much you can double the batch from the salsa down, blend altogether and then divide in half and freeze half of the fresh mix for another time.

Herbed Cheese Dip

1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1/4 c. milk
1 Tbsp. sour cream
1 Tbsp. minced parsley
1 tsp. grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. olive oil
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. butter, softened
3/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. dried tarragon
1/4 tsp. celery seed
1/8 tsp. dill weed

Fresh veggies
Crackers
Mix everything but the veggies together. Make sure you take the dip out of the refrigerator about 45 minutes before serving so it has time to thaw out a little bit (due to the cream cheese that wants to harden).
Yields: 1 1/2 cups.
This recipe is from Taste of Home; great American cookout edition (magazine). It was really good.

Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Ball

*I am sure the pecans are great but it's tasty without the nuts too.

1 (8oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup powdered sugar
2 Tbs. brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 Cup mini chocolate chips
Finely chopped pecans (optional)
1 or 2 boxes of gram cracker sticks

Beat together cream cheese and butter. Beat in sugars and vanilla, and stir in chocolate chips. Wrap in plastic wrap to form a ball, bring the corners in and twist until the ball is tight. Place ball with the tightened side on the bottom of a small plate (so it looks like a ball; this is how it keeps a ball shape). Chill in refrigerator until workable (a little hard) or chill over night. Shape into a more circular ball and roll in pecans.
This recipe is from my friend Chandie's blogspot, So We Think We Can Cook. Brooke loves, loves this. I have to try not to make it too often because it's a little too good for my thighs!

Chili Jalapeno Cheese Dip

1 cup mayo
2 packages of cream cheese
1 can diced green chili's
1/2 can chopped jalapenos
Parmesan cheese (to taste)

Blend together in a blender. Bake at 350 degrees until brown 15-20 minutes. This recipe if from Brenda. Be careful with the jalapenos if you put too many in it gets way over powering (I did that to a batch of this once).