Redneck Caviar!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

 As I have confessed in my post for "Hoppin John", I am not all that crazy about the taste of black eyed peas, unless they are jazzed up a little bit with some other spices.   This black eyed pea salsa does just that and it's so easy to throw together.  It's one of my favorite ways to use the homely little black eyed pea.   It completely changes the taste of them to something very light and fresh tasting.  Here is what you will need for this:

2  15oz. cans black eyed peas, rinsed and drained.
1 can Rotel tomatoes and green chilies
1/2 cup sliced green onions, including some of the green blades
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 red or yellow bell pepper, diced
2 Tbs. minced pickled jalapenos
1 Tbs. minced garlic
1 pkg dry Italian dressing
1/3 cup olive oil
2 Tbs. vinegar
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. Cajun seasoning (I use Tony Cachere)
dash of black pepper
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup chopped parsley

Combine the drained black eye peas, Rotel tomatoes, green onions, bell peppers, jalapenos and minced garlic.  Whisk together the Italian dressing mix with the olive oil, vinegar, cumin, Cajun seasoning and black pepper.  Pour over the other ingredients.  Add the fresh cilantro and parsley and mix well.  Cover and refrigerate for several hours before serving.  Serve with tortilla chips or Fritos Scoops.



Cheesy Sausage Dip!

We have been making this cheesy, spicy sausage dip in our family for...well, I don't even remember when we didn't make it.  My mother always made it, and then, me and my sister made it and now our kids make it!  I guess it's the family dip...lol. Don't all families have those couple of recipes or things they always have when they get together?   

This concoction is something I always made when my son was growing up and he had boys stay over or come home from school with him.  If there were very many and as they grew into very large boys, I had to double the recipe.  Some of those boys, who are now grown, still talk about the sausage dip when we see them.   The things that make memories for kids.   When it involved our house, it usually had to do with food or some crazy thing my husband did to them.  He has always been the worst kid in the house!  This is so easy, it's stupid and I mean that in a good way!   Here is what you need:

1 lb. roll of breakfast sausage ( I use Purnell's medium sausage)

1 lb. Velveeta cheese

1 8 oz. cream cheese (you can use light cream cheese)

1  10 oz. can of regular Rotel tomatoes

Crumble and brown the sausage in a skillet.  You can use mild sausage for less spice or hot for more.  I use Purnell's medium. I am very partial to Purnell's sausage and it is a Kentucky product, but you can use any sausage you like.

Drain the Rotel slightly and add to the pan.  At this point you can put the sausage in a slow cooker and add the other ingredients and cook on low.  The slow cooker is good to use if you taking this to a party because you can warm it back up and it will stay warm while you are there.   A skillet with a lid also works though.

Cube the Velveeta and cream cheese and add to the pan.

Cover and warm on low just until the cheeses are melted.  Stir to blend until smooth once they are soft and melty.  Make sure it doesn't stick to the bottom if you are not using a nonstick pan it could. 

Serve with tortilla chips or Fritos Scoops. This will disappear fast!