Happy Nom Nom Monday! I'm not a big sports fan, but I know a lot of people are, and today's recipe is the perfect Game Night snack. I love cheese dip, but whenever I buy a jar of con queso I feel my arteries clogging. So I hunted the internet for a homemade version. Not that cheese dip can magically become healthy, but I can at least know exactly what is entering my body, and have control over the amount of sodium in the mix. Searching the internet for homemade con queso turns up a lot of recipes where you simply mix velveta and rotel tomatoes. Not exactly the kind of recipe I was looking for, but after some digging I stubbled upon the Homesick Texan's blog, and her recipe for A More Natural Con Queso.
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons of salted butter
- 1/2 cup of onion
- 1/2 cup of jalapeno peppers
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 2 tablespoons of flour
- 1 cup of milk
- 1/2 cup of cilantro
- 2 plum tomatoes
- 6 cups of shredded cheese (any mixture will do)
- 1/2 cup sour cream
Directions:
I started off by preparing all my ingredients. I diced the onion, peppers, and tomatoes. I minced the garlic, and chopped up the cilantro. I also measured out the butter, flour, milk, and shredded cheese. For the shredded cheese I used straight cheddar, and a four cheese mexican blend.
Then I melted the butter in a large saucepan over medium to low heat. Once the butter was melted I sautéed the onion and jalapeno peppers for about five minutes. Then I added the garlic, and after about a minute I added the flour. Then I whisked in the milk, creating a thick rue. Next I mixed in the tomatoes and cilantro.
Now for the cheeses. I added them a 1/4 cup at a time, making sure the cheese melted before I added the next scoop. When I had melted all six cups of cheese into the mixture I measured out and dropped in the sour cream. The sour cream is the final touch, making the whole mixture come together.
This is super tasty, and not ultra spicy either. I think next time I want to use some stronger cheeses, and more jalapeno peppers for a stronger kick though. This recipe makes a lot, so it's perfect for a get-together, but if you're not entertaining I would suggest cutting the recipe in half.
Have a great night, and happy DIYing, chris!
