Ah …. Thanksgiving. Oh, how I heart you. Not just for being a day to give thanks (and honestly, I am really trying to give thanks everyday) but for the overall acceptance of gluttony. We are expected to wear loose pants and gorge ourselves on tasty things. There are no other distractions, like presents or costumes, just a focus on yummy, irresistible food. A day of feasting — which is something I am thankful for every year.
As I mentioned in Monday’s post, I will be posting recipes every Wednesday and Friday for the remaining of 2014. The holidays are one of my favorite times of the year, so I wanted to offer plenty of delicious dishes for your upcoming holiday celebrations.
It’s entirely possible that I also wanted an excuse to eat too.
Did I mention that I’m doing a Health and Wealth challenge this month? I like to make things interesting!
Anyway, to kick things off, I’m started with an appetizer. In my family, we eat our Thanksgiving meal at Noon. And after we have stuffed ourselves silly, we hang out, talking, playing cards, watching TV, etc. So you know what that means …. snacks! Because heaven forbid if we can’t stuff ourselves every minute of Thanksgiving. 🙂
This is an excellent snack to serve because it is conveniently made in the crockpot. It assembles quickly (check out my notes ways to speed up the process) and is so tasty. Who doesn’t like dip? You can taste a hint of beer, so if you don’t like beer, feel free to use milk instead.
I served the dip with 3 cheese beer bread and it was a pairing made in heaven. But you could also use sourdough bread cubes, pretzels or crackers too. This will definitely be a huge hit with your guests at Thanksgiving or whenever you serve it.
Bacon Beer Cheese Dip
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup beer
- 8 oz. cream cheese room temperature
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 10 slices bacon
- 1 shallot finely chopped
- 1 jalapeño ribs and stem removed, finely chopped
- Cayenne pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a skillet over medium-high heat, cook the bacon. Drain cooked bacon on a paper-toweled lined plate. Chop roughly. Set aside.
- In the same skillet, cook shallot and jalapeño in bacon fat until softened. (Remove some of the bacon fat if there is quite a bit in the pan. You only need a tablespoon or less.) Set aside.
- Lightly coat a 4 quart crockpot with non-stick spray. Add cream cheese, cheddar cheese and shallot/jalapeño mixture. Pour beer over mixture. Cover and cook on low for 2 hours. Stir occasionally until dip is creamy and cheese is melted.
- Stir in bacon and cayenne pepper to taste. Serve with bread cubes, pretzels or crackers.
Notes
Enjoy!
Tanya