healthy bean dip (for watching football)

 

 

If you know me at all, you know I don't like football. At all. I don't understand it and I don't care to, and I can't think of anything I would less like to do with my time than watch men in slightly shiny outfits sort of run around and hurt each other  for three hours (I will admit I like Friday Night Lights. Tim Rigginsssssssssssssss!). Football is just not my thing. Never has been, never will be.

My boyfriend R is a Texans fan, and I, as a native Baltimorean, am a Ravens fan (as "fan" as I get, I guess. I support my hometown teams and purple is already my favorite color, so...). As you may or may not know, these two teams played each other in a playoffs game on Sunday. I promised R I would watch with him, so I challenged myself to make a super healthy snack to eat while watching football.

This bean dip is what I came up with. Aside from a little oil and seasoning, it is comprised completely of vegetables. Just to be supersuper healthy, I served it with more vegetables for dipping, carrot chips and sliced yellow peppers. And I've never felt less guilty about mindlessly eating while I watched TV. Ok, I admit I took a nap and read an issue of Real Simple during the game. But the Ravens won!

Healthy Bean Dip

1 small onion

1 can black beans, drained

1 cup corn (fresh, frozen, or canned)

1-2 tbsps fresh chopped garlic (depending on how much you like garlic)

2 tsps cumin

2 tbsps lime juice

salt to taste

optional: 2 tbsps chopped green chilies

1. Dice onion and saute in olive oil until soft. Add garlic and green chilies, if you're using them, and cook for another minute or so.

2. Add beans, corn, cumin and salt and cook on medium-low for 10 minutes.

3.Transfer to a food processor or blender, add the lime juice and blend until smooth and thick.

You can stir in some shredded cheese if you'd like, but I promise this is just as good as it is. I also highly recommend using the green chile because duh it's green chile, but jalapeños would work fine, as would omitting the spicy altogether.  

So make this to munch on as you watch a sporting event. It would also be a good nutritious spread for wraps or burritos, I think, just because it's so filling. The bean dip was basically my lunch and I was totally fine until dinner. Beans will do it every time. Just like Ray Lewis. CAW CAW.