First of all, we have some kind of exciting news that has just kind of slipped under the radar. Check this out:
Yep, Sara and I are now officially calendar girls. I wish it were more scandalous than 12 brand-new recipes that we’re really, really proud of, but alas, it’s not. It is officially released today and you can find it here or here (and probably other places, but I can’t tell you where those places might be…)
So yeah, guess who still doesn’t have a kitchen? Me! It brings me more happiness than I can possibly describe. I have eaten a lot of fast food. Like to the point where the thought of one more drive-thru makes me sick. I am having literal fantasies of Tortellini Sausage Soup and Breadsticks–we’re hoping to have our appliances installed by Saturday night and it is already scheduled as the very first meal cooked in our new kitchen. Not a 100% finished kitchen, but at least functional, which is all I care about right now.
We’re close enough to being done with our kitchen (and now dining room) remodel that if I showed you pictures now, it would make the grand unveiling less dramatic (although the term “grand unveiling” is pretty dramatic in and of itself). But remember the red wall that’s been the backdrop of so many of my pictures? Here’s a little sneakity peak of what’s been going on in my dining room:
And yes, those would be the ingredients for today’s recipe (nice segue, right?) I found myself in quite a pickle leading up to this post because while my kitchen was semi-functional earlier this week (access to some dishes, my countertops, a toaster oven, a tomato knife, a microwave, and the non-disposal side of my sink), my husband is slowly setting the tile floor, so my options became drastically more limited. So I thought, “Hey, let’s do a craft!” Which quickly turned into, “Hey, the dog chewed up my Silhouette vinyl!” So I needed to find a recipe that involved very few kitchen tools, no cooking, minimal clean-up, and no usage of large mixing bowls. It could, however, involve my washer and dryer because those bad boys are hooked up.
What does that leave us with? 7-Layer Dip. Just in time for football season. I know, you’re saying, “Who needs a recipe for 7-layer dip?!” We-ell, first of all, this isn’t your grandma’s 7-Layer Dip, it’s more like 8 1/2-Layer Dip with a Twist of Lime, but that wasn’t super catchy.
Start by spreading a 28-oz. can of refried beans into a large serving plate or a 9×13″ baking dish.
You can add the rest of the ingredients in whatever order speaks to you the most, but after the beans, I added a layer of guacamole. 
It kind of looks like a sad pie, right? This time around, I used store-bought guacamole because of the no-mixing stipulation, but if you want to make your own, click here for our favorite recipe.
Then, instead of tomatoes, I added a layer of pico de gallo. This is where things start to get wild–I think the garlic lime-iness of the pico makes this dip pop just a little bit more.
Then I mixed a packet of taco seasoning with 16 ounces of sour cream (light sour cream is completely fine) 
and spread it over the tomatoes.
Then I added about 2 bunches of chopped green onions…
and a large can of olives, chopped.
Then I added a sprinkling of cilantro
and I squeezed the juice of a whole lime over everything. Then I added shredded sharp cheddar cheese and some crumbled queso fresco (or cotija cheese) on top of everything. I pondered how hard it is to take a decent pictures of 8 1/2-Layer Dip with a Twist of Lime Doctored Up 7-Layer Dip. Took a chip and scooped up some of the dip and pondered some more (and, consequently, the dip became harder and harder to photograph. Oops.)
Doctored-Up 7-Layer Dip
Recipe by Our Best Bites
1 28-oz. can refried beans
1 1/2 c. guacamole
1 1/2-2 c. pico de gallo
1 16-oz. container sour cream
1 packet taco seasoning
1 c. chopped green onions (about 2 bunches)
1 16 oz. can olives, drained and chopped
1 c. chopped cilantro
Juice of 1 lime
2 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 c. crumbled queso fresco or cotija cheese
Layer the refried beans, guacamole, and pico de gallo. Whisk together the taco seasoning and sour cream and spread it over the pico de gallo. Add the chopped olives and cilantro, then squeeze the lime juice over everything. Sprinkle with the cheeses and serve with tortilla chips. Makes a lot–if you’re serving just a few people, you can cut all the quantities by half.
Questions & Reviews
Your calendar looks great!
and the recipe looks awesome! Im going to have to try it soon!
Kate-part of what makes this blog fantastic is your hilarity! How do you keep this all up with such a huge home project? You rock girl!
Ha, Mary, you are very sweet! Let’s just say I’ve decided I am a glutton for punishment and a magnet for chaos (largely of my own doing. Kitchen remodel? Puppy? Sure!)
So is there anything I can use in place of the olives? I love the dip but the hubby and I aren’t big olive fans. Thoughts?
Oh, and when I click on the link to Amazon for the calendar, I get the page to your book and it says “out of print – limited availability”. Say it isn’t so?!!?!
Katie, yeah, we have no idea what’s going on with Amazon! So weird. Try this link: http://deseretbook.com/Our-Best-Bites-2012-Calendar-Sara-Wells/i/5061385. As far as the olives go, I say just leave ’em off. You could also replace them with something Mexican-y that you do like (jarred jalaenos? Green chilis? Coca Cola made with real sugar?)
Love the calendar and recipe. I willl make it for tomorrow’s football game. However, I MUST HAVE THE NAME OF PAINT COLOR! It looks soooooo creamy just like butter.
Sonya, you have no idea how I’ve agonized over this color! Like I said, it was a dark, dark red before and it made the room feel all dark and cave-y and I knew I wanted something lighter, I just didn’t know what kind of light it should be. Anyway, I finally settled on yellow and then proceeded to get, like, 20 different yellow paint chips (I truly make my husband crazy when it comes to paint), taped them up on the wall, and every single person in my family picked this one (which is what I was silently rooting for). Once we got the paint, EVERYONE doubted me and now everyone (the contractor, the painter, the electrician, the electrician’s wife) wants to use it! So…to make a VERY long story short, we used Valspar Homestead Resort Tea Room Yellow here with Valspar Bright White on the trim and the wainscoting that nearly ruined my marriage (not really) and Valspar Betsy’s Linen on the ceiling, which I have decided is the loveliest white of all the whites in the paint department… 🙂
My Mom’s recipe is nearly identical, with one exception – she adds crumbled bacon. I know OBB LOVES bacon, so I thought I would let everyone know that it is definitely a ‘secret ingredient’ in this type of layer dip. Even though bacon doesn’t usually scream, ‘Mexican,’ it is delicious!
The calendar looks great! I already have your cookbook on my wishlist for Christmas, guess I’ll just have to add the calendar, too! I want the calendar just for the recipe of that cake! Peppermint, chocolate just in time for the holidays!
Congrats on the calendar! I can’t wait to pick one up. I have the perfect spot in my kitchen that I hang a wall calendar every year and of course a recipe calendar (filled with Our Best Bites recipes) should have the honor to fill the space!
I’m SO excited about getting your calendar! My husband and I have basically become OBB fanatics since coming across your blog 5 months ago or so. We make your recipes almost every night a week…I just can’t get away from them 🙂 Thanks for so many amazing recipes (complete with pictures- I love knowing what everything is supposed to look like…makes it so much easier)! 🙂
This is one of those slap my forehead and say why didn’t I think of that kind of recipes. The pico, cilantro and lime are such an obviously good choice. The rest is exactly how I do it already. Thanks for sharing.
Love this! Layered dips are my fav 🙂
I’m not usually a huge fan of 7 layer dip… but this looks amazing… and Kate… when I was about 10 my parents decided to remodel our entire first floor. We ate of the master bathroom for 9 months with a mini fridge, toaster oven and microwave. We ate out a lot, so I feel your pain!
adding lime and cilantro will make ANY recipe better! thanks for the idea! i’ll be making this for our football watching this weekend!
Oh my word, this totally has me craving that dip and some football. Last weekend was pretty intense for college football, am I right?? And congrats on the calendar!
I don’t like refried beans much, but I saw Ellie Kreger’s 5 layer dip used black beans mashed up, so maybe I’ll try this but with y’all’s black bean recipe pureéd. Also, I can’t stand sour cream, so I use 1/2 sour cream, 1/2 cream cheese along with a taco packet in my 7 layer dip. Also, it seems to last longer at parties when I make it in a jelly roll pan and just make it super thin layers… LOVE this idea with the pico instead of boring old styrofoam tomatoes in the winter!!
This looks yummy! And I appreciate doctored-up-by-kate-and-sara classic recipes. I know they’ll DEFINITELY be more delicious than the “usual”.
This looks so awesome!!! I make 7 layer dip all the time for get togethers and I can’t wait to try this! You guys are wonderful!
This looks great!! And I personally think 8 1/2 Layer Dip with a Twist of Lime is an extremely catchy name 🙂 Also, the colours on your site make me happy every time I visit.
A calendar?! What a fantastic idea!
Holy cow yum…I always forget how much I love 7 layer dip and then something reminds me and it’s the only thing I can think about. This looks exactly like what I’ll be having for dinner!
This looks so good! I’m excited to try it!
I LOVE 7 layer dip! This sounds de.lic.ious!!! I can’t wait to try this recipe!
So when I make this I mix the taco seasoning in with the beans instead of the sour cream. I think without it the beans are kind of plain. My family loves it!
I was using google yesterday to try and find a good 7 layer bean dip!!! You are a MIND READER!! THANKS!
I am so excited for the calendar! Woohoo! I’m hoping my sister doesn’t even know about it yet so I can surprise her with one for her birthday in about a week (and I also hope she isn’t reading this comment!). I am also excited to see your fabulous new kitchen 🙂
Patti, I was 100% expecting some snide cilantro comments from you. You disappointed me. 🙂
🙂 My grandma thinks cilantro tastes like laundry soap!! I don’t know how she can differentiate between laundry soap and regular, but I love cilantro and make most of my mex foods extra soapy!! 😉
We’re HUGE football (and Mexican food) fanatics at my house…so guess what just made the list for food this weekend?!?! I don’t know why I never thought to add cilantro to this dish before–I add it to every other Mexican dish I make! Thanks for the post (and can’t WAIT to see the new kitchen!).
I believe this dip has just made its way onto my game day menu for tomorrow. Looks awesome! And the calendar looks fantastically cute.
I love the additions to the traditional 7-layer dip, and I cannot wait to try it!
You ladies make everything look so easy!
This sounds so good. I love dips like this for when grandkids are around. Though I do not care for guacamole I can eat it in a layered dip. ( I think it is the green color that really is what I do not like) lol Will have to give it a try. Got a granddaughter coming today for the week end and I know she loves things like this.
Karan
one of my french friends saw this recipe on my own blog and she actually made it as the main course for a fun friday night meal!! yum, yum! as always your photos are gorgeous!