Buffalo Chicken Dip

Spring is upon us. Time for longer days, a lot of rain, and allergy medicine.

This week also marked the beginning of March Madness! It's one of my favorite times of year: exciting games, major upsets, fun parties and delicious food. This month, I'm going to feature appetizers all made with bacon. I've actually been pressured for awhile to have a month of bacon, and I finally caved. I figured with all the March Madness parties, this would be a great time to do it. I mean, bacon goes so well with sports and beer!

This week's recipe was a huge hit at a party last weekend. It was a much larger hit than I expected and was inhaled! My fantastic friend Rich even asked for the recipe, and he doesn't cook much. Point being, this is so loved that it gets people into the kitchen to cook, which is great!

Buffalo Chicken Dip 
Serves 10

Ingredients:
5 boiled and shredded chicken thighs
1 block cream cheese
1 cup sour cream
1 packet ranch seasoning
1 cup hot sauce
1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
½ pound cooked and crumbled bacon
chips or crackers

Directions:
1) Soften cream cheese.
2) Preheat oven to 350 degrees
3) In a bowl, mix shredded chicken, cream cheese, sour cream, ranch packet, hot sauce, bacon, and 1 cup of cheese together.
4) Spread in a baking pan.
5) Top with remaining cheddar cheese.
6) Bake at 350 for roughly 30 minutes. Serve with chips or crackers.

Rate it!:
Rating: A
Level of Difficulty: Easy (shredding chicken is time consuming, though)
Cost: Roughly $15.00
Cost per Serving: Roughly $1.50
Bad Breath Factor: You’ll want a mint for sure!

Suggestions:
1) You can substitute ranch dressing for the sour cream/ranch seasoning.
2) I go heavy on the chicken. This is a very creamy, cheesy dip. Having a lot of chicken makes it more of a meal.
3) I like tortilla chips with this dip.
4) This is a greasy dip-not light on the calories. I’d avoid making it around people who are trying to watch their waistline or who are lactose intolerant.
5) You can cut the sour cream amount down a bit, if you find it too creamy for you.
6) You can substitute chicken breasts for the thighs.  

This dip gets eaten up fast, so be sure you get to try a bit of it, too! Serve as your watching your favorite team advance to the Sweet Sixteen...or to drown your sorrows when they break your heart. I’m a Mizzou fan who gets all emotional with her bracket. I’m hurting this weekend!