To make the bean base, sauté the chopped onion in olive oil until translucent. Add the beans, garlic, and jalapeño and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Transfer to a medium bowl, and add the lime juice and zest. Use an immersion blender to puree the mixture into a smooth bean-dip consistency.Alternately, you can simply mash them together in a bowl or large mortar and pestle (i.e., molcajete).
Refrigerate until ready to use.
Fast Prep: Substitute plain canned refried pinto or black beans for the bean base.
Sour Cream
If you need to tint the sour cream, mix it with a few drops of food coloring, until you achieve the color you want.
Dip Assembly
After adding the bean base, you can add the ingredients in any order that you'd like. To achieve the best visual presentation, keep in mind color combinations, and aim for high contrast transitions between layers.Generally, layer ingredients in this order:Fresh chopped vegetables (e.g., chopped onions, peppers, olives, etc.). I like to make a simple fresh salsa using whatever vegetables work with the team colors.Chunky ingredients (e.g., chopped tomatoes, sliced olives)Leafy ingredients (e.g., chopped cilantro)a. Bean Baseb. Creamy ingredients (e.g., sour cream, guacamole)c. Sauces (e.g., tomato salsa, green chili salsa, mango salsa, etc.)d. Grated Cheesef. Fresh chopped vegetables (e.g., chopped onions, peppers, olives, etc.). I like to make a simple fresh salsa using whatever vegetables work with the team colors.g. Chunky ingredients (e.g., chopped tomatoes, sliced olives)h. Leafy ingredients (e.g., chopped cilantro)
For easy, controlled distribution of creamy ingredients like guacamole or sour cream, try piping them from a separate resealable plastic bag.• Buffet or party serving: Layer your chosen ingredients into an 9x9 or 8x12 serving dish.• Individual servings: For a festive, easy-to-hold option, layer ingredients into clear plastic cups.
Refrigerate for one hour. May be assembled up to 24 hours before serving.
Notes
Bean Base
Use Black Bean Base (recipe on card) for teams that use black, navy, purple, green, teal, aqua, or blue as one of their primary colors.
Use Refried Bean Base(recipe on card) for teams that use red, brown, orange, or burgundy as one of their primary colors.
The bean base can be made up to 3 days ahead of time. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Sour Cream
Use plain sour cream for teams that use white as one of their colors.
Use food coloring to tint sour cream to match team color for teams that use blue, aqua, teal, or purple.
If your team colors include both white and blue, aqua, teal, or purple, you can use both plain and tinted sour cream.
Salsa
Use red tomato salsa for teams that use red, brown, orange, or burgandy as one of their primary colors.
Use green chili salsa or salsa verde for teams that use black, navy, purple, green, teal, aqua, or blue as a primary team color.
Cheese
Use grated yellow cheese (i.e., cheddar, etc.) for teams that use yellow, gold, or orange as one of their colors.
Use grated white cheese (i.e., Monterey Jack, pepper jack, etc.) for teams that use silver, grey, or white, and do not use yellow, gold, or orange as one of their colors.
Additional Ingredients
Using your team's colors, choose up to more 3 Ingredients in addition to the beans, sour cream and cheese for your layered dip. You can use black and white ingredient options for any team.
Black: olives, whole black beans
White: grated Monterey Jack, crumbled cotija, chopped white onions
Red: salsa, pico de gallo, chopped red peppers, chopped tomatoes, whole red beans, chili
Burgundy/Purple: thinly sliced red cabbage, chopped red onion