Halloween Food Art with California Ripe Olives

Hi, guys!!  How many of you are busy getting ready for Halloween this week? We are scrambling to put finishing touches on costumes and come up with some freaky-fun food treats for Halloween get-togethers and office pot lucks this week. I took one of our family favorite dishes and gave it a "spookified" makeover for the occasion -- Spooky Seven-Layer Dip!  Seven-Layer Dip is super easy to make and, with minimal effort, you can give it a fun Halloween twist.

You will need:

• 2 cans refried beans
• 1 16 oz. carton sour cream
• 1 jar roasted tomato salsa
• 2 C. shredded cheddar cheese
• guacamole
• 3-4 chopped green onions
• 1 can California Black Ripe Olives, chopped
• flour tortillas {for garnish}
• corn tortilla chips

In a large pan {approx. 9x13 inches}, begin by spreading your refried beans in bottom of pan. Spread a layer of sour cream on top of beans.  Add a layer of salsa next, followed by a layer of shredded cheese. Top everything with a nice, smooth layer of guacamole.  {This will be the "grass" in your Seven-Layer Dip graveyard.}  Sprinkle the chopped green onions all over the top.  Place "mounds" of chopped olives as shown in the photos to form the graves and the base of your spooky tree.  We are big olive lovers here so I sprinkled extra olives around the edges as well.

For your graveyard decorations, cut 4 gravestones and a large creepy tree out of flour tortillas and place on a baking sheet.  Bake at 400º for a few minutes until golden brown and crispy.  Watch the tortilla shapes closely as they bake to avoid burning them.  You can add inscriptions on your gravestones using food-safe markers, if desired.  Insert your cut tortilla shapes into the dip and serve with corn tortilla chips.

If you make the dip ahead of time, wait and put your tortilla ornaments on just before serving.  The moisture in the dip causes the bottom of each shape to loose it's crispiness over time and your tree will start to fall over.  This fun dip will be a big hit at your Halloween party, guaranteed!

Have you ever noticed how creepy chopped black olives look?  The deep black color of California Ripe Olives makes them perfect for Halloween meals.  {Their delicious flavor makes them a perfect pantry staple to add color, flavor and texture to just about any meal.}  

For the past several years we have hosted a fun "creepy" dinner for our kids and their friends on Halloween before they head out trick-or-treating.  One of the dished the kids love most are the deviled egg eyeballs, with yummy black olive pupils:

They have a great time helping me come up with {and make!} this fun meal every year!  

Happy Halloween eating, friends!

Amy

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.