Appetizers is a big word for the junk you eat while watching football games. A lonely bag of chips is 'appetizers' but sometimes you want to have some dip with them.

This first dip doesn't have dairy products in it, it's more like a salsa. I haven't tried it because I'd have to eat the whole batch myself. I'll wait and make it when the family is all together. The original name was Chile Relleno Dip, but because to me chili relleno means there is cheese in there, I changed the name. I was going to call it Mediterranean something because it has olives and olive oil, but the green chilies lean toward Mexican. I'm going to try it on toasted French bread rounds like bruschetta.

Scoop Salsa

5 - 6 green onions, chopped
1 medium tomato, chopped
4.25 oz can chopped black olives
4 oz can diced green chilies
2 tablespoons olive oil (garlic flavored if possible)
3/4 tablespoon cider vinegar
3/4 teaspoon garlic salt
Salt and pepper

Combine the ingredients and mix well. Chill thoroughly and serve with corn chips such as Tostito Scoops or those big scoopy Fritos.

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Here's a basic recipe for guacamole in case you don't have one. Sometimes you can find a good frozen or prepared guac, but if not, it's very easy to make your own. Purists don't put mayonnaise in theirs, but I leave that up to you. It works along with the lemon juice to keep the avocados from turning dark.

Guacamole

2 ripe avocados
3 tablespoons onion, minced fine
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
(Diced pickled or fresh jalapenos)
2 drops hot pepper sauce (Tabasco)
1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste

Peel and mash the avocados. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend thoroughly. Serve with tortilla chips.

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Here's more traditional salsa. I love fresh cilantro in salsa so I bought some dried from the spice section of the store, but it doesn't depart the same flavor.

3 firm Roma tomatoes, cut in quarters
1/4 or less of a small onion
3 - 5 sprigs fresh cilantro
1/4 fresh lime, peeled
1 - 3 fresh garlic cloves, peeled
1/3 jalapeno, or more if desired
1/8 - 1/4 small green, red, or orange bell pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste

Note: the heat of jalapenos and other hot peppers is in the interior ribs and seeds, so you can omit them and cut down on the heat. Wear gloves when handling hot peppers, and don't touch your mouth or eyes until you've washed your hands. Gosh! sounds toxic, doesn't it? It's not that bad, just something to keep in mind.

Chop by hand or in food processor the garlic and jalapeno pepper. Add the remaining ingredients and chop to the desired consistency. Serve with tortilla chips.