A Bridal Shower + an Intermediate Vegan Appetizer: Six Layer Dip

This weekend was my beautiful best friend, Lindsay's wedding shower. It was an afternoon spent with over 20 women celebrating the bride-to-be and this next chapter of her life. It's all very exciting.

I have learned when notifying the host or hostess of a party that I'm vegan, to also offer to make something myself to bring along. Vegan is a pretty daunting concept for some, especially older folks who were raised on 'meat and potatoes.' For this party I decided to make a six layer dip - black beans, spinach, guacamole, 'sour cream', pico de gallo and green onions.

I've labelled this as 'intermediate,' only because it is quite labour intensive, however I can assure you it is worth it - I received many compliments and interest in the recipe and a few gluten free folks welcomed another option at the table.

Step 1: Pico de Gallo
3 large tomatoes
1 large bunch of Cilantro, thick stems removed, roughly chopped
1 large sweet onion
1 lime
1 yellow hot pepper, finely chopped
Salt, to taste

Finely chop the onion, tomatoes, and yellow pepper (you can use a jalapeno, but because I was serving this at a party, I didn't want to make it too hot). Remove thick stems of the cilantro and then roughly chop. Mix the onion, tomato, hot pepper, and cilantro in a bowl and squeeze fresh lime juice on top. Stir well and then season with kosher salt to taste.

Step 2: Easy Guacamole
4 ripe avocados
2 cup of pico de gallo
Pinch of garlic powder

Roughly chop the avocados and add the already prepared pico de gallo.

Step 3: Black Beans
1 can of black beans, rinsed
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp cumin
Salt, to taste

Using a hand blender or masher, gently blend all ingredients together to create a smooth, but still chunky texture.

Step 4: Spinach
Dice 2 cups fresh spinach.

Step 5: 'Sour Cream'
Mix together entire container of Soy Sour Cream (I used yoso Sour Dip, but I have heard great things about Tofutti Dairy Free Sour Cream) with entire package of taco seasoning (I used reduced salt).

Step 6: Assemble
I used a glass bowl to show off all of the layers and began with the black bean mixture, followed by the chopped spinach, guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo and finished with 1/2 cup of chopped green onions. Serve with tortillas and provide a large serving spoon so guests can reach each layer.