Happy 4th & Texas Caviar!

Happy 4th of July everyone! I hope you are all enjoying the day off and celebrating with family and friends :)

last year's fireworks over the Charles river in Boston

To celebrate this American holiday, I wanted to share one of my favorite recipes for summer cookouts - Texas Caviar! It was originally introduced to me by my friend Ashley two summers ago and I've been hooked ever since. I make this for parties and BBQs all the time and people absolutely love it. It's super addicting, so I'm sure you'll like it too!

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There are lots of different ways to make this dip, but the recipe that follows is the way I like it :) You can substitute for different beans, lentils or veggies as you see fit!

Texas Caviar

serves 15-20 people

Ingredients...

• 1 can black eye peas
• 1 can black beans
• 1 can white corn
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 can chickpeas
• 1 cup chopped bell pepper (any color - I use red and yellow)
• 1 cup chopped jalapeños
• 1 cup pimientos (two tiny jars)
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1-2 bags of Tostitos Scoops

Directions...

1. Strain all of the canned beans and veggies of their juices.
2. Combine everything but the oil, vinegar and sugar in a very large bowl and toss to mix around.
3. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, heat up the oil, vinegar and sugar. Stir until sugar dissolves completely.
4. Pour over the veggies. Cover the bowl and chill for at least 2 hours.
5. Serve with Scoops chips (or any other chip you like - my friend Ashley serves it with Fritos!)

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