The Fourth of July is coming up! A few weeks back, I had a BBQ for Memorial Day and made these two patriotic appetizers: 7-layer dip and a veggie tray. If you are having a BBQ or are invited to one, you may want to bring one or both of these snacks to celebrate our Independence Day! Cheers!

 -Tammy

Health tips:   kidney friendly*, diabetes friendly*, kid-friendly, cheat meal**

7-Layer Dip Ingredients: 8-10 servings**

• 1 14 oz. can of your favorite re-fried beans (pinto, vegetarian, no fat, or black bean)
• 1 1/2 cups sour cream or Greek yogurt
• 1 TBS your favorite taco seasoning mix (I use my own found here)
• 1 1/2 cups guacamole
• 1 small bunch of green onions, chopped
• a few large olives, cut into quarters (4 pieces each)
• 1 1/2 cup of tomatoes, chopped
• 1 8 oz. package of Monterey Jack cheese, finely shredded

Steps: 

1. In a small bowl , mix Greek yogurt and 1 TBS of your favorite taco seasoning and set aside.In a casserole dish of your choosing (I found a patriotic serving platter at the dollar store), spread out the entire can of beans. Then layer Greek yogurt. On top of that, layer guacamole then green onions.

2. Lay cheese in a square formation on the upper left corner of the dish (where the stars, AKA olives will go). Lay the rest of the cheese in lines where the stripes of the flag would go, leaving space for the tomatoes. Layer the tomatoes between the cheese stripes. Place the olives in the upper left on top of the cheese. And there ya have it-The America flag! Serve with red, white, and blue tortilla chips!

Veggie Platter Ingredients: 

• 16 oz. container of sour cream or Greek yogurt
• 1 pkg. of ranch mix
• your favorite red and white veggies (I used red bell peppers, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and radishes
• blue food coloring (optional)

Steps: 

1. In a small bowl , mix Greek yogurt and ranch mix and set aside. If you want to add blue food coloring, you may add it to the ranch mixture (a few drops will do). Chop your veggies into slices, sticks, and bite-size pieces. Place blue ranch dip in the upper left corner of a serving tray. Arrange veggies in a white and red strip pattern. Serve!