I’m not quite sure I’m ready to give up my summer. It’s already obvious the days are growing shorter and I know cooler weather is right around the corner. In a last ditch effort to hold on to summer I had a little get-together, almost as a way to say goodbye to all that the warm summer gives us and hello to new experiences, new meals and new recipes. Ok, so maybe it’s not that bad after all!

This is a Spicy Black Bean Chipotle Dip that I absolutely love. I wanted to make something that that be served as a dip but also be flexible. And mostly because I wanted to find a way to use the vegetarian chorizo that I love so much. If you’ve never tried it please do. It’s packed with so much flavor and cooks the exact same way a Mexican pork chorizo does. I don’t have to tell you that it’s less in saturated fat and cholesterol and for a boy like me who has to be careful not to morph into El Gordito that means something. But since I’m driven by flavor I still feel like I’m eating chorizo.

(and FYI: we’ve prepared this recipe side by side with both pork and vegetarian chorizo and you can’t tell the difference. Take that!)

Oh, and another reason I love this recipe so much is because it’s not just perfect as a dip but also spread on tortillas or bread for tortas or cemitas. The chipotle flavor adds mild heat, the texture of the beans holds things together and it’s definitely something you can use in a variety of ways. You can make your own black beans if you have them but canned black beans work perfectly and saves time.

Spicy Black Bean Chipotle Dip

2 15-oz cans of black beans (1 can drained, 1 can undrained)
6 oz pork or vegetarian chorizo
1 cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon chile powder
1 teaspoon coriander
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 whole chipotle in adobo plus 1 teaspoon adobo sauce
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
juice of 1 lime

Place 1 whole can of the black beans with liquid in a food processor with chipotle and 1 teaspoon of the adobo sauce.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the canola oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium high heat and cook onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Add all spices and garlic to the onions and cook 1 more minute until fragrant. Remove from heat and add onion spice mixture to the food processor with the beans. Process until smooth.

In the same skillet heat 1 tablespoon canola oil over medium high heat and cook the chorizo until slightly crispy, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining can of black beans and ½ cup of water, stir to combine. Immediately add pureed bean mixture and cook over medium heat until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stiry in lime juice. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a bowl, makes about 3 cups. Can be served cold or room temperature. Garnish with long cilantro sprigs or lime wedges. Aye que purdy!

I love living in California. We pay too much to live here, teeter on the brink of earthquakes and state budget emergencies, and wholeheartedly embrace political correctness as a lifestyle. Not that you could tell what we embrace, on account on those botoxed foreheads and stuff. And this is just Southern California; don’t even get me started on my Northern California Relatives. In fact, while in Santa Monica last week I encounted no fewer than three-hundred-and-forty-seven placards letting me know that I could park only on the street between the hours of 8 to 1, that I couldn’t park there because my car used gasoline, no, wait, that the spot was actually reserved for visually-impaired drivers, or that the parking meter I did actually find didn’t take money but some kind of space-aged FOB made out of recycled water bottles and–my favorite– to be quiet or not to honk or block the intersection or use peanut oil out of respect for those with allergies.

It’s really enough to make someone want to move to the IE, I tell you.

But on those moments when California does get it right, well, it’s a beautiful thing.  You could be as wacky or flamboyant as you want and no one notices. You can drink bottles and bottles and bottles of wine from your backyard. You can lose your winter coat. You can worship at the alter of vanity and spandex and feel rewarded and no one will look at you funny when you hold a soy latte and say  “I’m currently workshopping my treatment.”  And you can even make nachos out of fries.

Let me repeat that: YOU CAN EVEN MAKE NACHOS OUT OF FRIES.

I’m sure to get many comments and emails about this when I claim this is a Southern California Original. But while my research is limited, my appetite is huge. And do I care whether these things were born in San Diego or San Isidro? Not really. I’m sticking to the version of this story I’ve made up in my head that involves a taco shack, a surfer, an ounce of Blue Mystic and some rolling papers. Because really, how else would these things come to be? It’s the collision of Mexican Cuisine and an American Favorite, a big salty pileup that takes no prisoners and requires you, the eater, to really really really really want it like you’ve never wanted anything before. Because this dish isn’t for wimps, purists or those afraid of getting dirty. It is what it is and it’s freaking marvelous.

And do you really need a recipe for this? Aw, well, ok, I’ll indulge you. Grab that slab of Carne Asada and chop it ever so aggressively into small chunks of meat. Top the french fries of your choice (double-fried method for me, thankyouverymuch) with the carne and then go absolutely insane with cheese, guacamole, pico de gallo, jalapeños, queso fresco, whatever…you see where I’m going with this. There’s no rhyme nor reason. And why would you expect there to be? And while we’re still on the topic, you do have my permission to go crazy when no one’s looking and dig in and thank the great State of California for her culinary greasiness, er, I mean greatness.  Lord knows I did twice this past week.

And I don’t even smoke pot.