Buffalo Chicken Dip

 I have been enjoying all of the Buffalo chicken items the restaurants are offering now. I first had this dip at a place we went to for my work Christmas gathering the year before last. Served piping hot with melted cheese over the top, big crisp tortilla chips to dig into it with. yum!

You know I have to make my own...plus my family (mostly my daughter) loves to eat it up too.

 So basically this is what I did to create my version.

Nothing is exact but I'll give you about what I used.

• 1 1/2 cup cooked chicken (rotisserie chicken would work great)
• 1 8 oz package of cream cheese (softened at room temperature)
• 1/2 cup ranch or blue cheese dressing (I added some ranch dressing powder)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup red hot sauce like Franks
• 1/4 cup of blue cheese (I like blue cheese, but you can leave it out)
• 6 oz shredded cheese to sprinkle on top

 Method:
Shred or dice up the cooked chicken then set aside. In a glass bowl mix the cream cheese, I used the microwave just a bit to soften it enough to stir around. Add the hot sauce and adjust it to your liking...more or less depending on how hot you like it. Mix in the milk and dressing, I used powdered ranch mix and some powdered blue cheese dressing mix I picked up at a new bulk food store near us that just opened, but you can use the dressing. Add enough liquid to get a nice consistency to add all that chicken and mix it up well. Pour it into a baking dish and sprinkle the shredded cheese over the top whatever cheese you like I used a Cheddar Jack blend. Bake in a medium hot oven (350°) for 20-30 minutes until heated through and cheese is bubbly and nicely melted.

 Serve with some good thick tortilla chips so they won't break when you dip into it.

 This is the only way my daughter will eat blue cheese. She first was okay with Gorgonzola cheese when I made the Gorgonzola gnocchi from Trader Joe's not too strong, and I didn't tell her it was a blue cheese until after she ate it...so now she is willing to get a little more adventurous with blue cheese, but with all the ingredients here it is not too strong at all....she must not mind it because she finished the dip the next day for lunch. Do you like blue cheese?

A great dip for the weekend! Dig in!