The beer

was verra good, oh yes. I have no idea how much is left, but at a rough estimate we probably only drank about a quarter to half of the keg. Now the problem is that keeping it cold is difficult without a refrigerator to put it in, and keeping it on ice for as long as I might want to just tap a beer is kind of difficult.

Might try to find a cheap, small fridge as an interim solution.

chili con queso

This recipe came pretty much straight from a can of Rosarita vegetarian refried beans.

1 cup (8 oz) refried beans
2 cups shredded cheddar
2 cups shredded monterey jack
1 small can green chiles
1 jar (16 oz) enchilada sauce
1 large can sliced black olives
1-2 handfulls of sliced green onions

for meat
1/2 lb of lean ground beef
1 tbs cumin
1 tbs chili powder
1 tsp cayenne
1 tsp salt

Combine all meat ingredients in a small saute pan and cook until done. You want the meat in pretty small chunks. Adjust spices to taste. Note that this is pretty much just basic taco filling, only without any of the subtle flavors since it's going into the chili.

Mix beans & enchilada sauce in stock pot; mix until smooth. Add shredded cheese. Sadly I have to recommend packaged shredded cheese here, beacuse it tends to melt more smoothly; if you know of a block cheddar that also melts well, please let me know =) (the jack cheeses all melt just fine though).

When that's smooth and bubbling, add the onions, olives, chilis and cooked meat mixture. Stir until smooth and serve. This stuff is quite thick, so make sure you serve it with hearty chips.

I honestly don't think I've ever made a dish that's worse for you than this one--every ingredient is pretty much fat with more fat, but we're in love with this dip.