Where’s Happy Hour this weekend? Could it be in Pittsburgh, Upper St. Clair, Bethel Park, Mt. Lebanon, McMurray, Canonsburg, Cecil, Bridgeville, South Fayette, McDonald, or Washington? Wherever you’re planning to enjoy your Happy Hour we have recipes for you to try! Today we have a Coconut & Pineapple Cooler recipe paired with a Taco Dip recipe, we hope you get a chance to try them out this weekend!

Coconut & Pineapple Cooler Recipe:

Ingredients:

• 300ml coconut rum

• 600ml pineapple juice (not from concentrate)

• 150ml gin

• 6 small chunks watermelon

• 12 coriander sprigs

What You Will Need:

• 6 x 324ml screw-top jam jars with lids

• ice bucket filled with ice

Instructions:

1. Put 50ml coconut rum, 100ml pineapple juice, 25ml gin and 50ml cold water into each jam jar.

2. Stir, then garnish each one with a piece of watermelon and a couple of coriander sprigs, squeezing the leaves a little bit first before dropping them into the jars to help release the flavour. Screw on the lids and chill or set in ice buckets until needed – they will keep well for 4-6 hrs.

Taco Dip Recipe:

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened*

• 1 cup Greek yogurt (or sour cream)

• ¾ cup salsa

• 2 teaspoons each cumin and chili powder

• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt

• ½ teaspoon each garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper

• 1 cup Mexican blend cheese

• 1 cup chopped iceberg lettuce

• 1 tomato, chopped

• ¼ cup sliced black olives

• Optional toppings: minced red onion, chopped cilantro, pickled jalapeños

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl, whisk the softened cream cheese, Greek yogurt, salsa and spices until it’s fully smooth. The mixture will start out chunky, but keep whisking until the cream cheese is fully smooth. (It takes a few minutes, so be patient!)

2. Place the cheese mixture in the bottom of a circular glass pie plate or other circular dish. Smooth into an even layer.

3. Top with the cheese, chopped lettuce, chopped tomato, black olives, and other optional toppings. Serve immediately with tortilla chips, or refrigerate until serving. (Leftovers last up to 3 days refrigerated.)

Notes:

• To quickly soften cream cheese, place it on a plate in the microwave. Microwave 5 seconds, then flip over the block of cheese and cook another 5 seconds. If it’s not room temperature and soft at this point, try another 5 seconds but air on the conservative side.

**You can also add more layers to the taco dip to make it like a 7 layer dip: consider topping with a layer of refried beans (seasoned with salt), guacamole, and salsa before adding veggie toppings.