This dip is a classic! It’s creamy with a hint of tomato. The fresh onion, celery and shrimp give it a pleasant lightness. It’s simple to make and very certain to be a crowd pleaser: whether you need a refreshing change of pace as an appetizer to Thanksgiving, or a wonderful dish to serve at any gathering. Pair this dip with Fritos (Scoops, obviously) or take it a step further and follow my recipe for Fritos Fry Bread, made with love by me to accompany this family recipe. Which brings me to Bobo.

Bobo created this shrimp dip, her real name was Susan Horn, my husband’s grandmother. When Jordan (husband) was young, Susan had red hair that reminded him of Bozo the Clown. The poor guy couldn’t pronounce his z’s yet and as such coined the nickname Bobo for his dear grandmother. She has since passed and I never had the pleasure of meeting her, but it’s recipes like this that keep her spirit alive. I will continue making this dip, especially around the holidays, for my husband who misses her. Cheers to Bobo, to family and to this holiday season. Enjoy!!

It will take 20 minutes to make this dip, with at least 5 hours of chilling time. It makes 4 1/2 cups, serving about 15-20 people.

Bobo’s Shrimp Dip

Ingredients:
10 ¾ ounce can condensed tomato soup
16 ounces cream cheese
¾ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup yellow or white onion
1 cup celery
2 cups extra small cooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
Salt and pepper, to taste
Pinch of cayenne pepper, optional if you like a little kick!

Directions:
1. Finely chop the onion and celery, set aside. Measure out the rest of your ingredients and have everything easily accessible to the stovetop.
2. In a medium-sized saucepan, add the condensed tomato soup and cook over medium-high heat until just warm and slightly steaming.
3. Add the cream cheese and mix until smooth (a whisk is helpful here).
4. Take off the heat and add the rest of the ingredients, stir until everything is well-distributed.
5. Pour into a medium-sized bowl, cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 5 hours (can be made a day or two in advance). The dip will firm up as it cools.
6. To serve, transfer the dip into your desired serving bowl. If you are serving it in the same bowl you chilled it in, run a spoon through it to freshen it up.
7. Serve with Fritos Scoops or with Fritos Fry Bread (recipe below).

Fritos Fry Bread

This recipe takes 30 minutes to make, with an additional 30 minutes of rest time. It makes 32 pieces and would serve about 8-10 people. Double and triple this recipe, as needed.

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
½ cup fine ground yellow cornmeal
¼ cup ground Fritos
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoon salt
½ cup, plus 1 tablespoon water
peanut oil

1. Place a large handful of Fritos into a food processor. Process on high until they are almost the consistency of a coarse ground cornmeal (see the ingredients picture above for a visual).
2. Add all the dry ingredients, including the ground cornmeal, into a bowl and stir until combined. A normal spoon works fine.
3. Add ½ cup of water to the mix and stir to incorporate. Once the ingredients are mostly combined, use your hands to knead the dough until everything is fully incorporated. If the dough isn’t completely moist (you see bits of dry flour), add a tablespoon of water. The dough should be moist but not so wet that it leaves dough residue on your hands. If you go overboard with the water, just add a small bit of flour to soak it up.
4. Form the dough into a single ball, then flatten it with your hand and wrap the dough in plastic. Let it rest for 30 minutes.
5. After 30 minutes, cut the dough in 8 equally-sized pieces. Make each piece into a ball with your hands.
6. At this point, prepare a cooling rack by placing a paper towel on top. Have another paper towel handy. Also, generously cover the bottom of a large skillet with peanut oil and warm it over high heat.
7. While you wait for the oil to warm up, roll out your prepared dough. Take one ball and place it on parchment paper. Roll it out into a large thin circle, it should be about 1/16-inch-thick (see picture above).
8. Check the temperature of the oil at this point. It should remain between 375-425 degrees F. No worries if you do not have a thermometer, place a little dough in the pan. If it gives a good sizzle, it’s ready.
***Check your oil temperature often! It can easily get very very hot. Once your oil is at temperature, reduce the heat to medium or even low and check its temperature regularly. If you don’t have a thermometer, the sizzle it gives off should not be rapid or very slow. It should be consistent. The smoke point of peanut oil is 450 degrees F, so that’s a good indicator of hot oil too.
9. Once your oil is ready, gently place your flattened dough into the skillet. Let it cook for 1 minute, until the edges are nicely golden brown. Flip it over and cook another minute. Roll out your next piece of dough while you wait. *If you can fit two pieces in the skillet at one time, go for it. Increase the cooking time to 1.5 minutes per side.
10. Repeat with the remaining 7, blotting off excess oil from the finished pieces of fry bread. Once they’re cool enough to handle, cut each round into 4 pieces.
11. Serve warm or cool completely and store in an airtight container. Pair with Bobo’s Shrimp Dip!