This 4-Ingredient Taco Dip Recipe Was the Best Thing I Learned in High School

Those four years of high school are all about learning but some things stick with us more than others. While some of us might have forgotten how to do trigonometry or what an adverb modifies, we all remember that one teacher who truly touched our lives.

For me, that educator was my journalism teacher, Mrs. Sitler—and I remember her and her coveted taco dip recipe. I took her news magazine class for three years and on special days—sometimes the day we would launch the magazine and sometimes just a random Friday—Mrs. Sitler would bring in her famous taco dip for the class.

We would beg her to bring it in every week because, for us 16-year-olds, any class where there was food involved was always our favorite class of the day. On top of that, we all wanted to know what was in Mrs. Sitler's top-secret recipe.

She never told us, but my senior year she promised our class she would give the recipe to any senior who wanted it as a graduation "gift." Of course, I jumped at the chance to learn what made her creamy, flavorful dip so great.

Now, as a high school senior who barely knew how to make scrambled eggs, I couldn't have even guessed what went into the recipe—and believe me, I tried many times, much to Mrs. Siter's amusement. Today, I laugh at just how easy the four-ingredient taco dip recipe actually is.

It may be embarrassingly simple to make, but this taco dip is a constant crowd-pleaser and one of my favorite snacks to bring to tailgates and parties.

I won't make you wait four years to learn the recipe—but, I promise, it was worth the wait.

My High School Teacher's Taco Dip

Ingredients:

• 1 (1-ounce) packet original taco seasoning (like Old El Paso)
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 (16-ounce) container sour cream
• 1 to 2 cups Mexican-style shredded cheese

Instructions:

1. Mix taco seasoning, cream cheese, and sour cream together in a bowl until smooth. Spread mixture into a serving dish.
2. Top with cheese and serve with tortilla chips.

Cook's Notes

The recipe says Old El Paso taco seasoning is the secret ingredient, though you could use any brand or homemade. Additionally, it calls for original-flavored taco seasoning, but you could try any flavor—especially if you want more of a kick.

Of course, there are a million permutations (how's that for a high school word) nowadays for taco dip but there is something nostalgic about this one that always has us coming back.