Make the Homemade Guacamole

Mince the garlic and add it, along with a pinch of salt and pepper, to a large bowl or a mortar. Using a fork or a pestle, mash the garlic until it forms a paste.

Add in the peeled avocados and mash until they're creamy with a few small lumps.

Add in finely diced onion, jalapeño, cilantro, ¼ tsp cumin, ¼ tsp chili powder, and juice from one lime.

Mix it all together, scraping the bottom to mix in the garlic paste, just until fully combined. Don't over-mix.

Adjust salt, pepper, and other seasonings to your taste.

Make the Homemade Salsa, if using

Make homemade salsa by following the recipe in the body of this post or set aside your favorite store-bought kind.

Make the Seasoned Sour Cream

In a medium bowl, add 1 cup of sour cream. Sprinkle with ¾ tsp chili powder, ½ tsp cumin, and a pinch of salt. Mix to fully combine.

Assemble the Taco Dip

In the bottom of a large pie dish, add in the refried beans and spread them around until smooth and the entire bottom of the dish is covered.

Next, add the guacamole in a thick layer over the beans.

Then, add the seasoned sour cream.

And then, the salsa from edge to edge.

Finally, top with an even layer of shredded Mexican cheese.

Garnish

Garnish the outer edges of the dip with a layer of diced tomatoes and a sprinkle of sliced scallions over top.

Make the Sour Cream Spiderweb

Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of plain sour cream to a Ziploc bag. With scissors, snip a small amount off the corner of the bag to create a hole.

Use the bag to pipe the lines for the spiderweb. Start by adding 2 criss cross lines (+). Then, create a third and fourth straight line, by piping diagonally through the center of the first 2 lines to create 8 quadrants.

Connect the lines with a small "u" shape between each one, starting with the innermost parts of the quadrants, working your way outward.

Continue adding the "u" shape until you've reached the end of all the lines. If you've spaced yours about the same as mine, you should end up with 4 "u" shaped lines connecting each straight line, 32 u's total.

Create the Black Olive Spider

Cut an olive in half lengthwise for the spider's body. Then, slice the other two olives into 4 circular rings widthwise (discard the round ends of the olives). Cut the olive rings in half to create 8 curved legs.

Place the halved olive on the spider web and arrange 4 olive "legs" on each side.

Create multiple spiders with extra olives, if you'd like.

Serve

Serve this spooky 7 layer Halloween taco dip with your favorite tortilla chips, crackers, or cut vegetables.

Storage

To store: It is recommended that you make this dip the day you plan to serve it. However, if you have leftovers, cover the dip tightly with plastic wrap and store it in the refrigerator up to 3 days.To freeze: Freezing is not recommended.