Cheesy Roasted Red Pepper Dip

I know it's been a long time since I've posted. I just got back from seeing my sister and her beautiful new baby. We had such a good time and baby Anillie is adorable and such a good baby!

I know I promised after school snacks but after hosting book club I had several people wanting recipes, so here they are.

It was my turn to host book club and since I didn't have a lot of time to search out new recipes I went to a couple of websites I know are always winners.

This fabulous dip comes from Our Best Bites. If we ever have dip, it's 9 times out of 10 going to be artichoke dip. We all love it and I usually save it for special occasions. I wanted to do something different and found this recipe for Cheesy Roasted Red Pepper dip. It was amazing!A delicious blend of creamy cheeses, roasted red peppers, and garlic made for a winning appetizer. I served it with some sliced baguettes and it was a big hit. I got lots of comments and requests for the recipe. Artichoke dip has some serious competition!

Cheesy Roasted Red Pepper Dip

Our Best Bites

7 oz jar roasted red peppers (about 1C diced)

4 C grated pepper jack cheese (3/4 lb)

8oz cream cheese (can use low-fat)

3/4 C mayonnaise

2 T minced onion

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 T Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 350. Remove peppers from jar and blot excess water with paper towels. You want to make sure they are dry so they don't add moisture to the dip. Then dice 'em.

In a bowl, soften cream cheese in microwave so it will be easier to stir. Add in mayo, onion, garlic, and dijon. Stir to combine and then add in grated cheese and the diced peppers. Place in an 8x8-ish dish (pie plate works). At this point you can pop it in the fridge if you're going to cook it later and you can even make it a couple of days ahead of time. Place in the oven and cook for 30-45 minutes. Baking time depends on the dish. It will start to bubble and brown on the outside edge, and you want it to be bubbly all the way through to the center. It will be nice and golden brown on top, especially around the edges. Mine usually takes 40-45 min. (I made mine a day ahead, then brought it to room temperature and baked. I also doubled the recipe for a 9 x 13 pan and cooked it for the same amount of time)

Serve immediately. If the dip is done and your party hasn't started, just keep it warm in the oven. If you're eating left-overs, or you cooked it ahead of time, reheat in the oven as well. Funky things happen in the microwave. You can serve it with anything that sounds good- tortilla chips, pita chips, crackers (choose a plain flavored one) or veggies. However my favorite is soft, warm baguette slices.

Posted by: Sallie