Description
This cheesy and flavorful Pizza Dip is a perfect appetizer or snack featuring a creamy base of cream cheese and sour cream, topped with savory marinara, cheeses, and pepperoni. Baked to golden perfection, it's best served warm with crusty bread or chips for dipping.
Ingredients
Scale
Base
- 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 cup sour cream (can substitute mayonnaise)
- 1/2 teaspoon dried garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes, plus more for topping
Toppings
- 1 cup marinara sauce
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 1 1/4 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 15 slices pepperoni
Serving
- Crusty bread, pita, tortilla, bagel chips, or vegetables for serving
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit to prepare for baking the dip.
- Prepare Base Mixture: In a bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, sour cream, dried garlic powder, oregano, basil, and red pepper flakes. Ensure the sour cream is at room temperature to maintain a smooth consistency when baked. Spread this mixture evenly on the bottom of a 9-inch pie pan, baking dish, or cast iron skillet.
- Add Marinara and Cheeses: Spoon the marinara sauce over the cream cheese mixture and spread evenly. Then sprinkle the grated Parmesan cheese and shredded mozzarella cheese on top.
- Top with Pepperoni: Arrange the pepperoni slices evenly over the cheese layer or add any additional desired pizza toppings of your choice.
- Bake: Bake uncovered for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and the top begins to brown slightly.
- Garnish and Serve: Optionally garnish with extra red pepper flakes, freshly ground black pepper, and roughly chopped parsley. Serve warm with crusty bread, pita chips, tortilla chips, bagel chips, or fresh vegetables for dipping.
Notes
- Make-Ahead Method: Assemble the dip as directed, cover tightly, and refrigerate for up to 3 days before baking. Before baking, let it sit at room temperature for 20-25 minutes.
- For best flavor, grate Parmesan and shred mozzarella from blocks rather than using pre-shredded cheese.
- Use a quality marinara sauce such as Rao’s or homemade marinara for optimal taste.
- Additional toppings like sausage, mushrooms, olives, bell peppers, onions, sliced tomatoes, beef, ham, pineapple, or feta can be added to customize the dip.
- Sour cream alternatives include mayonnaise, plain Greek yogurt, or cottage cheese.
- Serve with crusty homemade no-knead bread or your favorite chips and vegetables for dipping.
- Try pairing this dip with various pizza recipes such as Homemade Pizza Dough, Buffalo Chicken Pizza, Hawaiian Pizza, or French Bread Pizza for a full pizza-themed meal.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/6 of recipe
- Calories: 320 kcal
- Sugar: 4 g
- Sodium: 580 mg
- Fat: 25 g
- Saturated Fat: 12 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 8 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 12 g
- Cholesterol: 50 mg
