Hot Caprese Dip

Gooey. Cheesy. Good. This dip is so easy and SO yummy. We ate it as a late night snack with slices of whole wheat french bread and I slightly died at how good it was. You can make it in advance and keep it in the fridge for when you're ready to use it! A great way to use up those tomatoes from your garden, too!

Ingredients:

16 ounces part-skim mozzarella, cubed
6 oz low fat cream cheese, cubed
2 cups tomatoes, diced, seeded and juiced*
3 tablespoons freshly chopped basil (or about 1 tablespoon dried)
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp pepper

Directions:

Spray a medium oven safe dish with cooking spray. Put about half of the mozzarella on the bottom of the dish. Top with tomatoes, basil and spices. Top with cream cheese cubes and remaining mozzarella.


Bake for about 15 minutes on 375 and then broil until cheese is bubbly. (There will be liquid at the bottom of the dish from the cheese. using a lower moisture mozz will decrease this!)

Serve with your favorite cracker, bread or spoon!

*A great way to get excess juice out of your tomatoes is to sprinkle them with salt and let them sit for about 30 minutes. Then rinse and pat dry with paper towels.

Recipe adapted from How Sweet Eats

Hot Reuben Dip

Holly knows my love of corned beef reubens and recently sent me this recipe to try. It was killer! Made it for the not so awesome Ravens game yesterday. Tasted just like a reuben sandwich. It was different and unique and a new favorite among our friends. Definitely recommend and can't wait to make again. Plus it was super easy!

8 ounces cream cheese, softened (we used low fat)
1½ cups (6 ounces) shredded Swiss cheese
1/4 lb deli corned beef (ask for it chopped at the deli and then give it a little extra chopping when you get home)
½ cup Thousand Island dressing (we used a light version)
½ cup drained sauerkraut
1/2 loaf rye bread, cut into fours

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. In a large bowl mix together the cream cheese, 1 cup of the Swiss cheese, the dressing and corned beef. Spread in a pie plate or other shallow serving dish. Top with the sauerkraut and the remaining ½ cup of Swiss cheese.

3. Bake until cheese is fully melted and it's bubbly around the edges (ours took about 25 minutes). Serve hot with cocktail-size rye bread squares.

***recipe & picture courtesy of Brown Eyed Baker

Jalapeno Cheese Sauce

I made this dip to go with soft pretzels and it was AMAZING. It would be great to use with tortilla chips, veggies or whatever you want to dip in it. The flavor is so good and it keeps well in a crockpot to stay warm!

1 T unsalted butter
1 T flour
3/4 cup milk - I used 1%
1 clove garlic, finely grated or minced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely minced
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese
1 tsp cayenne pepper

In a small sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and whisk to combine, cooking about one minute until smooth. Add milk, whisking to incorporate. Add garlic and jalapeno. Switch to a wooden spoon and stir frequently until thickened, about 15 minutes. The sauce should begin to coat the back of the spoon. Remove from heat and stir in cheese. Add cayenne pepper to taste.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

This appetizer is definitely a crowd pleaser! It has the zest from the buffalo sauce, creaminess from the combination of cheese and tender chunks of chicken. You'll have a hard time leaving the dish once you start snacking! Serve with crackers, tortilla chips and celery!

Ingredients:
2 (10 oz) cans of chunk chicken, drained

3/4 C of Franks Red Hot Sauce
2 (8 oz) packages of cream cheese
1 C of ranch dressing
1 1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese
Directions:
In a medium sized pot, mix 2 10 oz. cans of chunk chicken, drained, with 3/4 cup of Franks red hot sauce. Heat.
Add 2 8 oz. pkgs. of cream cheese, 1 cup ranch dressing, and 1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese.
Heat through and serve. 

*You can also transfer to a small crockpot to keep warm.