The Roasted Red Pepper Dip with Fresh Herbs is an old family favorite that we recently rediscovered, with tasty results! Excellent served with a Cabernet Franc. Disclosure: The wine pairing suggested was provided to me as a complimentary sample.
This Roasted Red Pepper Dip is a recipe I made regularly for family gatherings for several years. Then I started going with my Spicy Green Onion Dip and Muhammara more regularly, and this one fell by the wayside a bit.
Muhammara, by the way, does also feature roasted red peppers, but has a very different flavor profile. That Middle Eastern dip has a nice spicy kick, and is a bit lighter.
Today’s Roasted Red Pepper Dip is packed with savory flavors and fresh herbs. I’ve gotten lots of requests for the recipe when I’ve brought it places, always a good sign!
Making this recipe
Head on down to the recipe card for all the details. But here are a few key tips for making this Roasted Red Pepper Dip with Fresh Herbs:
- Take the cream cheese out of the refrigerator 20 to 30 minutes before you are ready to start making the dip. This will help it soften and mix easier with the other ingredients.
- If you forget to take the cream cheese out and it’s time to start making the dip, you can put the cheese in the microwave for 20 seconds or so — be sure to take it out of the foil packaging first!
- You could play with the amounts of fresh herbs called for here. Less basil and more parsley could be practical if you are making this in winter when basil can be hard to come by.
How to serve this dip
This dip is thicker than some. Therefore, you want to serve it with something sturdy. Pita chips and crostini are good options. For the crostini option, cut some thin slices of a baguette, coat light with oil, and light toast the bread. Spread the dip on top.
This dip can also be served with cut raw vegetable crudités.
Cab Franc Wine Pairing
We made this recipe for the recent Cab Franc Day on December 4. I was reminded that fresh herbs can set up a good pairing with Cabernet Franc, so I thought I would open one of the bottles I had for the event. See our Cabernet Franc Food Pairing Tips and Favorites for more pairing ideas.
I opened the 2018 Fox Run Vineyards Cabernet Franc ($22 , 12.3% ABV) from the Finger Lakes to go with the Red Pepper Basil Dip. I get berries on the nose, with hints of pepper. Cherry fruit on the palate, with notes of cinnamon.
On the finish, I did get a bit of the classic bell pepper associated with Cab Franc. This medium bodied wine, with its nuanced flavor profile, is an excellent choice for the red pepper dip! The low alcohol content also helps it play along well with the varied ingredients that get added to the recipe.
The Fox Run Cab Franc is made from 100% estate fruit from this winery located by Seneca Lake. The family owned winery has been making estate wines since 1989. For more on the winery, visit their website.
PrintRecipe card
Roasted Red Pepper Dip with Fresh Herbs
Our Roasted Red Pepper Dip with fresh herbs and cream cheese has been a longtime family favorite. Lots of fresh savory flavory, this dip is good served on pita chips, wheat crackers or crostini.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 20 mins
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: appetizer
- Method: no cook
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 7 oz jar roasted red peppers, drained — about 1 cup before chopping
- 8 ozs sundried tomatoes, packed in oil, drained
- ¼ cup pepperoncini, drained and stemmed
- 8 ozs cream cheese, softened
- 8 ozs feta cheese
- ½ tsp low sodium soy sauce
- pinch of salt
- a few grinds of black pepper
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup loosely packed fresh basil
- 1 cup loosely packed fresh parsley
Instructions
- Soften the cream cheese: remove the cream cheese from the refrigerator 20 to 30 minutes before you plan to start making the dip so that it has time to soften.
- Mince the garlic and other veggies: Add the garlic to a food processor, pulse to mince. Add the roasted red peppers, sundried tomatoes and pepperoncini to the food processor. Blend until they are finely chopped.
- Add the cream cheese along with the feta cheese, soy sauce, salt and pepper. Blend until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Add the herbs: With the motor running, gradually add the olive oil and blend until incorporated. Add the basil and parsley, pulse until finely chopped.
- Serve with pita chips, wheat crackers or crostini. You could also serve with raw veggies.
Notes
- This dip has a thicker consistency than some, which is why we recommend pita chips, wheat crackers or crostini for serving. You could try adding a bit extra olive oil if you wanted it less thick, but add the extra gradually so as not to overdo it.
- We originally used Worcestershire sauce instead of soy sauce in this recipe and you could do that again.
- Fresh basil can be harder to find in the winter. You could experiment with less basil and more parsley if only the small containers of basil are available at the store.
Dannii
This dip looks amazing. So much flavour, and really easy to make too. YUM!
Jen
This is one of those dips that everyone congregates around fearing that it’ll be gone if they leave it and come back. So delicious!!
Sophie
Anything with red pepper, I am sold. Thanks for the recipe.
Bintu | Recipes From A Pantry
This sounds like such a delicious dip – I can’t wait to give it a try!
Cooking Chat
Hope you like it!
Julia
Delicious! Next time I am gonna try this with pasta!
Cooking Chat
That’s a good idea!