The summers here in Northern California are long and the summer heat lingers even though the calendar says it’s fall. Maybe you are blessed like I am with a summer bounty of tomatoes and basil that continues to come from the garden. This easy hot dip comes together quickly, uses that fresh summer bounty from the garden and it’s absolutely divine when you scoop up the hot cheesiness with fresh slices of French bread.
When you get a big bite of this creamy, cheesy dip along with the sweet tomatoes, fresh basil and touch of tanginess from the Balsamic vinegar…your mouth will think it has died and gone to heaven!
If you are a fan of all things caprese like I am, you are going to flip over this easy to make dip!
Start by preheating your oven to 400°F.
Marinate the tomaotes:
Mix together tomatoes with the marinade ingredients.
Cut tomatoes in half and combine them with balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and salt. Let the tomatoes marinate for about 15-20 minutes while you prepare the cheese part of the dip.
Make cheese dip:
In a mixing bowl, stir together the softened cream cheese, shredded mozzarella cheese, shredded parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes. Season with a little salt and pepper.
Cut a garlic clove in half and rub the inside of a cast iron skillet with the cut end of the garlic.
Add olive oil and white wine to the pan.
Place the cast iron skillet over medium high heat and bring the wine and olive oil to a boil.
Once the wine is simmering, reduce the heat a bit and add the cheese mixture slowly, a couple tablespoons at a time, stirring to combine it with the wine.
Bake the cheese mixture in the oven at 400° for 10 minutes.
Remove pan from oven and stir cheese mixture to combine.
Top the cheese mixture with slices of fresh Mozzarella cheese.
Then top with the marinated tomato mixture. Be sure to pour on all the accumulated juices that are in there.
Return the pan to oven and bake for another 10-15 minutes until everything is hot and gooey and wonderfully melty.
Remove dip from the oven and drizzle with some additional balsamic vinegar. Top with a sprinkle of chopped fresh basil and some more red pepper flakes if desired.
Serve with slices of french bread baguette or your favorite buttery crackers.
Oh my, oh my, oh my…we couldn’t stop eating this dip! It’s absolutely delicious!!! I have to confess that once we started eating it we couldn’t stop. It ended up being dinner for the evening…LOL! We washed it all down with a glass of wine, so yummy!!! Did I feel even the least bit guilty having an appetizer for dinner? Nope!!! ☺️
I want to give credit where credit is due, but I can’t find where I first came across this fantastic recipe. I wish I could take credit for it. It was filed in my folder of “new recipes to try”. So I send a heartfelt thank you to the soul that came up with this delicious concoction! Let me know if it was you so I can give you the credit you deserve for this fantastic recipe! Be sure to give it a try, you won’t be disappointed…I promise! It’s phenomenal!!!
UPDATE: Credit goes to Nadia Aidi at Foodmymuse.com for this wonderful recipe!!! Be sure to check out Nadia’s website. Her food blog looks amazing! It’s packed with wonderful recipes and beautiful photography. Thank you Nadia for this fabulous recipe!!! I will be visiting your website in the future and I hope my readers do so as well.
Baked Caprese Dip
Equipment
- Cast iron pan
Ingredients
For the tomato marinade:
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- 1 tsp olive oil
For the cheese dip:
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened
- 3 cups Mozzarella cheese, shredded
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
- ⅛ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- salt & freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ¼ cup white wine
For the topping:
- 4 oz fresh Mozzarella cheese, cut into thick slices
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp basil, roughly chopped
- ⅛ tsp red pepper flakes
Dippers:
- 1 baguette french bread, sliced
- Ritz crackers
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
Marinate the tomaotes:
- Mix together marinade for tomatoes.
- Cut tomatoes in half and combine with marinade ingredients. Let tomatoes marinate for 20 minutes while you prepare the dip.
Make cheese dip:
- In a small bowl, mix together softened cream cheese, shredded mozzarella cheese, shredded parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Cut a garlic clove in half and rub the inside of a cast iron skillet with garlic.
- Add olive oil and white wine to the pan.
- Place cast iron skillet over medium high heat and bring the wine to a boil.
- Add the cheese mixture slowly a couple tablespoons at a time, stirring to melt it.
- Bake cheese mixture in the oven at 400° for 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven and stir to combine.
- Top the cheese mixture with slices of fresh Mozzarella cheese and the marinated tomato mixture.
- Return to oven and bake for another 10-15 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and drizzle with balsamic vinegar, chopped fresh basil and red pepper flakes.
- Serve with french bread baguette slices or crackers.
Did You Make This?
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