Recipe Overview
Why you’ll love it: Perfect with crackers, crostini, or naan, creamy baked goat cheese dip is hard to resist. It’s a wonderful appetizer that’s always a hit!
How long it takes: 22 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: food processor, baking dish
Servings: 8
Who can resist creamy, tangy goat cheese dip? You’ll love this warm cheesy dip, with three cheeses: goat cheese, Parmesan, and cream cheese. Flavored with garlic, herbs, and lemon zest, it’s perfectly creamy and spreadable. Serve it with crisp crostini, crackers, or your favorite dipper.
I love that you can make this easy dip ahead and simply pop it in the oven when your guests arrive so it’s perfectly warm and ready to share. Mmmmm, it’s so good with a cherry spritzer, pomegranate mojito or an orange G & T. Or enjoy it with a glass of wine, too, either red or white.
How To Make Baked goat cheese dip
You’ll need a food processor for a really creamy texture. Simply combine all the ingredients in the bowl of the food processor, except for the herbs and lemon zest.
Blend the mixture until it’s nice and smooth, take out the blade, and stir in finely chopped parsley, fresh thyme, and finely grated lemon zest.
Spread the dip in a shallow baking dish. Choose a dish that you can serve it from, too!
Bake the goat cheese dip briefly until it’s warm and just beginning to bubble around the edges.
Cooking Tip
Don’t overheat the dip. The dip tends to separate and lose some of the ultra-creaminess if you overdo it in the oven. It’s better to underheat the dip than to bake it too long (trust me, I know…let me make the mistakes so you don’t have to!). Actually, this creamy goat cheese dip is quite good without even heating it all, so if you prefer a cold cheese dip, this recipe works perfectly for that, too.
Ingredient Notes
- Goat cheese: Buy a large 10.5 oz. log, not the crumbles.
- Cream cheese: Soften the cream cheese at room temperature for an hour or so.
- Parmesan cheese: Use grated cheese. For this recipe, shelf-stable cheese is fine.
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Garlic: I use one clove of garlic for savory flavor.
- Fresh parsley and thyme: You really need fresh herbs for this recipe. Dried herbs won’t have the same flavor.
- Finely grated lemon zest: A bit of lemon brightens the flavor of the dip.
Serving Suggestions
Try homemade crostini for a perfect pairing. Or choose your favorite crackers or other dippers.
Include this warm dip with your cheese board, along with kalamata olives or other types of olives, sliced apples or pears, dried cherries or apricots, grapes, jam, chutney, roasted almonds or spiced pecans, and additional varieties of cheese.
Recipe Variations
- Add a sweet topping. After removing the dip from the oven, drizzle it with honey or top it with fig jam or bacon jam to add a sweet component to the dip.
- Not a garlic fan? Just omit it, the dip has plenty of flavor without it.
- Another goat cheese appetizer. Fried goat cheese is always a hit.
Storage Tips
Storage: Once the dip has been heated, it is best eaten right away. Leftovers can be covered tightly and stored in the fridge for a couple of days.
Make ahead: Prepare the dip but don’t bake it. Store in a covered container for up to two days. When ready to serve, spread the dip in an oven safe container and heat.
More Cheesy Appetizers
Baked Goat Cheese Dip
Ingredients
- 10.5 ounces goat cheese log
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, more for drizzling after baking
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
- ¼ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- ¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1 teaspoon finely minced thyme
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest
- salt, to taste
- crostini, crackers, or mini naan for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400ºF.
- In a food processor, combine goat cheese, cream cheese, Parmesan, olive oil, garlic, and pepper until smooth, scraping down sides as needed.10.5 ounces goat cheese log, 4 ounces cream cheese, softened, ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese, 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, more for drizzling after baking, 1 clove garlic, peeled and roughly chopped, ¼ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- By hand, fold in herbs and lemon zest. Taste and add salt if desired.¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, 1 teaspoon finely minced thyme, ½ teaspoon lemon zest, salt, to taste
- Spread into a baking dish and bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until warm and just starting to bubble around the edges. Don’t overheat the dip. It should be creamy and not starting to separate. The length of baking time depends somewhat on the size of your baking dish.
- Drizzle with olive oil, if desired. Serve with crostini, crackers, or mini naan.
Notes
- Yield: Makes about 2 cups. One serving is 2 tablespoons, which is 16 servings, but that can vary depending on the size of each serving.
- Storage: Once the dip has been heated, it’s best eaten right away. Leftovers can be covered tightly and stored in the fridge for a couple of days.
- Make ahead tip: Prepare the dip but don’t bake it. Store in a covered container for up to two days. When ready to serve, spread the dip in an oven safe container and heat.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?Share a comment and rating below! I love hearing what you think!
fantastic for all of the football playoff games coming up.
For sure!