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There’s regular old pizza… and then there’s PIZZA DIP!
The difference??? Pizza dip is basically all the melted, gooey cheese you’d normally get on a pizza, times three! AND, the cheese is on the bottom so it’s kind like a reversed pizza. Oh my gosh, YES. I mean, really could it get any better?
Thinking not.
Here’s the thing, I almost never, ever make appetizers. I know I have told you guys this before, but with my family/the people I feed, it’s all about the big meal. No one wants to casually chat and eat a little something before dinner like civilized people. No, they really just want to sit at a table, any table, pile their plates high, and then eat and eat and eat until their tummy’s are full. It’s not a pretty sight.
This Christmas when we had a house full of people, I made an executive decision that appetizers had to be made, and guys, it was the bestest thing ever. I made brie and blue cheese and hummus and life was complete. We did apps like two-three hours before our late night dinners and it worked out amazingly. The apps held the drunken family members (not joking, Christmas was a little loosey goosey to say the least this year) over…and sobered them up a little before sitting down to dinner.
PERFECTION, and obviously they were delicious because well, appetizers RULE… cheese + carbs = happiness.
SO this all brings me to this crazy awesome Margherita Pizza Dip. With the Super Bowl happening this Sunday, I figured now is the time to up the my appetizer game. Appetizers are pretty much uncharted territory for me, so the excitement to experiment is through the roof.
Yes, I am so weird… but I feel like I say this daily.
Clearly I have accepted it.
This dip is EVERYTHING. It’s kind of the inverse of a margherita pizza. Instead of the cheese being on the bread, the cheese gets melted in a baking dish… melted until it’s hot, gooey and perfect. The bread is then used for dipping. AND my margherita pizza dip has something super special.
Burrata. Burrata. Burrata.
SO GOOD.
If you have yet to try Burrata, now is the time. It’s quickly becoming one of my favorite cheeses. It’s like a ball of fresh mozzarella on the outside, BUT inside is the creamiest, most yummiest form of ricotta. Honestly, it’s the best. Like if you’re feeling a little depressed about being single on Valentine’s Day, buy yourself a ball or two of burrata, make this dip and then let your depression fade into cheese heaven… Then finish your evening off with some chocolate.
Obviously.
Point in all my rambles: Margherita Pizza Dip + Burrata will save any and all of your day-to-day problems, AND it makes for one KILLER Super Bowl app.
There is one very important part to this dip. Well, aside from all the cheese of course.
The tomatoes!
Yes, tomatoes are not in season, I know, enter giant 🙁 I am ALL about eating seasonally, but sometimes you just gotta have some Margherita Pizza in your life. Life without Margherita pizza would be zero fun.
So the good news is that we still have pretty decent tomatoes coming in from California, which means good things for our Margherita pizza dip. So here’s my VERY important tip. Because the tomatoes are not as flavorful as they might be in the spring and summer months, it is a MUST to roast them until they are lightly charred to a golden perfection. Roasting the tomatoes brings out their natural sweetness and makes them utterly delicious. I actually do this year round with any tomatoes bigger than a golf ball. I’m personally not a fan of large tomatoes… or I take that back, I am not a fan of large tomatoes that are not of the heirloom variety. SO, if the tomatoes are large and they’re not heirloom, you can bet I will be roasting the heck out of them. Only way to go if you ask me.
And yes, I am totally a tomato snob.
I also highly recommend buying Roma tomatoes that are still on the vine. I have found that these have great flavor, even in these brutal winter months. Which by the way, this winter is brutal thus far. It’s currently windy, snowing like crazy and so cold. I am wearing two shirts and two sweatshirts at the moment. #BUNDLED
OKAY and lastly, the bread. I simply toasted up a loaf of ciabatta bread with olive oil, salt + pepper and parmesan and baked it at 375 degrees F. until crisp. Once the bread was finished, I topped it off with fresh basil. THEN you dip, bite and go to a very happy place… eyes rolling back.
Dramatic, but so true.
Margarita Pizza Dip (withBurrata!!).
Servings: 8 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 371 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2-3 medium or 4 small tomatoes sliced thinish
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- salt + pepper
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese divided
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- salt + peper
- 8 ounces fresh burrata cheese
- fresh basil for serving
- toasted bread/crostini for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Lie your sliced tomatoes flat on the baking sheet and drizzle with 1-2 tablespoons olive oil. Generously sprinkle the tomatoes with salt and pepper. Now sprinkle with 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the tomatoes are beginning to char and caramelize around the edges. Remove from the oven.
- Reduce the oven temp to 375 degrees F. Grease an 8-inch baking dish.
- Meanwhile, in a bowl, beat together the cream cheese, mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, garlic powder, basil, oregano and a good pinch of salt + pepper until evenly combined. Spread the mixture in the prepared baking dish. Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly. After 15 minutes, remove from the oven and add the roasted tomatoes and burrata cheese. Return to the oven and continue baking for another 10 minutes or until the cheese is golden brown and the burrata is warmed through.
- Top with fresh basil + pepper. Serve with toasted bread. EAT.
The cheese situation is REAL. The struggle to stop eating? Even worse.
This was excellent, truly tastes like a deconstructed pizza! It is very rich, so this served 10 generously. The fresh basil really is a must!
Delicious and easy to make recipe, thank you so much!
Hey Mary,
Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so glad that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
OMG that looks spectacular!
Can’t wait to try this for myself.
Thanks for the inspiration. ?
Thank you Kate! xTieghan
Awesome dip!
Thank you Ashley! xTieghan
OMG… I’d eat it everything day!
Thank you Monica! xTieghan
We loved this dip! In the midst of the quarantine, we didn’t have cream cheese so substituted Greek yogurt. To counter the tanginess, we added a few tablespoons of pizza sauce. Delicious! Thanks for the great recipe!
Amazing! Thank you so much for trying this! xTieghan
Can I just serve with homemade crostini ? I’m taking it to a super bowl party and i think it would work better. Also can I do the second bake an hour or so later, will it get warm enough?
Hi Susan! Yes, of course you can serve with crostini. And yes, you can also finish baking an hour later too. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
Hi! Does this sit well? Wondering if I made for a work party and had to reheat if it would be ok! Looks amazing!!
Thanks so much!
HI Jessica! Yes, reheating this works well! If you can use an oven for best results. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
This looks amazing – what about adding a meat in there, like chorizo? What would that do to the recipe/baking?
Hi there! I am sure cooked chorizo will be great! Just stir it in with the cheese. I would think is should bake up just fine and be delicious! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
I made this last night for friends and wasn’t expecting too much but WOW! This dip is amazing! I am already thinking of when I can make it again!
I love that! Thank you so much Amy! xTieghan
Can any of this be made ahead? I’m heading to a farm party tomorrow where kitchen availability is sparse so I’m wondering if it can be put together and toast prepped today and just heat to gooiness tomorrow.
HI! You can make the dip ahead of time and then just bake off when you get to the party. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much and happy Holidays!! xTieghan ?
The food is amazing and not too hard to do! thank you for giving me more new recipes!
Thank you! I am really glad this turned out amazing for you!
just made this tonight. SO delicious. thank you!
Thank you Carissa!
This recipe is absolutely wonderful! If possible, try to find the burrata. The first time I made this recipe I used fresh mozarella in place of burrata. It was good. The second time, I found burrata by accident at my local grocery store. Let me tell you it made all the difference. I had never tried that cheese before and I am in love now! Thanks for sharing this recipe. Your photos are amazing as well!
Burrata makes it! So happy you liked it!! Thank you so much!
My husband & I are (we like to think, anyway) serious foodies & home chefs. We rarely make the same recipe twice, but tonight is our second round on this one! The ooey, gooey, stringy, cheesy wonderfulness is too good! And then . . . The burratta?!?! Wowza! We both thank you, Tieghan, for bringing this recipe into our lives! Looking forward to experimenting with more.
Oh wow! So happy you like it that much!
Thank you so much for making it!
Made this yesterday and boy O boy will I be making this again! The burrata cheese was awesome! I added red pepper flakes and I had a Trader joe’s bag of shredded Swiss/Gruyere cheese so I added some of that too. The basil brought it all together. I love your site and tell your brother Brendon thanks for telling me about it!!
Sounds like a great pizza night haha! Thank you so much Julie!