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This easy Pizza Dip Recipe is super cheesy and packed with flavor! It’s sure to be a favorite appetizer at your next party or gathering.
My sister makes a pretty mean batch of stuffed shells. A blend of herbs, spices, and three cheeses make the cheese filling not only incredibly cheesy (in the best kind of way), but also more flavorful than most that I’ve had.
One Sunday afternoon not too long ago, we were at my parents’ house and she was whipping up a batch for a family dinner. It happened to be getting close to dinnertime (yet dinner was not close to being ready!), and I was in serious need of a snack. (You might say the word “hangry” came into play, lol.)
I swiped a cracker into the stuffed shell filling and then placed a dollop of tomato sauce on top. Let’s just say that after that, it was hard to wait around for the stuffed shells (amazing as they may be) when the pre-dinner snack was that delicious.
After that day, of course I wasted no time making a legitimate dip (read: a dip that I can eat without getting my hand slapped away because it’s supposed to be for dinner! ;) ) out of the whole concoction.
For this dip, I make a chunky tomato sauce that comes together from start to finish in less than 10 minutes using a can of diced tomatoes. You can look for pre-made chunky pizza sauce at the grocery store, but it may not have the thickness we need for this dip (this homemade sauce is thickened up with a bit of tomato paste).
Also, I like a decent amount of garlic and herbs in my sauce, along with the perfect balance of sweet and salty flavors. (And truthfully, I have yet to find a pre-made sauce that is perfect in every way! it could always use a dash of salt or a pinch of sugar or some sautéed garlic…or just something.) Really, by the time you’re finished doctoring up a jar of pre-made sauce, you could have probably made this sauce twice, lol.
Every year on Christmas Eve my family feasts on huge spread of appetizers for dinner. This dip will definitely be making an appearance this year! It’s also perfect party or game day food.
Easy Pizza Dip Recipe
To make this Pizza Dip Recipe come together even faster and easier, you can use your favorite store-bought chunky tomato sauce instead of making it from scratch!
Ingredients for Pizza Dip:
- Cream cheese
- Ricotta cheese
- Mozzarella cheese
- Dried Italian herb seasoning
- Salt
- Garlic powder
- Chunky Tomato Sauce (my homemade recipe is included in the recipe card below, or if you’re in a time crunch you can use store-bought chunky tomato sauce)
- Fresh basil or parsley
How to Make Pepperoni Pizza Dip
To make this easy Pizza Dip recipe into Pepperoni Pizza Dip, add a layer of sliced pepperoni on top of the mozzarella cheese and then bake as directed.
Can you Freeze Pizza Dip?
Yes! Pizza Dip freezes very well.
How to Freeze Pizza Dip:
- Once the dip is made, before baking, wrap this dip in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil.
- Label it (with the date and contents), and transfer it to the fridge for up to 3 months.
How to Heat Frozen Pizza Dip:
- The night before you want to serve this, let it thaw in the fridge overnight.
- Bake the dip as directed. Place the dish onto a foil-lined baking sheet and bake (uncovered) until the cheese is warm throughout, bubbling, and golden brown in places, about 25 to 30 minutes.
More Cheesy Dip Recipes:
- Warm Cheesy Garlic and Kale Dip
- Hot Spinach Dip
- Spanakopita Dip
- Warm and Cheesy Crack Dip
- Chile Relleno Dip
Did you make this recipe? Please rate it and leave a comment below because I love hearing from you! You can also tag @anediblemosaic on social media. To stay up-to-date FOLLOW ME on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Xoxo, Faith
Pizza Dip Recipe
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Ingredients
Chunky Tomato Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 14.5 ounce can no-salt-added diced tomatoes with about 1/3 of the juice drained off
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 pinch black pepper
Pizza Dip:
- Butter to grease the baking dish
- 8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese shredded, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup Chunky Tomato Sauce
- Fresh chopped basil or parsley for garnish (optional)
For Serving:
- Homemade Low Carb Crackers
- Store-bought crackers
- Sliced bread
Instructions
Chunky Tomato Sauce:
- Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.
- Add the tomato, tomato paste, Italian herb seasoning, sugar, salt, and pepper, and cook (uncovered) until thickened, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently and using a wooden spoon to break up the tomato pieces a bit.
- Set aside.
Pizza Dip:
- Preheat oven to 400F; grease the bottom and sides of an 8 by 8-inch square casserole dish or a 9-inch pie pan with butter.
- Mix together the cream cheese, ricotta, half the mozzarella (reserving the remaining half to sprinkle on top), Italian herb seasoning, salt, and garlic powder.
- Spread in the prepared dish, then spread the Chunky Tomato Sauce on top.
- Sprinkle on the remaining half of the mozzarella.
- Place the dish onto a foil-lined baking sheet and bake (uncovered) until the cheese is warm throughout, bubbling, and golden brown in places, about 25 to 30 minutes.
To Serve:
- Sprinkle on the basil or parsley, if using.
- Serve warm with crackers or bread.
Notes
- Net Carbs: 6g net carbs per serving
- Nutrition information for this recipe was calculated for the dip alone, it doesn't include crackers or bread.
- This recipe for Chunky Tomato Sauce yields about 1 cup, which is the amount you’ll need to make this Pizza Dip.
- If you’re in a real time crunch you can use store-bought chunky tomato sauce instead of making your own sauce.
How to Freeze Pizza Dip:
- Once the dip is made, before baking, wrap this dip in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil.
- Label it (with the date and contents), and transfer it to the fridge for up to 3 months.
How to Heat Frozen Pizza Dip:
- The night before you want to serve this, let it thaw in the fridge overnight.
- Bake the dip as directed. Place the dish onto a foil-lined baking sheet and bake (uncovered) until the cheese is warm throughout, bubbling, and golden brown in places, about 25 to 30 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is automatically calculated and should be used as an approximate.
Share it with me on Instagram and leave a comment to let me know your thoughts!
:: GIVEAWAY ::
Red Gold/Redpack (a company that takes their tomatoes seriously!) is generously sponsoring another giveaway on An Edible Mosaic! This time of year canned tomatoes are a staple in my kitchen, and I find their canned tomatoes to be consistently high quality.
One winner gets: 1 large storage tin that’s made to look like a can of Redpack tomatoes, 1 (28 oz) can of whole peeled tomatoes in thick puree, 1 (28 oz) can of crushed tomatoes in thick puree, a pizza cutter, a pasta utensil, a rubber spatula, a can opener, a couple magnets, and a few recipes featuring Redpack products.
To participate, you can do any or all of the following; please leave a separate comment for each so I can count it as another entry:
- Leave a comment here letting me know your favorite thing to make with canned tomatoes.
- “Like” me on Facebook and leave a comment here letting me know. (Or just let me know if you already like me on Facebook.)
- Follow me on Twitter and leave a comment here letting me know. (Or just let me know if you’re already a follower on Twitter.)
You don’t need to have a blog to enter this giveaway! This giveaway ends Sunday, December 11, 2011 at 9PM EST. After that, the winner will be randomly chosen and notified by email. Good luck to all!
This post was first published on An Edible Mosaic on December 4, 2011. I updated it with new photos on February 1, 2015, and more information on December 27, 2019.
Disclosure: I received a sampling of Redpack products to try for free from Red Gold, and they are also sponsoring this giveaway. As always, opinions stated are my own. This post contains Amazon affiliate links to products I believe in, which means that even though it doesn’t cost you anything extra, I will receive a small amount of money from the sale of these items, which helps me keep this site alive – thank you for helping to support An Edible Mosaic!
I’m the writer, recipe developer, photographer, and food stylist behind this blog. I love finding the human connection through something we all do every day: eat! Food is a common ground that we can all relate to, and our tables tell a story. It’s my goal to inspire you to get in the kitchen, try something new, and find a favorite you didn’t know you had.
Free Bonus
chili!!! especially this time of year… and i follow you on FB!
I liked you on FaceBook
I like to make chili with canned tomatoes and chunky spaghetti sauce.
I use canned tomatoes to make Chicken Riggies a regional favorite from central New York State
Oh m y gosh I used canned tomatoes in my Roast, gumbo and chili. I use them all the time! I love to cook, have a pot of gumbo on the stove as we speak!!! I cannot wait to try your pizza dip! Thanks for posting.
I am going to like you on Fb ;)
Thank you so much, Maggie! I hope you enjoy the dip! :)
A good can of tomatoes would greatly enhance my fave eggplant roll-ups! Thanks so much for the recipe for your pizza dip … will be making this for my family this Christmas.
I love using can tomatoes to smoother my pork chops or steaks after I braised them. I put them on low heat and let them simmer. The steak of pork comes out so tender there’s never any seconds.
I’ve made this dip for a party and it was AMAZING! I loved the flavors, and the tomato sauce was perfect. Thank you!
Could this be adapted to make stuffed shells? I don’t know why I didn’t think of that before, but it seems like it could work. Put the cheese in the shells and top with sauce (most likely a double batch) and more cheese? Hmm. Suggestions?
Sarah, I’m so glad you enjoyed the dip! :)
My inspiration for the dip was stuffed shells, so I love that you want to use the dip as stuffed shell filling! Depending on how many shells you want to make, you could double both the dip recipe (to use as stuffing) and the sauce recipe. Also, you could add an egg to the dip recipe if you want (my mom always adds an egg to her stuffed shell filling). If you try it, let me know how it turns out!
I like to make tomato, garlic and lentil soup
I’m following you on twitter.
I like you on FB.
I liked to put canned tomatos in pasta!
I also follow you on twitter!
Mmm, I love to make lasagna
Love to make chili with canned tomatoes.
I love using canned tomatoes for making home made tomato sauce
HOMEMADE SUNDAY GRAVY
To make chili!
I always make my own sauce…much better than from a can.
I follow your tweets and I pinned your dip recipe on Pinterest. I love canned tomatoes – can’t tell you only one use – Goulash, spagetti, Mama Pasta (my own creation my kids love), dips – just go on and on!
I follow you on facebook
Homemade chili and tomato soup
Liked you on facebook.
I use canned tomatoes for everything – from my own marinara, stew, chili, soup…..
Pasta with tomato sauce ….I could eat it everyday!
I have always made my own sauce or “Sunday gravy” using canned tomatoes, diced, crushed, paste..you name it, I LOVE anything TOMATO!!!And who knew they were so good for you!
I love making tomato sauce with canned tomatoes. Its so easy and just as tasty as the jarred variety. :)
I followed you on twitter
I liked you on facebook
Quickie fresh salsa when tomatoes are out of season!
I can’t wait to try this recipe!!!
I love making cilantro lime salsa out of canned tomatoes!
I make an amazing eggplant parm. ?using canned tomatoes.
I “like”you on facebook for a while now and love the recipes. I use canned stewed tomatoes a lot because the flavor is like POW! I make lots of different types of pasta with them but my fave is doing a curry shrimp noodle dish. Curry goes well with stewed tomatoes. I jazz the dish up with garlic, onion, peppers or whatever veggies I have on hand, and a spoonful of Asian chili garlic sauce for extra tanginess. I like to use a vermicelli rice noodle that goes well with the shrimp. I also like to saute the shrimp separately with butter and garlic and spoon them on top of the dish so they don’t just absorb the sauce flavor and are golden brown and buttery.
I like you on facebook!
I mostly use canned tomatoes in mild chili and one skillet meals.
Love, love, love this dip!!! Thanks for the inspiration! Also LOVE my canned tomatoes to make salsa and my cheesy manicotti!!!! Thanks again!
I love to make chili using canned tomatoes.
I make two kinds: vegan, and with meat so that the entire family can enjoy dinner together.
like u on fb Julie A Scott Laws
love use it in goulash
thansk
Have already liked you on Facebook. I love your recipes!
I add canned tomatoes to jarred spaghetti sauce to jazz it up. Or throw a couple tablespoons of drained canned tomatoes in scrambled eggs
What a wonderful dip idea! My kids would go crazy for this as a snack :)
what DON’T i toss canned tomatoes in? that’d be a more apt question. :) just last night, i dumped some into a batch of chili. yum!
chunky meaty tomato sauce! (but the most useful thing about it is getting the skunk smell outta my nosy dog when he gets sprayed :P)
I follow on twitter (mommy24babies)
I like you on Facebook (Dee Wright)
I love using canned tomatoes in chili. It’s something I learned from my MIL, and it’s awesome.
Am a follower via Facebook too!
Just one thing?? I have to give my top three, sorry! Homemade pasta sauce, homemade salsa, and chili!
before reading your post i would of said pasta sauce but now …. i so want to try that dip!!! it looks wonderfully delicious. i’m thinking i might be making that for christmas eve also.
I like to used canned tomatoes to make quick soups
I love using canned tomatoes to make pizza sauce. In fact, I’m going to make it for dinner tomorrow!
tomato sauce
My favorite way to use canned tomatoes is to throw together a good pasta sauce. Simple, but always oh so delicious!
I love to make cheesy skillet pasta!!
And now I follow you on Twitter!
I like you on facebook!
Whoa, your dip just knocked my socks off. This would be great party food!!! My favorite thing to make with canned tomatoes is salsa, but if I win I’m making this dip. :)
I “like” you on FB already
Following you on Twitter (was I not already ????)
Oh how reckless to invent such a great snack ;-) I love canned tomatoes for african stews best
Tomato soup!
I love salsa made with my homegrown, home canned tomatoes!
om gosh- this looks SO amazing. I love canned tomatoes/tomato sauce…I could eat it alone :) My favorite thing to make with it is probably chili!
I “like” you on FB
Definitely homemade homemade tomato sauce
i liked you on facebook!
i follow you on twitter!
my favorite thing to use canned tomatoes for is making homemade enchilada sauce or in soups!!
Manicotti using crespelle. I will make a huge crockpot of Sunday sauce with canned tomatoes and spend a day canning, so I have sauce throughout the year.
This dip sounds amazing, Faith. I think my kids would bow to me if I set it in front of them! HAHA!
I love to use canned diced tomatoes in a chickpea tomato stew: a can of chickpeas, a can of diced tomatoes, some onions, some garlic, and some curry powder. =yum!
Love your site!
I love to make spaghetti sauce with canned tomatoes or fresh ones too.
What a great idea, Faith. Thi9s dip would be perfect on a party buffet table. Since I make pizza quite often, canned tomatoes are always in my pantry.
I follow you on Twitter
I like you on Facebook
My favorite thing to make with canned tomatoes is Lasagna!
Great idea. I’m going to bake a whole wheat pizza crust crispy, whack it up into pieces and serve this for a movie night fun-dinner to my family! Can’t wait.
I usually make pasta :)
My favorite thing to make with canned tomatoes is salsa. I make it 2 or 3 times a week easy.
pizza sauce
I love the idea of a pizza dip, awesome for a party!
this pizza dip looks soooo good, I shall have to try it for christmas
I am a facebook fan of yours. Thanks for the chance to enter.
I love making a good spaghetti sauce with canned tomatoes. Thanks for the chance to enter.
i love tomatoes! i would make spaghetti (boring but, in equal measure, delicious!)
I love making chicken tikka masala with canned tomatoes!
This is such a fresh idea! (pun intended)
I would be sorely tempted to dig into this delicious dip without said crackers though.
Love the convenience of canned tomatoes – especially because they’re picked at perfect ripeness so that sometimes they’re even better than fresh ones.
I have used diced tomatoes in my wine-braised shortribs and they were FABULOUS! The tomatoes brightened it up a bit and made it more stew-like.
chicken parmesan!
I’m so excited to try this pizza dip for football next Sunday! I love to make pasta sauce with canned tomatoes – basic marinara, eggplant arribiata, but vodka sauce is my favorite!
The dip looks incredible! I would love to dip some homemade focaccia in there! I just made spicy sausage pasta sauce with tomatoes – one of my faves.
If I’m feeling ambitious, canned tomatoes = butter chicken or chicken tikka masala! If not, salsa is always delicious.
this looks delicious…we always have a house full on sundays for football…i am making this next week for sure. I don’t need to be in the give-a-way..just wanted to tell you how much i love this recipe.
I would tell you that the gallons of marinara to fill my freezer, the one I use as a base for spaghetti and pizza sauce is my favorite, but then I would have to ignore both the special winter salsa I can by case when the salsa from the garden tomatoes runs low and my favorite chili recipe!
I was thinking that whole thing was a meal not just a dip! It sure looks good! We used canned tomatoes for chili this time of year!
Mmmm I love making a simple pasta sauce on the go or adding it to lentil curries.
I’d definitely cook up some pizza dough for dipping! What a great idea! And the photo is great. Good work!
I use canned tomatoes to make a sloppy joe like dish.
I love all things warm and filling during the winter months. My two favorite things to make with canned tomatoes right now are spaghetti sauce and my daddy’s chili. Nothing comforts me more than a full tummy and thinking about home.
Chili is a winter favorite in our house!
I would have to say chili. Its the best on a cold day
I love making chili with canned tomatoes!
This recipe sounds delicious, will give it a try. As for tinned tomatoes I use them in everything (even when I have them in the garden!) Our favourite is mixed with a tin of tuna, some mixed herbs and used as a pasta sauce. Yum yum, Diane
I would make pasta.
I follow you on twitter @andreamofme.
I like you on fb.
Fantastic idea to turn the filling into a dip! Looks fantastic, Faith. Have a great week.
Fun dip!
I like to make marinara sauce with canned tomatoes. Thanks!
MMMmmm, what could be wrong about this idea? great for the holidays, Faith!!!
pizza
I think one of my favorite things to make with canned tomatoes is definitely homemade pizza or spaghetti sauce! There’s just nothing like stewing tomatoes for a few hours to create a rich and elegant sauce!
I follow you on twitter and I tweeeted.
https://twitter.com/#!/threefrogs/status/143284123111407616
That dip is awesome! I’d love to dunk a few crackers in it…
Cheers,
Rosa
I follow you on facebook. I am Nora Platt.
My favorite tomato topping is when I use garlic and tomatoes and italian herbs with onions and susage and top it with Mozzerella cheese and spead it on top of acorn squash and bake it. It is so delicious.