My sister makes a pretty mean batch of stuffed shells. A blend of herbs, spices, and three cheeses make the cheese stuffing 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.
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 won’t get 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 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.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, with about ⅓ of the juice drained off (I used Redpack)
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste (I used Redpack)
- ½ teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 pinch black pepper
- Butter, to grease the baking dish
- 8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 8 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded, divided
- ½ teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup Chunky Tomato Sauce
- Fresh chopped basil or parsley, for garnish (optional)
- Crackers or bread, for serving
- 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.
- For the 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.
- For the Pizza Dip, 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 until the cheese is bubbling and golden brown in places, about 25 to 30 minutes.
- Sprinkle on the basil or parsley, if using; serve warm with crackers or bread.
:: GIVEAWAY ::
Now for the fun part: the giveaway! A while ago I had the opportunity to work with Red Gold/Redpack (a company that takes their tomatoes seriously!), and they are 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 will get the following: 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!
Disclaimer: 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.
Update (February 1, 2015): I made this dish again and perfected the recipe and snapped a few pictures, so I decided to update both the recipe and the photos in this post.
I’m Faith Gorsky, the writer, cook, and photographer behind An Edible Mosaic. My goal is to inspire you to get in the kitchen and try something new! Feel free to 
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.
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That dip is awesome! I’d love to dunk a few crackers in it…
Cheers,
Rosa
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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!
pizza
MMMmmm, what could be wrong about this idea? great for the holidays, Faith!!!
Fun dip!
I like to make marinara sauce with canned tomatoes. Thanks!
Fantastic idea to turn the filling into a dip! Looks fantastic, Faith. Have a great week.
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I would make pasta.
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 love making chili with canned tomatoes!
I would have to say chili. Its the best on a cold day
Chili is a winter favorite in our house!
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.
I use canned tomatoes to make a sloppy joe like dish.
I’d definitely cook up some pizza dough for dipping! What a great idea! And the photo is great. Good work!
Mmmm I love making a simple pasta sauce on the go or adding it to lentil curries.
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!
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!
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.
If I’m feeling ambitious, canned tomatoes = butter chicken or chicken tikka masala! If not, salsa is always delicious.
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.
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!
chicken parmesan!
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.
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 love making chicken tikka masala with canned tomatoes!
i love tomatoes! i would make spaghetti (boring but, in equal measure, delicious!)
I love making a good spaghetti sauce with canned tomatoes. Thanks for the chance to enter.
I am a facebook fan of yours. Thanks for the chance to enter.
this pizza dip looks soooo good, I shall have to try it for christmas
I love the idea of a pizza dip, awesome for a party!
pizza sauce
My favorite thing to make with canned tomatoes is salsa. I make it 2 or 3 times a week easy.
I usually make pasta :)
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.
My favorite thing to make with canned tomatoes is Lasagna!
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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 love to make spaghetti sauce with canned tomatoes or fresh ones too.
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!
This dip sounds amazing, Faith. I think my kids would bow to me if I set it in front of them! HAHA!
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.
my favorite thing to use canned tomatoes for is making homemade enchilada sauce or in soups!!
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Definitely homemade homemade tomato sauce
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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 love salsa made with my homegrown, home canned tomatoes!
Tomato soup!
Oh how reckless to invent such a great snack ;-) I love canned tomatoes for african stews best
Following you on Twitter (was I not already ????)
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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. :)
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I love to make cheesy skillet pasta!!
My favorite way to use canned tomatoes is to throw together a good pasta sauce. Simple, but always oh so delicious!
tomato sauce
I love using canned tomatoes to make pizza sauce. In fact, I’m going to make it for dinner tomorrow!
I like to used canned tomatoes to make quick soups
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.
Just one thing?? I have to give my top three, sorry! Homemade pasta sauce, homemade salsa, and chili!
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I love using canned tomatoes in chili. It’s something I learned from my MIL, and it’s awesome.
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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)
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!
What a wonderful dip idea! My kids would go crazy for this as a snack :)
I add canned tomatoes to jarred spaghetti sauce to jazz it up. Or throw a couple tablespoons of drained canned tomatoes in scrambled eggs
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love use it in goulash
thansk
like u on fb Julie A Scott Laws
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.
Love, love, love this dip!!! Thanks for the inspiration! Also LOVE my canned tomatoes to make salsa and my cheesy manicotti!!!! Thanks again!
I mostly use canned tomatoes in mild chili and one skillet meals.
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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 make an amazing eggplant parm. ?using canned tomatoes.
I can’t wait to try this recipe!!!
I love making cilantro lime salsa out of canned tomatoes!
Quickie fresh salsa when tomatoes are out of season!
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I love making tomato sauce with canned tomatoes. Its so easy and just as tasty as the jarred variety. :)
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!
Pasta with tomato sauce ….I could eat it everyday!
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I use canned tomatoes for everything – from my own marinara, stew, chili, soup…..
Homemade chili and tomato soup
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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 always make my own sauce…much better than from a can.
To make chili!
HOMEMADE SUNDAY GRAVY
I love using canned tomatoes for making home made tomato sauce
Love to make chili with canned tomatoes.
Mmm, I love to make lasagna
I also follow you on twitter!
I liked to put canned tomatos in pasta!
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I’m following you on twitter.
I like to make tomato, garlic and lentil soup
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 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.
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.
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.
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Thank you so much, Maggie! I hope you enjoy the dip! :)
I use canned tomatoes to make Chicken Riggies a regional favorite from central New York State
I like to make chili with canned tomatoes and chunky spaghetti sauce.
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