Email to Cat      

Cheesy Pepperoni Dip with Pizza Dippers

Source of Recipe

From "In the Kitchen with David" by David Venable


Recipe Introduction

"One of my favorite foods on the planet is pizza. I love it hot. I love it cold. Thin or thick crust. In any form or fashion. In true foodie fashion, I also love being creative with pizza. This recipe includes everything I want in my pie—in the form of a mouthwatering dip. It's cheesy, it's flavorful, and it's fun."

List of Ingredients

Pizza crust dippers:
â—¦ â…” cup (about 2 ounces) freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
â—¦ 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
â—¦ ½ teaspoon garlic powder
â—¦ 2 13.8-ounce cans refrigerated pizza dough
â—¦ ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Cheesy pepperoni dip:
â—¦ 12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
â—¦ ½ cup (4 ounces) sour cream
â—¦ 2 teaspoons dried oregano
â—¦ 1 teaspoon dried basil
â—¦ 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
â—¦ 1 clove garlic, minced
â—¦ ¾ cup prepared pizza or tomato sauce
â—¦ 1 â…“ cups chopped pepperoni
â—¦ ½ cup chopped green bell pepper
â—¦ ¼ cup sliced scallions
â—¦ ¾ cup (3 ounces) shredded Cheddar
â—¦ ¾ cup (3 ounces) plus ¼ cup (1 ounce) shredded mozzarella


Recipe

Preheat the oven to 425° F.

To make the dippers, combine the Parmigiano-Reggiano, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder in a bowl. Roll out one pizza dough on a lightly floured work surface and cut into 18 squares. Then cut each square in half diagonally to form 2 triangles. Arrange the triangles on a baking sheet and brush each one with olive oil. Sprinkle the Parmesan mixture over the triangles. Repeat with the remaining pizza dough. There will be a total of 72 triangles. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until golden brown. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

To make the dip, whisk together the cream cheese, sour cream, oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, garlic, pizza sauce, pepperoni, bell pepper, scallions, Cheddar, and ¾ cup of the mozzarella in a bowl. Evenly spread out the mixture in a shallow 2-quart ovenproof dish.

Bake for 15 minutes, until bubbly.
Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the remaining ¼ cup mozzarella. Bake for 5 minutes more.
Serve hot with the dippers.

Makes 32 dippers