This easy Cranberry Jalapeno Dip With Cream Cheese has smooth cream cheese topped with a fresh cranberry-jalapeno salsa that's tart and sweet with some spicy heat. It's the perfect festive appetizer for the fall and winter holidays!
Michelle's Recipe Rundown
When I want to impress my holiday guests with an appetizer that tastes as good as it looks - the deep red salsa with flecks of green is just so pretty - I make this dip. And you should too!
It's one of the most delicious ways to use fresh cranberries when they're in season (besides homemade cranberry sauce, of course). I look forward to making it every year. And the prep is easy and quick; there's only about 15 minutes of hands-on time.
First, make a salsa with cranberries, jalapenos, green onions, cilantro, lime juice, sugar, cumin and salt (a food processor gets this done fast). Then let it sit in the fridge for several hours to let all those flavors blend. To serve, spread softened cream cheese in a dish and top it with the salsa.
The perfectly-balanced combination of sweet, tart, spicy and creamy is outstanding. Pair it with something crunchy like crackers (wheat crackers are my favorite), tortilla chips, pita chips, pretzel crisps, or crostini.
This recipe makes a smaller batch of dip, which is great for small gatherings and everyday snacking. But you can easily double it if you're having a party or serving a larger crowd.
Want more easy dip recipes that'll wow your friends and family?
Try my Taco Dip, Layered Shrimp Cocktail Dip, Spinach Dip in a Bread Bowl, or Creamy Onion Dip.
Jump to:
Ingredients & Notes
Here are all of the ingredients you need to make this cranberry jalapeno cream cheese dip, along with some notes on preparation and making the best selections.
Ingrededient amounts are in the recipe card below.
- Fresh cranberries - A must for this recipe; you want the salsa to be super fresh. Select cranberries that are deep red, shiny and feel firm. Avoid and discard any that are soft, bruised or shriveled. I don't recommend using frozen cranberries, as they can be too soft and watery once thawed.
- Jalapeno pepper - Remove the seeds and ribs for less heat, or leave some or all of the ribs and seeds in for more heat. I find that jalapenos can really vary in terms of their heat level, so taste your pepper and adjust accordingly for how much heat you want the dip to have.
- Fresh cilantro - If you're not a cilantro fan, you can omit it.
- Fresh lime juice - This will give you the best fresh lime flavor, but you can use bottled lime juice in a pinch.
- Cream cheese - I use regular full-fat cream cheese; you'll need to soften it before using.
Substitutions & Variations
- Fresh lemon juice or orange juice could be used instead of lime juice.
- For a blended cranberry jalapeno cream cheese dip: Add the salsa to the beaten cream cheese (use a slotted spoon or drain it first) and stir until well combined. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- The cranberry-jalapeno salsa is delicious on its own served with tortilla chips for dipping.
How to Make Cranberry Jalapeno Dip With Cream Cheese
This is a brief overview of the steps. The full printable recipe with ingredient amounts and detailed instructions is in the recipe card below.
Pulse the cranberries in a food processor until coarsely chopped.
Add the sugar, jalapenos, green onions, cilantro, lime juice, cumin, and salt; pulse until finely chopped.
Transfer the salsa to a bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours (and up to overnight) to allow the flavors to blend.
When ready to serve, beat the softened cream cheese in a bowl to loosen it and fluff it up a bit.
Evenly spread the cream cheese on a rimmed serving plate.
Using a slotted spoon to drain off some of the liquid, spoon the cranberry salsa evenly over the cream cheese, leaving a small border around the edges. Serve with crackers or your favorite dippers.
Recipe Tips
- If you don't have a food processor, you could do all the chopping by hand; it will just take longer.
- You can adjust the amount of sugar depending on how tart the cranberries are and how sweet you want the dip to be.
- The salsa will release some juices as it sits in the refrigerator, so you'll want to get rid of as much of that liquid as you can before you put the salsa on top of the cream cheese. I use a slotted spoon for this. Alternately, you can put the salsa in a fine mesh strainer/sieve and gently press it to get even more of the liquid out.
- Because the salsa will continue to produce some liquid even after draining, wait until right before serving to assemble the dip.
- I like to serve this dip with a butter spreader, butter knife or something similar; spreading the dip onto crackers is easier and less messy than dipping.
Leftover Storage
Store leftover dip covered or in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. The sooner you enjoy it the better, as the salsa will continue to soften and release liquid. Drain off any excess liquid as best as you can, or you can just mix everything together for a blended dip!
I hope you try this Cranberry Jalapeno Dip With Cream Cheese recipe and love it as much as I do. Thanks for visiting today!
If you make this recipe, I'd love to know how it went. Please leave a comment and star rating below.
📋Recipe
Cranberry Jalapeno Dip With Cream Cheese
Ingredients
For the Cranberry-Jalapeno Salsa
- 6 ounces fresh cranberries , washed and dried well
- 6 tablespoons sugar, or to taste
- ¼ cup chopped jalapeno peppers, ¼-inch pieces; about 1 large jalapeno; remove the seeds and ribs before chopping for less heat, or leave some or all of them in for more heat
- ¼ cup chopped green onions, ¼-inch pieces; about 2 green onions
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 tablespoon freshly-squeezed lime juice, about ½ of a lime
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste
For the Cream Cheese Layer
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
Special Equipment
- food processor
Instructions
Prepare the Cranberry-Jalapeno Salsa
- Put the cranberries in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse a few times until the cranberries are coarsely chopped.We will be processing them further in the next step, so you don't want them too small at this point; you should have fairly large pieces.
- Add the sugar, jalapeno peppers, green onions, cilantro, lime juice, cumin, and salt; pulse until finely chopped.Be careful to not go too far; you want small pieces and some texture, not a puree.
- Transfer the salsa to a bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours (or up to overnight) to allow the flavors to blend.
Assemble & Serve
- Right before serving, put the softened cream cheese in a bowl and beat with a spoon to loosen it and fluff it up just a bit.
- Evenly spread the cream cheese on a serving dish; I use an 8-inch dish (use a dish that is rimmed or that curves up at the edges so that it will catch any liquid that is released from the salsa).
- Using a slotted spoon to drain off as much of the liquid in the salsa as you can as you go, evenly spoon the cranberry salsa over the cream cheese, leaving a small border of cream cheese around the edges (about a half inch or so). It's important to drain off a good portion any accumulated liquid so that your dip isn't too watery. Alternately, you can put the salsa in a fine mesh strainer and gently press to drain off even more of the liquid.
- Serve immediately with crackers (I like to use wheat crackers) or your favorite dippers, such as tortilla chips, pita chips, pretzel crisps, or crostini.
Notes
- If you don't have a food processor, you could do all the chopping by hand; it will just take longer.
- You can adjust the amount of sugar depending on how tart your cranberries are and to suit your own tastes.
- If you're not a fan of cilantro, you can omit it.
- Because the salsa will continue to produce some liquid even after draining, you'll want to wait until right before serving to assemble the dip.
- I like to serve this dip with a butter spreader, butter knife or something similar; spreading the dip onto crackers is easier and less messy than dipping.
- If you're serving a larger crowd, double the recipe and use a larger dish.
- Estimated calores shown are for 4 tablespoons of the dip only and do not include crackers or other types of dippers.
Leave A Comment