Best Cranberry Jalapeno Dip Recipe (with Cream Cheese)
Prepped in minutes, this is the ultimate cranberry jalapeno dip, a sweet, spicy, and tart blend of flavors! A copycat of Costco's cranberry jalapeño dip! Make it two ways: as a layered dip or combined.
Remove cream cheese from refrigerator and bring to room temperature an hour before making.
Rinse and sort cranberries, pulling out soft or shrivled cranberries.
Add cranberries to the bowl of a food processor, add chopped green onions (3-4), cilantro (2-3 tablespoons, chopped), jalapenos (1-2 rough chopped). Pulse until desired consistency. You don’t want it pulverized, scrape the sides and the bottom a couple of times.
If you don’t have a food processor, you can mix in small batches in a good blender, or you may hand chop as well if desired. A food chopper will also do the job.
Pour into a medium bowl and then add, sugar (¼-¾ cups), lime juice (2 tablespoons), orange juice (2-3 tablespoons) and salt (¼ teaspoon). Take a taste and ensure it’s sweet and hot enough for your taste, adjusting the ingredients as needed, but keep in mind it will taste better the longer it sits.
Place in a bowl and set in the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes, preferably 4-24 hours. This allows the flavors to marry!
Strain the liquid from the cranberry jalapeno relish by placing a fine mesh strainer over a bowl and spooning the relish into the sieve.
Serving Option #1 | Costco Cranberry Jalapeno Dip
Place the softened cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer or use a hand mixer and whip until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add a few teaspoons of the hot and sweet jalapeno juice if desired. Add the jalapeno cranberry salsa and mix until combined. Serve with your favorite dippers.
In the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, whip the cream cheese until light and fluffy, 3-4 minutes. If desired, add a teaspoon or two of the candied jalapeno juice. Spread onto a large plate or platter. You want it to be about ½ inch thick.
Spoon the salsa/relish evenly over the cream cheese mixture and provide crackers and vegetables for dipping and scooping. I like carrot chips, cucumber slices and celery sticks for those who are low-carb and gluten-free, a Ritz type butter cracker is a great compliment to the spicy sweet dip as well as a gluten-free cracker and pretzel thins.
Notes
Fresh Tip:
This recipe makes a large amount of jalapeno cranberry relish, pull out a cup to enjoy by itself or make a large amount of relish.
The above is also a great way to use any leftovers you may have, just scoop it all into a mixing bowl and combine.
Make Ahead Tips:Make the jalapeno cranberry salsa up to 2 days ahead of time and keep covered in the refrigerator. Whip the cream cheese up to 2 days ahead of time, spread on platter, cover and refrigerate. Bring cream cheese to room temperature before assembling the dip, about an hour.Storage TipsStore leftovers in fridge, covered in an airtight container for up to one week and may be frozen, up to 2 months when stored well. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, give it a good stir before serving.Variations & Substitutions
If there are ingredients you don’t like leave them out, if there are ones you love add more!
Add a ½ teaspoon of cumin for an even more Mexican-flavored holiday appetizer.
Swap lemon juice for the lime juice, I personally liked the lime juice better, but lemon juice still tasted great. Omit the orange juice if desired.