I’m pretty sure that everyone has heard of buffalo chicken dip … but have you heard of pepperoni pizza dip?! This is going to be my new go-to for get togethers because this is an easy, crowd-pleasing recipe that comes together in minutes. By mixing just five ingredients and melting them together in the oven, you’ve got the perfect pot luck appetizer, football food or anytime friends gather dish!
Easy pepperoni pizza dip
- Low carb dip
- Perfect Super Bowl appetizer
- Football food
- A 5-ingredient dip
- “Man food”
- Keto-friendly recipe
An Easy Low Carb Appetizer with Cream Cheese
While I don’t personally follow a keto (also known as ketogenic) diet, it’s growing in popularity and I do know many people who follow it. Before going any further, in case you are not familiar with it, here are the basics:
What is the keto diet?
A true keto diet focuses on minimizing carbs and focusing on fat to supply most of the calories. According to Harvard Health Publishing, “Instead of relying on sugar (glucose) that comes from carbohydrates (such as grains, legumes, vegetables, and fruits), the keto diet relies on ketone bodies, a type of fuel that the liver produces from stored fat.” On this diet, you eat fats at every meal – some healthy unsaturated, but also saturated fats.
How does keto differ from other low-carb diets?
Many other low carb diets (Atkins, South Beach) focus more on protein whereas keto focuses heavily on eating fats. While following a keto diet, it does not discriminate against lean protein sources vs. high fat protein sources as you’ll often see in other low car diets.
What to serve with this low carb dip recipe
Because this is a combination of just 5 ingredients, the carb levels are low – 3 grams per serving. If your goal is to keep carbs low, be sure to serve it with related dippers: carrots, celery, cauliflower or peppers as I have shown here. If you are not concerned about carbs, a baguette or pepperoni roll soaks this up wonderfully. For gluten free guests, try serving with paleo crackers or other sturdy crackers or chips.
Additional toppings you may want to add to this easy pepperoni dip:
I added some extra ground beef and chopped pepperoni to the top of mine, but feel free to get creative with what you top your pizza dip with. Some ideas to get you inspired:
- Chopped pepper
- Diced mushrooms
- Black olives
- Banana peppers
- Bacon (!!)
- 1/2 lb. ground beef (grass fed recommended if feasible)
- 1 8 oz. package cream cheese
- 1 cup pizza sauce
- 6 slices pepperoni , cut into pieces
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 baguette , cut into pieces
- 1 green pepper , cut into pieces
- 1 red pepper , cut into pieces
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brown ground beef and drain.
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Spread cream cheese into an ungreased shallow 1-qt. baking dish. Add 1 cup cooked ground beef, pizza sauce and 5 of the pepperoni slices (leave one for the topping). Add mozzarella cheese.
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Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, stir until combined, and top with remaining pieces of pepperoni and ground beef.
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Serve warm with pepper and baguette.
Make ahead tip: Assemble the dip in advance, refrigerate it, and then bake it right before serving.
Make-ahead appetizer
Great news! This dip can be assembled several hours in advance. Follow all of the steps prior to baking it, and then tightly cover and refrigerate it for several hours or even overnight. Before serving, pop it into a hot oven, and within 20 minutes it is ready to be devoured!
What are some of your favorite easy appetizers, or Super Bowl Foods? Enjoy!
Source: https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/should-you-try-the-keto-diet
