Veggie Dip

Cool and creamy, this veggie dip is definitely not your ordinary dip! Not only is it loaded with the flavors of roasted garlic, lemon, and feta cheese, it's also chock-full of smoky grilled and finely diced vegetables like red bell pepper, eggplant, red onion and zucchini for out-of-this-world flavor!

Veggie Dip That's Actually Filled with Veggies!

My hubby and I are both dip-a-holics.

We love cool, creamy dips, hummus-style dips, and everything else in between that we can plunge a little toast-round, cracker, chip or fresh veggie spear into. They're the perfect little appetizer to serve on a Friday evening at home with a glass of wine or chilled drink!

With all of the colorful, seasonal produce tempting us to think outside the box when it comes to fresh and healthy recipes, the idea of a gourmet veggie dip sounds absolutely perfect.

Kissed with the savory flavor of roasted garlic and feta cheese, this delectably cool homemade veggie dip beats the store-bought version hands down.

How to Make Veggie Dip Extra Scrumptious

A classic veggie dip is typically prepared with sour cream, a seasoning packet, and perhaps some fresh herbs, all whisked together and chilled.

I love this simple dip just as much as the next guy or gal, but if I'm craving one that's extra scrumptious and little bit different, this recipe's just the one I like to whip up.

The base of my veggie dip recipe is the standard sour cream, but it's the little bells and whistles that I like to add in that kick things up a notch.

I've always really enjoyed the flavor or freshly grilled vegetables, as they become just a little bit sweet and mildly smoky. And when finely minced, they make a wonderful addition to this dip both on a flavor and texture level.

Adding in some roasted garlic cloves adds even more earthy flavor, as do fresh herbs, a hint of lemon, and some salty feta cheese.

Here's a glance at how I prep my veggie dip recipe: (or just jump to the full recipe...)

1. To start, I roast off a couple of heads of garlic and set aside their soft, sweet cloves to add to the processor later.
2. While the garlic roasts, I take a few minutes to grill off my mixed veggies, then set those aside to cool enough to finely mince/dice them up.
3. To whirl things up, I add the sour cream, roasted garlic cloves plus a handful of the other ingredients into the bowl of my food processor, then blend until smooth and creamy.
4. I finish up my veggie dip by hand-folding in the grilled and finely diced veggies and fresh herbs, and chill in the fridge for an hour or two before serving.

Recipe

Veggie Dip

by Ingrid Beer

Print Recipe

Veggie dip goes the gourmet route when filled with finely diced grilled vegetables, fresh herbs, a touch of feta cheese and roasted garlic!

Category: Appetizer
Cuisine: American

Yield: Serves 10

Nutrition Info: 155 calories (roughly a ¼ cup serving)

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Total time: 55 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 head garlic, tops cut off
• Olive oil
• Salt
• Cracked black pepper
• 1 Chinese eggplant (or half of a very small eggplant), sliced lengthwise into ¼” thick slices
• 1 zucchini, sliced lengthwise into ¼” thick slices
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced into 4 sections around the core
• 1 red onion, sliced into ¼” thick circles (kept intact as much as possible)
• 2 cups sour cream
• ½ cup chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
• ¼ cup feta crumbles
• Zest of one lemon
• 1 teaspoon of lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
• 3 green onions, green part only, finely chopped

Preparation:

- Preheat your oven to 400°.

- Drizzle the two garlic heads with a little oil, and top with a pinch or two of salt and cracked black pepper, and wrap each head tightly in a square of foil; place into oven and roast for 40 minutes; once roasted, remove from foil and allow them cool until they can be handled, at which point you will squeeze the softened cloves out of the papers, and set them aside.

- In the meantime, heat either your outdoor grill (equipped with a veggie basket), or an indoor grill pan; while that heats, drizzle a little oil, plus a couple of pinches of salt and cracked black pepper over the sliced veggies.

- When the grill/grill pan is hot, add a batch of the veggies, and grill about 2 minutes per side, or until well-charred and slightly tender; flip the veggies over, and grill on the other side for roughly another 2 minutes; repeat until all veggies are charred/grilled, and set them aside to allow them to cool.

- Once the veggies are cool, chop them fairly finely, and set them aside for a moment.

- Into the bowl of a food processor, add the roasted garlic cloves, the sour cream, the chickpeas, the feta crumbles and the lemon zest and juice, plus about ¾ teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon of the cracked black pepper, and process until smooth and well-blended.

- Spoon the sour cream mixture out into a large bowl, and fold in the finely chopped grilled veggies, plus the fresh herbs; check the seasoning to see if any additional salt or pepper if needed, then cover with plastic wrap and place into the fridge for at least 2 hours, or ideally overnight for the flavors to intensify.

- Enjoy cold with veggie spears, chips or crackers, or spread over toast-rounds.

Tips & Tidbits for my Veggie Dip recipe:

• Substitutes for the sour cream: You can use some plain, full-fat Greek yogurt here if you prefer, or even use a combo of sour cream and yogurt—delicious!
• Variety of grilled veggies or just one: Using eggplant, red bell pepper, red onion and zucchini creates a really tasty combination of flavors and textures for this dip, but you can totally use any combination of these, or even just one kind, if you'd like. But by all means, use your favorites!
• Make ahead for an easy veggie dip: What streamlines things quite a bit is if you roast your garlic and grill/dice up your veggies a day or even two before you'd like to serve this dip. Simply allow them to cool and keep them covered in the fridge, then just proceed with the recipe when you're ready to serve.
• Tasty accompaniments: Freshly cut cucumbers, radishes, carrots, celery, cauliflower and broccoli are great with this dip. Other delicious options are flavored crackers, potato chips, tortilla chips, and melba toasts or bagel chips!

Hungry for more delicious dips? Check out this Spinach Dip, this Hummus Dip, this Artichoke Dip, this Mexican Corn Dip, or this White Bean Dip!

Cook's Note: This recipe was originally published in 2014, and has been updated with even more love!