If your corn dip isn't mostly cream cheese and feta, make better choices.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces (227g) plain, full-fat cream cheese
- 4 ears sweet corn, shucked, kernels removed (about 3 cups fresh corn kernels)
- 8 ounces (227g) drained feta cheese, finely crumbled
- 1/2 cup (120ml) half-and-half
- 1/2 small red onion (about 3 ounces; 85g), thinly sliced
- 3 tablespoons (45ml) extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves (0.3 ounces; 8g), finely chopped
- 1 medium clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Kosher salt (see notes)
- 1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives (about 3 ounces; 85g), halved (see notes)
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, torn
- Crackers or pita chips, to serve
Description
Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Using your fingers, break up the cream cheese into dollops and evenly distribute around the bottom of an 8-inch square baking dish.
In a large bowl, combine the corn, feta, half-and-half, and red onion with 2 tablespoons (30ml) olive oil, oregano, garlic, red pepper flakes, and a generous grinding of black pepper. Using a silicone spatula, scrape the mixture into the baking dish over the cream cheese.
Transfer baking dish to oven and bake until the cream cheese has softened, 15 minutes. Remove the dish from the oven and use the silicone spatula to stir the cream cheese into the corn mixture until fully incorporated, making sure to scrape up all the cream cheese from the bottom and corners of the dish. Return baking dish to the oven and continue to bake until the dip begins bubbling around the edges, 15 to 20 minutes longer.
Remove the dish from the oven and, using the spatula, stir the dip together again. Season to taste with salt to taste, if needed, and top with olives, tomatoes, mint, and the remaining 1 tablespoon (15ml) oil. Serve with crackers or pita chips.
Special Equipment
8-inch square baking dish or other 2-quart capacity oven-safe dish, silicone spatula
Notes
Because different varieties of feta have different salinities, there’s no measured additional salt in this recipe. Taste the baked dip and season as needed before adding the fresh toppings.
Pit-in olives are often better-quality than pre-pitted ones; we recommend buying pit-in olives and removing the pits yourself.
Make-Ahead and Storage
You can assemble the dip, cover the dish, and refrigerate it for up to 2 days before baking. When ready to cook, increase baking time to 45 minutes. Once baked and cooled, dip can be reheated in either the oven or microwave until hot in the center.
