Cranberry Jalapeno Cream Cheese Dip is made of whipped cream cheese topped with a fresh cranberry and jalapeno relish, and is the perfect appetizer for any holiday gathering.
One of my favorite party appetizers is cream cheese smothered in some sort of sweet and spicy sauce. like raspberry chipotle sauce, and plenty of crackers to scoop it up with.
But for the holidays, I like to fancy things up a bit. Instead of plopping the whole block of cream cheese on a plate, this cream cheese is whipped and then spread into a pretty dish. And the topping? Not your average salsa or sauce, that’s for sure.
Fresh cranberries are chopped and mixed with sugar, jalapenos, green onions, and cilantro then marinated for a bit before spreading on top of the cream cheese. And the result is a dip that is truly amazing. Creamy, a little sweet, a little crunchy with just a hint of heat, and absolutely chock full of holiday flavor. Because, cranberries = holiday flavor. In case you didn’t know.
Cream cheese is a weakness of mine, and this dip didn’t stand a chance once it was made. It makes a good amount, but be prepared for it to disappear from the appetizer table just as fast as you put it down.
This week I’ve teamed up with some other amazing bloggers to bring you more than 60 cranberry recipes to make your holidays extra delicious! Check out the other recipes from today below!
Cranberry Jalapeno Cream Cheese Dip
Ingredients
- 12 oz fresh uncooked cranberries
- 2 green onions
- 1-2 fresh jalapeño peppers, ribs and seeds removed
- 2 Tbsp cilantro
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 16 oz cream cheese, softened
Instructions
- Use hand food chopper to chop cranberries.
- Chop green onion, jalapeño peppers and cilantro.
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine the chopped cranberries, green onion, cilantro and jalapeños with the sugar, lemon juice and salt and stir gently until blended.
- Cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator overnight.
- Remove cranberry mixture from the fridget and stir. Strain out all the liquid.
- Use a hand mixer to whip softened cream cheese smooth (about 2 minutes) and spread cream cheese over bottom of a pie plate or 9×9 dish.
- Pour cranberry mixture on top of the cream cheese and serve with crackers (or refrigerate until ready to serve.)
Notes
It’s Cranberry Week! See all the other delicious cranberry recipes being shared today (and follow #cranberryweek to see even more):
Cranberry & Brown Sugar Glazed Turkey Meatloaf from Savory Moments
Cranberry Butter from Daily Dish Recipes
Cranberry Curd Pie from The Redhead Baker
Cranberry Glazed Meatballs from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
Cranberry Jalapeno Cream Cheese Dip from Sweet Beginnings
Cranberry Orange Marmalade from Books n’ Cooks
Cranberry Prosecco Punch from Our Good Life
Cranberry Salsa from The Freshman Cook
Cranberry Swirl Mini Cheesecakes from Our Crafty Mom
Cranberry Walnut Bread from Palatable Pastime
Easy Homemade Cranberry Vanilla Liqueur from Family Around the Table
Homemade Granola Recipe (with cranberries & coconut) from Caroline’s Cooking
Jalapeno Cranberry Bombs from Cookaholic Wife
Pear and Cranberry Salad from A Day in the Life on the Farm
Polar Espresso Cookies from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
Roasted Maple Bourbon Cranberry Sauce from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
Sugared Sparkling Cranberries from Cheese Curd In Paradise
Tart Cherry Cranberry Sauce from The Spiffy Cookie
What a colorful dip! Great for a festive party.
I don’t think I have ever eaten a fresh cranberry. I’m not sure I realized you could. Thanks for the information and the recipe.
This takes cream cheese topped with pepper jelly to a whole new level. Gorgeous and it sounds delicious.
I go crazy for pepper jelly and cream cheese, so I just know that I’m going to love this!!!
This is such a colorful, flavorful, and festive dip — and perfect with the cream cheese!
I really like dips with cream cheese underneath and this one sounds like a sweet and spicy one! Yum!
What a perfect appetizer for the holidays! I can’t wait to make it!
This sounds wonderful and a “must make” for the holidays! So pretty!
My sisters would die for this dip, looks absolutely delicious!
This looks incredible and I love how it’s make-ahead!! Going on the must-make list!
How festive! I bet cranberries are so awesome in a salsa…and perfect on cream cheese. Pinning this one for later!
This is my kind of appetizer! I love the colors in this dish and I will be making this for my next tapas party! Thanks!
Saw this recipe and just had to make it for Thanksgiving. It’s so different and delicious… was such a hit! Love your creativity here… thanks for sharing!
This looks so amazing. I cant get fresh cranberries in Australia what do you think would work best as a substitute?
I used raspberries once in this recipe. It was great!
Had this with craisins and it tastes great!
I would think cherries would be a good substitute but cranberries are super tart, so maybe you’d need a lot less sugar. Or if not cherries some other tart fruit/ berry, like lingonberries.
This has my name all over it! I’m a dip person and the flavor combinations in this recipe sound divine!!!
I made this for Thanksgiving and everyone went nuts over it! It was a great way to get our traditional cranberries in and since we all love spicy the jalapeño component was ideal. This is going to be a regular appetizer at our house during the holidays.
I am so glad to hear this, Marisa! Thank you for the comment!
I definitley need to add this to my Christmas Party dish list! Thanks for sharing!
What a wonder combination of flavors..tart cranberries , spicy jalapenos and creamy cream cheese. The perfect holiday appetizer .
i’m obsessed with cream cheese topped with pepper jelly, so I know I will absolutely love this! In fact, this recipe looks so dangerous, that I might make it and not share it when anyone!
I found this recipe just before Thanksgiving and I decided to give it a try. I wasn’t wrong for giving it a go. It turned out to be super delicious and my whole family loved it. I will make this again. For sure!
What if you can’t get your hands on fresh cranberry? Would frozen work?
Hi April! I can’t say with certainty if frozen would work…they might get mushy afrer thawing versus staying kind of crisp. The flavor would probably still be good, but texture might not. If you try it, please let me know how it turns out!
This is seriously one of the most delicious things I’ve made/eaten! I made a big batch of the cranberry relish and not only served it as dip on cream cheese but also used some as a garnish on burgers with brie and dijon mustard and served with tortilla chips as salsa. Everyone who’s tried it has loved it.
Leah, I am so glad to hear that you loved it. And I love the other ways you used the cranberry relish – that sounds amazing!!
This looks amazing! Given the season, I’m picking a bunch of jalapeños and cranberries right now. Do you know if you can can this recipe? Just curious because I’d love to make a big batch to use through the holiday season!
Hi Amanda! Thank you! I am not sure about canning as I’ve never tried. You may be able to freeze the salsa part of the mixture, however, that could change the texture of the cranberries and jalapenos once thawed. Maybe try freezing just a small amount first and see what the texture is like after thawing, and then go from there 🙂 Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
My family loves this dip. It is my go to potluck dish. It is always a favorite. I like jalapeños so I use 4 or 5. With the cream cheese and crackers it is not spicy. I’m hungry just thinking about it! 😋
Hi Lisa! So glad to hear that you and your family love it!
I love this, and my family devours it. One of my favorite things about this recipe, though, is using the strained liquid in margaritas! It creates some ridiculously delicious simple syrup.
If you haven’t tried that yet, do it!
Cyndi, that sounds delicious, I will definitely have to try that!
Delicious! My family loves it!!!
Thank you so much Deborah! So glad you all enjoy it!
could the fruit mixture sit in the fridge for two days before making the remainder? I wanted to make sure it wouldn’t affect the recipe
I haven’t tried it that way, but it would likely be ok. I wouldn’t do it more than 2 days ahead though, in case the cranberries lose their crispness and get mushy.
Probably silly question but two packs of green onions or just two stems?
So sorry I’m just now seeing this..two stems!
I have used this recipe a couple of time but I have modified it because I detest green onions.
I chop a good slice of ginger and use it instead. Love it and get rave reviews.
Came across an enticing recipe that looked and sounded amazing, so I had to try it out – turned out delicious!
What crackers are best w this recipe? Can’t wait to try it!
I made this for my Bunco group and it was a hit. I used half the cilantro as I feel it ‘s overpowering. I’m going to make it again for Christmas Eve and will buy a chopper before then. I love the variety of flavors and the presentation is beautiful.
I made this and was a hit it was so delicious I omitted the cilantro because I don’t like it but it was amazing without. I also liked some of the cranberry mixture into the cream cheese it was so good.