Description
A vibrant, sweet, and spicy holiday dip made with fresh cranberries, jalapeños, cilantro, and lime served over smooth cream cheese for the perfect festive appetizer.
Ingredients
12 oz fresh cranberries
1/4 cup finely chopped jalapeños (2–3 peppers, seeds removed for less heat)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup honey
2 green onions, finely chopped
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Juice and zest of 1 lime
1/8 tsp salt
8 oz cream cheese, softened (for serving)
Crackers, tortilla chips, or baguette slices (for serving)
Instructions
1. Rinse cranberries and roughly chop them in a food processor — pulse just until coarsely chopped, not pureed.
2. Transfer chopped cranberries to a medium bowl and stir in jalapeños, sugar, honey, green onions, cilantro, lime juice, zest, and salt.
3. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight to allow flavors to meld and cranberries to slightly soften.
4. When ready to serve, spread cream cheese evenly on a platter or shallow dish.
5. Spoon the cranberry mixture (drained of excess liquid if necessary) over the cream cheese.
6. Serve immediately with crackers, chips, or baguette slices.
Notes
Adjust jalapeños to taste — include seeds for more heat or omit for a milder flavor.
Use orange juice instead of lime for a citrus twist.
The cranberry mixture can be prepared up to 2 days ahead and refrigerated.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 0 mins
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: No Cook
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 cup
- Calories: 160
- Sugar: 14g
- Sodium: 95mg
- Fat: 10g
- Saturated Fat: 6g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 17g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 30mg
Keywords: cranberry jalapeno dip, holiday appetizer, spicy cranberry cream cheese dip, christmas party dip, sweet and spicy appetizer