Not a dinner party or gathering happens in our family without this soon-to-be world-famous Caesar Salad Dip, made with classic Caesar flavors like garlic, lemon, and salty, umami-rich aged cheese, in a rich, creamy base of blended cottage cheese and tart yogurt. Shall we?
Explore More
- What is Traditional Caesar Salad Dressing Made of?
- What You Need to Make Healthy Caesar Salad Dip
- What Kind of Yogurt, Cottage Cheese, and Cheese Do You Use for Caesar Salad Dip?
- How to Make the Best Caesar Salad Dip
- Ideas for What to Serve with Caesar Salad Dip
- Best Creamy Dips in Which You Can Incoporate Real California Milk
- Caesar Salad Dip Recipe
What is Traditional Caesar Salad Dressing Made of?
Caesar dressing is an ultra-savory blend of garlic, lemon, parmesan, and anchovy in a base of emulsified egg yolk and olive oil. Traditionally in a restaurant, the server whisks together the dressing in the bottom of a salad bowl, then adds Romaine lettuce and other salad ingredients, then tosses everything together.
The Best Parts of Caesar Salad, But Make it a Dip
This Caesar Salad Dip recipe takes the core flavors of a traditional Caesar Salad, blends them into a combination of yogurt and cottage cheese, and transforms your Caesar from a fork-and-knife salad into a highly dippable experience. The yogurt and cottage cheese are not only easier to blend than trying to emulsify a raw egg, but they provide all the health benefits that can come from dairy.
What You Need to Make Healthy Caesar Salad Dip
Refrigerator/fresh ingredients:
- Real California Milk yogurt, 1 cup
- Real California Milk cottage cheese, ½ cup
- Aged, full-flavored Real California Milk cheese, ½ cup grated ( ~ 4 ounces)
- Garlic, 2 cloves minced (about 1 teaspoon)
- Lemon juice, from 1 large lemon about 2-3 tablespoons
- Parsley, 2 tablespoons chopped, optional for garnish
- Black pepper, fresh cracked, optional for garnish
Pantry/dry ingredients:
- Anchovies, 4
- Dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon
- Sea salt ¼ teaspoon, if using regular table salt, use just a pinch
And of course, all the great things to dip! I love Little Gem lettuces which are small, palm-sized Romaine-like lettuce heads, endive, celery, cucumber, and radishes.
What Kind of Yogurt, Cottage Cheese, and Cheese Do You Use for Caesar Salad Dip?
tl;dr Use cottage cheese, yogurt, and cheese made with Real California Milk so you know they're the highest quality. Use the fullest fat version of these that your taste and health tolerates to get the thickest, most dippable texture.
Real California Milk yogurt. Yogurt provides the creamy base for the dip, and its subtle tang and fermented funk enhance the classic flavors of lemon and anchovies in Caesar salad. Get the thickest version of yogrt you can so that the dip maintains it structure. Depending on the brand, the "type" of yogurt e.g. Greek-style, Mediterranean labne, and the fat percentage, your Caesar Salad Dip might be thinner or thicker than you like at first. It's better to err on the side of thicker because it's easier to thin out with water or oil later.
Real California Milk cottage cheese. Cottage cheese adds structure and body to Caesar Salad Dip that makes it truly thick and dippable as opposed to thin and pourable like a dressing. Blending the cottage cheese keeps the texture smooth.
Real California Milk cheese. Use a hard, aged cheese that has a salty, full-flavored parmesan-like quality similar to the flavor in Caesar salad. Asiago, Romano, and Dry Jack are great choices. Specifically, I like San Joaquin Gold or Dry Jack.
For the Best Dairy of Any Kind, Look for the Real California Milk Seal
When making this Caesar Salad Dip recipe, or any recipe for that matter, look for dairy products bearing the Real California Milk Seal, which is an indicator that it's made with milk produced with integrity and an eye toward quality and global sutainability by family-owned dairies.
Additional Ingredients Notes and Substitutions
- Anchovies. Anchovies are a hallmark of Caesar salad, whether in the form of actual anchovies or via Worcestershire sauce, which has anchovy as an ingredient. They provide both saltiness as well as a depth of flavor to the final dip rather than an actual oceanic anchovy taste. Use the highest quality anchovies you can afford. I like this brand. Pro-tip: if you get the anchovies in a jar, you can close it back up and save the rest for the next 5 times you make Caesar Salad Dip which will probably be immediately, tbh. You can sub with 2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce, anchovy paste, or 1 teaspoon southeast Asian fish sauce.
- Dijon mustard. Dijon mustard was likely originally included with classic Caesar dressing to contribute to the emuslification of the ingredients. I like to include it in the Dip recipe for its subtle kick. In this recipe, you can omit the Dijon mustard if you don't have it on hand.
- Garlic, lemon, herbs, and all other produce from local farmers markets or Whole Foods market
How to Make the Best Caesar Salad Dip
Chop the anchovies. Add the minced garlic and pinch of sea salt. Using the side of your knife, smash the anchovies, garlic, and together to create a rough paste. Scrape the paste into a food processor or blender.
Add lemon juice and Dijon mustard and pulse the food processor a few times to combine.
Add cottage cheese to food processor and blend until cottage cheese is smooth. You can add yogurt a few tablespoons at a time if needed to help the cottage cheese blend. Add the rest of the yogurt and cheese and pulse to combine. Taste and season with more salt if needed.
Transfer dip to serving bowl or container and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to let the anchovies and garlic flavor infuse through the dip.
Pro-tips for Making the BEST Caesar Salad Dip
Smash the Anchovies and Garlic by Hand. You may be tempted to simply throw whole anchovies and chopped garlic into the food processor to let the machine do all the work. But I guarantee that using the side of your knife to smash the garlic and anchovies together will create a smooth paste that will incoporate into the final dip much more evenly, without a rogue bit of garlic that somehow managed to escape the blades of a machine.
Let the Dip Sit Overnight. Caesar Salad Dip tastes so so good right when you make it, but it tastes incredible after it "rests" and the flavors bloom into one another. An hour is good, a couple of hours is even better, a full day is best. That's what makes this dip great for entertaining since it tastes great when you make it in advance.
Use the Lemon Zest. Traditional Caesar Salad dressing isn't necessarily meant to taste lemony, but if you really love the flavor, zest the lemon before squeezing the juice and add the zest to the food processor with the juice.
Ideas for What to Serve with Caesar Salad Dip
My first instinct for scooping up this luxuriously creamy Caesar Salad Dip is crisp, crunchy fresh crudités like celery, cucumber, snap peas, and radishes. Of course, crackers, grilled bread, and my favorite, fries are also great with it.
You can really go for the full Caesar salad experience by using Little Gem lettuces or Romaine hearts, slices of bread seasoned and toasted like croutons, and hard boiled eggs, throwing some crumbled or sliced cheese alongside to make it extra extra.
Best Creamy Dips in Which You Can Incoporate Real California Milk
- That World Famous Smoked Salmon Dip with yogurt and cream cheese
- Whipped Feta eith feta cheese and yogurt
- Green Goddess Dip with yogurt
- Beet Dip aka "Beetziki" with yogurt
Caesar Salad Dip Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 anchovies
- 1 medium garlic clove minced (about ¾ teaspoon)
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt coarse sea salt; if using regular table salt, use just a pinch
- 4 tablespoons lemon juice from 1 large lemon
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 4 ounces Real California Milk cottage cheese
- 8 ounces Real California Milk yogurt
- ½ cup parmesan-like aged, nutty Real California Milk cheese
- 2 tablespoons parsley optional for garnish
- black pepper fresh cracked, optional for garnish
Suggestions for Dipping and Serving
- vegetable crudités like: Little Gem or Romaine heart leaves, endive, radicchio, celery, cucumber, snap peas, carrots, radishes
- bread and crackers like: thinly sliced and toasted baguette, crackers, big homemade croutons
- kettle chips and pita chips
- extras: boiled eggs, olives
Instructions
- Chop the anchovies. Add the minced garlic and pinch of sea salt. Using the side of your knife, smash the anchovies, garlic, and together to create a rough paste. Scrape the paste into a food processor or blender.
- Add lemon juice and Dijon mustard and pulse the food processor a few times to combine.
- Add cottage cheese to food processor and blend until cottage cheese is smooth. Add yogurt a few tablespoons at a time if needed to help the cottage cheese blend. Add the rest of the yogurt and cheese and pulse to combine. Taste and add more salt if needed.
- Transfer dip to serving bowl or container and refrigerate for about 30 minutes to let the anchovies and garlic flavor infuse through the dip.
- Before serving, taste again for salt if needed. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and cracked black pepper if using. Serve alongside crudités or bread or whatever your dipping heart desires.
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe developed in partnership with Real California Milk. Check out their website and follow @RealCalifMilk on instagram for recipes and more information.
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