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If you’ve been looking for an unapologetically cheesy dip that’s been baked until it’s warm and bubbly and perfectly golden brown, your search is over. (Wait. Aren’t we all looking for that? At least at some point in our lives?)
Fonduta is the Italian answer to cheese fondue, but this version takes away any of the hassle or special equipment that cheese fondue might require. It’s a combination of sour cream and three kinds of cheese that are mixed up and then baked in the oven until irresistibly melty. That’s really all there is to it. Simple and easy, and insanely good. It has that soft and gooey quality of a good fondue and the browned, bubbly cheese top of a baked party dip.
Some dried thyme and red pepper flakes (which you totally don’t have to use if you don’t want to) add an extra little kick of flavor, but mainly this is all about the cheesiness. We’ve used mozzarella for it’s divine melting qualities and fontina and parmesan for their unparalleled flavor. Fontina is a buttery, nutty Italian cheese that you should be able to find easily in your grocery store. If you can’t, provolone makes a worthy substitute.
This is an occasion where you don’t want to use bags of pre-shredded cheese. Those are sure convenient, but they can have cornstarch or other additives to keep them from sticking together and those can interfere with melting. And for this dip, you want it to be as melty and ooey-gooey as can be!
Baked Fonduta
Yield(s): Serves 6-8
20 minutes
you're making mealtime meaningful.
Ingredients
- 1 cup sour cream
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded and divided
- 2 cups fontina (or provolone) cheese, shredded
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Pinch of red pepper flake (optional)
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 450°F and lightly grease a shallow baking dish. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine sour cream, 1 cup of the mozzarella, the fontina, parmesan, thyme, black pepper, and red pepper flake (if using). Stir to combine.
- Spread mixture into prepared baking dish and smooth out with spatula. Top with remaining mozzarella cheese and bake until cheese is melted, about 15 minutes.
- Turn oven to broil and cook until top is bubbly and golden brown, about 3-4 minutes more.
- Serve with crackers or toasted bread. Enjoy!
Adapted from Tastes of Lizzy.