My family loves to go out for breakfast on the weekends. Usually, we find ourselves at one of those bagel places that offers fun and funky-flavored bagels with a selection of those yummy gourmet cream cheeses. The kids love the different flavors, and any place that offers foods that my kids will eat is always tops in my book! One of our favorite flavors of cream cheese is the sun dried tomato spread. It’s good on cheesy bagels, multigrain bagels, plain bagels, and whole-wheat bagels. And it’s good on so much more, too!
When I stumbled upon this recipe for sun dried tomato cream cheese spread, I was thrilled. After a few modifications, I think I have come as close as possible to the cream cheese sold in the bagel shops. I usually make double batches of this simple and delicious spread, and we put in on bagels, of course, but it also makes an excellent condiment for sandwiches and roll-ups, as well as a great dip for pretzel and cracker sticks.
SUN DRIED TOMATO CREAM CHEESE SPREAD
- ¼ cup sun dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and coarsely chopped
- 8 ounces block cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 2 cloves of fresh garlic, minced
- ¾ tsp. salt
- ¾ tsp. black pepper
- 1 Tblsp. Dried basil
- A dash of hot sauce (or more if you like it spicy!)
Toss all of the ingredients into a food processor, and blend until smooth. Chill for about an hour before serving. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container, and it will keep for up to two weeks.
Tips:
- You can make this spread figure-friendly by using reduced fat versions of the cream cheese, sour cream, and mayonnaise. It will taste so good, you’ll never miss the fat!
- As a time saver (and if you hate chopping as much as I do!), use 1 tsp. of minced bottled garlic in place of the fresh
- Jarred sun dried tomatoes packed with herbs add a little extra zing!
Robin Fowler - I am a freelance writer and a mom, and enjoy both jobs immensely. I have been obsessed with all things Greek, Roman, and Egyptian since ...
