Pepperoni Dip

This Pepperoni Dip is everything you love about pizza transformed into an ooey-gooey delicious party dip! This layered cream cheese dip is naturally gluten-free and so tasty that your friends and family will lick the bowl clean. Make this for your next party!

Since I’ve been on a gluten-free diet, pizza is a food I often miss. So, I try to sneak pizza ingredients and flavors into all different recipes, including gluten-free appetizers. That’s what I did with this gluten-free pepperoni dip. 

Jump to:

• Reasons you’ll love this recipe.
• Ingredients
• How to Make Pepperoni Dip
• Cooking tips
• Serving Suggestions
• Variations
• Storage
• Make ahead
• Freeze
• Pepperoni Dip
• Did you make this recipe?

Reasons you’ll love this recipe.

• Easy to make with simple ingredients. Mix the cream cheese base, layer the sauce, cheese, and pepperoni, and bake until bubbly. That’s it!
• Super delicious. Hot, creamy, and bursting with pizza flavors. Trust me; this dip will be gone before you know it.
• Make it ahead. Stock up on this pepperoni dip to make entertaining easy during every party season.

Need another Italian appetizer dip? Try this hot spinach artichoke dip.

Ingredients

To ensure this pepperoni dip stays gluten-free, read the labels to check for any gluten-containing ingredients. I recommend using high-quality ingredients and shredding cheese fresh if possible.

• Cream Cheese and sour cream make up the creamy base for this pepperoni dip. Don’t use light or low-fat because these often include additives or preservatives that could contain hidden gluten.
• Parmesan or Romano Cheese adds another level of cheesy flavor to the cream cheese base. For best results, grate the cheese fresh.
• Mozzarella Cheese. Because what’s pizza without ooey gooey cheese. I recommend using whole-milk mozzarella cheese and shredding it fresh.
• Seasonings. To give the cream cheese base another layer of flavor, I use a seasoning blend of garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, and salt. If you don’t have Italian season then use half dried oregano and dried basil.
• Gluten-free pizza sauce. This homemade gluten-free pizza sauce is my go-to recipe whenever I make anything pizza-related. If you don’t have pizza sauce, you can also use homemade marinara sauce or any smooth pasta sauce. Of course, you can also use a high-quality store-bought pizza sauce for this recipe. I strongly recommend using a high-quality sauce like Rao’s Pizza Sauce. It’s a little pricier than the others, but it makes a difference.
• Gluten-free Pepperoni. Be careful because pepperoni is processed, and some brands do possibly contain gluten. My recommendation is only to purchase brands that are labeled gluten-free. Dellalo pepperoni and Applegate pepperoni are two brands I use most often.  

How to Make Pepperoni Dip

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Place the softened cream cheese, sour cream, grated parmesan or Romano cheese, and seasonings in a large mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer, mix the ingredients until well combined. You can also use a spatula or spoon, but I find a hand mixer works best.
• Spread the cream cheese mixture into an 8 or 9-inch baking dish or a pie plate.
• Next, spread the pizza sauce evenly over the top and sprinkle with the shredded mozzarella cheese and pepperoni. 
• Place the pepperoni pizza dip in the preheated oven for 30 – 35 minutes. You want to make sure you pull it out when it’s nice and golden on the edges and the cheese is bubbly; it will look like pizza.

Cooking tips

• You will need an 8 or 9-inch baking dish, but you can also use an 8 or 9-inch pie pan. I sometimes like to use a disposable baking pan if I’m bringing this pepperoni dip to a party.
• If the pepperoni starts to get too crispy, then loosely place foil over the top of the dip as it cooks.
• Cut the pepperoni into smaller pieces. This makes it, so there’s a piece of pepperoni with each bite. When you use whole pepperoni slices, you will eat all of the pepperonis before the majority of the dip is gone.

Serving Suggestions

Serve it with gluten-free baguette slices (Schar bread is a good option), gluten-free crackers, GF pretzels, corn tortilla chips, or chopped-up vegetables. 

Variations

• Peppers, onions, mushrooms, black olives, or pickled jalapeños would be delicious. I recommend cooking the veggies ahead of time, so the juices they release don’t dilute the dip.
• You can also bulk up the meat by topping the dip with cooked chicken sausage or cooked Italian sausage.
• If you want to spice things up, mix in a bit of crushed red pepper or spicy jalapeños with the cream cheese.

Storage

• If there are leftovers then store the dip in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to five days. Warm up in the oven or microwave.

Make ahead

• To prepare this pepperoni dip ahead of time, assemble the ingredients into an 8 or 9-inch casserole dish, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
• When ready, remove the plastic wrap and cook in a 350-degree oven until the dip is hot and bubbly. Because the dip will be cold, plan to add a few minutes of extra cooking time.

Freeze

• To freeze this pizza dip, I recommend assembling the dip in an 8 or 9-inch casserole dish or disposable baking dish, covering it tightly with foil, and freezing.
• Let the dip thaw overnight in the refrigerator before cooking it; this will help reduce cooking time. 
• However, you can cook this dip from frozen. Of course, please don’t put a ceramic dish in a hot oven straight from the freezer because this will cause it to break. Instead, let it sit out on the counter for 30 minutes before baking it. If cooking from frozen, you will need to add about 20 minutes or more of cooking time.
• Also, when cooking the pepperoni dip from frozen, keep the foil on while it cooks so the pepperoni doesn’t burn. Remove the foil in the last 10 minutes.

Did you make this recipe?

Have you tried this Pepperoni Dip {Gluten Free}? If so, I’d love for you to rate this recipe and leave a comment below. We all learn from each other’s experiences. Also, it would be awesome if you could share a picture on Instagram and tag it #glutenfreeitalianeats. I can’t wait to see it!