Name: Caprese Dip Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 2 cups cherry tomatoes; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 2 tablespoons basil pesto, homemade or store-bought; 5 cloves garlic, minced; Kosher salt and black pepper to taste; 1 cup sour cream; ½ cup fresh basil, chopped; 8 oz low-moisture mozzarella cheese, cut into chunks; 8 oz provolone cheese, shredded; ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated; Crusty bread, crackers, or tortilla chips for serving

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There is a category of party food that does not just get eaten — it causes a crowd to gather around it and stay there until the dish is completely empty. Hot Caprese Dip belongs entirely to that category. Roasted cherry tomatoes bursting with concentrated sweetness, a creamy pesto-spiked sour cream base fragrant with garlic and fresh basil, and three cheeses — mozzarella, provolone, and Parmesan — baked together until hot, bubbling, golden, and irresistibly stretchy. Scooped onto a piece of crusty bread while the cheese is still pulling in long, glossy strands — it is genuinely one of the best things you can put in front of people at a party.

Ready in 35 minutes and impressive enough for any occasion — this is the appetizer that earns you compliments before anyone has even swallowed the first bite.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Roasted tomatoes take the flavor to another level — Blistered, caramelized cherry tomatoes bring a depth and sweetness to this dip that raw tomatoes simply cannot achieve — the extra 15 minutes of roasting is completely worth it.
Three cheeses for maximum gooey indulgence — Mozzarella for stretch, provolone for depth, and Parmesan for salty, nutty intensity — each does something different and together they create a cheese topping that is extraordinary.
The pesto sour cream base is quietly brilliant — Tangy sour cream, herby basil pesto, garlic, and fresh basil create a creamy, fragrant foundation that makes every scoop taste complete and deeply satisfying.
One dish, minimal cleanup — Everything comes together in a single skillet or baking dish that goes straight from oven to table, making this as easy to clean up as it is impressive to serve.

Ingredients You’ll Need

2 cups cherry tomatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons basil pesto
5 cloves garlic, minced
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
1 cup sour cream
½ cup fresh basil, chopped
8 oz low-moisture mozzarella, cut into chunks
8 oz provolone cheese, shredded
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
Crusty bread, crackers, or tortilla chips for serving

Tip: You’ll find the full list of ingredients and measurements in the recipe card below.

Let’s Get Started

Roast the cherry tomatoes. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Place the cherry tomatoes in a small baking dish or on a rimmed section of a baking sheet. Drizzle the olive oil over them and season with kosher salt and black pepper. Roast for 12–15 minutes until the skins are blistered and beginning to split, the tomatoes are soft and slightly collapsed, and the juices are pooling in deep, syrupy puddles around them. Remove from the oven and set aside completely intact with all their juices — do not drain anything. Those accumulated tomato juices are concentrated, deeply flavorful, and an essential component of the finished dip.
Make the pesto sour cream base. In a medium bowl, combine the sour cream, basil pesto, minced garlic, and fresh chopped basil. Stir everything together until smooth, uniform, and well combined. Season with kosher salt and black pepper — the base should taste bold, herby, garlicky, and slightly tangy before it goes into the baking dish. Taste and adjust with more pesto if you want a stronger basil flavor or more garlic if you want a sharper, more assertive base.
Assemble the dip. Spread the pesto sour cream mixture in an even layer across the bottom of a medium oven-safe skillet or ceramic baking dish — something with sides high enough to contain the bubbling cheese during baking. Scatter the roasted cherry tomatoes and every drop of their accumulated juices evenly over the sour cream base. The tomatoes will sink slightly into the creamy layer, which is exactly right.
Add the cheese. Distribute the mozzarella chunks evenly across the surface of the tomato layer — press them gently into the tomatoes and sour cream so they are partially submerged and will melt down into the dip rather than sitting on top. Scatter the shredded provolone evenly over the mozzarella and finish with the freshly grated Parmesan dusted over the entire surface. The Parmesan on top will develop the most golden, slightly crispy spots during baking — do not skip it.
Bake until golden and bubbling. Return the assembled dip to the 400°F oven and bake for 15–18 minutes until all three cheeses are completely melted, the surface is actively bubbling around the edges, and the Parmesan and provolone on top have developed golden, lightly caramelized spots. The dip should look gloriously molten and the tomato juices should be visibly bubbling up through the cheese layer.
Serve immediately. Remove from the oven and bring directly to the table without delay — hot baked cheese dips are at their absolute peak the moment they come out of the oven when the cheese is at its most fluid and stretchy. Arrange the crusty bread, crackers, or tortilla chips alongside and let everyone dig in while the dip is still bubbling.

Servings and Pairing

This recipe serves 8–10 as a starter or party appetizer. Caprese Dip pairs beautifully with thick slices of toasted sourdough or baguette, sturdy water crackers, pita chips, or thick-cut tortilla chips. For a complete appetizer spread, serve alongside a charcuterie board, marinated olives, and a glass of chilled white wine or sparkling water with lemon.

Variations

Spicy Arrabbiata Version

Add ½ teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes to the roasting tomatoes and stir a tablespoon of spicy arrabbiata sauce into the sour cream base alongside the pesto. The heat builds through the dip and creates a fiery, deeply savory version that pairs particularly well with crusty sourdough for scooping.

Sun-Dried Tomato Version

Replace the fresh cherry tomatoes with ½ cup of oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and roughly chopped, for a more intensely flavored, less juicy version that is particularly rich and concentrated. Scatter them over the sour cream base as directed and proceed with the cheese topping.

Meat Lover’s Version

Add ¼ cup of finely chopped pepperoni or crumbled cooked Italian sausage over the tomato layer before adding the cheese for a more substantial, protein-rich version that turns this appetizer into something even more satisfying and crowd-pleasing at game day gatherings.

Storage Tips

Fridge: Store leftover dip covered tightly in the baking dish or transferred to an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat in a 350°F oven covered with foil for 12–15 minutes until warmed through — the cheese will not be as gloriously stretchy as it was fresh but the flavor remains excellent.
Freezer: Not recommended — the sour cream base separates after freezing and thawing and the cheese texture becomes grainy and unpleasant.
Make ahead: Assemble the full dip up to 24 hours in advance without baking, cover tightly, and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature for 20 minutes before baking and add 5 extra minutes to the baking time to account for the cold starting temperature.

FAQs

Can I use fresh mozzarella instead of low-moisture mozzarella?

Low-moisture mozzarella is strongly recommended for this recipe. Fresh mozzarella contains a significantly higher water content that releases during baking and makes the dip watery and loose rather than gooey and stretchy. Low-moisture mozzarella melts into a beautifully thick, stretchy layer that holds the dip together and creates those irresistible cheese pulls that make this appetizer so visually spectacular.

Can I use store-bought pesto?

Absolutely — a good quality store-bought basil pesto works perfectly in this recipe and saves significant prep time. Look for one made with olive oil and real Parmesan in the ingredient list rather than a cheaper oil-based alternative for the best flavor in the finished dip. Homemade pesto is wonderful if you have it but completely unnecessary for an excellent result.

How do I keep the dip warm for a longer party?

Transfer the baked dip to a small slow cooker set on the warm setting to keep it at serving temperature throughout a longer event. Stir gently every 30–45 minutes to prevent the cheese from setting around the edges. Alternatively, return the baking dish to a 300°F oven for 8–10 minutes if it cools down during serving.

Final Thoughts

Caprese Dip is the appetizer that earns its legendary status at every table it lands on — hot, cheesy, deeply flavorful, and built on a combination of roasted tomatoes, fresh basil, and three melted cheeses that is genuinely impossible to resist. Whether it shows up at a dinner party, a game day spread, or a casual Friday night at home with wine and good bread, it delivers the kind of shared food experience that makes people genuinely happy. Make it once and prepare to bring it to absolutely everything from that point forward!