Whipped Ricotta, Mascarpone and Parmesan Dip with Bacon
Ingredients
- 6 strips of bacon
- 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 Tbsp.brown sugar
- 1 tsp sea salt, divided
- 12 oz. BelGioioso Ricotta con Latte cheese
- 3 oz BelGioioso Mascarpone cheese
- 1 ½ oz BelGioioso Grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, peeled
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp thyme, minced, reserve a pinch for garnishing
- 1 Tbsp hot honey, optional
Directions
In a large skillet, add bacon slices and cook until slightly crisp, turning once. Remove from pan and drain over a paper-lined plate. When cool, crumble strips into bits, reserving 2 Tbsp for garnishing. Remove all but about 1 Tbsp of bacon grease from pan and add sliced onions. Cook over medium heat until soft, browned and caramelized. Add 1 tsp of salt and balsamic vinegar and brown sugar. Cook for 1 minute more. Rough chopped cooked onions and reserve about 2 Tbsp for garnishing. Set aside.
To make dip, add ricotta cheese, mascarpone cheese, grated parmesan cheese, remaining extra virgin olive oil, garlic, remaining salt and pepper into the bowl of a food processor. Blend until completely smooth and creamy, about 2-3 minutes.
Add caramelized onion and minced thyme (excluding reserved tsp.) and blend again to incorporate.
Add bacon (excluding reserved bits) and mix in with a spatula.
Scrape bowl and transfer dip to a serving dish. Garnish with remaining caramelized onion, bacon bits and thyme. Drizzle with hot honey if desired.
Optional serve with Italian garlic toast.