Roasted Garlic Baked Ricotta
Published: September 29, 2021 | Last modified: September 23, 2023.
This Roasted Garlic Baked Ricotta is deceptively simple to make yet tastes luxuriously rich and flavourful. Roast the garlic in advance and this dip can be ready in under 30 minutes!
I just love homemade dips. They’re most often made with fresh, readily available ingredients and/or a handful of pantry staples, and are usually a little healthier than their store-bought counterparts.
A game day staple for us all fall and winter long, this Roasted Garlic Baked Ricotta dip is a quick bake made with just a handful of ingredients that I always have in my pantry at home.
I’ve used lots of creamy whole milk ricotta cheese as a base combined with home-roasted garlic, nutty Parmesan, fresh lemon and lots of aromatic rosemary, thyme and lemon zest. All brought together in one bowl then baked until bubbling and golden.
What is ricotta?
Ricotta is a soft cheese similar to cottage cheese, but with a finer texture. It’s a secondary production cheese that’s made with leftover milk whey after the production of other cheeses, and its texture is ideal for pastries or creamy pasta dishes as a filler like in my family favourite Ricotta and Spinach Stuffed Shells. We love it simply spread on toast with fresh or grilled fruit, fresh herbs like thyme or basil and a drizzle of honey. Sooo so good.
Why roast the garlic?
If you’ve ever tried my Roasted Garlic Hummus or Rosemary & Roasted Garlic Artisan Bread you already know how much we love roasted garlic. Known for its richly sweet flavour profile and wide range of health benefits, in this recipe it is the earthy, sweetly fragrant star of show.
You can also find my recipe for homemade Garlic Confit here!
Aside from the roasted garlic, I’ve used some of our most-favourite ingredients in this recipe. Creamy cheese, fresh lemon, rosemary and thyme harvested from our garden.
Equally at home when served as a game day snack or as part of your next holiday menu, this dip is seriously cozy, melty, cheesy perfection. It will have everyone begging for your recipe!
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Roasted Garlic Baked Ricotta
Makes ~8 servings; 1 hour 30 minutes.
Ingredients
Roasted Garlic
1 whole head of garlic
Extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Baked Ricotta
2 cups (475 g) whole milk ricotta cheese
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil + more to finish
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped
Freshly grated zest of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon salt
Chili flakes and freshly ground black pepper
1 crusty baguette, thinly sliced, crostini or warm pita bread for serving
Instructions
To roast the garlic, first slice the garlic head in half. Drizzle the exposed cloves with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Wrap in foil and roast on a baking sheet at 400ºF (204ºC) for 40 minutes. Let cool, remove cloves from their skins and set aside.
Preheat oven to oven to 425ºF (218ºC).
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, stir together all ingredients until well combined. Take care not to over mix, you want to see nice bits of roasted garlic throughout. Transfer to a ½ litre oven-safe baking dish or a small skillet and top with more Parmesan cheese and crushed pepper.
Bake for 10-15 minutes until bubbling and golden. Optional: If you want it a little crisper, transfer dish to top rack and turn oven to broil then broil for 2-3 minutes until browned, keeping a close eye so as not to over cook.
Remove from oven and place on a wire cooling rack to cool. Before serving, drizzle a little more olive oil across the top and garnish with extra thyme leaves and chili flakes. Surround with baguette or crostini and serve immediately while still warm.
Notes
Roasted garlic: If using jarred roasted garlic, 5 teaspoons is roughly equivalent to a standard 10-clove head of garlic. Garlic may also be prepared by frying the peeled cloves with a little olive oil in a shallow sauce pan until softened and slightly caramelized. To save roasted garlic for later, let the garlic cool then discard the skins. Leftover garlic cloves may be stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or frozen for up to a month.
Make ahead: The ricotta mixture can be assembled the day before. Simply refrigerate overnight – minus the olive oil – then bring to room temperature and stir in olive oil just before baking.
Leftovers: Baked ricotta is best eaten fresh out of the oven. To reheat, stir in a little more olive oil and microwave at 20-second intervals until warmed through. Tip: Leftover baked ricotta is delicious spread on toast, in sandwiches or as a dip for chopped veggies!
