Easy Pimento Cheese Recipe

An easy Pimento Cheese recipe with cream cheese is an incredible topping for burgers, hot dogs or the gooiest grilled cheese. You can also enjoy it as a Pimento Cheese Dip to slather onto crackers, crostini, or vegetables. Or make a Pimento Cheese sandwich that will become your new obsession!

If you would have told me 5 years ago that I would be obsessed with pimento cheese, I would have thought you were crazy. Maybe I’m crazy, but I am obsessed with it. After visiting my friend Liz in Louisville and seeing pimento cheese on every menu, we decided we had to try it as a spread.

It’s official, I think it should be slathered onto anything and everything {especially by making it into a pimento cheese sandwich}, crackers, crostini, made into a grilled cheese and also served as a Pimento Cheese Dip. One of our favorite local restaurants serves the best cheeseburger in town.

It’s served medium, loaded with caramelized onions on brioche with pimento cheese, of course. The pimento cheese melts to cover the burger, which makes it the best cheeseburger of my life. Spoiler alert: I’ve had a lot of cheeseburgers.

This easy creamy pimento cheese recipe also makes a great dip or spread for crackers and veggies. Today for lunch I’m making grilled cheese on sourdough with it. To continue my pimento cheese obsession, I’d love for you to share what you enjoy it with!

Easy Pimento Cheese Recipe Ingredients:

• Cream Cheese – Full-fat cream cheese works best in this recipe for an incredibly creamy texture.
• Mayo – Use a high-quality mayo for the best flavor. I prefer either Hellmann’s or Best Foods.
• Cheddar Cheese – Buy the full block and grate it on the large holes of a box grater when you are ready. Freshly grated cheddar cheese makes all the difference. 
• Piquillo Peppers – You can purchase the pre-diced variety to save you a prep step.
• Pepper – Freshly cracked black pepper will give you the best flavor. It adds that extra bit of spice, too.

Sliced fresh chiles add a beautiful pop of color. If you want a hot pimento cheese dip, simply dice a small amount of the fresh chile garnish and add to the mix. Include the seeds and ribs if you really want to amp up the hot factor!

How to Make Pimento Cheese

1. In a large mixing bowl or with an electric mixer, whisk the cream cheese until light and smooth.
2. Add mayo.
3. Stir in freshly grated cheddar cheese and peppers. Season, to taste, with pepper.
4. Refrigerate overnight for the best flavor.

If you’re really in a pinch, you can serve the cheese dip the day you mix it together. Simply place it in the fridge for 30 minutes and serve.

How Long Does the Cheese Last?

This pimento cheese dip recipe will last up to two weeks stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

Can You Freeze Homemade Cheese Dip?

No, I would not freeze the homemade cheese. Mayo separates in the freezer, which means the cheese dip will lose its texture if frozen. If you are anything like my family, the pimento cheese will be gone so fast, you will have to make it again!

What Do You Eat with Pimento Spread?

The options are truly endless! You could eat this recipe:

• As a Spread – Simply serve it as an appetizer with crackers, crostini, or vegetables. Sometimes I find myself eating it with just a spoon!
• In a Salad – Create a fun and festive pimento cheese pasta salad to bring to your next get-together!
• In a Sandwich – The original! Create a scrumptious pimento cheese sandwich by spreading it on two slices of bread and adding a few simple ingredients such as turkey, ham and apple slices.
• In a Grilled Cheese – Slather the pimento cheese on two slices of bread and toast through just as you would a grilled cheese to create the gooiest grilled cheese there can be. Don’t forget the extra napkins!

If you haven’t tried Pimento Cheese, I encourage you to. I promise you it’s nothing reminiscent of the spread in the jar that still gives me the heebie-jeebies from the 80’s/90’s that my mom used to cover her celery.