Well just about everyone loves " Pizza ! "   And those that love Pizza will always also enjoy " Pizza Dip ! "   You can serve it warm with sliced italian or french bread, Garlic Bread, or any type of chip.   You can also personalize it a little to include your favorite type of Pizza Topping to boot !

        I originally found this recipe on the internet ... But it really needed some help ... So I modified it quite a bit to get this final version ... We hope you'll enjoy it as well .....

" I'll also currently working on this recipe for making a 9" by 13" dish version for larger groups !

Ingredients:

•   1  -  cup of tomato pureé  -  ( see Tip # 1 )

•   1  -  8 oz. package of cream cheese  -  ( softened )

•   2 1/2  -  cups of shredded mozzarella cheese  -  ( divided )

•   1/4  -  cup of sour cream

•   3/4  -  cup of grated Parmesan cheese  -  ( divided )

•   1/3  -  cup of sliced pepperoni  -  ( about 10-15 slices )  -  ( see Tip # 2 for other possible toppings )

•   1/3  -  cup of " quartered " sliced pepperoni  -  ( see Tip # 2 for other possible toppings )

•   1  -  teaspoon of Dried Oregano

•   1  -  teaspoon of Dried Basil

•   1  -  teaspoon of Garlic Salt

•   Olive Oil  -  enough to grease dish

•   Sliced bread or chips for dipping  -  ( see Tip # 3 for other possible choices )

Directions:

1.   Preheat oven to 350° F.

2.   Grease the bottom of a 9-inch ceramic pie dish with olive oil.

3.   In a small bowl, combine softened cream cheese, sour cream, and about 1/2 of the Hidden Valley mix until well-blended.

4.   Spread mixture onto the bottom of the pie dish.

5.   Then sprinkle half of the Parmesan evenly over the cream cheese and top with half of the mozzarella cheese.

6.   Then sprinkle the Dried Basil evenly over the top.

7.   In another bowl, stir the remaining Hidden Valley Mix and the " quartered pepperoni " into the Tomato Pureé.  -  ( see Tip # 2 )

8.   And then spread mixture evenly over the cheese mixture.

9.   Then sprinkle the Dried Oregano evenly over the top.

10.   Top with the remaining cheeses and layer with pepperoni slices ( and any other toppings desired )  -  ( see Tip # 2 )

11.   Then sprinkle the Garlic Salt evenly over the top.

12.   Bake, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the dip is melted and bubbly.

13.   Serve with sliced bread or chips for dipping and then .....

    

         Tomato Purée, " in case you aren't familiar with it ", is a thick liquid made by cooking and straining tomatoes.   The difference between " Tomato Paste ", " Tomato Purée ", and " Tomato Sauce " is basically consistency and flavor.

         " Tomato Purée " has a thicker consistency and a deeper flavour than sauce ..... and about the same flavor as " Tomato Paste " but with a thinner consistency.   " Tomato Purée " is also great to use if you wanted to make a " Tomato Pie " instead of just a regular type of pizza pie for your family.

" ( a light bulb goes on ) ..... I'll have to work on making a " Tomato Pie " since my wife loves them from Wegman's "

Just gotta figure out how to make a good crust for it !

         Furmano's is the only one I found locally in a " 15 oz. can ".   I did find other brands ... however ... they were all in a " 28 oz. can " which causes to much waste unless you plan on making more than one batch of this dip.

" ( Another Light Bulb goes on ) ..... I'll also have to work on making this recipe in a 9" by 13" dish for larger groups !

If you really can't find " Tomato Purée "
" in an extreme pinch "
you could also use " Italian Recipe Stewed Tomatoes "
but you'd need to cut them up some first as the pieces are two big otherwise.

15 oz. can that I found was:

28 oz. cans that I found were:

   

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  Instead of Pepperoni, " or combined with the Pepperoni ", you can also make it this way:

  Add some " Crumbled Pre-cooked Italian Sausage " with the " Quartered Pepperoni " in Step # 6 above.

  Add some " Crumbled Pre-cooked Italian Sausage " with the " Sliced Pepperoni " in Step # 8 above.

  In Step # 8 above add additional toppings to include:

• Sliced Onions
• Bacon or Ham pieces
• Sliced Black and/or Green Olives
• Sliced Kalamata Olives
• Sliced Green, Red or Yellow Sweet Peppers
• Jalapeño Peppers
• etc .....

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         Sometimes I've actually made some of my homemade Garlic Bread to use for dipping ..... However, most of the time I use a frozen pre-made Garlic Bread ( getting lazier in my old age I guess ) such as those shown below.   Then after cooking the bread I simply cut them up into smaller finger held size pieces for dipping.

" New York Brands "

   

" Pepperidge Farm Brands "
( My favorite ones to use for this recipe due to addition of cheese in them )
   
   

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or at ( russpickde@comcast.net )

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