Whipped Cream Cheese Dip with Grilled Pineapple

There are a seemingly neverending number of cream cheese dips on the Internet… and with good reason! It’s a great base for flavors and is, well, creamy and easy to dip into. Most dips, however, are baked cream cheese dips. In the summer, I like to keep my oven off so this version is a Whipped Cream Cheese Dip!

To bring some big flavors to the dip, I grilled up some jalapeno and pineapple and mixed it into the whipped cream cheese with spices like Tajin and garlic powder.

The final appetizer has really delicious spicy/sweet flavors that are addictively good on almost any cracker or even pretzel chips!

How to make whipped cream cheese

The base of this dip is a very basic whipped cream cheese. Aside from this dip, I like to make whipped cream cheese for bagels and stuff, especially if I’m hosting a brunch. It’s much easier to spread and if you store it in the fridge after you whip it, it’s still spreadable straight out of the fridge.

It works well for cream cheese dips that you aren’t baking because otherwise the cream cheese would be too firm and be a struggle to dip a chip into or spread onto a cracker.

Making whipped cream cheese is very easy. Add some softened cream cheese to a bowl with about 1/2 cup of cream and any spices you like. For this dip I like to use garlic powder and Tajin seasoning.

If you leave out the Tajin seasoning, you can substitute chili powder, but also add a 1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt.

Use a hand mixer to whip the cream cheese together until it’s a single, smooth consistency. It should be light and airy and easily spreadable. Feel free to adjust the spices to your liking and add anything else you might like (a tablespoon of lime juice would be nice).

How to grill pineapple

To be honest, you don’t have to grill the jalapenos and pineapple for this dip. If you don’t have access to a grill you can just fold in fresh pineapple and minced pepper. It’ll be delicious!

But, by grilling the pineapple, it intensifies the sweetness and also reduces the liquid in the pineapple which can make your dip a bit watery.

Grilling pineapple is very easy. The trick is to make sure your grill is very hot and the grates are cleaned and lightly oiled. Grill the pineapple for 4-5 minutes per side to get a little char on each side. You could go longer if you want. The jalapeno will take about the same time.

When the pepper and pineapple are done, let them cool before chopping them up and adding them to the dip or it will melt the dip and make it runny.

Finishing this easy whipped dip

Once your pineapple and pepper are grilled, you can finish this whipped cream cheese dip! Most importantly, let the grilled items cool before dicing them and adding them to the dip.

I recommend dicing them pretty finely and adding half of the add-ins to the cream cheese and mixing it in and then adding the remaining half on top of the dip as a heavy garnish.

This dip is really great served right away while it is just slightly warm. It also keeps really well at room temperature. The texture of the dip never gets weird. It’s a total winner of a summer dip!

A few other great cream cheese dip options

Cream cheese is a wonderfully flexible base for dips. I’ve made so many good dips over the years using it like this Jalapeno Popper cheese ball, or this baked goat cheese dip with bacon which could be made with cream cheese just as easily. I also love the flavors in this Loaded Cream Cheese Dip from Yellow Bliss Road!

I also like it in so many spreads for breakfast breads like this Avocado Cream Cheese Spread or this Roasted Cherry Cream Cheese Spread!

Making this dip in advance

Most dips like this one aren’t great to make in advance. They get congealed and you end up having to re-bake them to get them back to form. But, this dip is actually fine right out of the fridge. The whipped cream cheese is still spreadable and, in fact, the flavors kind of meld and intensify in the fridge.

So, it’s a fine dip to make in advance and serve within a few days!