Honey Vanilla Cottage Cheese Fruit Dip
I don’t know if you’ve heard, but I’ve fallen in love with a new budget ingredient: cottage cheese. A lot of people are turned off by the texture of cottage cheese, but when you whip it up in a blender it becomes as smooth and creamy as yogurt, and is just as versatile! I made a savory Garlic Herb Cottage Cheese Dip a couple months ago, so I thought I’d also make a sweet version for dipping fruit. This rich, tangy, and sweet Honey Vanilla Cottage Cheese Fruit Dip is a deliciously sensible option for dessert.
Cottage Cheese Fruit Dip with Honey and Vanilla
Shown with a small enamelware bowl and enamelware tray (affiliate links).
Why Cottage Cheese?
Cottage cheese provides a similar creamy-tangy flavor and high protein content as Greek yogurt, but at a fraction of the price. The 24oz. tub of cottage cheese that I bought was only $1.59, compared to about $3.99 for Greek yogurt. Once the cottage cheese is puréed in a blender, the texture is thick and smooth, and like Greek yogurt, the flavor is versatile enough to pair with both sweet and savory ingredients.
What Type of Cottage Cheese is Best?
The brand and type of cottage cheese matters here. For the creamiest dip, avoid low-fat cottage cheese. I used Aldi’s “full fat” cottage cheese, which is only 4% milk fat, or slightly more than whole milk, and the dip was deliciously rich and creamy. I also tested this recipe with Breakstone’s low-fat cottage cheese (2% milk fat) and the result was a little on the chalky side. So make sure you’re using a cottage cheese that you enjoy the flavor of plain, and then it will surely taste good in the dip.
How to Use the Fruit Dip
Besides the obvious use to dip your fresh cut fruit, you can also use this fruit dip for other things! You can add it to your fruit smoothie, just like you’d add yogurt, for a creamy shot of protein. You can use it to make a parfait with fresh fruit and granola, or you can make some “fruit nachos” with cinnamon pita chips, finely diced fresh fruit, and a drizzle of this fruit dip.
Honey Vanilla Cottage Cheese Fruit Dip
Ingredients
- 1 cup cottage cheese (4% fat) ($0.53)
- 2 Tbsp honey ($0.25)
- ½ tsp vanilla ($0.15)
- 1 tsp lemon juice (optional)* ($0.01)
- 1 Tbsp water ($0.00)
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to a blender and purée until smooth.
- Serve immediately with fresh cut fruit for dipping, or refrigerate until ready to eat.
Notes
Nutrition
Equipment
How to Make Cottage Cheese Fruit Dip – Step by Step Photos
Add 1 cup cottage cheese (4% fat), 2 Tbsp honey, ½ tsp vanilla, 1 tsp lemon juice, and 1 Tbsp water to a blender.
Purée the mixture until smooth and creamy. You may need to stop and stir a couple times to really get it going, but once it starts smoothing out, it should blend easily.
Serve with your favorite fresh fruit and enjoy!
I made a veggie lasagna yesterday with cottage cheese instead of ricotta and it was amazing! I am on team cottage cheese now. It’s easy to whip in my immersion blender.
You discovered what I also discovered – full-fat cottage cheese pureed (and gotten on sale) is a wonderful ingredient to use in recipes calling for ricotta cheese as well as coming up with your own inventions. I pre-blend them so they are ready for any recipe.
Wow! THANK YOU for this recipe. I have colon cancer and getting enough protein is a huge part when it comes to going through chemo. I’ve exhausted so many protein sources, I basically never want to see another hard boiled egg again! Sometimes in the morning all I can tolerate is fruit so being able to include a protein source that is so complementary is killer. Really looking forward to trying this!! I also found a recipe for cottage cheese muffins (our local Jewish deli has an amazing one) that I think would go so well with some raspberry jam.