Cottage Cheese
3 Sweet, Snack-y Dips for Cottage Cheese Lovers
Get ready to think outside the box—and the bowl.
We've partnered with Hood Cottage Cheese to share a few of our favorite ways their creamy, protein-rich cottage cheeses—like their sweet Cottage Cheese With Strawberry or Cottage Cheese With Blueberry—make for a delicious dip.
I’m sorry to say I was a latecomer to liking cottage cheese.
In my defense, everybody has some food they spurned in their callow youth that they later came to adore. I didn’t like parsley when I was a kid. My best friend didn’t like casseroles. My husband didn’t care for olives until he was 30.
My road to cottage cheese redemption appeared courtesy of a now-friend, then-colleague. Everybody either has or should have a friend like her—elegant, smart, funny as heck, with excellent taste in all matters, especially food. She always had excellent, well-considered snacks (I loved to watch her construct artful avocado toasts at her desk, including garnishes from her condiment selection). So when she opened up a container of cottage cheese at her desk one day a few years ago, I was a little surprised. I gawked, she noticed, and she was kind enough to share. Soon I was toting my own containers to the office.
That was my cottage cheese fandom 1.0. Once I started keeping it in the house, I realized how versatile it is, and that’s when I graduated to the next level. In this phase, I added it to pancake batter, piled it on avocado toast, or even threw it on this delicious lentil dish for a boost of protein and flavor. It was a delicious time.
However, my current favorite way to use cottage cheese is even simpler than all that. In fact, the only thing that’s simpler is just eating it straight from the container (which I'm not ashamed to admit I have done).
Two words: Sweet. Dip. As a noted lover of queso, hummus, guac, and really anything I can dunk chips into, it’s strange that it didn’t occur to me that you could eat dip in other contexts—for instance, as a sweet treat—but life is a journey, isn’t it? (See: learning to like parsley.)
Thus began cottage cheese fandom 3.0 (aka the sweet-dip phase) and I’ve gotta say, it’s my favorite one so far. So rich, so creamy, so easy.
The formula is simple: Sprinkle topping(s) over your favorite cottage cheese. You can get fancy with our selections below, but really, any sort of chopped fresh or dried fruit, nut, granola, or warm spice are all great. And because I’m nostalgic at heart, I’ve come up with some sweet dip ideas inspired by beloved dishes. Each is easy as can be, and pretty enough that you might be tempted to share them—though after one bite, you’ll likely want to keep it all to yourself.
- For my twist on a blueberry muffin, I sprinkle a bit of cinnamon and some granola or chopped, toasted walnuts over blueberry cottage cheese, then serve it with seedy, fruit-studded crackers. (Bonus: Like its namesake, this combo can also serve as breakfast.)
- For a snack reminiscent of peach melba, I top peach cottage cheese with raspberries and toasted slivered almonds, and serve with slices of fresh or dried peaches. (The color of those raspberries—dreamy!)
- And for something that makes you feel like your lounging beachside, I top strawberry cottage cheese with toasted shredded coconut, then add pineapple for dipping. Combine, and commence noshing.
In partnership with Hood Cottage Cheese, we're sharing ideas for dips that'll satisfy any sweet tooth. No matter what you're in the mood for—be it something savory and spicy, or sweet and satisfying—cottage cheese makes the perfect snack. To make sure you don't stay hungry the next time you're in need of a pick-me-up bite, stock up on Hood Cottage Cheese With Strawberry and Hood Cottage Cheese With Cracked Pepper, which are packed with flavor and a hearty serving of protein.
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