When Anne and I took our Southern U.S. road trip in March, we ate a whole slew of fantastic foods. Southern comfort seriously lived up to its name in all four of our destinations (Durham, NC; Charleston, SC; Savannah, GA; and Asheville, NC). One of our favorite eats that kept popping up was pimento cheese.
Pimento, we learned, is a sweet, heart-shaped chili pepper. This cheese spread is popularly known as “the caviar of the South.” The beauty of pimento cheese is its versatility. It can be served on crackers, with celery, deviled eggs, grits, or even hamburgers. Mmm, hamburgers.
Last weekend, Anne and I hosted a cocktail party for some of our friends. I decided to make pimento cheese for the occasion, and served it with honey-wheat pretzel sticks. Boy, was it delicious! This recipe, via Plain Chicken, was quick and simple — just what I needed during our party preparations!
Pimento Cheese (via Plain Chicken)
Prep time: 10 minutes | Chill time: 30+ minutes | Yields: 2 1/2 cups
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp minced dried onion
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup diced pimentos
In a medium bowl, whip cream cheese with a fork until smooth (i.e. no clumps). Add in mayonnaise, sour cream, salt, and minced dried onion. Whip again with a fork until smooth. Fold in shredded cheeses and diced pimentos, and stir until fully blended in.
Transfer pimento cheese to an appropriately-sized serving bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 30+ minutes, or until ready to serve.
It’s that simple! And while you may seem skeptical of this odd-sounding or odd-looking cheese, you’ve got to try it before you knock it. It might just be the wow factor you’ve been looking for! My pimento cheese was a big success at our cocktail party. I only wish I doubled the batch so that it didn’t vanish so quickly!
From Scissors & Sage
PS) I snapped these pictures on my phone right before our friends arrived. Apologies for quickly taken photographs!
SCISSORS & SAGE 
Wow this is so cool. It’s fun to notice the cultural difference even within the confines of our home, USA! I haven’t visited the south so this sounds interesting! :] // itsCarmen.com ☼ ☯
Yes, it’s very interesting indeed! You should give this dip a try–it was quite good!