Mary's Roasted Red Pepper Dip

My friends and I really enjoyed this dip. Based on previous reviews I made a few changes: used 2 tablespoons of dry minced onions, used 4 cloves cloves of minced garlic, used 2 cups of shredded monterey jack / colby jack cheese and added a half cup of shredded parmesan cheese. I prepared the dip in two Pyrex 5 X 7" dishes and cooked them approximately 25 minutes. I plan on making this for many upcoming parties.

I'm ashamed of how long it's taken me to review this, considering how often I make the recipe. This is perfection in hot-dip form. EVERYONE asks me for the recipe when I serve this at parties (and yes, I do give credit!). The changes I make to the recipe are minimal. I up the onion to 2 tbs, I up the garlic to 2 cloves. I decrease the mustard to 1 tbs (I find it makes the dip a little too sharp with 2 tbs) and I add a big dash of hot sauce. Not a big difference, in the grand scheme of things. My Mother-in-Law called me from the grocery store recently because she was having difficulty finding the roasted red peppers. If you do, as well, they're usually located by either the olives and pickles or they're located by the "fancy" canned goods (like marinated mushrooms, etc), depending on the store. The only other note is that I can only find a 12oz jar of the roasted red peppers. I usually use most of it (scraping off any charred skin left on the peppers) and just snack on any leftovers while waiting for the dip to come out of the oven. :D

I have a recipe similar to this using artichokes instead of the peppers. The sweetness of the roasted peppers compared to the saltiness of the artichokes makes this a completely different dip however. I added extra garlic, several chopped jalepenos, and about 1/2 c. of parmesan cheese. The combination of sweet peppers, salty cheese, and spicy jalepenos is extraordinary!