Bread Dipping Oil with Parmesan and Herbs

A few months back we went to a new restaurant in Montgomery – Bonefish Grill. There they served us a welcome plate with their signature artisan bread and a dipping oil. That combination of a warm crusty bread and fragrant herbed dipping oil was so exciting that I started looking for a dipping oil recipe. I finally found this amazing herb and cheese dipping oil and I baked a beautiful French baguette to serve with it. I served them as a date night appetizer and Debarshi loved it.

As you can see, I have used all dried herbs for making this dip and this is because dried herbs don’t wilt so even after soaking them in the oil for a couple of hours they look the same. The oil tastes heavenly after absorbing all the flavor and fragrance from the herbs plus the Parmesan cheese gives it a creamier taste.

So, next time whenever you are preparing a special meal or maybe planning a small party, try serving some warm crusty bread or baguette with this delicious dip.

Ingredients 

• Olive Oil – ½ Cup 
• Dried Basil – ¾ Teaspoon 
• Dried Parsley - ¾ Teaspoon 
• Garlic Powder – ½ Teaspoon 
• Dried Thyme – ¼ Teaspoon 
• Dried Oregano – ¼ Teaspoon 
• Ground Black Pepper – ¼ Teaspoon 
• Dried Crushed Rosemary – 1/8 Teaspoon 
• Salt - 1/8 Teaspoon
• Crushed Red Pepper – about 1 teaspoon (or to taste)
• White Vinegar - 1 Teaspoon 
• Parmesan Cheese – 2 tablespoons, grated

Directions:

• Do you have a dipping bowl? If yes, yay! If no, use any small bowl.
• Add all the dry ingredients in it (Basil, Parsley, Garlic Powder, Thyme, Oregano, Ground Black Pepper, Dried Crushed Rosemary, Salt, Crushed Red Pepper and Grated Parmesan Cheese).
• Use a spoon to mix everything together. Add the White Vinegar and the Olive Oil in it and stir to mix everything.
• Let the dry herbs and the cheese soak in the olive oil for about half an hour. 
• Serve it with a crusty French baguette.

Tips:

• To measure the dry herbs, I simply take a little less than 1 teaspoon to make ¾ teaspoon. I have found that a little more or less wont make a huge difference in the taste.
• The first time I prepared this dip, I had some crushed red pepper and parmesan cheese packets from the leftover pizza takeout and I used them so if you have any dried herbs or cheese in your pantry feel free to use them (of course if you can’t remember when you bought the food with which they came with, it will be better to throw them out.)
• The original recipe said to add some lemon juice but the acidity factor varies from lemon to lemon and hence I prefer to use white vinegar to create that acidic flavor).
• The original recipe also said to add minced garlic but fresh garlic can have a strong aroma which can overcome the entire flavor of the oil and hence I used the garlic powder (not to be confused with garlic salt).
• I added more crushed red pepper because we like hot flavors but you can decrease the amount to 1/8 teaspoon).
• Serve the dip in a beautiful dipping bowl to draw everyone’s attention towards it.
• Let the herbs soak in the olive oil for about 2 hours for the enriched flavor that would give the oil ample time to absorb all the flavors from the herbs and the cheese will dissolve properly.
• Do not refrigerate as it will solidify the oil.
• Use extra virgin olive oil (EVOO).

Recommended Reading:

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• 5-minute Garlic Aioli
• Spinach Dip
• Sour Cream Dip
• Mayo Mustard Sauce with Herbs
• Fresh Homemade Salsa