Garden Vegetable Spread (Printable version)

Light, creamy vegetable blend featuring peppers, cucumber, carrots, and herbs for sandwiches or crackers.

# What You'll Need:

→ Vegetables

01 - 1/2 cup finely diced red bell pepper
02 - 1/2 cup finely diced cucumber, seeds removed
03 - 1/3 cup finely chopped carrots
04 - 1/4 cup finely chopped green onions
05 - 1/4 cup finely chopped celery

→ Dairy

06 - 8 oz cream cheese, softened to room temperature
07 - 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream

→ Seasonings & Herbs

08 - 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
09 - 1 tbsp chopped fresh dill
10 - 1/2 tsp garlic powder
11 - 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
12 - 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

→ Optional

13 - 1 tsp fresh lemon juice

# How to Prepare:

01 - In a mixing bowl, combine the softened cream cheese and Greek yogurt (or sour cream). Stir with a spatula until the mixture is smooth and free of lumps.
02 - Add the diced red bell pepper, cucumber, carrots, green onions, celery, chopped parsley, and fresh dill to the bowl. Fold everything into the cream base until evenly distributed.
03 - Sprinkle in the garlic powder, salt, black pepper, and lemon juice if using. Stir thoroughly until all seasonings are fully incorporated throughout the mixture.
04 - Taste the spread and adjust the salt, pepper, or lemon juice as needed to suit your preference.
05 - Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld and the spread to firm up.
06 - Transfer the chilled spread to a serving dish and serve with crackers, fresh bread, pita pockets, crudités, or use as a sandwich spread.

# Expert advice:

01 -
  • It comes together in fifteen minutes with zero cooking, which means you can make it even on the hottest days when the stove feels like an enemy.
  • The crunch of fresh vegetables against the creamy base is the kind of texture contrast that keeps people reaching for another cracker without thinking about it.
02 -
  • If you salt the cucumber too early it will weep liquid into the spread, so dice it last and fold it in quickly.
  • The spread firms up considerably in the fridge, so if you are serving it cold give it a quick stir and a tiny splash of milk or yogurt to loosen it back up.
03 -
  • Dice every vegetable as small and uniform as you can because the spread is infinitely better when every bite delivers a little bit of everything.
  • Use a fork to whisk the cream cheese and yogurt together at first, then switch to a spatula for folding in the vegetables so nothing gets crushed.

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