Cheddar Ale Spread
35 comments » 
I had the opportunity to entertain my grandparents this afternoon for the first time. I was excited to plan some great things to eat and everything turned out just wonderful. As a result, my next few posts will be pieces of that meal, and I figured what better place to start than with an appetizer! This cheese spread has a fabulous tangy flavor, thanks to a small amount of dijon mustard and beer. The recipe calls for an ale, and I think you could really use just about anything so long as it’s not a light beer; I used one of my new favorites – Blue Moon. I processed this pretty well in the food processor, but you could easily choose to pulse it for a chunkier consistency if you would prefer.
Cheddar Ale Spread
Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:
8 oz. cream cheese
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2½ cups shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons heavy cream
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup beer (pretty much anything but a light beer)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (I substituted 2 teaspoons dried)Directions:
1. Combine the cream cheese, mustard, cheddar cheese, cream, and salt in a food processor. Process for 30 seconds, add the beer, and continue processing until very smooth. Pulse in the parsley until just dispersed.
Note: This can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. You will want to take it out an hour before serving if you do refrigerate.
(Adapted from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody)
print
save
email
Hmm, interesting. I like beer in food, and I want to start making more appetizer-type food (especially now that football season is starting!), so I’m going to have to try this.
Reply
This sounds soooo good!
Reply
Mmmm, looks great! I’m definitely trying this one. My dad would love it.
Reply
That looks so good. I can practically taste it.
Reply
Glad to see it worked out fine without the nuts.
Reply
Dijon? I am so in!
Reply
This looks fantastic….cheddar/ale spread is one of my husband’s favorites. I’ll have to give this recipe a try!
Reply
This looks so great – now I just need to check and see if I have all of the ingredients. Thanks for another wonderful recipe!
Reply
Ohhhhhh yum!
I love Guinness cheddar so I bet this is great! Maybe I will even have to try making it WITH Guinness cheddar!
Now I really need a food processor.
Reply
I love beer in food! This looks like a great party dip.
Reply
What a good idea! My husband loves cheese and ales. Sounds like I know what I’m making next time his friends come over!
Reply
I have made something very similar around the holidays for years. 50/50 cheddar and swiss, a dash of “watsdishere” sauce, a shovel of garlic and beer…start processing in and gradually add the suds until perfect (your definition of perfect)
Reply
Oh yum yum yum!! And I love how you put out a combination of pretzels and veggies to dip in it. I am totally dying to make this dip now. I think I’d prefer to omit the hazelnuts from the recipe as you did.
Reply
This looks delicious, I bet the pretzels were great with it. I wonder if I would like it if I don’t like beer.
Reply
i’ve never had a dip like this before – looks delicious!
Reply
Looks delicious! I am not a big ale drinker, but I bet this is good. I think I will make it for a get-together we are having soon.
Reply
Hi chelle! I just blogged this – it’s delicious!
Reply
I wish more people who have made any of the recipes would comment how they turned out. I made this last night and it was a hit! Very easy to make and very delicious! I didnt have heavy cream, so I used 1% milk instead and it turned out fine. I also used reduced fat cream cheese. This was so yummy!!
Reply
Pingback: Beer Waffles with Cinnamon-Caramel Apples | Brown Eyed Baker
Pingback: 50 Fall Recipes (that are not apple pie) | Brown Eyed Baker
This seems like a natural to represent cheese country on Sunday, but I suspect Steeler fans will love it as well!
Reply
It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d certainly donate to this excellent blog! I suppose for now i’ll settle for bookmarking and adding your RSS feed to my Google account. I look forward to brand new updates and will talk about this site with my Facebook group. Talk soon!
Reply
Yum! I’m always looking for good party dips, now I’m going to have to host a party so I can try this, it looks great!
Reply
The men are eating it as we speak watching the Bears game. The flavors are great. I just wish I would have taken it out a few hours before everyone came over. It’s been 2 hours and it’s still a bit hard to dip a pretzel into.
Reply
Just curious, why not light beer?
Reply
Michelle on January 9th, 2012 at 9:15 pm
Hi Shelly, It just waters down the flavor. An ale or pilsner will impart much more depth of flavor.
Reply
I just made this and used dried CHIVES instead of parsley, and it came out AMAZING! Also didn’t have cream, so just made it with the 1% milk I had.
Reply
I just made this and tweaked some ingredients (out of necessity) and it came out with a slight Mexican flair. I used a Negro Modelo beer, since it was what we had (and my husband walked by and added about an additional 1/4 cup!), and spicy coarse ground mustard instead of Dijon. I thought to use chopped green onions, but apparently I forgot those when I went grocery shopping, so parsley it was! Very good!
Reply
I made your Jalapeno Popper Dip and the Hot Reuben Dip for a party not too long ago and everybody loved them. This one, not so much. It was good but nothing spectacular. I felt that it was missing something.
Reply
I made this today for a party tonight. I used a mix of yellow and white cheddar and even some horseradish cheddar I had. I added some real bacon bits and a little additional horseradish. YUMMO!! It was hard to not eat it all right out of the mixing bowl! Great recipe as written and also with favorite add-ins!! THANK YOU for sharing!!
Reply
This is my go-to dip for any party and I just made it again now to bring to a Pittsburgh Penguins party!!
I doubled the beer and it makes it a little creamier with more of the ale flavor and it’s still really good!
Reply
See you do have beer cheese….
Reply
i was completely disappointed with this recipe. made it last night and it was flavor-less. added some green onions today and it just isn’t working for us.
Reply
I made this last weekend, it was delicious! I even brought some to work multiple days for a snack. There is a HUGE flavor difference right out of the fridge or when it has been sitting. I would suggest following the entire “let sit for one hour before serving”, it is well worth it!
http://www.jaytriedandtrue.blogspot.com
Reply
3/5 stars. We thought this was pretty bland.
Reply