7 Layer Mediterranean Dip

How to make

This easy to make dip is great for parties. It’s as simple as layering a few ingredients onto a serving dish. That’s it. Feel free to use any serving dish you like, something roughly about the size of an 8×8-inch pan. Even a pretty plate or platter will work. Most of the ingredients are sturdy enough to stay layered on their own.

We’ll talk about how to make it ahead and changes you can make to it. But first, let’s take a quick look at some of the ingredients called for in the recipe.

• Hummus: the base of the dish. You can make your own hummus, or use your favorite store-bought brand. I call for 10 ounces of hummus in the recipe, but if you have a little more or a little less, that’s just fine.
  
• Greek yogurt: use a plain thick Greek yogurt, again your favorite brand. Feel free to use full fat, low fat, non-fat, even Icelandic yogurt. I used nonfat Greek yogurt here. Nonfat dairy products will typically have more protein than their full fat counterparts. This is because producers often add milk solids to non-fat dairy products like skim milk, yogurt, and ice cream. These added milk solids come in the form of non-fat milk powder. They enhance the texture and mouthfeel, essentially restoring some of the richness that’s lost when fat is removed, even though the product remains non-fat. If there’s liquid on top of the yogurt, drain it before you measure it out.
  
• The veggies can be layered in any order you like
  
• English cucumber: they’re thinner, have a more edible skin, a milder flavor with fewer seeds, making them sweeter and less bitter than their regular counterparts. If you want to use a regular cuke, cut out the seeds and peel off the waxy tougher skin.
  
• Feta cheese: adds a nice salty tangy flavor. Make it easy on yourself and buy already crumbled feta or use block feta cheese. The block feta that you have to crumble yourself is usually less expensive and may have a slightly deeper flavor.
  
• Olive oil: add a finishing drizzle or rich olive oil to garnish the dish. Or, if you prefer to skip that, feel free.

Are you supposed to heat up seven layer dip?

Nope, this is a no cook dip, so it’s great for hot days or if you just don’t feel like cooking. Layer it all up and serve it straight from the fridge.

Serve it with some fun Baklava Thumbprint Cookies.

Changes

Use fancy homemade flavors of hummus like avocado hummus, or Pineapple hummus, or Red pepper hummus. You could also switch it up by using store bought flavored hummus, like red pepper or garlic.

Not a fan of Greek yogurt? There are lots of swaps here too. Sour cream, tzatziki (Trader Joe’s has a good one), Labneh (soft Middle Eastern cheese made from strained yogurt), or softened cream cheese. Make it vegan with a thick vegan yogurt or just leave the creamy layer off.

I like the flavor of the Roma tomatoes, but you can use cherry or grape tomatoes (cut them in half), use chopped heirloom beefsteak tomatoes (just remove some of the seeds and watery parts), or swap the tomatoes for chopped red bell pepper or roasted red bell pepper.

Add in some Kalamata olives or black olives. And garnish with some chopped parsley leaves.

Make ahead and storage tips

I recommend serving it within an hour or so of making it (keep it tightly covered in the fridge until you’re ready to serve). The cucumbers, tomatoes, and yogurt can start to release their liquid if you make it too far in advance, and you’ll have to drain off the liquid.

But you can prep all the ingredients up to a day in advance, and store them separately so that all you have to do is layer them and serve them.

If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container (or covered tightly with plastic wrap) in the refrigerator for up to four days.

Party food

Party dips can be heavy, but this one’s loaded with great ingredients, like the protein packed garbanzo beans (chickpeas), water rich cucumbers, and lots vitamins and minerals from tomatoes and yogurt.

It’s easy to whip up before a party or BBQ. And, here are some other great recipes to serve at a BBQ: Loaded Southwestern BBQ Pasta Salad, Spicy Grilled Shrimp, Jennifer Aniston Salad, and Avocado Ranch Pasta Salad.

If you’re serving it for a large party, easily double the recipe by using the servings slider on the recipe card.