This Cranberry Salsa over Cream Cheese is the ultimate festive appetizer—tart cranberries, sweet orange, jalapeño heat, and zesty lime piled over a creamy bed of soft cheese. Serve with crackers or baguette for an easy, crowd-pleasing holiday bite.
Cranberry Salsa over Cream Cheese
This Cranberry Salsa over Cream Cheese is the ultimate festive appetizer—tart cranberries, sweet orange, jalapeño heat, and zesty lime piled over a creamy bed of soft cheese. Serve with crackers or baguette for an easy, crowd-pleasing holiday bite.
Ingredients
For the Cranberry Salsa
- 1 cup fresh cranberries washed and drained
- 1 medium orange peeled and segmented
- 1/4 cup red onion finely diced
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro chopped
- 1 small jalapeño seeds removed and finely chopped
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar adjust to taste
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1/4 teaspoon salt adjust to taste
For Serving
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- Crackers or sliced baguette
Instructions
- Rinse the fresh cranberries under cold water and drain them.
- Optionally, you can pulse the cranberries in a food processor to achieve a finer texture or you can chop them with a knife. If using a food processor, pulse the cranberries a few times until coarsely chopped.
- Peel the orange and segment it. Chop the orange segments into small pieces.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the chopped cranberries, diced red onion, chopped cilantro, chopped jalapeño, chopped orange segments, granulated sugar, fresh lime juice, and salt.
- Stir the mixture until all ingredients are well combined.
- Taste the salsa and adjust the sugar and salt according to your preference. Keep in mind that flavors will meld as the salsa sits.
- Place the softened cream cheese on a serving platter.
- Spoon the cranberry salsa over the cream cheese.
- Use a spatula to spread the cream cheese and cranberry salsa evenly.
- Optionally, you can refrigerate the assembled dish for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
- Serve the Cranberry Salsa over Cream Cheese with crackers or sliced baguette.
