Whip & Wander

Recipes for food, travel, and life

Pimento Cheese (a 5-minute labor of love)

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Pimento cheese in a glass storage container with a cheese spreader

A southern specialty for my favorite midwesterner

Until I met my fella, I had pretty much lived my whole life without Pimento Cheese. Though I had a vague idea what it was, it wasn’t a regular guest in our house growing up. So, I assumed his adoration with the dish was a “charming midwest thing” – a category where I organize the things he loves or grew up with that I don’t really understand.

Once I finally tried it, I realized I had definitely been missing out and because my charming midwest fella puts up with my teasing, I decided to develop this Pimento Cheese recipe for him. In actuality, Pimento Cheese is actually a southern specialty, with a pretty traditional base of cheese, mayo, and pimentos blended together, with additional ingredients added to your taste. I like to give ours a small kick with a tiny bit of cayenne pepper, but if you prefer yours on the mild side, it’s super tasty without.

pimento cheese in a glass jar, cucumbers, crackers

cucumbers in a white dish, pimento cheese in a glass dish and crackers in a white dish

Pimento Cheese in 5

This Pimento Cheese is awesome eaten as a classic dip with low-carb veggies and parmesan crisps or used as a spread for sandwiches or burgers. The best part? This labor of love takes a whopping 5 minutes or less in your food processor.

A note for special diets

This Pimento Cheese is gluten-free, grain-free, refined sugar-free and friendly for Keto diets. If you chose to use a lactose-free cream cheese in this recipe, it is also friendly for SIBO and Low-FODMAP diets.

a hand scooping pimento cheese up on a cracker

pimento cheese, cucumbers, and crackers on a wood board

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pimento cheese and cheese spreader in a glass jar

Pimento Cheese (a 5-minute labor of love)

★★★★★ 5 from 25 reviews
  • Author: Whip & Wander
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Total Time: 5 minutes
  • Yield: approx 5 1/4 cups 1x
  • Category: Appetizers & Bites
  • Cuisine: American
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Ingredients

  • 8 oz cream cheese (I like to use this lactose-free version but you don’t have to)
  • 2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 2 cups sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 2 tbsp mayo
  • 1/4 c diced pimentos
  • 1/4 tsp  sea salt
  • 1/4 tsp  cracked black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp  paprika
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne (omit for a milder mix)

 

Instructions

  1. Add all ingredients to a food processor and pulse until well-incorporated. I like to leave mine a little chunky, so I am careful not to over-blend.
  2. Store in a covered glass dish in the refrigerator until ready to use. Cheese will soften slightly after a few minutes at room temp, making it perfectly spreadable.

Notes

Nutritional information on Whip & Wander is provided as a courtesy and is approximate only. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1/4 cup
  • Calories: 97
  • Sodium: 134 mg
  • Fat: 9 g
  • Saturated Fat: 5 g
  • Carbohydrates: 1 g
  • Protein: 3 g
  • Cholesterol: 27 mg

Reader Interactions

Comments

  13. Marisa Franca

    What a pretty color. It looks like it could be the whole party!! I’ve tasted pimento cheese spread but I’ve never tasted a homemade version. From what I’ve seen of the ingredients — the homemade would be out of this world. Will have to give it a try.

    ★★★★★

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  15. Veena Azmanov

    I love how the cheese got such a pretty color from the pimento. This would make a perfect picnic food for us in the coming weeks. I love such food that you don’t have to work hard all the time. Sounds yum.

    ★★★★★

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  16. Valentina

    First of all, I LOVE the title to your recipe. 🙂 Very cute. I also love pimentos! My grandmother always had dozens of cans of them in her pantry and used them all the time in her cooking. Now I do the same. The dip sounds delish!

    ★★★★★

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  25. Tammy

    I’ve never made my own pimento cheese dip before but yours looks fantastic! I’d be spreading this over everything. I’m such a cheese fanatic…sounds awesome!

    ★★★★★

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  27. Kelly Anthony

    Pimento cheese is a staple down here and we LOVE IT! It’s my favorite with hearty crackers. Totally making soon!

    ★★★★★

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  29. Anna

    This pimento cheese looks so delicious Jenni! I must admit, I’ve never tried it, but it looks like a perfect dip or spread that would go well with so many different snacks! Perfect for a friends and family gathering!

    ★★★★★

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  31. Natalie

    Wow this is such a great idea. I love adding all sorts of things in my cream cheese and making spreads but never used pimento before. Looks really delicious and so tasty. I must give this a try.

    ★★★★★

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  32. Charity

    I’m obsessed with eating pimento cheese but being a PA girl at heart, I’ve never made it myself. But now that I’m a Southern gal in West Virginia I feel like I need to learn to make it myself, I had no idea it only takes 5 minutes! What have I been waiting for? Thanks for the recipe inspiration!

    ★★★★★

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  33. Linda

    oh this sounds perfect almost on everything and I don’t mind spending 5 minutes of labor to make this gorgeous pimento cheese.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

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