Carrabba’s Bread Dipping Blend
My favorite thing about good Italian restaurants like Carrabba’s and Carino’s is the bread they bring out with the dipping oil. I’m always afraid of sitting too close to the server while he’s swirling the oil around. I’ve had to retire way to many shirts because of oil stains.
Luckily nothing disastrous has ever happened. I took this to a small gathering in honor of watching this. Everyone seemed to like it, and I’m pretty sure they weren’t just being polite. I could barely keep Steve away from the goodies table, so it must have been really great. :)
You can simply buy a loaf of French bread or other rustic sort of loaf to go with this. If you’re feeling ambitious, try making your own crusty bread. This recipe is fantastic!
Carrabba's Bread Dipping Blend
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon minced fresh basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
½ teaspoon ground sea salt or kosher salt
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
½ teaspoon olive oil
⅛ teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Directions:
Combine all, except oil and lemon juice, in a small food processor. Grind briefly until all ingredients are about the same size. Stir in oil and lemon juice.
To serve, combine 1 tsp blend to 3-4 T extra virgin olive oil on a small dish. Dip sliced bread in mixture.
Makes about 1/4 c. blend. (Enough to go with about 1 cup of extra-virgin olive oil. Use the good stuff for this!)
Nat’s Notes:
1. If you don’t have a food processor, chop everything as finely as you can.
2. Feel free to add a splash of balsamic vinegar!
from Top Secret Restaurant Recipes 2 by Todd Wilbur
After you add the oil and lemon juice at the end, do you store it in the refrigerator? It looks great and I always love the dipping blends at the restaurants!
MB
Thanks for asking! It never crossed my mind because I used it all up in one night. I'd put it in the fridge.
I'm a leo, too! ;)
Thank you!!!!! I've always wanted to know how to make some of that yummy dipping oil. Like you, if I make it, I have a feeling there won't be leftovers…but good to know I can put it in the fridge :)
THANK YOU!!! I loved this stuff. When JD and I went out last week, that place had a dipping blend too, and honestly, yours was better (except theirs had some balsamic, and I like that) They didn't have nearly enough spices & herbs…and they seriously make the blend amazing. Another awesome Perry recipe.
Can't wait to try this one….and your aunt's French bread!
I seriously came so close to grabbing my little guy and going straight to the store when I read this. Mmmm!
Btw, my dry cleaner has gotten lots of oil stains out of my shirts. (Children are hazardous to a girl's wardrobe!) They say the only thing they can't get out is food coloring… So next time, give yours a try!
The last time I was at Carrabbas, I vowed to myself that I would recreate the dipping oil. You took the stress out of figuring it out! Thanks for the recipe! :)
I made this the other night, and mashed some roasted garlic into it! mmmmmm….My hubby took a bite, and just loved it. We couldn't keep our bread out of it…lol…I do have the same cookbook that the recipe came out of, and I just love that book! Thanks for posting the recipe. I love ur blog so far! I want to make your Garlic and Rosemary bread! That looks and sounds so easy to make! Can't wait till I can go get the ingredients!
Thank you for this recipe,this has been one thing I can never get right!I tried to click on the french bread link but it isn't working for me! Is that recipe still available? Thank you!!
Lyn, I'm so sorry! I have been recently weeding out old recipes and your comment has reminded me to go back and check for broken links! If you are still interested in that recipe, send me an email so I can email the recipe to you.
If you like, I've got this whole-grain crusty bread recipe that's fantastic: http://www.perrysplate.com/2011/03/whole-grain-roasted-garlic-rosemary.html.
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Just made this beautiful concoction for the Rosemary bread I made yesterday. Used fresh herbs from my garden & roasted garlic, let me tell you, this will make you want to give your testimony in church about how good it is!
I have been making this same version of the bread dip for years. I didn’t get the recipe from here though, I got it from Carrabba’s Italian Grill when I worked there as a server. I had to make the stuff everyday. I used to recommend to the customers to put the herb mix on the plate (I like to put extra) then then put enough oil to not only saturate the herb mix, but enough that there’s oil spread out over the small plate. Then, pour a small amount of good quality balsamic vinegar on one side of the plate, and some grated Parmesan on the other side (like the kind you would find in the shakers to sprinkle on spaghetti or whatever). I’m telling you, you definitely want to try it with the parmesan. It’s is soooo good! The reason I don’t just pour it all in big pile on the plate is because the balsamic vinegar can be overpowering for some people. Heck, there’s times where I just mixed the grated Parmesan right into the herb mixture. Keep in mind though, with fresh ingredients like the cheese, or lemon juice or herbs…you MUST refrigerate. If you don’t you could get sick eating it later. I like to make a triple batch each time, stick it in the fridge and have it as a snack or just whenever I get the craving for bread (which is all the time…I LOVE BREAD). I just dip the bread in a tiny bit of the vinegar, then the parmesan and then the herb mix. Mmmmmm GOOD!!!
Sounds amazing! Thanks for sharing your tips!