I don’t think I can remember a time when some form of spinach artichoke dip didn’t appear on every restaurant menu.  It seems to have become a standard American pre-meal munchie, a quintessential appetizer.  Not that I mind.  Who doesn’t love the thought of eating something healthy (spinach and artichokes) wrapped in mounds of cheese, butter and heavy cream?

This recipe is a healthier version of the restaurant stand-by that you can feel good about serving to friends and family.  Instead of pounds of butter and heavy cream, this recipe uses reduced-fat sour cream and ricotta, plus it ads in some cannellini beans (my current favorite) which ups the fiber content.  Truly a perfect party dish, this guilt-free dip lets you save some calories for where it counts … dessert!

There are two ways to make this dip.  You can either puree all the ingredients together at once, which will give you a completely smooth consistency, or you can reserve about half of the artichoke hearts, loosely chop them and mix them into the rest of the pureed ingredients.  This is totally up to personal preference.  We like a slightly chunkier dip around these parts so I generally opt for reserving some of the artichoke hearts.

Clearly, this dip is screaming for some perfectly salted tortilla chips, but if you really want to be a considerate host you can serve it with celery, endive spears, broccoli or any other low-calorie dipping veggies.  Your waistline (and your friend’s waistlines) will thank you.

Spinach Artichoke Dip
Adapted from a whole bunch of different recipes

2 cups canned artichoke hearts, rinsed and drained
3/4 cup canned cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup frozen spinach, thawed and drained
2 tablespoons sour cream (reduced-fat)
2 tablespoons ricotta cheese (reduced-fat)
4 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine 1 cup artichoke hearts, beans, spinach, 2 tablespoons Parmesan, sour cream, ricotta, olive oil and garlic in a food processor or a large bowl if using an immersion blender. Pulse until almost smooth.
- Loosely chop the remaining artichoke hearts until chunky. Stir into the pureed mixture.
- Spread the mixture into a shallow dish (8 x 8 works just fine). Top with the remaining 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan.
- Bake for approximately 30-45 minutes or until bubbly. Turn the oven to broil for the last 3-5 minutes to brown the cheese on the top.
- Serve warm with tortilla chips or veggies.

Similar Recipes:

• Spinach & Flank Steak Salad
• Caramelized Onion Dip
• Lentil Soup with Spinach and Sausage
• Baba Ganoush

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