Two of my daughters are leaving this month for an extended trip to Brazil, and so this weekend we hosted an open house for family and friends to wish them well and see them off on their journey. What I really mean to say is, WOW – we had a houseful of people this weekend!! In preparation for the big shindig, I spent all day Saturday cooking up party food – as one daughter aptly observed, cooking is one of my go-to activities for alleviating stress. Anyway, in the heat of the moment (and I do mean that literally: it was 91 degrees here on Party Day) I forgot to take a picture of my Roasted Garlic Artichoke-Spinach Dip before I put it out for the crowd. Thank goodness that same observant daughter hid this tiny bowl in the fridge for herself for later, because my giant 2-quart bowl was empty halfway into the party. Yes, it’s that good.
Roasted Garlic Spinach-Artichoke Dip
Ingredients
- 1 head of garlic roasted (directions below)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 dash kosher salt
- 1/4 cup butter
- 2 10 ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed to remove moisture
- 2 14 ounce cans artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
- 12 ounces neufchatel cream cheese softened (light cream cheese)
- 16 ounces light sour cream
- ¼ teaspoon hot sauce
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- 1 cup grated Parmesan Asiago & Romano cheese mixture
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Roast the garlic head: Preheat the oven to 450. Using a sharp knife, cut off ¼ to ½ inch of the top of the garlic head, exposing the individual cloves of garlic. Drizzle with olive oil and salt with a dash of kosher salt. Sit upright on a square of aluminum foil and pull the four corners up around the garlic. Twist ends to enclose the garlic head, and sit upright in oven. Bake for about 45 minutes. Allow the garlic head to cool before proceeding to the next step.
- Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in artichoke hearts and cook until tender (about 5 minutes). Squeeze roasted garlic head into artichoke mixture and sauté 1 minute more. Add spinach and stir to combine.
- Mix in softened Neufchatel cream cheese and sour cream into the sautéed artichoke and spinach mixture. Stir in hot sauce, nutmeg, grated cheeses and black pepper. Put into a crock or heavy bowl and bake at 250 for an hour or so, until warm and bubbly around the edges. Serve warm.
This.is.deadly. My only rule about Garlic is that everyone has to eat it so no one has bad breath. You know!?
Thanks for linking up to my weekly BlogLovin Hop (http://www.journeysofthezoo.com/search/label/BlogLovin%20Hop). I’m a follower of yours.
Looking forward to connecting further.
Besos, Sarah
Blogger at Journeys of The Zoo
BlogLovin: http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/4064788/journeys-of-the-zoo
Roasting the garlic does dramatically soften the blow of the garlic, so to speak – you don’t walk around the party with that sharp, pungent “just ate Garlic Dip” aroma seeping out of your pores; nevertheless, it is always a good thing when everyone shares!
Glad to meet you, Sarah, and thank you for hosting the hop – I’m enjoying the opportunity to meet and read new folks!
Sounds yummy! So I assume the yield of 2 quarts was just enough for a party… how many people do you think it should end up serving so I can plan to share this with the right amount of people?
Yes, the recipe as given yields roughly 8 cups. I have no idea how many it would serve, but I would ballpark it at about 1/4-1/3 cup of dip per person. I did a little experimenting, and it is also good in omelets and as a sandwich spread with roasted vegetables, so leftovers wouldn’t be much of a problem.
This looks so yummy! I found you through SITSSummer. I’ve been trying to go vegetarian for years now, but I’m just so lazy and hate to cook! I’ll be following your blog now 🙂
Good to hear from you, Jenn! I’ve been trying to go for years myself, but I don’t think I’ll ever make it completely to the other side; however, unlike many, bacon is not my Kryptonite – Salmon is! So the closest I will get is pescatarian, with a yearly foray into Veganland during the Vegan Mofo.
This looks so good! one of my favorite things when we got out to eat. Now I can make it! Love your blog…will be returning often. 🙂 Stopping by from SITS
Thanks for stopping by, Sadie! I checked out your blog, and guess what?!? I have 5 daughters too! (Plus a step-daughter who I would call my own in a heartbeat.) Life certainly gives a mom a lot to ponder on with all that estrogen flying around, doesn’t it?