Guilt Free Spinach & Artichoke Dip

Spinach and artichoke dip is one of those things that I like to pretend is healthy. It has veggies in it so it has to be good for you, right? It's like crediting a bowl of ice cream as your daily dose of dairy. It has milk in there somewhere, that's got to count for something. Unfortunately, that logic doesn't make sense. The spinach and artichoke dip that you typically order from restaurants is insanely fatty. I don't even count calories but when the restaurants do choose to list calories on the menu, I'm usually turned-off when I realize the dip is something like 1/4 of my recommended daily calorie intake.

So rather than discount spinach and artichoke dip from your life completely, I am here with a solution. This is a recipe I learned from a healthy cooking class in college. I'm completely aware that there isn't a perfect substitute for mayo, sour cream, and cream cheese, but this dip still has a great taste and can be eaten without the "wow I shouldn't have done that" feeling afterwards.

Ingredients (serves 8)

8 oz silken tofu (half of the package)

6 oz plain non-fat Greek yogurt

2 garlic cloves

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1 can quartered artichoke hearts, drained, rinsed and chopped

1 cup frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

Procedure

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

2. As the oven heats, use a blender to puree the tofu, yogurt, garlic, onion powder, and cayenne pepper.

3. Transfer to a bowl and mix in the artichoke and spinach and half of the Parmesan cheese. Mix well.

4. Transfer the mixture into a medium-sized baking dish. Spread evenly and top with the remaining cheese.

5. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes.

6. When done, serve your dip hot with pita chips (I used whole-wheat pita cut into small pieces and baked in the oven), endive leaves, slices of bell pepper, and carrots.

My friends have tried this dip and loved it. While the flavor is noticeably different from standard spinach and artichoke dip, it's delicious nonetheless. Don't be turned-off by the tofu. You can barely taste it!

~Alyssa