Spinach Artichoke dip....redone

I love spinach dip... it's one of my favorite things...  My bff and I have a little ritual when she comes home from a visit, it includes wine, baguette, mozzarella, and store-bought spinach dip.  We know this isn't the healthiest ritual in the world, but we've been doing it for years and it's sooo delicious.  

Recently, when reading Redbook Magazine, I came across their column, "Restaurant Redo" where they had redone TGI Friday's Tuscan Spinach Dip.  I've never been to TGI Fridays and I've never had this particular spinach dip, but I've definitely ordered it at other restaurants.  I was horrified to read a cup of this creamy, cheesy, deliciousness packed 1080 calories and 70 grams of fat.  For those of you who are defending this atrocity by saying "well it's shared between the group!"  I say, even between 4 people, that's over 250 cals each...  For your appetizer...  Don't be stupid.  Redbook revamped this recipe to make it healthier and just as delicious...when I saw this, I knew I had to road test it.  I made it for a gathering with friends and it was a pretty big hit; and, once again, the husband loved it....  I tweaked a couple of things, of course....  Recipe and pictures below!

Revamped Tuscan Spinach Dip

yum.

Here's what you need:

 

1/4 c. all-purpose flour

3-1/4 c. protein and calcium fortified skim milk such as Skim Supreme (it's thicker...)

1/2 c. finely chopped onion

1/4 c. finely chopped red bell pepper

2 tsp minced garlic

3/4 c grated Romano cheese

1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese (plus a little more for topping)

     (ps...don't cheap out on cheese, use the good stuff....it melts better, it tastes better, it's real)

1 c. (about 1/2 a bag) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and dry

1/2 c. frozen artichoke hearts, thawed and chopped

1/2 tsp. each kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1 small tomato

baguette/tortilla chips/crackers or whatever you wan to be the vehicle for the spinach dip

(recipe yields about 4 cups)

Here's what you do:

First of all, your spinach needs to be dry!  This can be difficult... some people say you can put the spinach in a towel, then squeeze the water out of it but this has never worked for me.  I thawed the spinach then spread it out on a towel and left it to dry overnight.  Then in the morning, changed out the towel and let it dry until I started cooking in the afternoon.  Yes, this takes a little planning and forethought, but it worked wonderfully and was super easy.

• In a large saucepan, whisk flower and milk until mixed
• Stir in onion, bell pepper and garlic 
• Turn on burner and bring mixture to a simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly until it starts to bubble and thickens to the consistency of heavy cream.  
• Note: do this slowly!  Milk can burn or scald on the bottom then you will have yucky brown bits in your dip...not cool.

• Reduce heat to medium-low and whisk in grated Romano cheese
• Cook, stirring constantly until melted

• Stir in spinach, artichokes, salt and pepper
• Cook, uncovered, on low heat for 7-10 minutes until heated through and hot.

Spoon into a serving dish and scatter diced tomato and Parmesan cheese, if desired.

Serve immediately with  baguette, tortilla chips, crackers, veggies, or whatever else you want to be the vehicle for this yummy deliciousness.

Nutritional value:  1 cup is 327 calories and 11 grams of fat.... Share THAT between 4 friends and you're under 100 cals each for your appetizer.  MUCH BETTER!  Or, if you're me, this is dinner and you eat half of it *ahem* or all of it *ahem*

What do I love most about this recipe??  It's NATURAL FOOD.  Love that...  well, except for the flour, but you can use unbleached (my fav) or even whole wheat (love!) if you wanted to.  REAL cheese, spinach, artichokes, peppers, real, whole foods! Unprocessed!  No chemicals!  Yeah yeah, bread or whatever you're eating it on is a bit processed, but you can buy the artisan breads at your grocery store which are made in their bakery, or make some of your own.  You can even buy chemical-free tortilla chips and crackers at all grocery stores... read your labels!

Enjoy!

KDH.