ARTICHOKE-SPINACH DIP

Artichoke-Spinach Dip image

Fiber-rich artichokes are the base of this vegetable-cheese dip-and their tender leaves stand in as "chips." The combination of part-skim ricotta and mozzarella cheeses replaces the sour cream in original recipes for this crowd-pleasing party food, resulting in the same creamy texture but less saturated fat.

Yield makes about 2 cups

Number Of Ingredients 11

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Ingredients

2 lemons
5 globe artichokes
2 cups firmly packed baby spinach
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 small shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
3/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1 tablespoon shredded parmesan cheese

Steps:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare a large bowl of water. Peel 1 lemon with a vegetable peeler, then cut in half and squeeze the juice into the bowl. Remove any tough outer leaves from artichokes. Working with one artichoke at a time, use a serrated knife to cut off the top quarter of each artichoke. Use kitchen shears to trim sharp tips of the leaves. Remove any small leaves from bottom and trim stem so artichoke can stand upright; keep in lemon water to keep it from turning brown while repeating with remaining artichokes.
Fill a large pot with 2 inches of water; set a steamer basket (or colander) inside pot, and bring water to a boil. Place the lemon peel and artichokes, stem ends down, in basket. Cover and steam until bases of artichokes are easily pierced with the tip of a sharp knife, about 20 minutes. Let cool. Pull off leaves, and reserve for serving. Trim inner part of each artichoke to the heart; scrape out fuzzy choke and discard it.
While artichokes are cooking, fill another large pot with 2 inches of water; set a steamer basket (or colander) inside pot, and bring water to a boil. Add spinach; cover and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove basket with spinach; when cool enough to handle, squeeze out as much water as possible, and coarsely chop spinach.
Finely grate the zest of remaining lemon, then cut in half and extract juice. In a food processor, combine zest and juice with artichoke hearts, mayonnaise, shallot, garlic, ricotta, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and cayenne pepper; season with black pepper. Pulse until combined. Stir in spinach and all but 1 tablespoon mozzarella. Transfer to an ovenproof dish. Sprinkle mixture evenly with parmesan and the remaining 1 tablespoon mozzarella.
Bake 10 minutes; remove from oven. Heat broiler. Broil dip until edges are bubbling and top is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve immediately with reserved artichoke leaves.
(Per 1/4-cup serving)
Calories: 226
Saturated Fat: 2.6g
Unsaturated Fat: 1.8g
Cholesterol: 15mg
Carbohydrates: 20g
Protein: 9g
Sodium: 296mg
Fiber: 3g