A crowd-pleasing appetizer packed with tangy artichokes, wilted spinach, lots of garlic, parm & pepper baked into a creamy, rich, melty base.
Subbing for plant-based dairy is possible but this is a recipe where I do use full-fat dairy.
Ingredients:
2 blocks full fat cream cheese
1 sm tub full-fat sour cream (1 Cup)
3 TBSP mayo
3-10 cloves of garlic ; to your taste (chopped or pressed)
1 cup parmesan cheese (any kind works here - even the powdery Kraft brand)
1 bag frozen spinach, thawed and pressed “dry” (about 1-2 cups thawed & pressed)
About 2 Cups artichokes (from a can, from a jar, marinated or not), drained & chopped
Lots of fresh black pepper
Sea salt (not too much because of the parm; 1/2 a tsp)
Monterey Jack shredded cheese (1 Cup)
Red pepper flakes (optional)
Steps:
Preheat oven to 400.
With a hand mixer, in a big bowl, beat together the dairy (cream cheese, sour cream & mayo), the garlic, the parm, the pepper, sea salt, and optional spicy red pepper flakes.
Beat until smooth (2 - 4 mins). Set aside.
In a colander, drain the thawed spinach. With a potato masher, press down and drain additional water from the spinach. You can even press down with a paper towel to get any additional moisture.
Add to the dairy base.
On a cutting board, chop up the artichokes. Add to the base.
Smooth the whole mixture into a small baking dish and sprinkle with Monterey Jack cheese.
Bake at 400 for 20 - 30 mins, or until sides are bubbling and top is golden.
Serve with crispy tortilla chips or crunchy veg like carrots, celery, etc.
Enjoy!