This creamy Warm Kale Artichoke Dip is a delicious update on a classic appetizer! Kale is substituted for the regular spinach, which you wouldn’t even be able to guess. This tasty recipe includes a few smart swaps that lighten things up, still delivering on the delicious and addictive flavor. A crowd pleasing recipe for your next get together!
We should probably talk about dips.
Delicious, delectable dips. The go-to appetizer. The crowd pleaser. Usually creamy, spreadable, and the first thing to go from your spread.
I haven’t met a person yet that doesn’t enjoy a good spread, schmear, or scoopable snack. And if you’re “that person” that doesn’t agree with any of the above…I dare you to make this dip.
Not be confused with a close sister, Spinach Artichoke Dip, this version subs kale for the spinach, and you would hardly know it.
Why Kale?
Indeed. Why add kale to a seemingly already perfect recipe? I love spinach as much as the next person, but I wanted to take this classic recipe to a different level.
The kale adds a different type of texture. WAIT! Before you run for the hills in fear that this dip will be chewy, dry, and…well, very kale-y, stay with me.
Spinach is already so tender, it doesn’t need any additional prep to melt in to this dip as it bakes. But kale, on the other hand, needs a little extra love to attain the same texture.
First, we chop it UBER fine. Whip out the food processor! I chop the already large leaves in to smaller pieces so I can stuff them in to the processor, give it a couple quick pulses, and voila! Super small bite sized pieces.
The chopped kale then gets transferred to a pot of simmering water where it gets a quick blanch, and is then drained and cooled before stirring in to the rest of the ingredients.
Lighten Up, Would You?
Lighten Up, Would You?Another thing we need to talk about is all the other ingredients that typically make up a creamy dip such as this:
- Mayo
- Mayo
- Mayo
- Cream Cheese
- Sour Cream
- Mayo
Are we tracking?
Look, I’ve always said – and still maintain! – that balance is the key to living a life of wellness. If you want the full fat latte? Get it. Craving cheese covered nachos? Order ’em. But when we can make smart and healthy substitutions that are difficult, nay impossible to tell any difference, why not lighten things up?
Now, this recipe still has cream cheese. It still has sour cream. It still has cheese. I said lightened up….not totally void of common and delicious ingredients. BALANCE! The amounts used, however, are far less than some other recipes out there, and I use no mayo.
Still not convinced? Perhaps this cheese pull shot will entice you….
Warm Kale Artichoke Dip
Ingredients
- 4 cups kale
- 4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella, divided
- 13 oz marinated artichoke hearts
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Remove kale from stems and wash. Add to food processor, and pulse until kale is in small bite sized pieces. Add kale to a medium sauce pan, add 1/2 inch of water. Allow kale to quickly steam. Once it is bright green, remove from heat and drain the water. Set aside to cool slightly.
- Pulse artichoke hearts in food processor until they're in small bite sized pieces.
- In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sour cream, greek yogurt, 1/2 cup of mozzarella, garlic, and the chopped artichoke hearts. Add cooled kale. Mix. thoroughly to combine.
- Add to a medium sized baking dish, or 9 inch pie plate. Top with remaining 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese, as well as the 1/4 cup of grated parmesan cheese. Bake for 20 minutes until top is warm and bubbling. Serve with crackers and baguette.