Before we dive in, I’ll address the white elephant in the room: I haven’t been blogging lately.
But it’s not you, it’s me. Or rather, it’s the fact that I haven’t been eating lately. Oh, naturally, I’ve been eating, but I’ve been dieting, and as anyone who has ever dieted knows, cooking and dieting don’t necessarily go hand in hand.
For the past two months I’ve had a steady diet of protein shakes, assorted protein bars, chopped chicken salads, chicken salad, roast chicken, carrots, celery and the occasional steak.
Oh, and did I mention chicken?
The net result of this effort is I’ve lost 18 pounds since Christmas. Eighteen! But in the process I’ve neglected my blog, my readers and my kitchen.
So if you’re still out there, which I hope you are, I’m back. With a dip.
My friend Annie’s artichoke dip, to be exact. She made this last summer for Bunco and once we endlessly dissected the ingredients to identify any hidden gluten, I dove in with abandon (hence yet another contributing, albeit delicious, reason why I needed to diet).
Like Annie herself, her version is sassier than mine, with Tabasco sauce and jalapeño peppers, two items I couldn’t source at my local Trader Joe’s, and with my own Bunco night looming large, I simply didn’t have the time to stop at yet one more store.
No worries. Sassy or not, this dip is a crowd pleaser.
- 2 14-ounce cans artichoke hearts, drained and finely chopped
- 1 ½ cups Parmesan cheese, plus more for topping
- ¼ cup low-fat mayonnaise
- 1 cup low-fat sour cream
- 5-6 garlic cloves, chopped
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ cup chopped green onion
- Juice of one lemon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 4-ounce can green chilies, drained and chopped, optional
- 1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce, optional
- Preheat the oven to 425°. Grease a medium-sized oven-proof dish.
- Add all ingredients to prepared dish; stir to combine.
- Sprinkle an additional ½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese over the top of the dip.
- Bake for 40-50 minutes, until the top is lightly browned.
- Serve with tortilla chips or gluten-free baguette slices.
I will bet this looks fabulous
Congrats on your successful diet, certainly worth missing a few blog posts – but nice to have you back.
Lisa, that dip was delicious and did not taste like it was missing any calories or fat whatsoever. Also, you look great! I have no idea where you lost 18 pounds though because you looked fabulous to begin with! Congrats on setting your goal and seeing it through.
Miss ya, Lisa! Great job with the weight loss! Now that my vacation is over, I’m ready to get back to focusing on ME! Hope to see you next month.
Miss your posts!