This is going to be a wonderful weekend for eating. :)
Thursday night and Friday I got busy making the menu plans and doing some prep ahead of time for our gatherings this weekend. One of my best tricks for stress-free party hosting is making things ahead of time as much as possible. [My post ‘Tick Tock, Racing Against The Clock’ includes a bunch of tips and shows how I planned ahead for my 1st vegan Thanksgiving.]
I started planning for today’s get together with my sister Kerrie and family.
My goal: 2 appetizers, main + 2 sides, wine, and dessert.
Appetizers
1. Spinach Artichoke Dip (see below for recipe) + blue corn chips & crackers

(easily adapted to be vegan using soy-free Earth Balance instead of butter)

My Twice Baked Bar Nuts are good too and adapted from the recipe above.


Not sure if I will have time to make these or not, but I’m sure going to try.
My sis is also bringing an appetizer and a salad for dinner. :)
Main Course:
Ultimate Vegan Lentil Walnut Loaf:

I’m soooooo looking forward to this lentil loaf…I’ve been craving it since I made it Jan 1st! I actually prepped the entire loaf last night and then stuck it in the fridge (covered) unbaked. All I have to do this afternoon is throw it in the oven about 1 hour before we eat.
High Protein Garlic Mashed Potatoes:


I think I might roast carrots in some sort of glaze, but I haven’t decided on that yet.
Dessert:
Chilled Double Chocolate Torte:

This dessert is awesome because you can make it ahead of time and store it in the freezer! I whipped it up Friday and covered it and put it in the freezer. Now I don’t have to worry about dessert today. All I have to do is let it dethaw for about 10 minutes on the counter.
Now about that Spinach Artichoke Dip. The beauty of this dip is that it is vegan, soy-free, and can be easily made gluten-free if you use GF bread crumbs! It is really a dip almost anyone can enjoy…if you like artichokes that is. ;)

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Spinach Artichoke Dip
Adapted from Yeah That Vegan Shit and Food.com.
Yield: About 2.5-3 cups
Ingredients:
- 1 medium sized onion, diced (~2 cups)
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 piece bread + 1 tbsp earth balance (processed into crumbs) OR 1/4 cup bread crumbs
- 1 (15oz) can navy beans, drained and rinsed
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 cups packed fresh spinach, roughly chopped
- 1 can artichoke hearts, drained, rinsed, stems removed, and chopped
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast (or cheese if you prefer)
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/8th tsp dried basil
- Pinch of red pepper flakes & other spices as desired
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400F. Add 1 tbsp olive oil into a very large skillet and add in the 2 cups of chopped onion. Cook about 7 minutes on medium heat until onion is translucent.
2a. Meanwhile, in a food processor, process the bread into crumbs with 1 tsp earth balance. Remove and set aside. Omit this step if you use pre-made bread crumbs.
2b. Now process the drained and rinsed navy beans, 1/4 cup water, 2 tbsp nutritional yeast, 1 tsp kosher salt, basil, and red pepper flakes.
*If you don’t have a food processor you could probably mash the mixture by hand?
3. Add in minced garlic to skillet and cook for another few minutes on low. Add in your 4 cups of packed spinach and chopped artichoke hearts to the skillet and heat until spinach is wilted over low-medium heat.
4. Add navy bean processed mixture to the skillet and stir until combined. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. Stir in 3/4 of the bread crumbs. Pour into an oven safe dish (I used a 4 cup Pyrex dish). Sprinkle on the remaining bread crumbs (and cheese if desired) and cover with foil.
5. Cook, covered, in the oven at 400F for 20 mins. Now remove the foil cover and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes watching closely so as not to burn. Makes 2.5-3 cups. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes and then serve immediately with sturdy chips and crackers.
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The navy beans in this recipe are the ‘secret ingredient’. They give the dip a real creaminess (and protein!) that it wouldn’t have otherwise.

Sautee the onion and garlic for about 7-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the bread crumbs and set aside. Now, process the bean mixture ingredients.

After the onion and garlic has cooked, add in the spinach and artichoke hearts (You probably want to chop the artichoke smaller than I did as I found the pieces a bit large!)

mix and heat for another few minutes.

Now add in the bean mixture and stir well.

Season to taste.

Stir in 3/4 of the bread crumbs.
Pour into a small oven-safe dish…I used a 4 cup Pyrex dish.

Sprinkle on the remaining crumbs (and cheese if preferred).

Cover and bake for 20 minutes at 400F and then remove the cover and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes.

This dip is creamy, comforting, and it certainly tastes more indulgent than it really is. One of my friends picked me up some of the raved-about Daiya vegan cheese (she said I was crazy for not having tried it yet), so when I re-heat the dip in the oven I may sprinkle some cheese on top. It should be delicious!

Another tip: Use very ‘sturdy’ nacho chips or crackers because the dip is very thick and weak/thin crackers won’t come out alive. ;) I’m using some organic blue corn chips (very thick!) and Mary’s Crackers (basically unbreakable…I’m not even sure how I chew them).
Time to rush, rush, rush. Have a great day!
Open invite? :)
I’d gladly help take some of that food off your hands!
This looks great! All the veggie goodness of spinach and artichokes without all the “goo” to weigh you down.
Your guests are SOOOOO lucky to indulge in all those great “Angela” recipes. Enjoy yourself!!!!
I’m very much craving lentil loaf!
Anglea,
I made the lentil loaf just the other day and it was FABUlOUS! I think I will have the left overs for dinner tonight. I also made the chocolate torte but my crust came out on the dry side. Any ideas why? Maybe I should add some apple sauce in the crust ingredients next time. Of course it hasn’t stopped me from eating it! The chocolate mousse on top is fabulous! Thinking about making the nuts to take over to the neighbors for the game tomorrow. I don’t always have much luck into getting pretty to try vegan food made I can do it with the nuts. Last time I brought hummus and veggies and I think I was the only one that ate it. So sad. I am heading to my first meet up Vegan group in chicago this afternoon.. Thanks to you I am attempting to branch out and meet other vegan friends. Wish me luck!
Hey Kathi, Thanks for letting me know about the crust! Maybe I should add a wider margin for the baking time, as some oven temps may vary.
Glad to hear that you are trying so many recipes!
Great recipes, thanks! But the dip just looks amazing and would definitely be a hit with my family, can’t wait to try it!
I love finding different variations of artichoke dip. Thank you!! :-) This look delicious.
Both you and Emily have AMAZING looking spinach-artichoke dip recipes! I may have to make two, I just can’t decide!
Oh how you tempt me with that AMAZING food!
That is going to be an awesome day of eating! I’m still in love with those portobello mushroom pizzas! I ate so many this past summer :)
I am definitely going to make this recipe. This is the first vegan one I’ve seen that is actually made with real food, not just using non-dairy replacements. Great job!
Ohh I love spinach artichoke dip and I love, love, love that this a healthier, vegan version! THANK YOU!!!
Those portobella mushroom pizzas look absolutely fantastic!!! Such a unique idea!
I am definitely going to make that spinach-artichoke dip for tomorrow. Using the bean and nutritional yeast mixture for the sauce is a great idea. Thanks for the recipe!
Hope you have a great day! Thanks for the recipe!
Wow that dip looks great! What a great vegan adaptation. Thanks!
oOOo great job Angela!! I’m not sure if it’s such a good idea to share so many recipes with us! Or you may not have enough things to put in your 1st cookbook! :D *sigh* I STILL haven’t gotten around to making the bar nuts and have been wanting to ever since I saw your blog.
Such a thorough details of the dip. Great recipe and presentation… !
This is a great take on spinach dip and looks healthy enough to eat the whole batch by yourself! Or, maybe that’s just me. :) I’ve been reading your site in google reader for so long, I finally came to visit and LOVE all the new features on here, especially the Sketchie pix.
A reader just told me that you and I were on the same page today, and so we are! Your dip looks awesome, friend.
And, email me with follow up about the thing we were emailing about, when you have time. Miss you :)