Easy-peasy-cheesy Spinach Artichoke Dip!

This is my "go-to", all-time favorite party pleaser appetizer. Hot Spinach Artichoke dip, anyone? How about the kind that makes the whole bowl of chips or pita or bread disappear in minutes at a restaurant, except that you can savor it with friends around the warmth of your fire place or gathered around your cozy kitchen island! I dare you to try this for your next party/pot-luck or just treat the family to this delish, yet easy 1st course! 

Ingredients-

1 packet frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained)

1/2 tub light sour cream

1 8 oz package cream cheese at room temperature (light or regular)

1 cup chopped artichoke hearts (available in jars /frozen/canned) (Marinated are fine too)

Garlic powder to taste

Red chilli flakes to taste

1 teaspoon nutmeg powder (optional)

Salt, freshly ground black pepper (a chef's best friend!)

6-8 cherry tomatoes halved to garnish

2-3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Fried onions to garnish (optional)

Combine all the ingredients (except tomatoes, Parmesan cheese, fried onions) in a mixing bowl making sure to avoid lumps in the cream cheese. The consistency will be thick and not runny. Transfer the prepared dip into a serving/baking dish and level it. Decorate with cherry tomatoes and sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top followed by the fried onions. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 degree F for 20 minutes till the cheese is browned and the dip is hot and bubbly. Serve hot with good quality chips, toasted pita bread or small cocktail bread to dip. 

Variations:

I have in the past used Alfredo sauce in addition to these ingredients or in lieu of the sour cream. It comes out good, but I like the texture with this and it's a little less calorie packed with the light sour cream. If you like it really cheesy, add half a cup of shredded mozarella cheese to the mixture. Melted mozarella once it is baked in the oven is divine afterall! If you have any left-overs, it makes a great spread for your breakfast bagel or your lunch panini or add in your dinner pasta for that creamy, tasty sauce! 

"Single serve" Trifle pudding

"It is about time", I tell myself today while preparing for my version of "Thanksgiving/Holiday dinner" to share with our family friends. This ceaseless and inexhaustible passion for cooking for well over a decade calls for some notes after all! Although my friends have been insisting I write something about all my culinary creations, life got in the way or let's say it was just a "Blogger's block"!! I have taken a zillion pictures of the dishes I have prepared from time to time with the hope of some day blogging about it! "What a waste", I would think, reprimanding myself!😒

Getting to the point about the dessert, it is a byproduct of some left-over yellow cake (from the mix)  infused with orange zest (that's my "twist")  that I had sitting in the fridge for the last couple of days. Hubby was sweet enough to get me some clear 9 oz plastic cups for this. 

Ingredients-

A good quality vanilla/orange cake cut into cubes

1 package prepared orange jello (sugar free/fat free)

Half tub cool whip

1 small Vanilla jello pudding prepared according to package directions (sugar-free/fat free)

1 can Mixed fruit cocktail + few chopped pieces of canned pineapple

Half cup pineapple syrup (saved from the can) (to soak kids' cake)

Half cup white wine or rum (to soak the "big kids" cake!)😉

Made about 14 9 oz cups with this measurement.

Make the orange jelly per package direction and put it in the freezer to set for about 30 minutes. In the meantime, mix the prepared vanilla pudding with cool whip and the mixed fruits and set it aside. In every cup, place 4-5 small cubes of the cake. Pour a couple of teaspoons pineapple syrup in the kids' cup and the same amount of wine/rum in the adults' cups. When the jelly is soft set, remove from the freezer. The next layer is a few spoonfuls of jelly in every cup followed by the fruit custard. You can repeat the layers if you like. Any flavor jelly can be substituted instead of orange. I recommend sticking to Vanilla instant pudding, however. I will be attempting it with the newer "Strawberry Greek yogurt puddings" in the future. You can garnish the cups with some potted cherries if u like. Place the prepared cups with shrink wrap on the top in the fridge to enjoy later! 

It is essentially a guilt free dessert with a perfect portion control in mind and of course, quite pleasant to the eyes as well! 

More recipes from today's dinner coming soon, hopefully!! I know I need to work on my "food photography" skills if I intend to do this regularly!😃