Clean Eating Baked Spinach Feta Dip

With all Holidays, sports events and many indoors gatherings during long winter months I thought I would share a Clean Eating dip that you can feel good about sharing with your friends.

I used to think low fat, low carb and no calories food was the answer to a weight loss problem. As I get older and hopefully smarter, I learnt it’s not about the numbers but rather the quality of food and balance. Nowadays, I can eat this dip with a few multigrain chips and have a green smoothie and quinoa salad the next day without feeling guilty or gaining any weight. There is so much misconception about weight gain and loss!

Having said all of the above I used as much organic full fat dairy for this recipe as possible. Because let’s be honest – nobody wants to chew on a dry skinny hot mess and pretend it is tasty. And to make this kind of dip creamy you have to use fat.

Quick look at the labels and I went with cream cheese versus mayo to get the creaminess. Twice less calories and fat, same result or even better. Feta cheese itself is very dry and doesn’t really melt unless you pan fry it. But it adds a very nice zest and flavour to so plain tasting spinach.

This healthy dip is definitely a treat. You can also prepare it in advance, cover with foil and refrigerate for a few days. Then just bake right before serving. I also left the dish on a counter to warm up for an hour to prevent an oven explosion. I have read that might happen, have you?!

Happy Clean Eating Holidays!

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Clean Eating Baked Spinach Feta Dip

Ingredients

• 10 oz chopped spinach, frozen
• 2 cups (8 oz) feta cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 cup (4 oz) cream cheese, full fat
• 1/2 cup 2% Greek yogurt, plain
• 1/2 cup any milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)
• 1/2 cup green onions, chopped
• 4 large garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbsp oregano, dried
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• Cooking spray (I use Misto)

Directions

1. Thaw spinach overnight on a counter or use my quick method: add spinach to a colander, place in the sink, rinse with warm - hot water, let drain and squeeze water with your hands.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and spray medium baking dish (I used 9" ceramic pie dish) with cooking spray.
3. In a medium bowl, add all ingredients and mix to combine. Pour into prepared baking dish, level with spatula, cover tightly with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove foil and broil on High for 5 - 7 minutes or until a bit golden brown. Serve hot with multigrain crackers of choice.
Storage Instructions: You can assemble the dip and refrigerate covered for up to a few days and bake before serving. This dip tastes best fresh and should be consumed immediately.

Notes

Use organic full fat dairy if feasible. It is better for you although all dairy should be consumed in moderation! I couldn't find organic feta cheese though. You can use some low fat ingredients here but the dip might be more dry, I haven't tried. You can get away with a few low fat ingredients here but not all.

2.6

http://ifoodreal.com/clean-eating-baked-spinach-feta-dip/

The recipe and images are property and copyright of iFOODreal.com

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 16

Amount Per Serving = 1/4 cup:
Calories: 70.8
Total Fat: 5.9 g
Cholesterol: 8.8 mg
Sodium: 246.5 mg
Total Carbs: 1.3 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.3 g
Protein: 3.1 g
WW Points+: 2