I really don’t know when I had my first taste of spinach-artichoke dip. Does anyone really know? It’s been the go-to appetizer for restaurants for years, the typical hot appetizer for a party, and the perfect PMS food for us cheese lovers out there.
The original recipes for spinach artichoke dip contain ingredients like mayonnaise, cheese, more cheese, sour cream, cheese, and did I say cheese? I really like cheese. But, this whole watching what I’m eating and counting Weight Watchers PointsPlus has put a damper on my cheese consumption. Unfortunately, my cravings don’t know any different, so when I had a thought about spinach-artichoke dip, I immediately started thinking up ways to get the flavor without the insane number of PointsPlus.
And, it had to be dinner, not an appetizer… so with the help of my friend Jenny, we brainstormed a baked pasta that would hit the spot and include a boatload of vegetables.
I set the limit at 10 PP+ per serving. It sounds like a lot, but when there’s as many per day as I get, 10 for dinner isn’t unreasonable. The PP+ could easily be lowered with the use of 2% cheeses, but thats where I draw the line.
NINE! A measly NINE PP+ per hefty serving, and it was absolutely delicious. I’m still eating the leftovers, and it’s only gotten better in later days.
Just like you can lower the PP+ value by using lower-fat cheeses, you can make this full-fat and really decadent with the substitution of regular half and half, full-fat cheeses, and more of them.
Creamy Spinach-Artichoke Baked Pasta
by
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Keywords: bake entree vegetarian low-fat spinach pasta cheese artichoke
Ingredients (serves 8)
For the sauce
- 1 pint fat-free half and half
- 1 large shallot, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 16 ounces fat free sour cream
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 5-6 large basil leaves, chopped
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
For the pasta
- 1 pound whole wheat pasta, cooked and kept hot
- 20 ounces (two boxes) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
- 4 large artichoke hearts, chopped
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- 16 ounces fat free ricotta cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- fresh cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
Make the sauce
Heat the olive oil, garlic, and shallot in a small pot.
Cook until the garlic and shallot are translucent and soft, about 5 minutes
Add the fat free half and half, sour cream, and basil, reduce the heat to low, and simmer about 10 minutes.
Stir in the parmesan cheese.
Keep warm until ready to use.
Prepare the pasta
Pre-heat the oven to 350°F.
Mix together in a large bowl the spinach, artichokes, ricotta, half the mozzarella, remaining parmesan cheese, garlic powder, and pepper.
Stir the spinach mixture into the pasta, then transfer the pasta to a large baking dish.
Top with the sauce, remaining mozzarella, and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese if desired.
Bake until browned and bubbly, about 20-25 minutes.
This recipe blog post has been Digiproved © 2013
