Here's How To Turn Everyone's Favorite Appetizer Into Your Next Meal

We love any excuse to eat more of our favorite dips...

The origins of spinach-artichoke dip are a bit fuzzy, but the cheesy, crave-able creation is believed to have skyrocketed in popularity after World War II, when soldiers who had been introduced to certain flavor combinations in Europe (spinach, artichoke, lemons, garlic, Parmesan cheese) returned stateside.

As the quick-fix meal and TV dinner generation grew in the 1950s and 1960s, so did semi-homemade creations like Velveeta-infused queso and cream cheese-based spin-art dip.

Spinach-artichoke dip really became a staple dish when it started popping up on restaurant menus from coast to cost. While folks will claim that Olive Garden, The Cheesecake Factory, and Chili's might have the best rendition, we’re firm believers that Houston’s (founded in Nashville) has the very best. No wonder we developed our copycat recipe for Spinach-Artichoke Dip using their menu item as the inspiration. It’s not quite as Southern as Texas caviar or THE Southern dip, pimiento cheese, we wholeheartedly believe that spinach-artichoke dip is an adopted member of the Southern culinary cannon.

No matter where you call home, though, it’s tough to resist the appeal of a big, bubbly dish of spinach-artichoke dip. So of course we stopped scrolling when we spotted a recipe that transforms the dip into dinner.

What Is a Spinach-Artichoke Bowl?

Dreamed up by social media content creator and soon-to-be cookbook author Justine Dorion (@JustineSnacks), Spinach-Artichoke Bowl is so popular that the video demonstration alone has garnered more than 2.6 million views and 1,420 comments (and counting) on TikTok and more than 73,300 likes on Instagram.

"It consistently blows my mind that we don’t eat spinach-artichoke dip like a little bowl of French onion soup," Dorion says in the clip. "Like a little personal pan pizza of dips. The fact that we don’t do this is insane. It’s just vegetables!"

To which one commenter asks, “Wait, you guys haven’t been eating spinach-artichoke dip with a spoon??😅”

Related: 62 Easy Party Dips And Spreads To Serve All Year Long

"So welcome to my new series: snacks that should be meals. AKA make dips personal again."

Now that’s a political campaign slogan we can get behind! Dorion goes on to explain that she wanted this recipe to be vegetable-forward for two reasons: so we can all eat more and still feel amazing after, and so it can act as a main dish or a "killer side dish, depending on how you portion it." She recommends using 4 to 6 cups of fresh spinach for two servings.

"It wilts down a ton, we know that. But you’re going to be getting your greens in," Dorion adds.

So that’s the spinach part, and the artichokes are those pantry staple canned hearts. We’re already swooning about this dish. Then Dorion reveals that "the sneaky way I make this taste like spinach-artichoke dip without really leaning into the dip part," is to simply combine ricotta, grated garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, fresh basil, grated Parmesan, and crushed red pepper flakes.

Now we’re really ready to dive in.

Get the Dip Recipe

How To Make Spinach-Artichoke Dip a Dinner Recipe

To recreate Dorion’s dip dinner, in a large measuring cup, add 2/3 cup ricotta, 3 tablespoons freshly-grated Parmesan, 3 grated cloves of garlic, lemon zest from half of a lemon, 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 3 torn large fresh basil leaves, 1/4 teaspoon each of red pepper flakes and black pepper. Finish with  6 tablespoons of water to help loosen things up, then whisk to combine and create the sauce.

Then it’s time to veg out. In a large skillet over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of EVOO. After allowing this to get warm for a minute or two, dump in 2 minced shallots. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring every so often, to sweat the shallots.

Open 2 cans of artichoke hearts, then drain, rinse, and slice each heart in half. Add the artichoke hearts to the shallots in the pan, use tongs to toss them around and coat the veggies in shallot oil, then sort the artichokes into a flat layer across the pan to caramelize one side. Let the hearts cook (without moving them( for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the sides touching the pan begin to get a bit golden brown. Use tongs to stir and allow the artichokes to cook for another minute or two.

Now comes the other star ingredient: 4 to 6 cups of fresh spinach, depending on how much you want to go green. Stir to wilt the greens, then add a generous pinch of salt.

Dorion’s sneaky element then joins the party: Pour the ricotta mixture into the skillet and stir for about 2 minutes, or until it looks like a creamy mountain of vegetables. If you’d like your dip dinner to be a bit more saucy, finish it with a splash of hot water.

Actually, the real finish is transferring the spinach-artichoke masterpiece to a big bowl, alongside a sturdy slice of toasted bread. Grate on a bit more Parmesan, and if you’re like us, you’ll alternate between using a fork and the bread as your utensil.

One fan chimes in via the comments to rave, “I made this for dinner tonight and had it with salmon! It was delicious!!!”

Related: 15 Filling Dip Recipes That Are Basically A Meal

Bonus Dip Dinner Recipe Ideas

Reviews seem to be overwhelmingly positive about this Spinach-Artichoke Bowl, but a lot of the chatter started shifting toward the concept of a dip-inspired dinner as a whole.

"Made my own little Buff [buffalo] chicken dip for my dinner tonight. It was really protein-forward, so I called it a meal,” one fan says. (We’re obsessed with Buffalo Chicken Dip, too.) Another adds, “This series is so important, because now I'm questioning so many other dips not graduating to meal status!!! My god you have put something in motion here."

Even a Food Network star and former Top Chef contestant Joe Sasto popped in to say, “I’m going to start living in this era!"

We’re already doing just that, with The Pie Queen's Perfect Pimento Cheese Pie, and now we’re feeling more inspired than ever to keep the trend going. Perhaps Hot Crab-and-Artichoke Dip or Sausage, Bean, and Spinach Dip “graduate” into meals next?

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Read the original article on Southern Living.