Perfect plant-based party food, this Hot Spinach Dip is thick and creamy and loaded with spinach. The dip itself is gluten-free, but of course, serving it in a bread bowl is not. This crowd pleaser is fast and easy to prepare, especially if you’ve got the Mother Mix on hand – but still super easy if you don’t. You can make this spinach dip ahead of time, store in the fridge, and then heat it up in the oven just before serving.

Ingredients

Top-down view of Hot Spinach Dip ingredients on a white plate: spinach, lemon, garlic powder, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, Mother Mix

The dip is made with a few simple ingredients: fresh spinach, fresh basil, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic and lemon juice, along with the base made from the Mother Mix (or its components: almond flour, nutritional yeast, tapioca starch and salt). We love the sun-dried tomatoes, but you can leave them out if you don’t have them on hand.

About the Mother Mix

About the Mother Mix

The Mother Mix is an all-natural, gluten-free dry mix that you can make in minutes and store in your pantry. 


Use it to jumpstart over 16 different creamy and cheesy plant-based recipes - from Spinach Dip to Scalloped Potatoes and Veggie Pot Pie.


You can also use it on its own -- just add water, blend, and heat -- to make a simple vegan cream sauce, delish over roasted veggies! 

About the Mother Mix

Measuring cup heaped full with the Mother Mix, made from almond flour, nutritional yeast, tapioca starch, and salt

The Mother Mix is an all-natural, gluten-free dry mix that you can make in minutes and store in your pantry. 


Use it to jumpstart over 16 different creamy and cheesy plant-based recipes - from Spinach Dip to Scalloped Potatoes and Veggie Pot Pie.


You can also use it on its own -- just add water, blend, and heat -- to make a simple vegan cream sauce, delish over roasted veggies! 

Making Hot Spinach Dip

This dip comes together really quickly.

  1. Start by sautéing the spinach in hot oil. Once the spinach is softened, remove it to a strainer, and press out the water. Transfer to a cutting board and chop it into small pieces. Set aside.
  2. Make the base dip by adding the Mother Mix (or equivalent ingredients, see Recipe Card) and water to the blender. Blend for one minute, and then transfer to saucepan and stir and heat until the dip is thickened.
  3. Combine the spinach mixture, the basil, garlic, and sun-dried tomatoes (if using) with the base dip. Add the lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. It’s ready!

 Step 1:

Start by sautéing the spinach in hot oil. Once the spinach is softened, remove it to a strainer, and press out the water. Transfer to a cutting board and chop it into small pieces. Set aside.

Top-down view of cooked, chopped spinach on a black cutting board, with knife

Chop the cooked spinach into small pieces.

Step 2:

Make the base dip by adding the Mother Mix (or equivalent ingredients, see Recipe Card) and water to the blender. Blend for one minute, and then transfer to saucepan and stir and heat until the dip is thickened.

Top-down view of Mother Mix sauce base, cooked in saucepan with a blue spatula

Make the base dip.

Step Three:

Combine the spinach mixture, the basil, garlic, and sun-dried tomatoes (if using) with the base dip. Add the lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. It’s ready!

Top-down view of making Hot Spinach Dip. Sauce pan with Mother Mix sauce, with fresh basil, garlic powder, sauteed spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes.

Combine the spinach, basil, garlic, and sun-dried tomatoes with the base dip. Add the lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste

If you’re gluten-free, or just don’t want a bread bowl, this Hot Spinach Dip is tasty served with corn chips.

Top-down, close up view of Hot Spinach Dip with a red corn chip dipped in it

Optional: Making the Bread Bowl

If you want to serve this in a bread bowl, use a sharp knife to cut a large circle in the top of the bread. Don’t cut all the way through the loaf, just enough that you can pull out the top of the loaf. Pull enough bread out of the centre of the loaf so that you have room for about 2.5 cups of spinach dip. You can also use your knife to partially cut some additional pieces out of the top of the bowl. This just makes it easier for eaters to get the bread separated from the bowl. Reserve any removed pieces of bread for dipping.

Now, just spoon the dip into the bowl. This is really good when the entire bread bowl is hot! Put the bread bowl, along with the bread pieces for dipping, on a baking sheet. Heat it for about 10 minutes at 250F. Serve immediately.

Top-down close up of Warm Spinach Dip, served in a bread bowl

Optional: Making the Bread Bowl

Step 1:

If you want to serve this in a bread bowl, use a sharp knife to cut a large circle in the top of the bread. Don’t cut all the way through the loaf, just enough that you can pull out the top of the loaf.

Top-down view of Bread Bowl, preparing for Hot Spinach Dip

Cut a circle in the top of the bread.

Step 2:

Pull enough bread out of the centre of the loaf so that you have room for about 2.5 cups of spinach dip. 

Top-down view of Bread Bowl, preparing for Hot Spinach Dip

Pull bread out of the centre so there's room for the dip.

Step 3:

You can also use your knife to partially cut some additional pieces out of the top of the bowl. This just makes it easier for eaters to get the bread separated from the bowl. Reserve any removed pieces of bread for dipping.

Top-down view of Bread Bowl, preparing for Hot Spinach Dip

Make partial slices into the bread to allow easy separation

Now, just spoon the dip into the bowl. This is really good when the entire bread bowl is hot! Put the bread bowl, along with the bread pieces for dipping, on a baking sheet. Heat it for about 10 minutes at 250F. Serve immediately.

Top-down close up of Warm Spinach Dip, served in a bread bowl

Make it Ahead

You can make this Hot Spinach Dip, including the bread bowl, ahead of time and store in the fridge for a few hours with the dip right in the bread. When you’re ready to eat, just heat it in a 250F oven for about 12-15 minutes, then serve.


Tips: Plant-based snacking 

Some people think when it comes to snack time, there's not much but celery and carrots. The good news is that many common dips and spreads are naturally plant-based - think salsa, guacamole, hummus, and nut butters for starters.

If you want to vegan-ize a dip made with mayonnaise, try our vegan mayo, it's quick and inexpensive. Or check out the commercially available options at the grocery market. 

Keeping some of our DIY Mother Mix on hand will help you whip up creamy dips in no time, like this Spinach dip or our Easy Vegan Queso Dip.

Pin for Hot Spinach Dip. Top-down view of Hot Spinach dip in a bread bowl, with dip ooozing out of the bowl, and bread chunks ready for dipping. Dip is gluten-free without the bread bowl

Recipe Card

Hot Spinach Dip (Vegan and GF)

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Chock full of spinach and warm and satisfyingly creamy, this plant-based hot spinach dip is simple to prepare and easy to make ahead. All the tasty goodness while mayo-free, dairy-free and gluten-free. Not gluten-free if served in a bread bowl!
Servings 10
Calories 104 kcal
Author Sylvia Eastman

Ingredients

  • 6-8 cups fresh spinach
  • 1 tablespoon neutral oil
  • 3 tablespoons fresh basil, julienned
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • salt, to taste
  • pepper, to taste
  • 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped {optional)
  • 1 1/3 cups Mother Mix + 2 cups water {See Recipe Notes for link}

Optionally, if you do not have the Mother Mix

  • 1 cup almond flour {also known as almond meal, or ground blanched almonds}
  • 2 cups water
  • 4 tablespoons tapioca starch
  • 2 tablespoons, plus 2 teaspoons nutritonal yeast
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Optionally, to serve

  • 1 round loaf bread Sourdough, white, and whole wheat would all be good.}

Instructions

  • Prepare the spinach: In a large frying pan, add a small amount of oil and heat and then sauté the spinach until wilted. Remove from pan, put in a strainer, and press out extra water and then chop the spinach into small pieces. Set aside.
  • Make the base dip by combining the Mother Mix and water (or the individual ingredients) in the blender.
    Blend on high for one minute.
    Transfer to a medium saucepan and cook and stir over medium heat for about 7-8 minutes, until the dip is thick and stretchy. 
  • Add the spinach, basil, garlic, and lemon juice (and sun-dried tomatoes, if using) into the dip and stir well. Taste and add salt and pepper if you like.
  • Serve as is, with some dippers, or make a bread bowl:
    Using a sharp knife, carve out a big circle of the bread. Remove enough of the bread in the middle to allow room for the dip (about 2 1/2 cups)
    Sliced the carved-out bread into cubes for dipping.
    Pour the spinach dip into the bread bowl. You can serve like this, or even better, put it on a baking sheet and heat the bread bowl and the bread cubes for 10 minutes or so in a 275F degree oven. This way you get a hot dip and slightly crispy cubes, perfect for dipping. If you are making it ahead, refrigerate until you want to eat, and then heat it up.

Notes

Storage and Reheating

You can prepare this ahead of time and store in the fridge, and then reheat over low to medium heat when you are ready to serve. This even works if you already have it in the bread bowl, just place it on a baking sheet and warm it up for 12 to 15 minutes or so at about 250F.

About the Mother Mix

See this post on the Mother Mix,  is a DIY pantry staple that you can use for over 15 different comfort food recipes on not not nutritious. 

About the Nutrition Information

Nutrition information is an estimate only and does not include serving in a bread bowl. 

Nutrition

Calories: 104kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 250mg | Potassium: 164mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 1720IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 1mg

Courses, Cuisines, and Keywords

Course
Appetizer
|
dip
Cuisine
American
Keywords
dairy-free spinach dip
|
easy dip
|
easy party food
|
gluten-free spinach dip
|
hot spinach dip
|
makeahead spinach dip
|
mayo-free spinach dip
|
mother mix
|
plant-based spinach dip
|
spinach dip
|
warm spinach dip

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked

Recipe Rating




  1. If using precooked spinach, what size can or frozen box do you think this cooks down to (after squeezing out the precooked stuff)? Thanks. 🙂

    1. Hi Kay! The recipe calls for about 6-8 cups fresh, which would cook down to about 1/3 to 1/2 cup, or approximately 3 ounces. I think if you have a little more or less it should not be a problem, but it’s always a good idea to start with the lesser amount, taste it and adjust. Thanks, and I’ll add the conversion information to the recipe post too.

{"email":"Email address invalid","url":"Website address invalid","required":"Required field missing"}

Hello!


We're creating a course: Baby Steps to Plant-Based Eating

Yes, seriously. Trying a plant-based diet can be overwhelming and we'd like to help. 

This course is for you if: 

  • you're curious about plant-based eating, but don't know where to start 
  • you have family or friends who eat plant-based and you'd like to be able to cook for them
  • you've dabbled with plant-based cooking, but would like to expand your repertoire

Baby Steps to Plant-Based Eating will: 

  • answer your pressing questions 
  • cultivate your confidence
  • arm you with recipes

Want to learn more?  

Join our email list for updates about the course launch. You'll also get priority access to new recipes, and other subscriber privileges.

Hello!


We're creating a course: Baby Steps to Plant-Based Eating

Yes, seriously. Trying a plant-based diet can be overwhelming and we'd like to help. 

This course is for you if: 

  • you're curious about plant-based eating, but don't know where to start 
  • you have family or friends who eat plant-based and you'd like to be able to cook for them
  • you've dabbled with plant-based cooking, but would like to expand your repertoire 

Baby Steps to Plant-Based Eating will: 

  • answer your pressing questions
  • cultivate your confidence 
  • arm you with recipes

Want to learn more?  

Join our email list for updates about the course launch. You'll also get priority access to new recipes, and other subscriber privileges.