Vegan Spinach Artichoke Dip Recipe

Vegan Spinach Artichoke Dip

The superstar of appetizers, this spinach artichoke dip made with simple and clean ingredients is always a crowd pleaser. Easy to make with only a few ingredients (no beans) and lovely served hot with your classic pita chips, flatbread, garlic bruschetta or a fresh loaf of homemade vegan bread with crackling crust.

You don’t need to buy any fancy vegan cheese or sour cream, instead it’s all made from scratch in your Vitamix blender with creamy cashews, a touch of nutritional yeast and the cheesy magic of tapioca.

Recipe Success Tips

1. Sautee your spinach – Start with a good half pound of fresh baby spinach or even more to your preference. Sautee in a drop of olive oil or water until wilted. Make sure to drain it before running your knife through it once or twice to chop it up some. Alternatively you could use frozen spinach that has been thawed out and squeezed well of any excess moisture.
2. Chop the artichokes – cut into bite size pieces or quarteres if you prefer larger chunks. I find the smaller size is easier to scoop up.
3. Make the cashew cheese sauce – If you have a powerful blender just throw everything in there until smooth and creamy. Otherwise make sure to soak your cashews in hot water for 20 minutes to soften them first.
4. Simmer – Cook the sauce until cheesy and bubbly whisking constantly so no lumps form, just a minute or two. Mix in the spinach and artichokes and transfer to a broiler proof dish.
5. Broil Your Dip – No need for baking here, just let the top get kissed by the flames of the broiler for a few minutes just until golden on top and dig in with some freshly made garlic rubbed bruschetta. If you wanted to, you could even use it to stuff some pasta shells or a vegan lasagna, go wild!

why you’ll love it

• quick + easy to make
• super creamy & naturally cheesy
• savory, filling & comforting
• simple make ahead recipe
• no oil, no soy, no tofu
• gluten + dairy free

Serving Suggestions

• Roasted broccoli florets
• Roasted cauliflower
• White cannellini beans
• Roasted rainbow carrots
• Smoky tempeh bits
• Jackfruit fried chicken
• Crusty homemade bread
• Mashed potatoes
• Garlic knots
• Quinoa flatbread
• Top with these crispy tofu nuggets.

how to make vegan spinach artichoke dip

5 from 10 votes

Vegan Spinach Artichoke Dip

The best vegan spinach artichoke dip from scratch, made with gooey homemade cashew mozzarella cheese, artichoke hearts and wilted baby spinach. A whole food plant based recipe, made without oil, creamy, cheesy, gluten and dairy free. 

Print Recipe

Prep Time:5 minutes mins

Cook Time:10 minutes mins

Soaking:20 minutes mins

Total Time:35 minutes mins

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb fresh baby spinach (or 1 cup frozen)
• 15 oz can artichoke hearts drained & chopped to your liking

Cashew Cheese

• 3/4 cup raw cashews
• 2 tbsp tapioca flour
• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1.25 cup filtered water
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• sea salt + black pepper to taste

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Preheat your broiler.
• Heat up large skillet over medium heat, add a light drizzle of olive oil (or water for WFPB & Plantricious compliance) and the fresh spinach with a tiny pinch of sea salt. Sautee until wilted then season with a pinch of garlic powder. Transfer the spinach to a colander to drain as much of the liquid as possible. Optional: transfer to a cutting board and run your knife through it once or twice.
  1/2 lb fresh baby spinach, 1/2 tsp garlic powder

Make the Cashew Cheese Sauce

• If you don't have a powerful blender make sure to soak the cashews for 20 minutes in hot water to soften the drain. Otherwise just rinse the raw cashews and add them to your Vitamix blender together with all the cashew cheese ingredients. Process until creamy and smooth. Transfer to a sauce pan and bring to a simmer over medium low flame whisking continuously. Cook for a few minutes until thickened. Remove from heat
  3/4 cup raw cashews , 2 tbsp tapioca flour, 2 tsp apple cider vinegar, 1.25 cup filtered water, 1 tbsp nutritional yeast, 4 cloves garlic , 1 tsp onion powder, sea salt + black pepper to taste
• Stir in the wilted spinach and the artichoke hearts. Taste and season with sea salt and black pepper. (Go light on the salt as the chips or bruschetta you are going to serve this with are usually very salty)
  15 oz can artichoke hearts, 1/2 lb fresh baby spinach
• Transfer the dip to a small cast iron dish (or any broiler proof dish) and broil until golden brown on top to your liking, around 3 minutes.

  Serve hot with crusty bread, bruschetta, pita chips or fresh cut vegetables.

WFPB + Plantricious

• Omit all oil or replace with water for full compliance.
  

Video

Notes

• About the Spinach - if using frozen spinach make sure to thaw it out first and squeeze as much of the liquid out of of it as possible. You should end up with about  one cup of spinach.

Nutrition

Calories: 292kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 457mg | Potassium: 526mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 6380IU | Vitamin C: 39mg | Calcium: 92mg | Iron: 4mg

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: plant based, Vegan Spinach Artichoke Dip

Servings: 4 people

Calories: 292kcal

Author: Florentina