Healthy White Bean Dip for your Diet

Nutritious and flavorful, white bean dip is a great party snack served with chips, nachos or vegetable sticks. It also makes a delicious dip for pita bread or toasted bread. This version is inspired by Mediterranean flavors and includes white beans, olive oil, garlic, rosemary, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. This makes a simple, inexpensive yet elegant appetizer for a dinner party. It also makes a fun and refreshing snack for hot summer afternoons. You can serve white bean dip with pita bread as a side dish to grilled meats and vegetables or kebabs. Chill in the fridge and serve cold. This is just one of the healthy vegetarian recipes you can make, originally comes from Gourmandia.

White beans are a good source of fiber, protein, potassium, and folate. This healthy dish is light and can be incorporated in weight loss diet programs. White beans are free of saturated fat and are low in calories. Use canned white beans to make this recipe and you’ll be done in just minutes. You simply have to drain the liquid out of the beans, and since they are already cooked, you don’t need to cook them. All you have to do is combine the ingredients together and puree them in the food processor or blender. The garlic has to be sautéed first, however, together with the rosemary to release its flavors and make it less astringent.

If you have time, you can use dried white beans to make this recipe. Dried beans have deeper flavors and have better texture than the canned varieties. Dried beans are raw and need to be reconstituted and cooked before they can be made into a dip. To prepare dried beans, spread them out on a large sheet tray and pick through any stones or debris. Rinse them well in cold water and soak them in cold water in a large bowl for 8 hours at room temperature or overnight. To cook white beans, drain them and place in a large pot. Cover the beans by two inches with cold water and add onions and bay leaves. Bring the beans to a boil and skim off and discard any foam that forms on the surface. Reduce the heat and simmer until the beans are tender for about an hour to an hour and a half. Drain the beans and discard the onions and bay leaf.

Difficulty Level

Average

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp. olive oil


• 2 cloves garlic, minced


• 1 tsp. freshly chopped rosemary


• 1 can (15 oz.) white beans, drained


• 1 tbsp. lemon juice


• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation Instructions

Heat oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and rosemary. Cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is golden brown, about 2 minutes.

Transfer to blender or food processor. Add remaining ingredients. Puree until smooth, adding water if mixture becomes too thick. Serve, or refrigerate until needed, up to 24 hours.