The best spinach and artichoke dip recipe can be used in various ways to create numerous variations of delicious appetizers and meals, and this recipe delivers exactly that.
It is simple to make and delicious served cold or hot. It can be used as a cold dip, hot appetizers, small sandwiches, or as a filling for stuffed chicken breasts.
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It uses just a few simple ingredients and only takes a few minutes to make. This will become your go-to appetizer recipe!
Suggested Kitchen Tools for Making Spinach & Artichoke Dip
- Stand Mixer or hand-held electric mixer
Ingredients & Substitutions
Cheeses
Cream cheese is the base of this cold spinach and artichoke dip. It provides the creaminess which brings all the other flavors together. I recommend using full fat cream cheese for the best flavor.
I would not use whipped cream cheese because we essentially whip the cream cheese when we make the dip and packaged whipped cream cheese may not give you the correct volume needed for the dip.
You can also add some finely grated parmesan cheese into the cream cheese mixture if desired.
If you want to turn the cold dip into a hot spinach and artichoke dip you will want to use some other cheeses on top before baking. The cheeses (and amounts) are completely up to you.
I used about 1½ cups of cheese on top of the dip when I made the hot version, but this will depend on the size of dish you are using. You want about a ¼" layer of shredded cheese to top the dip with.
I used about ¾ cup shredded monterey jack, ½ cup of gouda (not smoked, but that would be great as well) and ¼ cup of shredded parmesan when I baked mine and it was delicious!
Spinach
I find it easiest to use frozen chopped spinach that I thaw and then press to remove any excess liquid. This works great in the dip.
If you want to use fresh spinach, make sure to cook it, press out the liquid, and then chill it before adding it to your dip, or it will release too much liquid and make the dip runny.
Artichokes & Water Chestnuts
I recommend using artichoke hearts that are canned or jarred in water, not oil, for this recipe. If you only have them in oil, rinse and drain them before using. It doesn't matter if they are whole or quartered.
The water chestnuts add a nice crunch to the dip, just make sure to drain them before using.
Both of these ingredients can be omitted without having to adjust anything else.
Seasonings
You can season your dip however you like. Simple salt and pepper works great!
I like to add a little garlic powder, onion powder, and a few shakes of hot sauce to balance everything out.
My go-to hot sauce is Cholula and it does not make the dip spicy at all, but it does provide balance to the cream cheese and cuts through the fat.
You can make the dip spicier by adding more hot sauce, but the dip may turn pink. A better solution if you want a spicy Spinach and Artichoke dip would be to add in some red pepper flakes or use cayenne pepper or dried chipotle pepper for a smokey heat.
The soy sauce adds a nice flavor to the dip without it being overpowering. You can absolutely use Worcestershire sauce instead. Either one of these will provide just enough zing and saltiness to balance the flavors nicely.
How to Make Spinach & Artichoke Dip
Making Cold Spinach and Artichoke Dip only takes a few minutes if you have a Kitchenaid stand mixer or a handheld electric mixer.
You can make it without any special appliances, but make sure your cream cheese is very soft.
Mise En Place (Prep for Recipe)
The prep for this dip is very simple.
- Take the cream cheese out of the fridge for it to come to room temperature. This usually takes an hour or two.
- Remove the frozen spinach from the freezer and let thaw in the fridge overnight. I leave the spinach right in the bag and put the bag into a bowl just in case there are any leaks.
- If you are using fresh spinach, you will need 12 ounces for this recipe. The best way to cook it for this dip is to plunge it in boiling water for about 45 seconds and then remove it and let it drain. Then refrigerate it and treat it just like thawed frozen spinach in the recipe.
- Drain the liquid from the artichoke hearts and the water chestnuts. This can be done just before you make the dip.
Making the Spinach & Artichoke Dip
After your spinach has thawed, you will want to drain it and press it before making the dip.
Even if you let the spinach drain as it thawed, there will still be quite a bit of moisture left and it is very important to press or squeeze the spinach as dry as you can get it.
Excess moisture will make the dip too runny.
Place the room temperature cream cheese into the bowl of your stand mixer or into a large mixing bowl if you are using a hand-held electric mixer or mixing by hand.
On the stand mixer, use the paddle attachment and start mixing on low speed and gradually increase to medium speed.
If you are using a hand mixer, use the beater attachments.
If you are doing this by hand, use a wooden spoon or stiff spatula to turn and fold the cream cheese until the lumps are gone and it is nice and creamy.
As the cream cheese softens it will begin to collect on the sides of the bowl.
Scrape down the sides and continue mixing on medium-high or high speed until the cream cheese is very smooth.
This only takes a minute or two if your cream cheese is soft, if it is still not at room temperature just keep mixing and expect it to take about 5 minutes.
You can put the drained water chestnuts in whole or give them a quick rough chop with your knife. They do break up some as they get mixed in, but if you want smaller pieces, chop them first.
Add the artichoke hearts to the bowl. They do not need to be chopped unless you are mixing the dip by hand and then I would roughly chop them.
Next add in the well-drained and pressed spinach and the soy sauce.
Add the spice blend and Cholula or your favorite hot sauce if using.
Mix on low speed to incorporate all the ingredients and then increase to medium speed for just a minute or two which will break up the artichoke hearts and the water chestnuts if you added them in whole.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix on low to medium speed for 15-30 seconds.
That's it! The dip is done. You can put some plastic wrap over the mixing bowl and refrigerate it for about 2 hours or transfer it to your serving dip and cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours for the best flavor.
It's also fine to serve it immediately, but it is better after it sits.
Serve the cold dip with crackers, or any vegetables you like. I love it with carrot sticks, cucumbers, and bell pepper slices. Enjoy!
Ways to Serve Spinach & Artichoke Dip
What I love so much about this dip recipe is you can serve it different ways depending on what you and your guests will love the most.
You can turn it into a hot spinach and artichoke dip by adding cheese to the top and baking it. It's so delicious that way.
To turn the cold dip into a hot dip, place as much or as little as you want into an oven safe dish. Choose a dish where the dip will be about 2" deep, this will give the best cheese-to-dip ratio when eating.
The amount of cheese you need will vary based on the size of your dish, so I can't give you exact measurements, but use enough shredded cheese to cover the entire top with ¼" of cheese.
The types of cheeses you use are completely up to you. I like using a blend of cheeses like Monterey Jack for its melting characteristics, smoked or unsmoked gouda for flavor and parmesan for sharpness and that nutty salty flavor.
The ratios of cheeses is also up to you, but I would use a nice melting cheese like monterey jack, mozzarella, or provolone for at least ½ the total amount of cheese.
Once the cheese is on top, bake it uncovered in a preheated 400℉/200℃ oven for 15 minutes or until the cheese has melted and starts to brown.
Serve with Crusty French Bread or your favorite crackers.
Stuffed Cherry or Cocktail tomatoes are the perfect appetizer for entertaining any time of the year. They are fresh, beautiful and, most importantly, delicious.
The cocktail tomatoes are slightly bigger and they are best served when your guests will have a plate and utensils to cut them with.
Stuffed Cherry tomatoes can be a finger appetizer that your guests can pick up and pop right in their mouth in one bite.
For either type of tomato, cut the stem end off and hollow out the middle, removing the flesh and seeds.
Stuff the centers with the cold spinach and artichoke dip, mounding up the dip just a bit on top for presentation.
If you aren't serving them right away, place them in a single layer in a container deep enough that the tomatoes can be covered with the lid or plastic wrap without touching the dip.
Another great make-ahead appetizer using this dip is pinwheels. They are made with flour tortillas and the dip, rolled and cut. Super easy!
You can use any size flour tortilla you have, but 10" flour tortillas work perfectly.
Place ½ cup of the cold dip onto the room temperature tortilla. You don't want to use them straight out of the fridge or they are too hard to roll.
Spread the dip evenly over the tortilla, but leave about ¼" at the end furthest away from you. As you roll the tortilla, the dip pushes forward and this prevents too much from leaking out.
Roll them as tightly as you can.
Cut the ends off of the tortilla to make a straight edge and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
These can be made several days in advance.
Slice into 1-1½" inch slices just before serving.
Storage & Reheating Instructions
How to Store Leftover Spinach and Artichoke Dip
The cold dip can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
The hot dip can also be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days.
Freezer
I don't recommending freezing the cold dip because the texture may not be the same when you thaw it.
You can freeze the dip if you heated it to melt the cream cheese. Make sure it is chilled before freezing or ice crystals may form.
Freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months for the best quality.
Thaw in the refrigerator.
How to Reheat Spinach and Artichoke Dip
Oven
Place the thawed dip in an oven safe dish and cover with additional cheese if desired.
Heat on 400℉/200℃ if you added more cheese for about 10 minutes.
If you don't add more cheese, cover with foil and reheat on 350℉/180℃ for about 10-15 minutes.
The time it takes to reheat depends on the depth of the dip in the dish you are using to reheat in.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Simply adjust all the ingredient amounts according how much dip you want to make. For each block of cream cheese you use, you will have approximately 2 cups of dip with the other ingredients.
You also want to make sure that your mixing bowl is large enough. For a standard size 5 quart Kitchenaid mixing bowl, I wouldn't make any more than a double batch at one time.
Easy Dip Recipes
Making different dips is a great way to have a variety of flavors when entertaining.
I like to choose a couple of hot dips along with a few cold dips that can be made ahead of time. Here are some favorites!
Cold Spinach and Artichoke Dip
Ingredients
- 16 ounces Cream Cheese room temperature
- 12 ounces frozen spinach thawed
- 14 ounce can of artichoke hearts in water/brine, whole or quartered and drained.
- 8 ounce can of water chestnuts drained and roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon cholula or your favorite hot sauce
Spice Blend
- 1 teaspoon fine grind sea salt or kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
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Instructions
Prep for Making the Dip
- Let the spinach thaw overnight in the refrigerator or quick thaw by putting it in a strainer and running cold water over it for a minute or two. Let the cream cheese come to room temperature.Roughly chop the water chestnuts
Making the Cold Dip
- Place the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl if using a handheld electric mixer. Use the paddle attachment on the stand mixer and the beaters of a hand held mixer. Begin mixing on low speed until the cream cheese begins to soften, then increase to medium speed and mix until all the lumps are gone and the cream cheese is smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.16 ounces Cream Cheese
- Press as much liquid out of the thawed spinach as possible and add to the cream cheese mixture along with the drained artichoke hearts and water chestnuts. Add the soy sauce, cholula, and seasoning blend. Mix on low speed until the ingredients are incorporated, scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix on high speed for 30 seconds. This breaks up the artichokes and disperses the spinach.12 ounces frozen spinach, 14 ounce can of artichoke hearts, 8 ounce can of water chestnuts, 1 teaspoon soy sauce, 1 teaspoon cholula or your favorite hot sauce, 1 teaspoon fine grind sea salt or kosher salt, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon black pepper
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or transfer the dip to another container and cover with plastic wrap or the lid of the container. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours for the best flavor. You can make the dip up to 24 hours in advance.
- Serve with assorted crackers and vegetables.
Notes
Nutrition
About the Recipe Author, Louise Long
Louise is a full-time recipe creator and food blogger @ The Salted Pepper. She has over 30 years of experience with cooking and recipe development. She owned a restaurant for several years and was a full-time RN until retiring to blog full-time.
She published her first cookbook in the Fall of 2018 and is very interested in writing several more.
Louise is also the creator of an online Ninja Foodi Pressure Cooking Course with over 100 instructional step-by-step videos. People absolutely rave about the course and all the value they have received from it.
Louise has several very active Facebook groups that help people with the basics of cooking and learning more about the appliances they love.
Ninja Foodi Pressure Cooker & Air Crisper 101
Ninja Woodfire Outdoor Grill & Smoker
Louise is also a YouTube creator and you can find most of her recipes in video format on The Salted Pepper YouTube channel.
She is very responsive to messages and eager to help in any way she can. Get more Information about Louise & contact information
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