White Bean Dip with Roasted Garlic, Olive Oil & Lemon Juice. This dip is a quick, easy, delicious, healthy, vegan snack!
The last few recipes I’ve shared have been simple, quick and have required only a handful of ingredients. I’m sticking with that theme today.
This is a dip I make often. It’s a simple and healthy snack (or lunch) made with ingredients I always have on hand. It takes just a few minutes to whip up and it’s super versatile. Add some fresh herbs to liven it up if you’d like – fresh mint, parsley, basil, dill – whatever you love.
Let’s talk roasted garlic. It really is wonderful, it almost transforms as it’s roasted. A chef buddy told me that roasted garlic is one of the least recognized yet favorite flavor in many of his dishes. That took me for surprise – not that people love it, but that people aren’t familiar with the flavor. It serves as a reminder of how varied foods and flavors are region to region here in The US. Foreigners love to use the quote “American Food” without realizing how vast America is. How much of a melting pot it really is. Three cities, off the top of my head – Boston, New Orleans and Albuquerque. Visit all three, sit down and enjoy the local cuisine. Good luck finding similarities in said “American food”.
Anyhow, I go thru a ton of garlic in my house and always keep some roasted stuff, ready to go, in my fridge. I don’t bother heating the oven up special just for garlic – I just wrap it up and throw it in when I’m cooking something else. I especially love roasted garlic spread onto fresh bread and can add it to everything and anything. Pasta, chicken, sauces, mashed potatoes, salsa, dips, patès – go ahead and smash it up and mix it with a bit of good olive oil and watch people get dip crazy with it. The possibilities are endless here 🙂
I serve this dip with baked tortilla chips – but it’s great with veggies, pitas, crackers – all your normal dipping vessels.
Oh, and as much as I sing praises on roasted garlic – if you don’t like it, that’s okay too. You can use just about anything you’d like to flavor this dip – white beans have a super mellow flavor. Sun dried tomatoes, black olives, roasted peppers, cheeses, cilantro – get creative!
I hope you love this quick & healthy White Bean Dip! Thanks so much for stopping by – Happy Cooking!
-Amanda-
- 1 can of white beans (15 oz)
- 4 - 6 cloves roasted garlic *see note*
- 1½ teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- pinch of fresh herbs - basil, mint, parsley, dill - whatever you like (optional)
- fresh cracked pepper to taste
- tortilla chips or fresh veggies, to serve
- Drain beans and rinse thoroughly in a colander.
- Add white beans, roasted garlic and lemon juice to a food processor.
- Run until smooth, drizzling in olive oil. Stop once or twice to scrape down sides if necessary.
- Crack pepper over dip to taste, serve with tortilla chips or veggies. Enjoy!
- I prefer this dip at right after it's made. If making it ahead of time and refrigerating, it's best to bring it to room temp before serving.
- *For roasted garlic : Trim tops (about ¼") off garlic bulbs and peel off any papery skin that's easily removed. Some will still be on. Place on an appropriate size sheet of aluminum foil. Drizzle olive oil into the bulbs. I eyeball amounts, but I think a tablespoon would be about right. Wrap up in foil and roast at 400° for about 45 mins - 1 hour. If you're running your oven a little hotter, that's fine, just check your garlic a little earlier.
Hey, Amanda. This dip looks tasty. Beans are so good, but I’m the only one in my household who enjoys them. I’ve been looking for some healthy snack ideas and I will have to try this dip. I like a lot of beans, but white beans are so versatile. I’ve even made white yeast bread with white beans and my family didn’t know until I told them.
This bean dip is perfect for an afternoon snack.
Thanks! I have some finicky bean eaters in my house too – they only like black beans. No whites, no reds, not even baked beans. My daughter loves this dip though – she’ll eat the whole bowl! The bean bread sounds awesome – I would love to make it! I’m actually trying to decipher an old Italian family recipe that uses white or garbanzo beans as a filling in a sweet pastry. It’s great to see you around Neeli!! Let me know when you get your blog up again – I miss it 🙁 🙂
I miss you, too, Amanda, I really do. I will let you know when I get my blog up and running again.
Awwwwwww! Big hugs to you Neeli 🙂
I’m always interested in adding garlic it to my diet whenever I can because of all of its health benefits. You are so right about sticking it in the oven when you’re making something else—no need to take up the whole oven for a few cloves of garlic. It is so easy to do, so I have to start doing it more! This dip is fantastic and so good for you! I love a dip where you can fill up and feel guilt-free.
Thanks Thao! We’re BIG garlic eaters in my house and it gets added to just about everything I make. Even my chickens eat garlic. (Lol – we don’t eat the chickens, though, just their eggs) I’m right with you – I love guilt-free dips! Once the dipping starts it’s hard to stop 🙂
This dip looks so tasty! I LOVE roasted garlic! So sweet and flavourful. We go through a lot of garlic in our home too. Love to try this recipe 🙂
Thanks so much Dawn! “Garlic Lovers Unite” – at least we’ll keep the vampires away 🙂
This dip looks super good! Tasty and healthy – perfect!
Thanks so much, Amy 🙂
I love this dip. The garlic and the white beans sound like a wonderful combination. I also like that you can add different herbs to this as well. YUM!
Thanks Dawn! This is definitely our favorite healthy dip. Our other favorite dips involve copious amounts of sour cream, cheese or other fatty deliciousness lol.
Wow, this looks great! You’re right, roasting garlic adds another delicious dimension of flavor 🙂
Saw this on Google+ and it looks so good I had to stop by – pinned to make SOON! Thank You!
Thanks so much – hope you love it! Thanks for stopping by, Lauren 🙂