Photo by Heidi Harris
Warm Artichoke Dip served with baked pita chips
Artichoke dip is a long-established, classic, crowd pleaser. What makes this recipe for Warm Artichoke Dip special is a homemade artichoke pesto. While commonly made with a fresh herb like basil or parsley, pesto can also be made with other ingredients such as artichokes, roasted red peppers, arugula, or sun-dried tomatoes. My favorite and most used is artichoke pesto. It is so versatile I can use it in many of my entertaining recipes from Artichoke Hush Puppies to this dip.
Since the dip doesn’t last long, I like to divide it into 2–3 separate baking dishes to bake in succession during a party so that it’s always fresh and always hot.
Serves 25
For the Dip
Ingredients
- 1 recipe for artichoke pesto (below)
- 1½ cups grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- Zest of 1 lemon
Directions
1 | Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl.
2 | Divide into 2–3 baking dishes. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 20–25 minutes, until it’s a light golden brown and bubbling.
3 | Serve with slices of toasted baguette or toasted pita.
Make-Ahead Tip: The dip can be portioned and frozen right in its baking dish for future use.
For the Artichoke Pesto
Ingredients
- 2 14-ounce cans of artichoke quarters
- 1 bunch parsley, stems removed
- ¾ cup walnuts
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 5 garlic cloves, smashed
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¾ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Directions
1 | Drain and rinse the artichokes. Squeeze out any excess water.
2 | Wash the parsley and pat dry.
3 | In the bowl of a food processor, add the artichokes, walnuts, garlic, and parmesan cheese. Pulse to chop all the ingredients.
4 | Remove the lid and add the parsley, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and olive oil. Process on high speed for about 45 seconds until a smoothish paste is formed. If the pesto is a little too stiff, additional olive oil can be added 1 tablespoon at a time.
5 | Store in an airtight container until used in other recipes.
See Joseph’s tips for making amuse bouches and four more delicious amuse bouche recipes.
By Joseph Marini
Photography by Heidi Harris
Excerpted from Mastering the Art of Entertaining (SparkPress, 2023).
“I’m often asked why I love entertaining so much. It took me a long time to understand the answer to this. Fitting in, even sometimes within a family, can be difficult. By entertaining, I was allowing myself to be vulnerable enough to be seen for who I was. It allowed me to create a group of family and friends that would truly see and appreciate my authenticity. I now realize the rewards of living intentionally and opening up m home (and heart) to bring people together over food.”
Buy the book and enjoy more recipes and entertaining tips!
