Serve your guests (and self) comfort and joy with this nutritious Avocado Dip
The holiday season is filled with diverse foods from different cultures and climates as well as American standards which are usually centered around processed sugars, cheese and fats. It can be so hard to say no to tempting smells or just eat one cookie. Most folks don’t feel great after eating all the holiday fare which is why they only give themselves a pass around the holidays and don’t continue eating the same things everyday for weeks or months afterward.
This holiday season you might want to think about forging a new path around holiday eating. Instead of giving yourself a 10+ day pass to eat whatever and then promising to make dietary changes in the new year, try adding in one nutritious meal or snack a day that is filled with veggies and good fats and you may find you will eat less of the sugary stuff later.
A great resource for ideas on healthy meals and snacks is the Essential Thyroid Cookbook by Lisa Markley and Jill Grunewald. It’s not only for folks with thyroid disorders and is filled with tons of great tasting, easy to prepare and nutrient-dense recipes. My personal favorite right now is the Avocado Dip on page 207. I love making it in the late morning to have with a poached egg on gluten-free toast or cooked and toasted sweet potato slices and I’ll safely save the rest to later share with friends and family, served with tortilla chips and sliced apples and veggies.
This recipe is filled with fiber, ‘good’ fat, protein, vitamins and minerals which means this dip can help you stabilize blood sugar, lower cholesterol, and load you up with anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer molecules. I still can’t believe that something that taste as good as this dip is also jammed with so many nutrients. If you are up to including the optional nutritional yeast, you’ll get a subtle nutty taste to the dip as well as added B vitamins, which are super important in making good-mood neurotransmitters.
I’ve adapted the recipe to use a variety of greens instead of just spinach since so many of our people at Flourish solely rely on spinach as their only leafy green. Diversity is key to a healthy microbiome; spinach, nuts, and chocolate (to name a few of the favorites) are high in oxalates, which can disrupt our ability to absorb nutrients. Diversifying the greens in this recipe, as well as in your other meals, can help keep your oxalate levels in check.
Spinach, Artichoke and Avocado Dip from The Essential Thyroid Cookbook (pg 207)
Ingredients:
1 large avocado
1/4 cup fresh basil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 small clove garlic (or 1/2 teaspoon minced organic garlic from a jar)
1-1/2 teaspoons onion powder
2-3 tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup canned artichoke hearts; drained and chopped
1 cup packed fresh greens, finely chopped (ex: combo of spinach, chard, bok choy, argula, Organic Girl Power Greens)
Black pepper to taste
Preparation:
Scoop the fresh from the avocado into a food processor affixed with an S-blad. Add basil, lemon juice, garlic, onion powder, nutritional yeast (if using) and salt. Process for 1-2 minutes, until completely smooth and creamy. Transfer avocado cream to a medium-sized bow. Set aside.
Place artichoke hearts and greens into the bowl of the food processor and pulse a few times, bring careful not to over-process. Don’t worry about cleaning the avocado residue out of the bowl first.
Transfer the artichoke and spinach mixture to the bowl with avocado cream and stir well to combine. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
Place dip in a serving bowl and serve alongside fresh vegetables or tortilla chips.
Cook’s note: This dip is best enjoyed right away but may be kept for up to 1 day in the refrigerator before browning occurs. To minimize browning when stored, place in an airtight container with a layer of parchment paper pressed tightly against the dip to seal out air.