3 healthy dips
This season is party time, and tempting foods are at every turn.
Dips are popular fare, but many of them are nothing but empty calories — for example, sour cream, cream cheese or mayonnaise spiked with seasonings.
Just two tablespoons of some dips contain more than 100 calories and over 10 grams of fat, so even if you dip vegetables instead of chips, calories can still stack up fast.
But healthier options can give you the flavors you crave along with some vegetables and protein.
So here are three of my favorite recipes for healthy dips, which are all adapted from Cooking Light recipes.
Some fresh basil, garlic and shredded Parmesan add punch to this Spinach-Parmesan Dip. The original recipe called for plain yogurt, but I thought that gave this dip an unpleasant taste, so I use light sour cream instead. You can have Z\v cup of this Spinach-Parmesan Dip for 62 calories and 4.5 fat grams.
This Tomato-Feta Dip is delicious when served with toasted French bread. I add a touch of olive oil to the recipe because it enhances the taste and texture of the dip. A ¼-cup serving of this Tomato-Feta Dip contains 65 calories and 4.8 fat grams.
Cooking Light's crab dip recipe includes fat-free sour cream and fat-free Thousand Island dressing, but I use light sour cream and reduced-calorie dressing instead because I think they add a lot more flavor for just a few extra calories. A ¼-cup serving of this Crunchy Crab Dip has 72 calories and 3.4 grams of fat.
