Spinach dip in a Sourdough bread bowl

For the Bradshaw Family Christmas party this year, we were assigned to bring an appetizer. After mulling over our options, we settled on spinach dip, one of my favorite dishes.

I headed to the local Walmart figuring I would find the little soup mix box with the recipe on the side. They didn't have it. I picked up the Great Value brand Onion Soup mix and figured I could make it work. I knew I also needed spinach, mayo, sour cream, and water chestnuts, based on prior experiences with spinach dip, so I grabbed these items and headed home. Oh, and also some sourdough. A boule and a square (for dipping).

Fortunately, I found this recipe online using the onion soup mix. It's basically the same as the more well-known Knorr recipe, except with a different flavor soup.

Spinach Dip
1 10-oz package frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1 c mayonnaise
1 packet onion soup mix
1 1/2 c sour cream (about 16 oz.)
1 can water chestnuts, drained and diced

1. Thaw and drain spinach. I pour the spinach into a colander and let lukewarm water run through it in the sink until it is no longer icy. Squeeze water out of spinach. I also find it helpful to chop the spinach a little extra.
2. Mix sour cream and mayonnaise.
3. Add onion soup mix and stir to combine.
4. Add spinach and water chestnuts and continue to mix until well dispersed.

Spinach dip is especially yummy and pretty when presented in a sourdough boule. You will need to cut out the top and middle of the bread boule to turn it into a bread bowl. This is accomplished by taking a knife and carefully slicing into the top of the bread, being sure not to cut through the bottom. You have to use your hands to pull the inside of the bread out, and then continue to shape the inside so it can hold the max amount of dip.

For our party, I doubled the amount of dip (still using only one can of water chestnuts). I cut the sourdough boule insides, and the sourdough square loaf, into small cubes (~ 1-2"). Not all of the dip fit into my bread bowl so I kept the extra in a separate bowl. The idea is to use the small bread cubes to dip into the spinach dip, and at the end you can also eat the bread bowl (of course!).