Food Friday - Spinach Queso DIp

Spinach Queso Dip
adapted from Haystacks and Champagne

I had originally planned to make this for a Ladies Meeting but, looking back, I ended up just making cookies that night because it had been a long day :-/  So, I ended up making this to go with lunch on my husband's day off and it was so good.  The spinach adds nice color to the normal cheesy dip but really doesn't impact the flavor (unless you are my mom and hate spinach, then she is SURE she can taste it HA!).  I did this in a pot on the stove since it was a last minute addition to lunch but, personally, I think Velveeta melts better in a crock pot so if I was making this for company I would use the slow cooker for sure! 


HOT SPINACH SALSA QUESO DIP

• 10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 lb Velveeta cheese (2% fat--this is the reduced fat version)
• 8 ounces cream cheese (light)
• 1 jar salsa (I used 3/4 full jar of a 16 ounce jar)
• A handful of chopped cilantro (optional-but good)

Now there's 3 ways to make this:

1) Cut the Velveeta and cream cheese into cubes and place all ingredients in a microwaveable-safe dish. Heat until cheese has melted and stir to combine all ingredients.

2) If you prefer, you can place all the ingredients in an oven safe dish and bake until the dip is heated through--continuing to stir to mix all ingredients. I usually put the dip in at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes--keep an eye on it as it depends on how deep your dish is--it can take as little as 10 minutes or as much as 20-25 minutes to have all the cheese melted. When it's hot and bubbly, it's ready!

3) OR, you can place all ingredients in a crockpot and heat until cheese has melted (continuing to stir the mixture to combine ingredients). It should take somewhere around an hour to have the cheeses melt (but check as crockpots vary). This particular method is great if you can leave it on the low setting--then your dip will stay warm for a while. But I bet it won't last!

Serve warm with tortilla chips. Heaven! Should make a small crowd very happy before dinner is served (like 4-6 people).