Green Chile & Goat Cheese Dip

From EatingWell: November/December 2010

This creamy, cheesy dip is spiked with green chiles and smoky chipotle pepper. Be sure to drain the ricotta the day before you want to serve the dip. Serve with tortilla chips or crackers.

READER'S COMMENT:

"I thought this was delicious, easy and healthy! I took it to a party and everyone gobbled it up. The only thing I changed was that I added some salt to the cheese mixture. I thought it was a bit bland without it. I also loaded the top...

Makes: 3 cups

Active Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes (plus 24 hours to drain ricotta)

Nutrition Profile

View Our Nutrition Guidelines »

Ingredients

1 15-ounce container part-skim ricotta cheese, drained (see Tips)
8 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
2 4-ounce cans chopped green chiles
2 tablespoons toasted pepitas (see Tips)
1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper, or to taste

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Coat a glass pie pan with cooking spray. Mash together ricotta and goat cheese in a medium bowl. Drain chiles in a colander or sieve, pressing to remove as much liquid as possible. Stir into the cheese mixture. Spread evenly in the prepared pan. Sprinkle with pepitas and chipotle.
Bake until the dip is bubbling at the edges, about 30 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes.

Tips & Notes

Tips: To drain ricotta, spoon into a sieve lined with a double layer of cheesecloth or a large coffee filter. Place over a bowl and drain in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
Pepitas, olive-green-hulled pumpkin seeds, are commonly used in Mexican cooking and are a perfect snack when roasted and lightly salted. Find them in the bulk-foods section of natural-foods markets, Mexican grocers or at melissas.com. To toast pepitas: Cook in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes.

Nutrition

Per 2-tablespoon serving: 53 calories; 3 g fat ( 2 g sat , 1 g mono ); 10 mg cholesterol; 1 g carbohydrates; 0 g added sugars; 4 g protein; 0 g fiber; 78 mg sodium; 35 mg potassium.

Carbohydrate Servings: 0

Exchanges: 1 high fat meat

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