This white bean dip had a definite process of getting it juuuust right. Too much Old Bay, not enough, too many white beans, you know the drill. Then finally, I last minute decided to add in a new to me ingredient, hearts of palm. I’ve been seeing hearts of palm on a lot of vegan cooking recipes lately, to be used as a substitute for crab in crab cakes or to give that ‘seafood’ texture. I thought they would be a weird, gross thing in a can that I would NOT want to use, but as it turns out, they are pretty normal, so that’s on me for judging too quickly! After I added in the hearts of palm this dip went from ‘pretty good’ to ‘pretty DANG good’. Before I even had the opportunity to take these pictures I had dug into this white bean dip maybe 3 or 4 times, just swiping a bit with a cracker here and there until I realized I just needed to get on with it and take picture before I ate the whole container. This recipe was almost named ‘crab’ dip, but I hesitate to equate hearts of palm with crab and I realized that eating something described as crab dip..that isn’t really crab can weird people out. Think of this dip as more of a white bean hummus/dip that is just trying to be fancy with a sprinkle of Old Bay seasoning and a dipping of garlic toasts.
A word on the garlic rubbed toasts; crackers and tortilla chips go just fine with this dip, but if you are looking to be a little bit fancy and want to tell people you made garlic rubbed toasts (which is really just slices of a baguette rubbed with garlic), it will be so worth it. But, don’t go overboard like I did and use almost a whole head of garlic rubbing one sheet pan’s worth of toasts. This much garlic will result in a.) the whole kitchen smelling like a hot head of garlic, for days and b.) a really spicy/bitter taste when you take the first bite of one of the toasts because hoooly cow there’s so much garlic on there. My rule of thumb would be to go light on the garlic rubbing, taste one, then go back and add more if needed. It’s easy to go overboard when the toasts are hot and it just looks so delicious when you rub that melting garlic clove into the crunchy bread, but just don’t do it, just don’t!
Once again, this dip is a product of my perusing through my new favorite book, the Vegetarian Flavor Bible. In the front section there is a ‘If you are craving this..have this’ chart, which includes craving solutions for cheese, bacon, and everything else a vegan/vegetarian might get a hankering for. One of the best things I’ve learning from reading the book is that cravings aren’t necessarily about the food themselves, but the flavor profiles that go along with them. You might be craving bacon, but really are you craving the salty flavor or the smoky flavor instead of the bacon itself? I can’t say enough good things about this book and hope I continue to get recipe ideas in the process.
PrintWhite Bean Dip with Garlic Rubbed Toasts
Ingredients
- 2 cans white beans or Cannellini beans
- 1 can hearts of palm (can be found near canned artichokes, etc)
- 2–3 teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning
- 4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1–2 tablespoons hot sauce or siracha (depending on taste)
- Juice of half a lemon
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried dill (fresh would work too, just increase the amount added)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Pepper to taste
- For the toasts:
- 1 small baguette (sliced in 1/2 in slices)
- 2 cloves garlic (peeled)
Instructions
- In the bowl of a blender or food processor, combine 1 can (not both!) of white beans, Old Bay seasoning, nutritional yeast, siracha, paprika, lemon juice, dill, salt and pepper. Blend on low to medium until smooth and creamy. Transfer this mixture to a large bowl and set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine the remaining can of white beans and the can of hearts of palm. With a fork, mash the beans and hearts of palm together slightly, leaving a fair amount of chunks. The hearts of palm may be a bit harder to break apart, so your your hands or another fork, if necessary.
- Combine the blended white bean mixture and the mashed mixture into another bowl or storage container, stirring until combined. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- For the toasts: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, grease a cookie sheet or line with a Silpat sheet. Place the pre sliced baguette onto the cookie sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until they become crispy. Be sure to flip the toasts about halfway through the baking process in order to make sure they are crispy on both sides. When removed from the oven, lightly rub a bit of garlic on each toast.
Meredith @ Unexpectedly Magnificent says
Ooh, I love white bean dip! I never thought of adding hearts of palm to it. I bet it tastes delicious! I often blend hearts of palm with nutritional yeast to make a “cheese” spread on sandwiches. 🙂
The Frosted Vegan says
Ohh that sounds good! I need to try that next : )
Shannon Y-I-V says
Hearts of palm cakes are awesome, and this dip sounds equally delicious! We have a couple of restaurants here in Baltimore that do a vegan zucchini cake, which is tasty too, but I think hearts of palm just have the perfect flavor for pairing with Old Bay. Although, I think I’d eat Old Bay on just about anything (anything vegan, that is). It’s so good 😀
The Frosted Vegan says
I SO agree Shannon!!
Jodie says
I’ve never heard of (or even seen it) Old Bay seasoning. Is there something else I can use?
Jodie says
Never mind, Abby 🙂 I just Googled Old Bay seasoning and imagine it would be pretty hard to use “something else”, it sure has a lot of spices and herbs in it!
The Frosted Vegan says
I’m glad you found it! It is rather hard to replace, but once you get your hands on it it’s so good!
Karis says
Emeril’s Essence is the best sub I’ve found for Old Bay.
Jodie says
Thanks Karis!
The Frosted Vegan says
Good thing Karis comes to the rescue for me every time! : )
The Frosted Vegan says
Thanks for following up Karis! I wasn’t sure of any substitute, so it’s good to know there is one out there.
Phi @ The Sweetphi Blog says
Hearts of palm…yay! My mom and I actually just made three different dips with them so I’m ALL about them right now, this dip will definitely need to add this to my ‘to make’ list
The Frosted Vegan says
I’m glad I’m not the only one so into them! : )
Lindsey | Mabel & the Wooden Spoon says
Ooooh. I love the hearts of palm and Old Bay combo. Genius.
The Frosted Vegan says
It is SO SO good, love it!
Karis says
I’m intrigued, I’ve never tried hearts of palm. Looking forward to trying this recipe!
The Frosted Vegan says
I was a little unsure about them at first, but they are pretty normal and easy to work with !
DessertForTwo says
This sounds like exactly what I want to eat all day. I’m in a dip + toast mode at the moment. I had hearts of palm in Costa Rica in salads and LOVE them. What a great use for them 🙂
The Frosted Vegan says
Ohh that sounds like an awesome use for them! Putting that on my ‘to try’ list now : )
catherine says
That book sounds pretty cool, I’m going to have to look it up!
Tracy says
I’m excited to try this with hearts of palm and plenty of Old Bay! I definitely rubbed too much garlic on toast before, good for keeping away vampires at least! This dip looks great!
The Frosted Vegan says
Glad I’m not the only one!
cookienameddesire says
Yum! This is something I would have to make a double batch of every time I make it because I know i will be gone in an instant. I love all the flavors here and I imagine the texture would be heaven on my tongue. Also, good call on the not calling it crab dip. I am one of those people who don’t like it when you make non-meat things to be like meaty things. Let’s just call it what it is! I have a can of vegan tuna in my cabinet that I refuse to touch because I am afraid of what I might find when I open it!
The Frosted Vegan says
I so agree! I just don’t like the ‘fake meat’ thing, even if it is good!
Kristi @ Inspiration Kitchen says
I absolutely love dips with toast! They’re one of our favorite appetizers – and I love using white beans!
marlymcb says
What a great list of ingredients – sounds delicious!
The Frosted Vegan says
Thanks Marly!
Laura - Chronicles of Passion says
Ahhhhh, thank you for the new ingredient inspiration! I love finding new things to try in recipes. I’m currently on a licorice kick, using licorice root in sweet and savoury dishes. It’s awesome! Thanks for sharing:)
The Frosted Vegan says
You are SO welcome! I love when I get new inspiration, it’s so refreshing!