Lemon and Garlic Bean Dip

With the holidays coming up everyone is looking for quick and easy appetizers to serve before the big meal and visiting guests and relatives. One of my favorite quick dishes is this white bean dip. It's healthy, delicious and has only five ingredients (one of which is garlic...perfect for Halloween and keeping away those vampires ;) )!

Lemon and Garlic Bean Dip:

1 15.5 oz can of Cannellini Beans (or white kidney beans)

2 cloves of smashed garlic

the juice of half a lemon

1 tbs. of extra virgin olive oil

a heavy pinch of kosher salt

You will also need a food processor or blender (even a magic bullet works)

Rinse the cannellini beans well and place them in your food processor or blender. 

Next you want to smash the garlic to make it easier for the food processor to combine everything together. There's no need, however, to chop it finely. Just place the individual cloves on the board and place the flat part of your knife on top of a clove. Using the palm of your hand, strike the flat part of the knife, smashing the garlic. Now it should also be easy to remove the outer papery skin from the cloves.

 Add the lemon juice and garlic to the cannellini beans. 

Pulse until the mixture is nearly smooth and slowly drizzle in the olive oil until the dip reaches a smooth consistency. Finally, add the kosher salt and pulse to combine.

And, can you believe it, that's it! The dip is even better the next day, but is good straight out of the food processor as well. 

I like to add a pinch of lemon zest to the top, a light sprinkling of kosher salt and a drizzle of olive oil. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do, and until next time...buon appetito!