One of my favorite party dips -- Spinach and Artichoke

I discovered this recipe a few years ago and I've made it a few times for friends. The last time was this past Saturday and it was gobbled up again with delight. Spinach and artichoke dip is a favorite of my wife and I and we use it as a bit of a test when dining out a casual restaurant. If the dip fails the test, the chances are we wouldn't go back, unless of course our diners are amazing.

This recipe is based upon the taste of a fantastic dip from the restaurant chain Houston's. It's really based upon a recipe I found at:
Robbie's Recipe Collection: Spinach and Artichoke Dip like Houston's® She has some great copy-cat recipes on her site for a bunch of dishes from popular restaurants.

It takes about 45 minutes or so to prepare and is enough for 10 to 12 people -- depending on how much the like it. The great thing is you can do all of the hard prep ahead of time and simply use your microwave when it's time for the party.

The ingredients include:

• 2 cloves garlic - minced
• 2 Tbls. minced onion
• 1/4 cup real butter
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups heavy cream -- I usually use half and half versus the heavy cream.
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 2/3 cup fresh-grated Romano cheese
• 2 tsp. fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. hot sauce
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• Two 10 oz. boxes frozen chopped spinach - thawed, squeezed dry through a fine sieve. It's vital that you get the spinach as dried as possible.
• 12 oz. jar artichoke hearts - drained and coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup shredded white cheddar cheese

1. To get things started, sauté the onion and garlic in the butter using a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. You want them to be golden brown and this will take about 5 minutes.
2. Once the onion and garlic are golden, stir in flour and cook for about a minute.
3. Next, slowly whisk in the cream and the broth and bring it up to a low boil.
4. Once it starts to boil, stir in the Romano cheese, lemon juice, hot sauce, and season with salt. Keep stirring until cheese has melted and then remove from heat and allow it to cool for about 5 minutes.
5. When it has cooled down, stir in the sour cream and fold in the dried spinach and the artichoke hearts.
6. Finally, fold the mixture into a microwave-safe serving dish and cover evenly with the cheddar cheese. Enjoy a glass of wine, the hard work is done.
7. Now you can store it in the fridge until you are ready to serve. Then all you need to do is pop it into the microwave on 50% power until the cheese melts.

I typically serve this great dip with pita, tortilla or bagel chips. It usually doesn't take too long for it to vanish. I also like to serve it up with a nice bottle of Chardonnay.
I've got another recipe I've used a couple of times that is much easier to make than this one -- less work, less time but also less tasty. It's fine but nothing special. This is the one I use when entertaining friends on a cold winter evening.