Roasted Garlic Lentil Dip

Roasted Garlic Lentil Dip – if you love white bean dip this LENTIL dip is for you! It’s FULL of roasted garlic and protein and is the best snack or meal!

Okay WAIT! Before you click off thinking this is just another dip recipe, hold on a second. It’s not just another dip, it’s one of my favorites ever! Plus, it’s full of protein and keeps you full longer.

So okay, you’re still here. But then you’re like, lentils? What are those? To be honest, until recently I had the same thought. I’ve used lentils exactly once in the past, in a soup recipe. So using lentils outside of soup or stew or chili was something I’d never thought about. When I was asked to partner with Lentils.org on their #SpringCleanse campaign, I started searching for ideas. Did you know you can substitute lentils for meat in most recipes? Or that you can add cooked lentils along with meat to add more protein and texture? (I’ve started adding them to my taco meat. You’d never know it and it makes everyone much more full, plus I can cut down on the cost of buying ground meat.)

When I made this dip I ended up just eating it for lunch instead of making myself a salad like I normally do. It was late and I was hangry by the time I was finished with the photo shoot, so I just sat on the couch and dipped crackers and carrots in it while I watched The View. (That’s my daily guilty pleasure: 10 minutes of hot topics during lunch.)

I figured that a couple hours later, during homework time, I’d be starving and eat the pantry because I hadn’t had a proper lunch, but guess what? I was full straight though until dinner and I’d only had about 1/2 cup of the dip total.

This Roasted Garlic Lentil Dip is like a hummus or white bean dip, but it’s made with tons of roasted garlic and seasonings and a healthy dose of split red lentils. And it’s become my go-to party dip and lunch snack!

Lentils are surprisingly high in protein and fiber, and the dried packages have a year-long shelf life. They’re not expensive and easier to cook than I thought. I used split red lentils in this dip because they have a quicker cooking time than the whole green ones, even though those quick pretty quickly too.

I can make a meal out of dips, and it’s actually my preferred way to eat. Bean dip, salsa, hummus, guacamole; any of them along with some veggies and crackers will keep me happy all evening long. This dip is being added to my old standbys for sure.

The lentils are good, but the roasted garlic takes this dip over the top. Have you ever roasted garlic? It’s easy to do and I make it a lot. I use cloves of roasted garlic in soups and mashed potatoes and we love to just spread it on french bread instead of butter. Anything roasted tastes better, if you ask me, and garlic especially. It also gives this dip a ginormous flavor boost.

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