With the holidays right around the corner, it’s a good time to have a few secretly-healthier foods in mind to sneak onto the table alongside the traditional fare. This white bean puree works equally well as a spread for crostini or as a dip for crackers and veggies, and its creamy texture belies the fact that it’s just a fancy (and still vegan) alternative to hummus.
These beans don’t have to wait for a party, though. The dip takes five minutes to make, and it’s a workhorse in the kitchen. We had it on baguette slices alongside our minestrone. I spread it on slices of whole wheat toast for breakfast all week. And it makes a decadent sandwich with tomatoes, lettuce, and avocado slices.
Creamy White Bean Dip or Spread: In a food processor, combine 2 c. cooked white beans, ½ c. bean cooking liquid (or substitute half liquid from the can and half water if you’re using canned beans), 6 Tbsp. olive oil, 2 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley, 2 Tbsp. finely-chopped oregano or thyme, and a finely-minced small garlic clove. Puree until creamy, then add salt to taste. (Recognize this combination? If you have that olive oil-oregano sauce on hand, substitute half a cup of it for the 6 Tbsp. olive oil and subsequent ingredients. You will still want to add salt to taste after pureeing the beans.) The dip in the photograph is topped with a swirl of the same oregano drizzle. Serve with crostini or crackers for spreading or dipping.
Emmy Cooks 
Mmm sounds like a great alternative to hummus. And yay to not needing tahini as we’re sesame free!
Gorgeous w/ that oregano drizzle!
Lovely looking dip, particularly with that drizzle.
White beans make such a great dip and I really like the idea of using an infused olive oil as the base!
Bet it would be great tossed with pasta as well.
This looks great! Especially with that oregano drizzle (I bet it’d be good with your Basil Oil recipe too!).
Fancied up, and looks tastier than hummus! Oh that drizzle!
Lovely! I do something similar but with sage instead of oregano . . . This looks delicious. Must try it your way!
I like your recipes but the ads on your site are kinda offensive. All fad diets and weight loss pills with flashing gifs… with some many good recipe sites out there to compete with, I would advise choosing more tasteful and less confrontational ads…
Hi there, thanks for your note. I’m glad you’ve found some recipes here that you like! I run this site on the free WordPress.com, which doesn’t give me a say in the ads on the site and actually charges users to eliminte ads altogether. I agree that the ads aren’t what I’d choose, and I’m sorry that you find them distracting. I encourage you to send a note to WordPress if you see ads here that you find offensive: http://en.wordpress.com/about-these-ads/. Take care and happy cooking!