I adapted this recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks, Simple Vegetarian Pleasures, by Jeanne Lemlin. I’ve used a few of her recipes before on this blog back when I had, like, two readers. So I thought it was only fitting to end with one from her.

Yep, that’s right. This is my last post — at least for a while. I’m embarking on a new adventure.

You might remember me mentioning that my mother has had cancer three times over the past 15 years. Her experience has shined light on a new career path for me — nursing. I have been taking prerequisites for nursing school this summer and hope to start full time in the fall of 2010 at University of Maryland, Baltimore. In preparation (and to give me more time for classes), I will be leaving Erickson next week to start working at a startup nonprofit in Annapolis, Md., called The Wellness House. It’s a place for cancer patients and their families to get support throughout their treatment and healing process.

I’m very excited. Except, of course, that I won’t be doing this blog anymore after today. That is sad. However, I will be starting a blog for the Wellness House guests, and I thank you all for the learning experience that will help me in this new endeavor. And with any luck, I’ll start my own food blog sometime in the near future to continue taking photos, scaling down recipes, and creating interesting flavors. I’ll let you know where I end up if you have any interest in following me

So with that, here is today’s recipe:

Recipe: Spinach, artichoke, & prosciutto dip with pita chips (adapted from Simple Vegetarian Pleasures, by Jeanne Lemlin)
Serves one

Dip:
1/4 cup plain, low-fat yogurt
2 Tbsp light cream cheese
4 quarters marinated artichoke hearts in a jar
1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/8 tsp seasoned salt
1 tsp chives, finely chopped
1/4 (10 oz) package frozen spinach, thawed
1 tsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 slice prosciutto, finely chopped

Pita chips:
1 6-inch whole wheat pita bread
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp roasted garlic salt (such as McCormick or She Sells Sea Salts)

Place the thawed spinach in a strainer and squeeze out all of the liquid. Place all the dip ingredients in a food processor, and blend until combined. Cover and chill at least two hours to blend the flavors.

For the chips, preheat the oven to 300F. Cut the pita bread into quarters, then carefully separate the two layers, creating eight pieces. Place the pita pieces rough (inner) side up on a baking sheet. In a small bowl, pour the olive oil and garlic salt, stir slightly to combine, then brush the rough sides with the olive oil mixture using a pastry brush. Bake until golden and crisp, about 10-12 minutes. Let cool completely, and store in a plastic container until ready to serve.

Serve the dip cool or at room temperature but not cold. Lemlin suggests using the leftover spinach to fill an omelet, mix with pasta, or stuff into a baked potato with cheese. You could also use it in quiche or frittata.

Thanks for reading, folks. It’s been fun! I will miss you.

XOXO,

Julia