~ Rich and creamy, this appetizer recipe is just loaded with the ever-popular flavors of a Reuben sandwich! It’s so much healthier than typical Reuben dips, but no one can ever taste the difference – this is a crowd favorite every time we serve it! Bonus points: it’s super quick and easy (you can mix it up right in your serving dish!), and it can even be made ahead! ~
Do you remember those moments from when you were a kid … when you suddenly felt oh-so grown-up and glimpsed the promised land of the adults?
Maybe it was the (terrifying!) first time you rode your bike without training wheels …
Or the day you got your metal-mouth braces off and smiled at that cute boy in math class with full-on pearly whites …
Well, one of my “growing up” moments involved a Reuben sandwich. (Hmmmmm … this possibly should’ve been an early clue about what a lunatic-foodie I’d one day become …)
We can’t generally find pre-shredded, reduced-fat Swiss cheese at our local stores. If you’re able to track it down, then definitely grab that and save yourself a minute or two on prep time. If (like us!) you can’t find pre-shredded, it’s truly fast to shred your own from a block of Swiss cheese, or to quickly make very thin confetti strips from a package of sandwich-ready pre-sliced cheese, like we did in the photo above. Just stack up those slices, and chop away!
My mom and I had spent the whole morning shopping together for new clothes, just for me. That, in itself, was a luxury – shopping without my little brother tagging along!
In a very indulgent move, we ended our day with lunch in the department store’s restaurant. A real restaurant! With waitresses! Just my mom and me! This was a rare, special treat back then.
But what to order …
My mom gleefully spied Reuben sandwiches on the menu. She looooooves Reubens, and happily described to me the piles of corned beef, melty Swiss cheese, tangy sauerkraut and sweet-tart dressing. Sounded kinda weird, actually. But intriguing … and so very exotic! Obviously something an adult (like my mom) would eat!
Ok. I ordered one, too. How very grown-up of me. (No laughing, now … I was maybe all of 11 years old …)
And as we sat together in that little restaurant, chatting after a day of shopping, we happily munched our exotic and oh-so-adult Reuben sandwiches, and I glimpsed how fabulous it must be to actually be an adult.
I loved that department-store Reuben sandwich just as much as my mom did … and I’ve loved Reubens ever since. (Even now that they’re completely not exotic, and you can order one at any sandwich shop across the country.) Regular Reubens, turkey Reubens, even Reuben dip … I adore them all!
But what I don’t adore is the nutritional profile that comes along with them. Even though corned beef can actually be rather lean (the brand of deli-sliced extra-lean corned beef I buy has only about 1 gram of fat per slice), a typical Reuben is piled excessively high with meat … which adds up. Then you’ve got full-fat Swiss cheese, plus bottled salad dressing, which can pack on additional unhealthy fats and other less-than-healthy ingredients like high-fructose corn syrup.
Reuben dips are hardly much better, especially since they usually take all the problems of a Reuben sandwich and swirl in even more unhealthy fat in the form of full-fat cream cheese.
*Sigh*
Maybe the promised land of adulthood isn’t so swell after all …
But wait!
It doesn’t have to be that way!
I set out to make a seriously delicious, so-much healthier Reuben dip a couple of months ago, on Super Bowl Sunday.
I was shocked at my success (if I do say so myself ).
It rocked.
We scarfed it down.
It tasted just like a regular Reuben dip.
Huh!
I’ve made this recipe several times in the last couple of months, and always to rave reviews – even from people who are self-proclaimed Reuben lovers (and who have no idea whatsoever that they’re eating a healthified version of their fave Reuben party dip).
Oh, and since we’re all grown-ups here, and you’re probably at least as busy as I am (with all the grown-up stuff life brings), let me just say two more things that will make you happy, happy:
1) You can mix this right in the serving container if you want to! No extra dishes to wash! (*joy*)
2) You can mix this entire recipe together ahead of time, so all you have to do before you serve it is just heat it up! (*glee*)
Uh-huh! Turns out Reubens and happiness go hand-in-hand.
And even if I don’t spend my days roller skating and playing Barbies anymore, being a grown-up really is pretty darn swell … just as I’d always imagined it would be!
Love This Reuben Dip? Want Even More Appetizer Dips (for St. Patrick’s Day, or ANY day)? You’ve Just Gotta Try …
Edamame Hummus (green for St. Patrick’s Day!) from Two Healthy Kitchens
Avocado Onion Dip (green for St. Patrick’s Day!) from Diane at Created by Diane
Egg-amole (green for St. Patrick’s Day!) from Two Healthy Kitchens
Kale, Spinach & Artichoke Dip with Greek Yogurt (green for St. Patrick’s Day!) from Gina at So … Let’s Hang Out
Top 10 Healthy Hot Appetizer Dips from Two Healthy Kitchens
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Healthier Reuben Dip (Oven, Microwave or Crock Pot Appetizer Recipe)
Shared By: Two Healthy Kitchens
Yield: About 2 cups
Ingredients
⅓ cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
3 tablespoons ketchup (natural or organic, see note)
2 ounces reduced-fat cream cheese, softened
4 teaspoons sweet pickle relish (natural or organic, see note)
1½ teaspoons white vinegar
½ teaspoon hot sauce (such as Frank’s Red Hot)
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
4 ounces extra-lean deli corned beef, chopped (see note)
4 ounces reduced-fat Swiss cheese, shredded
¼ cup sauerkraut
finely chopped parsley (if desired), for garnish
For serving: whole grain crackers, or mini appetizer-sized slices of rye or pumpernickel bread (lightly toasted, if desired)
Preparation
In a medium bowl (or directly in an un-greased serving container, such as an 8×8 baking pan, a small oval baking dish, a pie pan or a mini slow cooker insert), thoroughly combine Greek yogurt, ketchup, cream cheese, pickle relish, vinegar, hot sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt. Stir in corned beef, Swiss cheese, and sauerkraut.
Cook dip mixture according to your cooking method of choice (see below), until the cheese is melted and the dip is hot throughout.
Garnish with parsley, if desired, and serve with crackers or appetizer breads.
MICROWAVE DIRECTIONS:
In an ungreased, microwave-safe serving dish, heat on high for about 2 minutes. Stir, and continue heating on high for an additional 2 minutes (or until thoroughly heated and bubbly at the edges). Exact cooking time may vary depending on the wattage and power of your microwave.
OVEN DIRECTIONS:
In an ungreased, oven-safe serving dish, bake dip at 350°F for 15-20 minutes (until thoroughly heated and bubbly at the edges), stirring halfway through cooking time.
CROCK POT DIRECTIONS:
This dip can be kept hot for parties by using a mini (1- to 2-quart) slow cooker. Cook the dip in the slow cooker until hot and melted throughout, at least an hour or two (depending on the wattage of your slow cooker), and keep the dip hot in the slow cooker throughout your party.
If you’re short on time before serving this, alternately, you can quickly heat this according to the microwave directions above, and then transfer the already-heated dip to your mini slow cooker to keep it hot during your party.
Notes
Ketchup and pickle relish: We recommend purchasing natural or organic brands of these two items whenever possible, in order to avoid brands that have high-fructose corn syrup and other “questionable” ingredients.
Corned beef: What you want to purchase is very lean corned beef, like what you would get at the deli counter, not a large corned beef brisket. While the extra-lean deli slices should weigh in at just a gram or so of fat per ounce, a brisket is often about three or four times that.
Make-ahead tips: This dip can easily be mixed together ahead of time, several hours or even a day before serving. Simply cover with plastic and refrigerate. Then remove the plastic and heat.
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