Ingredients:

1 small radius loaf of good French bread, sliced into quarter inch slices and toasted on each side under broiler
1 5.3 oz. container Greek yogurt
1 can small artichoke hearts, drained thoroughly, and chopped
1 C finely grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 heaping T mayonnaise
1/8 t thyme leaves
1/8 t rosemary leaves
½ t crushed red pepper flakes
½ C cooked spinach, all moisture pressed out, chopped
3 1/8” slices of white onion, diced small
Pepper
Juice from one lemon divided into 1 teaspoon and 2 teaspoons
1 large orange sweet pepper cut into long strips
1 T canola oil
Salt
1 T red wine vinegar
1/8 t allspice

Direction:

• Toast bread, set aside. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• In a large fry pan, heat the 1 T oil. Add the peppers and let sear on high heat. When there is charring on the peppers and they become a bit soft, add a bit of salt, and black pepper, then the lemon juice (first) and then the vinegar. Then sprinkle lightly with allspice. Let cook until lemon juice is reduced. Remove from pan and let cool in a bowl.
• In another large bowl, combine yogurt, artichoke hearts, spinach, cheese, mayo, herbs, lemon juice, onion, red pepper flakes, and black pepper, (you don’t really need a lot of extra salt, as the parmesan cheese is salty, as are the chokes.) Add more mayo if it needs to be more moist. It should be VERY gooey and moist. Combine. Place all ingredients in a small casserole dish. Cook for 35 to 40 minutes, until edges are brown. Serve by spreading warm dip on bread and then topping with cool orange pepper slice.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

½ lb. Jimmy Dean Hot Sausage, cooked and broken down (half the regular package)
½ C cooked chopped spinach, all water squeezed out. (I use the frozen kind. It is quicker.)
½ C 2% small curd cottage cheese
1/3 C fresh grated Parmesan Cheese
2 eggs, divided
½ t salt, ¼ t pepper
1 and 1/3 sheets of puff pastry
2 T flour
½ C warmed green jalapeno jelly

Direction:

• Bring the puff pastry to room temperature, about 45 minutes thawing on counter. Thaw and use right away. Don’t want to thaw and then let it sit. While thawing, brown the sausage and set aside. Cook the spinach, drain, remove all moisture, set aside. (You can also use leftover cooked spinach and leftover cooked sausage. Just bring to room temperature. Then this is SUPER quick!) Mix the cottage cheese, 1 egg, salt and pepper, parmesan cheese. Then stir in the spinach to the cheese mixture and blend evenly.
• Beat the second egg in a small bowl, set aside. Roll out the puff pastry, attaching 1/3 panel of the other puff pastry sheet to make the one sheet. Press seams so it won’t tear. Sprinkle with flour and roll it out to about 10% bigge,r or so that it is about 12 inches tall by 16-18 inches long. Spread the cheese spinach mixture atop the dough, spreading out to edges but leaving a 1.5” lip on each of the long sides for sealing and rolling. Then sprinkle with the cooked sausage. Starting from one end, carefully roll the whole thing lengthwise, meaning that the finished roll will be 12 inches long. When you get to the end, brush the inside width of the reveal with the egg wash, and seal well. Form carefully with your hands so everything is bound together but not squished. Cut into 1” wheels, using a sharp serrated knife for ease of cutting through the stubborn spinach. Should be 12 wheels.
• Arrange on a large cookie sheet. Bake for 18 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom. Don’t overcook!
• Serve atop a swirl of heated jalapeno jelly. Seriously, awesome!