Cheesy Spinach Artichoke Breadsticks

 

Guess what. I have a really awesome surprise for you!

 

Well, I guess it's not really that great of a surprise for you. It's mostly great for me. The only thing you'll be getting out of this is some photos of pina coladas on sandy beaches or something. 

Ooops. I just gave away the surprise.

Okay, here it is anyways: the time is finally ripe to migrate to Florida! Christmas and skiing are over. We had our token snowstorm. There's really not much else keeping us here now.

 I was actually pretty surprised myself. I mean, I've known that we were going for a long time, but I didn't realize how soon it was until I got home from a party tonight and saw a crate full of Doritos and granola bars and I was like, "Mom, why are there crates of delicious road trip snacks stuffed into every corner of the house?"

And she said, "Um... because we're going to Florida this week."

And I was like, "WHAT! WHAT? WHAT! That's not enough time for me to get skinny!"

Holey moley. Where does the time fly?

Anyways, I'll try to post a little still while we're gone, since we're going to be there for like a month.


Don't be jealous.

For now, you can take comfort in these wonderful breadsticks.

They really are quite easy to make. Just make some bread dough, throw together some spinach artichoke dip, smother said dough in said dip, smother in more cheese, toss it in the oven, and you will have something like this...

True beauty, my friends. This is what it looks like. Soak it in.

Cheesy Spinach Artichoke Breadsticks

1 tablespoon yeast
1/2 cup warm water (somewhere between 105º and 115º. I just get it hot from the tap)
3 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon sugar
2 cups flour
1/2 tablespoon garlic salt (regular salt also works)

4 oz. softened cream cheese
3 tablespoons sour cream
1/4 cup mayonaise
7.5 oz. jar of artichokes, chopped
2 cups chopped fresh spinach
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 cloves minced garlic
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Mix together the yeast, water, oil, and butter. Let sit for 3 minutes or until the yeast is dissolved.
Add the sugar and then the flour and mix in a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment for 10 minutes. Add the garlic salt in while it's mixing. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm moist place for about 1/2 hour or until doubled.
Meanwhile, mix together the remaining ingredients, reserving 1 cup of the mozzarella for the top.
Grease a baking sheet and spread the dough onto it. It doesn't have to cover the whole sheet. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise for 1/2 hour more. Heat oven to 400º.
Cover the bread with the spinach artichoke mixture and top with the remaining mozzarella. Bake for 10 minutes at 400º, then turn down the heat to 350º and bake for about 15 minutes more or until the edges are crispy and browned.

Feel free to use store bought bread dough and/or leftover spinach artichoke dip. Use your imaginations, people!