Plop This Store-Bought Appetizer On Top Of Your Baked Potatoes And Thank Us Later

A baked potato paired with a juicy steak is a match made in heaven, but those roasted spuds can be just as appealing on their own under the right circumstances. We're all familiar with the popular baked potato toppings — butter, sour cream, chives, and crispy bacon. Though there's nothing wrong with those gems at all, there's so much more potential to unleash with less conventional toppings — one of the creamiest and most flavorful being store-bought spinach and artichoke dip.

Whether you have a freshly purchased appetizer on hand or you're trying to use up leftover spinach and artichoke dip, using it as a topping for a baked potato might change your life. Potatoes, baked or otherwise, need a lot of help to become a tasty dish. The creamy cheese, onions, and notes of garlic in spinach and artichoke dip work as a team to instantly take the spud to another level. The best part: It's easy as can be. Once you've baked a potato until it's soft, just plop on a generous helping of the dip and put it back in the oven for about five minutes. When you see the luscious topping start to brown a bit, that's your sign dinner is served.

The terrific thing about this baked potato upgrade is that it turns a simple side dish into something more substantial, so you can enjoy it by itself as a satisfying meal. And, like any great recipe, there are ways to make this leveled-up dish even better.

Using a classic appetizer as a baked potato topping makes for a delicious dish, but you can make it really pop with different techniques. Instead of simply topping the spud, scoop out the starchy interior when your baked potato is done cooking, setting aside the skin. Mix that fluffy goodness into your spinach and artichoke dip, and while you're at it, toss in sauteed shallots, asiago cheese, and salt and pepper for additional flavor. Once it's fully blended, fill your empty skin with the mixture and put it back in the oven for about 20 minutes. The skin will become ultra crispy with the extra baking time, and the filling will be bubbly and perfectly browned by the time it's ready to come out of the oven.

If you're willing to forgo the convenience of store-bought dip, you can make a dairy-free version of the dish yourself. Just substitute coconut cream for cream cheese, and use coconut oil instead of butter to saute your spinach and onions. The coconut flavor also adds a sweet depth to the dish that's otherwise hard to duplicate.

Whether you keep it traditional or opt for a dairy-free recipe, piling some roasted veggies on your plate alongside the baked potato truly makes this a complete meal. Of course, if you've really got an appetite, there's no rule saying you can't enjoy the baked potato with a steak or your favorite protein.