This Keto Spinach and Artichoke Casserole is the perfect culmination of several of my obsessions: Dips, Casseroles, Stuffing, Cheesy / Creamy Things
Yeah, this hits all of those marks in a crowd-pleasing casserole that even my picky eaters loved. For most people I know and read, “picky eaters” usually refers to kids. In my case, it’s really mostly adults. 🙂 Trying new things can be scary at any age. Fortunately, they are usually willing to humor me. This one didn’t require any humoring. It was simply a winner.
What You Need to Make Keto Spinach and Artichoke Casserole
Equipment
- Rimmed Baking Sheet – I line mine with heavy duty aluminum foil for easy clean up. Also if you have any questions about what I mean by “rimmed baking sheet” see my notes on Rimmed Baking Sheets / Half Sheet Pans.
- Cheesecloth or Strainer – This is for straining the cooked spinach. I highly recommend the cheesecloth method.
- Grater – You only need this if you can’t find pre-shredded cheese. Since we’re just talking about mozzarella and parmesan here, I’m guessing that you can easily get your hands on pre-shredded versions. That said, pre-shredded versions usually have a light anti-caking coating to keep the pieces from sticking together that has (in the brand I use) 1 gram of carbs per ¼ cup. If you shred your own cheese, you avoid that extra starch.
- Large Mixing Bowl – Make sure it is big enough that you can easily fold all of the ingredients together in the last pre-baking step without bread cubes flying out at you.
- 9 x 13 inch Casserole Dish – I usually use a Pyrex with a lid so that I can prep this in advance. However, depending on the use case, I would also make this in a disposable half size aluminum steam table pan, for which I also have lids. It’s a little less pretty of a presentation, but I have many parties where that isn’t important.
- Non-stick Cooking Spray
- Whisk – This is for beating the eggs and other wet ingredients.
- Large Rubber Scraper – Or Other Large Spoon
Ingredients
- White Keto Bread – This should be cubed and dried. If you are not trying to keep this keto / low carb, you can use regular white bread. Because the brand that I buy has relatively thin slices, I use 12 slices. Yours may differ, so another way to measure this is that it should be about 8 ounces.
- Spinach – I use 16 ounces of fresh spinach, which is half of a box or a 16 ounce bag. If bags at your grocery store only come in 5 ounce quantities, just use 3 (which will be 15 ounces) and call it a day. This will need to be chopped, cooked, and drained. You could also use frozen, but there is no reason that would not work as long as you thaw and drain it.
- Avocado Oil or Olive Oil – This is sauteing the spinach and garlic. The amount doesn’t have to be precise; you’re mostly just using it as a medium for wilting the spinach.
- Kosher Salt – This is to taste. I usually use about a teaspoon.
- Ground Black Pepper – This is also to taste. I usually use about a teaspoon.
- Minced Garlic – You can either choose to mince your own or use pre-minced. If you are mincing your own, you need about 6 cloves. If you are using pre-minced, you’ll need a tablespoon. I use pre-minced. I usually have a long list of things to prep and spending time mincing garlic is just not worth it to me.
- Artichoke Hearts – You’ll need 1 (14 ounce) can, drained and chopped.
- Shredded Mozzarella – You can either buy pre-shredded, which will add about 1 gram of carbs per ¼ cup or shred your own. You’ll need 6 ounces, which is about 1.5 cups.
- Grated Parmesan Cheese – You’ll need 4 ounces, which is about 1 cup, which will be divided. You will mix ½ of it together with all of the ingredients and you’ll sprinkle the remaining half on top of the casserole before baking it.
- Egg – I always use jumbo eggs
- Chicken Stock – You could also use vegetable stock to keep this dish vegetarian.
- Heavy Cream
- Sour Cream
- Mayonnaise
Getting Started with Making Keto Spinach and Artichoke Casserole
As with many of my casseroles and bread puddings, we start by cubing and drying the keto bread. If you are not trying to make this keto, you can use plain white bread or whatever other version you like. In a non-keto life, I would probably go for something more like a rustic Italian bread with a nice crust. With the keto bread that I use, this is 12 slices which should equate to about 8 ounces.
Preheat your oven to 250 degrees, line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil (for easy clean up). Lay out the bread cubes and bake for 20 minutes. Remove. Toss the cubes. Put them back in the oven for another 20 minutes. Remove them and set them aside. You can do this part of the prep a day or more in advance if you’re trying to space out your prep. I just toss the dried cubes in a zip top bag once they are cooled and then they are ready to go whenever.
Next up is veggie prep. Roughly chop 10 ounces of fresh spinach and 1 (14 ounce) can of artichoke hearts. If you were in a rush, you could get away without chopping the spinach but doing so helps to avoid what I’ll call stringy spinach pieces in the casserole. If you are not using pre-minced garlic, now would be the time to mince your garlic cloves as well. As stated on many occasions, I got tired of mincing garlic by hand and now just buy the pre-minced version in the large container at Sam’s. For this recipe, you’ll need 1 tablespoon of minced garlic or 6 cloves. You could also do this part a day in advance. Just store the veggies in zip top bags in the fridge.
Once you’re ready to put it all together, start by heating some oil over medium high heat. I usually wind up using between 1 and 2 tablespoons. Sauté the spinach until it is completely wilted. Add the garlic at the end and cook for another 30 seconds.
Remove to a cheesecloth and squeeze out the excess liquid. Then do the same thing with the chopped artichoke hearts.
Note: You could also use a strainer and just press out the liquid, but I find the cheesecloth method much easier, faster, and more thorough.
Place cooked spinach in cheesecloth.
Squeeze out all excess liquid.
Repeat the process with the chopped artichoke hearts.
In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg, heavy cream, stock, sour cream, and mayonnaise until well combined.
Add in the bread cubes, 6 ounces of shredded mozzarella, and 2 ounces of grated parmesan (this is half of the total parmesan). Stir until the bread cubes are completely coated.
Fold in the spinach, garlic, and artichoke hearts to the bowl until evenly distributed.
Pour the mixture into a greased 9 x 13” casserole dish. Sprinkle the remaining 2 ounces of grated parmesan on top.
This is another point at which you can pause, cover the casserole, and refrigerate it until you are ready to bake it.
When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. If you had refrigerated the casserole, take it out of the fridge and let it sit for 30 minutes before baking OR put the cold dish in the oven before you turn it on and let it preheat with the oven. Important Note: If you opt for the second method of putting the cold dish in the cold oven, just remember: Your bake time does not start until the oven preheating is finished.
Bake for 45-50 minutes. Serve warm.
Related Recipes
If your interested in some other savory stratas, bread puddings, or stuffings, you might want to take a look at these recipes:
- Keto Caprese Stuffing
- Keto Kentucky Hot Brown Casserole
- Keto Chicken, Ham, and Cheese Stuffing
- Reuben Raclette Casserole
- Keto Florentine Breakfast Strata
- Keto Ham and Cheese Breakfast Strata
Keto Spinach and Artichoke Casserole
Ingredients
- 12 slices White Keto Bread Cubed and dried. See Notes for alternatives.
- 16 ounces Fresh Spinach Chopped, cooked, and drained.
- 2 tablespoons Avocado Oil or Olive Oil
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt approximate measurement; season to taste
- 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper approximate measurement; season to taste
- 1 tablespoon Garlic Minced. About 6 cloves.
- 14 ounces Artichoke Hearts 1 (14 ounce) can. Drained and chopped.
- 6 ounces Mozzarella Shredded. About 1.5 cups.
- 4 ounces Parmesan Cheese Grated. About 1 cup. Divided: ½ mixed in with the other ingredients; ½ sprinkled on top.
- 1 Egg Beaten. I use jumbo eggs.
- 1 cup Chicken Stock See Notes.
- ½ cup Heavy Cream
- ¼ cup Sour Cream
- ¼ cup Mayonnaise
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 250 degrees F. Cut your bread into 1-inch cubes. Spread them on a rimmed baking sheet and place in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove, toss, and return them to the oven for another 20 minutes. Remove and let cool. Increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.12 slices White Keto Bread
- Roughly chop the spinach and the drained artichoke hearts.16 ounces Fresh Spinach, 14 ounces Artichoke Hearts
- Heat 1-2 tablespoons of oil over medium high heat. Saute the spinach until completely wilted. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds more. Salt and pepper to taste. Place the cooked spinach in a cheesecloth or strainer to remove excess liquid. (Cheesecloth works best.) Set aside.16 ounces Fresh Spinach, 2 tablespoons Avocado Oil or Olive Oil, 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt, 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper, 1 tablespoon Garlic
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg, stock, heavy cream, sour cream, and mayonnaise until well combined.1 Egg, 1 cup Chicken Stock, ½ cup Heavy Cream, ¼ cup Sour Cream, ¼ cup Mayonnaise
- Add the bread cubes into the mixing bowl, then the shredded mozzarella cheese and half of the parmesan. Stir to thoroughly coat.6 ounces Mozzarella, 4 ounces Parmesan Cheese, 12 slices White Keto Bread
- Mix in the spinach, artichoke hearts, and garlic until evenly distributed.
- Pour the mixture into a greased 9×13 inch. Top with the remaining ½ of the grated parmesan cheese. If you are prepping this advance, you can pause at this point, cover the casserole dish and store it in the fridge up to a day in advance until you are ready to bake it.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 – 50 minutes.
- Serve warm. (See Notes for alternative serving suggestion.)
Equipment
- Rimmed Baking Sheet I line mine with heavy duty aluminum foil for easy clean up.
- Cheesecloth or Strainer for straining the cooked spinach
- Grater if you can’t find or don't want to use pre-shredded cheese
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Non-stick Cooking Spray
- Whisk for beating the eggs and other liquids
- Large Rubber Scraper or Other Large Spoon
Notes
- Bread Options
- For the bread, if you are not trying to keep this keto / low carb, you can use regular white bread. The number of slices–12–is based on the relatively thin slices that my keto bread comes in. This should be about 8 ounces of bread cubes (dried).
- If you want it to be keto, but don’t have access to store-bought keto bread, I would suggest using this Keto Cheesy Skillet Bread recipe from All Day I Dream About Food. Just make it, cube it, and then dry out the cubes in the oven like you would with the store-bought bread. However, it will take a bit longer. Just keep an eye on it so that you don’t burn your hard work.
- Cheese
- I topped this with parmesan cheese. However, you could also use some provolone or more mozzarella.
- Stock
- I used my Homemade Chicken+ Broth, because that’s what I happened to have. However, you could use vegetable stock to keep this dish vegetarian if you prefer.)
