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This white bean dip blends cannellini beans, fresh herbs, and olive oil into a quick and appetizer. It’s my favorite alternative to hummus!
I love creating healthy recipes for easy entertaining. My philosophy is that recipes with healthy, whole foods can be just as delicious than their counterparts, so why not serve something healthy and avoid that bloated, heavy feeling afterwards? That’s where this white bean dip comes in.
For this recipe, I wanted to create something that was an alternative to the typical hummus, but just as tasty. This garlic herb white bean dip is perfect for using fresh herbs and it tastes even better than hummus, in my opinion. It’s sure to become a household favorite!
5 Star Reader Review
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “So easy and delicious! I added basil and dill and a little extra garlic. Thanks for the recipe!” -Lina
Ingredients In White Bean Dip
There’s a small handful of ingredients needed here:
- Cannellini beans: These are the star. Great Northern or butter beans work too. You can also use 3 cups of white beans cooked from dry.
- Fresh herbs: You can use any fresh herbs you like. It’s especially easy in the summertime when we have lots of herbs in our garden. In the winter you can splurge on some store-bought herbs, or throw in a few spoonfuls of basil pesto to taste. My favorite here is fresh basil: its flavor is beautifully fresh. If you use rosemary, remember that a little rosemary goes a long way, so only use a few leaves.
- Garlic: This adds a nice savory flavor that’s reminiscent of hummus.
- Olive oil: This adds the richness and creaminess to the dip.
- White wine vinegar: This adds brightness, or you can also add lemon juice.
How To Make White Bean Dip
This white bean dip recipe is very simple to prepare. To make white bean dip or any type of blended dip like hummus, you’ll need a food processor on hand. Here’s the food processor I use.
To make the dip, simply blend everything up in the food processor: it takes only 5 to 10 minutes to put together! Its great as a party appetizer, especially since it’s a gluten-free and vegan bean dip. It’s also perfect for lunches: I sometimes make a big batch to eat with celery and carrots.
Pro Tips For The Best Texture and Flavor
- Reserve a little bean liquid. Before draining, save a few tablespoons from the can. If the dip is thicker than you want, you can add the starchy liquid to bring it to a creamier texture.
- Use lemon juice instead of vinegar for a brighter version. Swap in 2 to 3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice plus a little zest.
- Make it a day ahead. The flavor tastes even better after it chills for an hour.
What To Serve With White Bean Dip
Here are a few things I like to serve with this dip:
- Vegetables: Carrots (especially rainbow carrots like above), celery, cucumbers, radishes, and blanched green beans.
- Bread and crackers: Try it with easy crostini, grilled bread, warm pita, homemade crackers, or pita chips.
- As a sandwich spread: You can actually spread it on bread for a hit of protein and fiber, instead of mayo.
- On toast: Pile it thick, top with a jammy egg or blistered tomatoes, a shortcut to white beans on toast.
- As a base under grilled things. Add grilled shrimp, grilled chicken, or vegetables right on top. One reader serves it alongside grilled fish instead of mashed potatoes!
- On a dip spread: Put it out next to whipped feta or tzatziki. See my 30 easy dip recipes.
Dietary Notes
This white bean dip is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.
Garlic Herb White Bean Dip
This white bean dip blends cannellini beans, fresh herbs, and olive oil into a quick and appetizer. It’s my favorite alternative to hummus!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 8 to 10 1x
- Category: Snack
- Method: Blended
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 medium garlic clove
- ½ cup packed fresh herbs (basil, thyme, oregano, chives, a small amount of rosemary leaves)
- 2 15-ounce cans cannellini beans
- ½ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- To serve: carrots, celery, veggies, crackers, bread, pita, pita chips, homemade crackers, or crostini
Instructions
- Peel the garlic. Remove any tough stems from the herbs; measure out ½ cup (remember with rosemary, a little goes a long way). Drain and rinse the white beans, saving some of the can liquid in a liquid measuring cup.
- In the bowl of a food processor, add garlic and herbs and process until finely chopped.
- Add the white beans, olive oil, white wine vinegar, kosher salt, and black pepper. Process until smooth, scraping down the bowl as necessary. To make it creamier, add a bit of the liquid from the bean can and process until smooth. Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
So easy and delicious! I added basil and dill and a little extra garlic. Thanks for the recipe!
What happened to the kale-pesto version? That was amazing
There’s an archived version here: https://web.archive.org/web/20161005000902/acouplecooks.com/kale-pesto-bean-dip/
My sister in law serves this as an alternative to mashed potatoes with grilled fish. Delicious!
What a great idea! LOVE that creative usage!
I just made this dip last night ! It was delicious! I made it using canned beans, so I used 2 cans of rinsed and drained beans I also added less salt to compensate for the canned beans. I also wound up using about 6 tbsp of olive oil. I will make this again for sure! It was perfect with both veggies and crackers!
This looks so good! Love it, one of my favorite dips!
What a perfect dip for entertaining.
This looks yummy and healthy.
I also watched the video. Very cool kitchen you’ve got indeed.
Ooh, gorgeous recipe. I think some pitta chips would be perfect with this!
I always forget how much I like white bean dip. I often rely on hummus, but this looks really lovely, and the best part is my husband can have it (he can’t eat chickpeas)!
What a dreamy sounding dip. Garlic and rosemary is such a lovely combination of flavours and this would be such a great holiday appetizer.
Bean dip is always a great addition to holiday spread. I love white bean dip especially but rarely make it. Thanks for a great recipe and reminder of how delicious and simple holiday entertaining can be!
I make something like this all the time, only with lemon juice. I like the vinegar option since it’s shelf-stable and usually in the pantry. Always a crowd pleaser!
I’ve never made my own beans before, but I’d heard that the texture is outta this world when you do! Going to give it a try :)
I love finding new, easy appetizers to make for parties. This looks delicious!
Great idea! I’ve always liked healthy low calorie dips with carrots and peppers and I haven’t seen this one anywhere yet. *thumbs up*
Can’t wait to try it !
This sounds so good! I think I might have to give this a try and bring it to some of the holiday functions this year!
Oh this sounds so wonderful! I love rosemary and garlic! Any healthy dip is a winner in my book, thanks for sharing!