Dips and spreads are easy ways to make your regular food exciting. If you are hosting a party, you could make fancy dips and spreads to surprise your guests. A lot of people on low-calorie diets also look for dips and spreads to make their salads taste better. With added fat, carbohydrates and other rich ingredients, most ready-made dips do nothing but add those extra pounds. Below are five amazing low-calorie dips and spreads you should try out the next time you want some yummy, healthy food.

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Yogurt and pesto dip

Ingredients

• 1 cup of fresh basil leaves
• ½ cup of yogurt (unflavored)
• 2 garlic cloves– peeled
• Salt to taste
• Handful of finely cut chives

How to prepare:
Add the garlic cloves, basil leaves, and salt to a food processor and finely blend it. Hand-whisk the yogurt until it is smooth and creamy. Add the basil paste and the yogurt to a serving bowl and sprinkle chives on top.

Avocado Hummus

Ingredients

• 1 cup canned chickpeas
• 1 ripe avocado
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• Handful of chopped cilantro leaves
• 1 garlic clove
• Few teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil
• Salt to taste

How to prepare:
Blend the chickpeas , avocado, salt, and garlic to a paste depending on how smooth or chunky you like it. Add lemon juice and olive oil and sprinkle the cilantro on top.

Pumpkin spread

Ingredients

• 1 can pumpkin
• 1/2 cup low fat cream cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon each of cinnamon and nutmeg
• 1 spoon sugar to taste

How to prepare:
Blend pumpkin pieces and cream cheese to a fine, smooth paste. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugar and mix well. You can serve this chilled as a spread for whole grain toasts or add this as a topping for fresh fruits like apples, bananas, and pears.

 Tangy salsa

Ingredients

• 3 tomatoes
• 1 white onion
• 2 teaspoons of jalapenos chopped
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• A handful of cilantro
• 1 small garlic clove
• Salt to taste

How to prepare:
Finely chop the white onion, garlic clove and chop the tomatoes. Squeeze some lime and mix all the ingredients together and give it a quick pulse in a processor. Serve chilled!

Seasonal fruits and almond butter spread

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons almond butter
• A handful of blueberries /strawberries/bananas/mangoes
• 1/2 teaspoon honey

How to prepare:
Blend all these ingredients together for a minute until you get a smooth paste. You can then spread this on your toast for a power packed and healthy snack or breakfast. When you keep changing the fruits, you will not get bored with this spread. You can also make this in advance and refrigerate for a week.

When you follow a low-calorie diet , it does not necessarily mean you should punish your taste buds. When you choose the right ingredients, you can control what you eat and still enjoy every bite you take. Give up buying canned food or opting for takeaways. Try spending time in your kitchen, experiment on different food options and pick the one that suits your taste.

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