This vegan roasted garlic white bean dip is creamy and spreadable, thanks to the addition of tahini and the naturally tender texture of cannellini beans. Oven-roasting brings out garlic’s natural sweetness and intensity, and this dip incorporates an entire head of roasted garlic for depth of flavor. Use the white bean dip as a nutritious spread for sandwiches, as an accompaniment to crackers or crudités, or as a topping for your next grain bowl.

I’m so excited to tell you about this white bean dip.

Yes, it’s just a humble bean dip. But there are times when an unassuming recipe overdelivers in a big way, and this is one of them.

The dip isn’t entirely new to me. The first time I made it, it was actually a component in my vegan polenta tart with white bean dip and oven-roasted tomatoes.

I’ve been on a oven-roasted cherry tomato kick this summer, making batch after batch.

Needless to say, I’ve used this as an excuse to revisit the polenta tart—delicious!—and the white bean dip that’s part of it. I’m so glad that I did.

This dip is really special. It’s not a ground-breaking idea; there are many recipes for white bean dips or spreads out there, and many of those incorporate garlic.

But the dip is just perfect in its flavor and creamy, almost whipped consistency. Roasted garlic—a whole head of sweet, tender caramelized cloves—creates a surprisingly richly flavored dip.

Rather than using olive oil as a primary fat source, I use tahini, which I think enhances the dip’s creamy consistency.

Let’s get into it!

The versatility of white beans

There’s a reason that I create so many vegan recipes using white beans: they’re tremendously versatile.

White beans, which is really a family of beans that includes cannellini beans, navy beans, and great northern beans, among others, have a beautifully creamy texture.

As a result, they can be used whole in recipes, but you can also easily smash or blend them up.

I use whole beans in my warm, wintery sauteed leeks and white beans and in my summer vegetable and white bean pasta.

Meanwhile, I use smashed beans in a dish that’s a sister recipe to this one, my garlic tahini smashed white bean salad.

I blend white beans up entirely to prepare my spaghetti and white bean balls and my cheesy vegan broccoli quinoa bake.

One type of bean, so many possible applications.

For this roasted garlic white bean dip, cannellini beans are blended into a spreadable, savory, garlicky mixture. I use my food processor for this job, though a high-speed blender will also do the trick.

An especially nutritious dip (or spread)

In addition to being versatile, what beans are also highly nutritious, which the dietitian in me loves. A half cup serving of white beans will provide a good amount all of the following nutrients:

• Protein
• Dietary fiber
• Folate
• Iron
• Potassium
• Phosphorus
• Magnesium
• Zinc

The dip features another one of my go-to ingredients, tahini.

There’s not a lot of tahini in the white bean dip: just two tablespoons, which helps to create a creamy mixture.

Even so, the tahini that’s present is nutrient-dense, a source of fiber, selenium, iron and calcium.

While I do serve this dip as a dip—something for dunking my crackers and pita wedges and raw veggies—I also love to use it as an alternative to mayo in sandwiches.

Sure, mayo can be delicious. But even my homemade vegan mayo with cashews is a little less nutrient-rich than this bean dip, which provides you with one new, low-key opportunity to sneak legumes into your diet.

Stop before you rinse

My recipes typically call for canned beans that have been drained and rinsed. Sometimes, that rinsing step is important for separating the beans.

However, bean canning liquid has its own unique set of properties. Bean canning liquid typically contains some starch.

Aquafaba, which is the canning liquid specific to chickpeas, contains a proportion of protein that makes it suitable as an egg replacer in vegan baking and dessert recipes.

That starch in bean canning liquid can actually be useful for certain recipes. In the case of this white bean dip, it helps to create a rich, creamy consistency.

Be sure not to rinse your white beans before adding them to your food processor. Additionally, you’ll want to reserve a quarter cup of their canning liquid for the blending process.

Typically, oil or another fat source is used for this purpose: to facilitate blending and create a rich, emulsified texture.

Canning liquid will do the same, all while allowing you to keep the amount of added fat moderate. It’s a really nice option for those who are mindful of fats in their diet.

And it’s worth saying that the tahini in the dip is one of the “good fats.” It’s just about a 50/50 split of heart-healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.

Roasting garlic: deeper flavor, less kick

Along with a touch of freshly squeezed lemon juice, roasted garlic is this white bean dip’s predominant flavor note. And what a wonderful note it is.

I’ve always struggled a bit with raw, or lightly cooked, garlic. I find it very spicy, and I don’t love how I continue to taste it for hours after I eat.

This dislike used to be a lot more pronounced, and as I was first getting into cooking, I rarely used much garlic at all.

The method that helped me warm up to garlic was oven-roasting.

Roasting garlic in the oven, or cooking it low and slow, will caramelize some of the allium’s naturally occurring sugars.

The ultra-zippy, pungent quality of raw garlic gives way to a deep, sweet flavor that’s still distinctly savory. And that flavor will animate this white bean dip.

If the recipe gets you excited about the possibilities of enjoying garlic this way, know that roasted garlic cloves can also be blended into vinaigrettes or even spread directly onto toast.

How to make roasted garlic white bean dip with tahini

The most time consuming step in making the white bean dip is to roast the garlic. After that, the dip itself is so easy.

Step 1: Oven-roast a head of garlic

My favorite method for roasting garlic is to foil-wrap it and pop it into the oven, similarly to how I make oven-roasted beets.

Before doing that, I slice the top of a head of garlic off crosswise, trimming and exposing the tops of the cloves.

I drizzle a tiny bit of olive oil over the cloves, then wrap them tightly in foil and transfer them to a baking sheet.

The oil is optional; I think it makes it easier to pop the cloves out of their skins once roasted, but you can omit it if you prefer to.

Transfer the wrapped garlic head to a baking sheet and roast it at 400°F / 200°C for 40-45 minutes. When you unwrap the garlic, you should be able to pierce it easily with a knife.

If it’s not yet that tender, you can return it to the oven for another 5-10 minutes.

Step 2: Drain the white beans

In step 2, you’ll drain your can of white beans (one 15-oz /425g can). As you do this, reserve one quarter cup of the canning liquid. Don’t rinse the beans.

If you would prefer to use white beans that you’ve cooked from scratch, you can replace that canning liquid with water.

Step 3: Transfer the dip ingredients to a food processor

Next, you’ll place the white beans, lemon juice, tahini, salt, and pepper to taste in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the S blade. 

Here’s a fun moment: squeeze all of the garlic from the roasted garlic head into the food processor. Yes, all of it!

Pulse the beans and other ingredients a few times to break them down.

Then, start running the motor of the processor to blend the dip. As you do, drizzle in two tablespoons of the reserved canning liquid through the machine’s pouring spout.

Continue processing the dip for a couple minutes, or until it’s spreadable and smooth. Stop once during blending to scrape the sides of the processor down.

If the dip is thicker than you’d like, you can drizzle in the remaining two tablespoons of reserved canning liquid.

Step 4: Serve

At this point, your dip is ready to serve.

You can accompany it with crudités, crackers, toast points, or a flatbread.

You can also try to use this recipe as a creamy spread, layering it onto bread for your next vegan sandwich. It makes a killer vegan BLT!

Meal prep & storage

Once prepared, the roasted garlic white bean dip can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days.

You can also easily freeze this dip for your future self. It can be frozen for up to eight weeks, then defrosted in the fridge overnight before enjoying (again).

I’m a huge fan of hummus in many different varieties. However, variety in all areas of diet is so important, and I love that this roasted garlic white bean dip gives me a delicious and adaptable alternative.

I hope that you’ll agree!

xo