This Spinach Artichoke Grilled Cheese is totally indulgent. It’s like your favorite restaurant appetizer turned into a meal (because you were going to eat that spinach artichoke dip as your meal anyway, right?). I’ve taken a basic spinach artichoke dip recipe, tweaked the ingredients to be a little more like a melty grilled cheese than a gooey dip, then stuffed it between two pieces of my favorite no knead focaccia bread. It’s a golden brown, crispy, melty, gooey delight.
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Is This a Melt or a Grilled Cheese?
Okay, so technically this type of sandwich is called a “melt.” A melt is a grilled cheese that has other ingredients added, like vegetables or meat, whereas a grilled cheese is a cheese-only grilled sandwich. While the difference between a melt and a grilled cheese often sparks heated debates, I want people to be able to find this recipe on the internet, and the data shows that people are searching for “spinach artichoke grilled cheese,” not “spinach artichoke melt” (literally zero Google searches for that term per month). The English language is fluid, and the use of the term “melt” is declining. So here we are!
Do I Have to Use Focaccia?
I made this sandwich with my homemade focaccia bread, but you can use any bread that you’d like. I love the focaccia because it’s really sturdy, which you want in order to hold up to the hefty filling, and it crisps up so well because of it’s olive oil soaked exterior.
If you’d like to use a different kind of bread, you’ll probably want to smear a little butter on each slice to get that nice golden brown crispy exterior. You can also stuff this filling into a tortilla and cook it up like a quesadilla!
Can I Use Fresh Spinach?
Yes, if you prefer to work with fresh spinach, simply chop it up and sauté it briefly in a skillet to cook out some of the moisture, then continue with the recipe as stated.
How Much Does This Recipe Make?
This recipe makes about 2 cups worth of sandwich filling, which will get you either two large grilled cheese sandwiches, or four smaller sandwiches.
Can I Make the Spinach Artichoke Filling Ahead?
Live alone? Don’t feel pressured to eat all the Spinach Artichoke Grilled Cheese filling in one sitting (No, that’s not a dare). You can keep the sandwich filling in the refrigerator for about 4-5 days and make sandwiches or quesadillas as you see fit.
Pictured with Tomato Herb Soup on a small enamelware tray (affiliate link).
Spinach Artichoke Grilled Cheese
Servings 2 large sandwichesIngredients
- 1/4 lb. frozen chopped spinach ($0.50)
- ½ 12oz. jar quartered artichoke hearts in water ($1.30)
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella ($0.85)
- 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan ($0.22)
- 2 Tbsp mayonnaise ($0.20)
- 1/8 tsp garlic powder ( $0.02)
- 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper (optional) ($0.02)
- 1/8 tsp salt ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked black pepper ($0.02)
- 2 pieces focaccia* ($1.19)
- 2 tsp butter (optional) ($0.26)
Instructions
- Thaw the spinach, then squeeze out as much water as possible. You should have about 1 cup chopped spinach before squeezing the water out and about 1/2 cup after squeezing.
- Drain the artichoke hearts well, then chop them into small bite-sized pieces. Add the chopped artichokes to a large bowl with the spinach, mozzarella, Parmesan, mayonnaise, garlic powder, crushed red pepper, salt, and pepper. Stir the ingredients until evenly combined.
- Spread about 1/2 tsp butter on each slice of bread. Pack about 1 cup of the cheese and vegetable mixture between two slices of bread, buttered sides facing out.
- Place the sandwiches in a large skillet and cook over medium-low heat until the outsides are golden brown and the filling has melted. Serve immediately.
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Notes
Nutrition
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Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Spinach Artichoke Grilled Cheese – Step by Step Photos
Begin with about 1/4 lb. frozen chopped spinach. Thaw the spinach, then squeeze out as much moisture as possible. You’ll want about 1 cup unsqueezed, or 1/2 cup after squeezing dry.
Drain one 1/2 of a 12oz. jar of quartered artichoke hearts (packed in water), then chop them into small pieces.
Add the chopped artichokes to a large bowl with the spinach, 1 cup shredded mozzarella, 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan, 2 Tbsp mayonnaise, 1/8 tsp garlic powder, 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper, ⅛ tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper.
Stir the ingredients until they’re evenly mixed. There should be just enough mayo to make the ingredients all stick together. You can refrigerate the filling at this point and use it later, or throughout the week.
If you’re using focaccia, slice the pieces in half so you have a top and bottom piece. If you’re using regular bread, you’ll want to spread a little butter on the outsides of each piece of bread. Fill each sandwich with about 1 cup of the filling.
Cook the sandwiches in a large skillet over medium low heat until each side is golden brown and the filling is melted.
Buttery, crispy, artichokey goodness!
That was not a grilled chesse it was a sandwich
I have been wanting to make this recipe for so long, and finally had the leftover artichokes to do it. Made on Budget Bytes focaccia, it was SO delicious, and a great “clean out the fridge” meal. Honestly, I doubted the mayonnaise in the filling, but I shouldn’t have. Budget Bytes recipes are good, and I know it from how many I’ve made. Thanks, Beth and team for another great dining experience thanks for your website.
My fiancé and I have absolutely loved this recipe! We come back to it frequently as a staple for a meal! Thank you for sharing this deliciousness with us!
Absolutely delicious! I used sourdough bread, but it was easy, quick, filling and very tasty. Thank you for sharing!
I’m cooking for one at the moment, so I made a full batch of the filling and stored it in the fridge. Then, when I get home from work (tired and hungry), it’s super easy to scoop some of the prepared filling on bread and make my sandwich. Yum! Grilled cheese is such a comfort food, but adding that extra dose of veggies makes this a real win for me. Thanks, Beth!
Made it but had no foccacia and had to use sourdough. Excellent. Got rid of some leftovers in the house, saved my wallet, and had something different. I printed about 60 of your recipes from omnivore collection, crockpot collection, one -pot collection, and vegetarian collections for some good, healthy, simple, budget-saving eating packed with nutrients.
This recipe was soooo good. I wanted to eat it all.
Warning: I didn’t follow the recipe to a tee but I LOVED this. I know this would probably have been even better if I had followed it as written, but I try to use up what I have already instead of following a recipe all the time.
Alterations I made:
I made this as quesadilla filling and cooked in my waffle maker for easy clean up.
I am assuming I doubled the batch because I don’t measure stuff lol. I ended up with about three large quesadillas.
I used as much frozen spinach as I had on hand but it was probably about two tbsp.
I added two handfuls of canned peas because I hate them and needed to use them. I knew this would hide them well. I did rinse and dry then thoroughly first.
I was out of red pepper flakes so I had to sub in cayenne pepper.
Other things that would be delicious with this would be mushrooms and chicken.
So, so good. One of my favorite grilled cheese recipes that I make frequently. Loved by kids and everyone I serve it to. I make it on sourdough bread because I always have it on hand.
I tried this recipe everything turned out great except the taste of the homemade focaccia bread. I was disappointed in the bread so I used regular bread and it was wonderful. The spinach and artichoke ingredients was also great with eggs.
Oh my gosh this is so simple and delicious! I just used nature’s own honey wheat bread because it’s what I had, and it held up just fine. The filling is savory and creamy amd super satisfying with a bowl of tomato soup. Perfect for a Saturday lunch!
Was a little bit nervous to try this one out, but I ended up loving this recipe. I couldn’t find focaccia at my grocery store, so I ended up using ciabatta instead and it was WONDERFUL, especially with the tomato soup! I’ll definitely be making this again.
Loved it! I love anything spinach-artichoke. Simple, quick, and hearty recipe. Served it with a bowl of tomato soup. Made a second “sandwich” shortly after to confirm it was a great as I thought it was the first time around and of course it held up. Another winner and personal favorite.
Ohmyyyy!!!!! I cannot wait to make this recipe!!!!! Sounds soooo delicious!!!!! Thank u!!!!!
I just made this and I’m in heaven! It’s simple and delicious. I’ve shared the recipe with my family and they all love it too. Thanks for another great recipe!!!
Very good! A new favorite. I had a little filling left over and mixed some of it with an egg for a sloppy omelette and then used the rest on a toasted corn tortilla.
Starving college student and I live off of this. Worth every single little penny.
Love this! I have also subbed the Mayo for cream cheese and used it for spinach-artichoke stuffed chicken breasts/chicken roll ups (where I pound or slice the chicken first and spread this filling then roll) and for either, optionally brush a very thin layer of mayo or dip in egg wash, bread with Italian style seasoned pinko and parm reg/Romano. Finally, I’ve stuffed refrigerated biscuit dough balls with it and baked! They are also yummy dipped in ranch then a coating of bread crumbs; baled and served for tailgates! Lol. Endless possibilities here, folks!
Delicious! Added a little extra spinach but otherwise followed this recipe exactly. Will definitely make it again!
This was really good! I used fresh spinach instead of frozen, and made it on store bought sourdough bread. My husband even liked it and he doesnt like artichoke hearts! Will definitely make it again!
This looks absolutely delicious! I’m going to make this for my family soon. Great blog too!
Can you link the original recipe here as well?
You can shoot us an email at support at budgetbytes.com and we’ll get that for you.
I made mine open-faced on ciabatta and used marinated artichokes (what I had) and monterey jack cheese. Toasted in the toaster oven. Delicious! I saw someone else comment they used it as an omelet filling, I may make an egg sandwich with the ciabatta!
My family is having a lot of sandwiches this summer, and this is an easy and tasty one! Once I made it on homemade focaccia and that was really good. Another time I used regular sliced sandwich bread but sprinkled a little garlic powder on the buttered outside, so when it grilled, it was like garlic bread– yum! I used a 10-ounce box of spinach and whole jar of artichokes to make extra filling. I’m thinking it will be good on toast for breakfast, maybe with an egg.
This was amazing! Even my carnivore boyfriend loved it. And the leftover filling made a perfect omelet filling :) Thanks for keeping us creative and healthy!
This was a huge hit with my teens. I used half a country French loaf (with some of the innards discarded to make room for the filling) and pecorino romano as I did it have Parmesan. I can’t think of any other way i could have gotten a whole box of spinach and all 6 oz of artichokes into the 2 kids in one meal. Thank you for this fantastic recipe!
I’m trying to encourage my husband and I to eat more veggies. This was a great was to sneak them in. We both really liked it! I didn’t take the time to make the bread but I’m sure it would be even better with that. Thank you Beth for another great easy recipe!
First of all, I hate when people say they loved a recipe, then they say all the things they changed! However, I made this using shaved brussels sprouts instead of spinach (I didn’t have spinach and I had brussels sprouts I needed to use) and the recipe was amazing! I will definitely be making this again! The grilled cheese was great and I’m looking forward to trying it in quesadilla form.
Haha, I LOVE it when people share how they customized the recipes! :) It’s like creative crowdsourcing and it inspires me so much.
I just made this for lunch and OH MY GOODNESS it is amazing. Love this blog. THANK YOU.
This is delicious! My family loved it. I made the focaccia bread from scratch and made the tomato herb soup as well. We have enough to have it tomorrow too! I was missing the spinach artichoke dip from a nearby chain restaurant which has been closed since quarantine started. I have no idea when or if the apple-themed restaurant will reopen.
Too funny – I had my sandwich with the herbed tomato soup, too! I’m now out of soup leftovers but have tons of filling left!
Making this for the boys tomorrow!
With the new recipe print options, I’m unable to print any recipe with an image even though the box is checked next to “ include recipe image”. I’ve tried it on my iPhone, iPad, windows desk top and the image next to the recipe title does not print. ( I’ve also tried with and without the box checked and the recipes print exactly the same).
Over the past several years, I’ve never had this issue until the new format for the recipe print was established. Is there something more that I’m supposed to be doing?
Thank you.
Hi Ranee! Yes we’re working with our team to get this fixed. Sorry for the troubles!
Played a mind game with friends one day on called “50 ways to use the Dip”.
I bet this will make a great topping for baked potatoes or filled into an empanada!
I’ve been looking for a new grilled cheese recipe and now I’ve found it. Thank you!
I’m blown away by this recipe, it was absolutely to die for! I never thought I’d be so in love with a grilled cheese, I made this last night for the whole family and even the kids liked it! Thanks for sharing!
I made this, but without the mayonnaise (which I don’t like). It turned out great. I had no trouble getting the ingredients to stick without the mayo. I just mixed it all real well.
I just made this and loved it. Thank you!!!
Amazing. Thanks Beth!
How do I make this with fresh spinach?
I just chopped my fresh spinach up and added it to the other ingredients without wilting or cooking. It cooks a bit in the grilling process. I also made it once in the oven for a toasted (vs grilled) sandwich.
These turned out great just as everything on this site is. Made them along with your Tomato Herb Soup(https://www.budgetbytes.com/2013/09/tomato-herb-soup/) and they were absolutely amazing together.
Thank you for the great recipes!! I cannot get enough!
Oh my gosh these are amazing. I could not stop eating!!!! Probably the best grilled cheese I have ever had. Didn’t have mozzarella so I subbed Monterrey jack.
On the picture description you omitted butter on the following: Spread about 1/2 tsp BUTTER on the outside of four slices of bread, then fill each sandwich with about 1 cup of filling. Cook the sandwiches in a large skillet over medium low heat until each side is golden brown and the filling is melted. (I used small bread, so this recipe would make four sandwiches with about 1/2 cup filling each.)
LOL, thanks for catching that!!
This recipe is legend-wait-for-it…dairy! Tasting the cold filling was no indication of how delicious this sandwich would be! I even used drained, marinated artichoke hearts and it was still perfection! The boyfriend, who always picks out my artichokes, ate an entire sandwich! He thought it was mad tasty! I think this can stand in the hall of fame with your Dragon Noodles. Thank you for this revelation!
Loved this recipe! I made two small changes based on what I already had on hand. I didn’t quite have a full cup of mozzarella (maybe 1 1/4 cup-ish) so I used up the rest of the shredded pepperjack from the freezer. It added a little kick and used up both cheeses perfectly. :) Instead of bread, I also took the suggestion to make quesadillas using burrito-size taco shells. YUM! I served them with your Tomato Herb Soup and it was the perfect combination for dipping. I’ll definitely be making this one again.
Oops! I should’ve noted that I doubled the recipe. So, I didn’t quite have TWO full cops of mozzarella, which is where the perpperjack came in.
Made this tonight and I must say, my mind is blown! Awesome sandwich!!
I only comment on recipes that I’ve tried and loved, and this one is a winner. I made it on a panini press. The filling was enough for four sandwiches, and since I was leaving town the next day I just used the filling cold the next day on the same hearty bread and it was still yummy (still, it was better toasted). My husband said it tasted like a restaurant sandwich, and it really did, it was decadent. Excellent recipe, Beth!
This is so good! Thanks for another winner Beth!
I would almost give up bacon for this sandwich. Almost.
Omgoodness, this recipe makes me *wish* I lived alone. I could eat only this all week. Commence plot to rid the house of the man and mini-mes for a few days….
This turned out great! We bought ciabatta rolls and they held up perfectly to the weight of the yummy filling. Thanks!
This was delicious! I even made it with GF bread, vegan mozzarella and Parmesan cheese and was still delicious!
The artichoke hearts that come in water always seem to always have stringy, unchewable bits. Are yours not stringy/hard at the ends? I notice that I never have this problem with marinated artichoke hearts – which are tender throughout.
Also this looks so indulgently tasty – I can’t wait to try as soon as I resolve my artichoke issue.
Hmm, I rarely have that problem, although I have encountered a piece like that on occasion. I wonder if it just depends on the brand. The generic store brand that I used were pretty much tender throughout. :)
Heather –
I used marinated ones because I’ve never really understood the appeal of plain, and that’s how I make artichoke dip, and it was delicious.
Instead of hearts, you could try using canned artichoke BOTTOMS.
That way you’ll only get the soft fleshy part of the artichoke with no petals or possible petal stringiness.
Great tip!
Looks yummy,will be trying ASAP!!
OMG! This looks so good! I bet it would be good with some smoked motz. cheese too!
The intro says, “which will get you either two large grilled cheese sandwiches, or two smaller sandwiches.” Did you mean four small sandwiches?
Doh, yes! Thank you. It’s fixed now. :)
Swoon. Rethinking what I had planned for dinner tonight.
what a great idea! I love spinach artichoke dip, but I never make it because it seems so partyish. But I could totally swing these sandwiches for a meal – maybe even in cold weather with tomato soup. Yum.
I want to make these but mayo makes me ill. I use olive oil and lemon juice for tuna sandwiches but this looks like it would need something else. Maybe plain yogurt? Any ideas? Thank you!
AVOCADO!!! I make a version of this (but I bake i so all sammie’s are done at the same time) and avocado is an absolute must.
I hate mayo and often sub plain Greek yogurt to great success.
I’d suggest sour cream. Plain yogurt might just be a tad bit TOO tangy. :)
My kind of grilled cheese sandwich. :-)
Mmm, grilled cheese is the perfect lunch in a weekend and I could totally eat one of those today! I love anything with added veggies so we will have to try these, definitely :)