Healthy recipe for Lightened Up Buffalo Chicken Dip

Lighten Up, Y’all! Buffalo Chicken Dip

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Healthier Buffalo Chicken Dip

Football games can feel like 100 yards of healthy eating pitfalls. Seriously, who wants to eat carrot sticks and celery spears with hummus when everyone else is jamming down on hot chicken wings and cheese dip? I make sure to have a crudités platter for mindless eating and I love vegetables, but face it — we all know that can feel like rabbit food.

What about gooey, cheesy, spicy, yummy Buffalo Chicken Dip? YES! Read on to find out how to make my lightened-up version of Buffalo Chicken Dip.

Healthier Buffalo Chicken Dip

Lighten Up!

Buffalo Chicken Dip is typically cheesy, gooey, fat-laden goodness. (Publix has a version they sell in their deli that is ridiculously delicious.) However, I love taking fatty-fat-fat recipes and flipping them into a healthier version.

This full-flavored dip is perfect for lightening up. Loaded with zippy hot sauce and the bang of blue cheese, no one will notice if you sub out Neufchatel for full-fat cream cheese or swap out Icelandic light yogurt for sour cream.

Poached boneless skinless chicken breasts are used as the base, but you could also use rotisserie chicken breast meat. Just a few small changes make this Buffalo Chicken Dip a version you can enjoy without feeling like you’re killing your healthy eating game plan.

Down, Set, Dip

Thanks so much for reading. I hope you enjoy my recipe for my Lightened Up Buffalo Chicken Dip. Please let me know if you give it a try — and make sure to tag me on social if you post it.

Need more healthy game day options? Check out this piece in Men’s Journal with my Seven Layer Dip and for dessert, give my Double Chocolate Cupcakes a try.

Bon Appétit, Y’all

Virginia Willis

 

Healthy recipe for Lightened Up Buffalo Chicken Dip
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Lightened Up Buffalo Chicken Dip

This makes 4 cups to serve 16 or about 1/4 cup per person -- which is a minimum. Who the heck is going to eat 2 tablespoons of this dip like what is listed on the storebought stuff!?
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Course: Appetizer, hors d'oeuvres, Snack
Cuisine: American, Southern
Keyword: buffalo chicken, dip
Servings: 16
Calories: 41kcal

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup reduced-fat cream cheese or Neufchatel
  • ½ cup fat-free yogurt
  • ½ cup reduced-fat shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
  • 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese divided
  • ¼ cup Buffalo-style hot sauce
  • 2 green onions divided
  • 2 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
  • Celery sticks carrot sticks, and other veg for serving

Instructions

  • Heat oven to 350°F. Combine cream cheese, yogurt, Cheddar, half the blue cheese, and hot sauce in a medium bowl; stir until smooth. Fold in chicken and 1/2 of the green onions. Spoon the mixture into a baking dish. Sprinkle over the remaining blue cheese and green onions. Bake until hot and bubbly, about 15 minutes. Serve with vegetables.

Nutrition

Calories: 41kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 17mg | Sodium: 23mg | Potassium: 74mg | Fiber: 0.04g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 24IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 0.3mg
Nutrition Facts
Lightened Up Buffalo Chicken Dip
Amount per Serving
Calories
41
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
1
g
2
%
Saturated Fat
 
0.4
g
3
%
Polyunsaturated Fat
 
0.3
g
Monounsaturated Fat
 
1
g
Cholesterol
 
17
mg
6
%
Sodium
 
23
mg
1
%
Potassium
 
74
mg
2
%
Carbohydrates
 
1
g
0
%
Fiber
 
0.04
g
0
%
Sugar
 
1
g
1
%
Protein
 
6
g
12
%
Vitamin A
 
24
IU
0
%
Vitamin C
 
0.4
mg
0
%
Calcium
 
19
mg
2
%
Iron
 
0.3
mg
2
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Let’s cook something up! If you are interested in hosting me for a speaking engagement, event, cooking class, or a book signing, let me know! Send an email to jona@virginiawillis.com and we’ll be back in touch as soon as possible.

I am not a doctor, RD, or health professional. I am simply sharing what works for me. My blog is for informational or educational purposes only and does not substitute professional medical advice or consultations with healthcare professionals.

Note that this post may contain affiliate links and I may make a commission if you use my affiliate link to buy the product.

Please be nice. Unauthorized use and/or duplication is prohibited. All photos and content are copyright protected. If you wish to republish this recipe, please link back to this recipe on virginiawillis.com. Thanks so much!

Good and Good for You with Virginia Willis is a lifestyle brand that shares food, fun, and fitness through digital channels and online community; events, seminars, and speeches; and print media. For more information visit virginiawillis.com 

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Please note that this post may contain affiliate links.

Virginia Willis

Georgia-born French-trained chef Virginia Willis has foraged for berries in the Alaskan wilderness, harvested capers in the shadow of a smoldering volcano in Sicily, and executed the food styling for a Super Bowl commercial seen by over 160 million people. She is a James Beard award-winning cookbook author and chef for Food Network Kitchen. Virginia lost 65 pounds and has kept if off for over 3 years. Her health journey has been documented in Eating Well, as a cover story for Woman’s World, Allrecipes, and AARP. Virginia has embraced her new outlook on life and has become a cheerleader for those wanting to make their own life changes, “If a French-trained Southern chef can do it, you can, too!” Her cookbooks include Fresh Start: Cooking with Virginia My Real Life Daily Guide to Healthy Eating and Weight Loss; Secrets of the Southern Table, Lighten Up, Y’all, Bon Appétit, Y’all, Basic to Brilliant, Y’all, Okra, and Grits. She is the former TV kitchen director for Martha Stewart, Bobby Flay, and Nathalie Dupree; has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants; and traveled the world producing food stories – from making cheese in California to escargot farming in France. She has appeared on Alex vs America, The Rachel Ray Show, Food Network’s Chopped, CBS This Morning, Fox Family and Friends, Martha Stewart Living, and as a judge on Throwdown with Bobby Flay. Virginia has also been featured in the New York Times, the Washington Post, People Magazine, Eater, and Food52. She has contributed to Eating Well, Garden & Gun, and Bon Appétit, and more. Fans love her down-to-earth attitude and approachable spirit. Learn more about Virginia and Good and Good for You Living, a real life health and wellness approach for mind, body, and spirit that includes food, fun, and fitness at www.virginiawillis.com

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