We all know the feeling: sitting down to a Friday night meal, piling a couple of colorful salads and your favorite dips onto your plate, with hot challah as the anchor and accompaniment. Here are some of the tried and true options in our homes.

Garlic and Spinach Dip

• 12 cloves garlic
• 1 Tbsp oil, plus more for sautéing
• 1 5-oz (140-g) box fresh spinach leaves
• 1 tsp sea salt
• ¹⁄₃–¹⁄₂ cup creamy dressing (you can use my dressing recipe which I’ve printed in FT in the past)

Place garlic cloves on a baking sheet and spray with oil. Roast at 375°F (190°C) for 20 minutes. Heat a small amount of oil in a large frying pan. Place the spinach leaves in the hot pan and spray a bit more oil on top. Cover and allow to wilt for 2–3 minutes. Season with salt. Allow to cool. Squeeze out excess liquid. In a food processor fitted with the S blade, place roasted garlic cloves, squeezed-out spinach, and creamy dressing. Pulse on medium speed until desired consistency has been reached. (For a thinner dip, add a small amount of creamy dressing at a time, up to ¹⁄₂ cup total, until dip reaches desired consistency.)

—Rorie Weisberg, health columnist