Hot Spinach Dip

I got this recipe from Taste of Home.  It is awesome!  I made it for a Christmas Eve party and everyone loved it.  The bacon in there makes it incredibly delicious!  You can serve this in a bread bowl to be fancy or just put in a baking dish.  The original recipe calls for just a one pound loaf of bread...but, I served it with an extra one and we ate about half of it.  The original recipe also states that fat free cream cheese and mayo do not work well with this recipe.  Also, the original recipe says to broil the bread cubes and I did not, we liked the bread soft.  -Kristin

2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened 

1 cup mayonnaise 

1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry 

1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese 

1 pound sliced bacon, cooked and crumbled 

1/4 cup chopped onion 

1 teaspoon or more of dill weed 

1 to 2 garlic cloves, minced 

2 round, 1 pound loaves of rye or sourdough bread, unsliced

• In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and mayonnaise until blended. Stir in the spinach, cheese, bacon, onion, dill and garlic; set aside.
• Cut a 1-1/2-in. slice off top of bread; set aside. Carefully hollow out bottom, leaving a 1/2-in. shell.
• Fill bread shell with spinach dip; replace top. Place any dip that doesn't fit in shell in a greased baking dish. Wrap bread in heavy-duty foil; place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until dip is heated through. Cover and bake additional dip for 40-45 minutes or until heated through. Open foil carefully. Serve dip warm with vegetables and reserved bread cubes.