Spinach

[liuzhou]

 

I've mentioned before on here that spinach is my favourite green vegetable, and when it's in season (like now) I use it many ways but I'm looking to expand my spinach repertoire. So, I'm wondering how you like to use it (or why you don't).

 

My go to methods are to eat it raw in a salad if young enough (the spinach, not me), to just wilt it Chinese style with garlic and ginger, and to use in beef and spinach curry, a winter favourite. I'll throw some into omelettes, noodle soups etc, too.

[Thanks for the Crepes]

This is my favorite kind of spinach, but it does not seem to be popular, and the only source I've found is Harris Teeter grocery, who carries it under their own brand. It's not always in stock, and when it is, it is sometimes not acceptable for purchase. When I can score a good bag of it, I am so happy!

 

I like this kind better in salads. The thick stems are actually the best part with a sweet vegetal flavor and not fibrous or woody at all to me. I think a spinach salad needs a slightly sweet vinaigrette with bacon, hard boiled eggs, onion and tomatoes. The leaves are much thicker than the common spinach. If you can find it, it's very much worth the pursuit.

 

One of the easiest ways to enjoy spinach is to cook up what I still call Poke Salad. This is a dish from the Louisiana roots on my father's side of the family. Saute a little onion, not too much, in butter. Add eggs and scramble over low heat. When the eggs are getting nearly done, add your chopped spinach and continue scrambling. Top with cheese if you like, but it's not necessary for a nutritious and satisfying dish. When I was growing up in Springhill, LA, the custom was to forage pokeweed leaves when they were young to make the dish. Since learning more about the toxicity of this plant, I no longer think it's worth the risk, so Poke Salad is made with spinach in my house now. I'm still here after eating pokeweed in my youth and so are many others who follow the long tradition in Louisiana.

 

Another favorite dish with spinach is spanakopita. It's spinach and feta cheese with herbs and onions enfolded in buttery phyllo thin pastry sheets. Divine, if made right. It's a labor of love though. Whenever I work with phyllo, the air in my kitchen turns blue. It's frustrating, but worth it in the end.

 

Spinach quiche is also good, and must contain onion and cheese, for me. It can be a custard without a crust, though, if you are cutting calories.

 

Also spinach crepes, enchiladas and lasagne. I love spinach too!

 

And of course creamed spinach. I made a post on the dinner thread years ago where I had made creamed spinach with just a little onion sauteed in butter then a flour roux with a little milk and added the chopped spinach. My husband and I both agreed that it was transformed from okay to very special when I added a little grated Monterey Jack cheese the next day for the leftovers. I will never leave cheese out again. Also don't add too much milk, because the spinach will release its own juices into this dish as it cooks.

 

I'll be looking forward to other suggestions for one of my favorite ingredients, which also happens to be a nutrition powerhouse.

 

 

 

[liuzhou]

1 hour ago, Thanks for the Crepes said:

This is a dish from the Louisiana roots on my father's side of the family. Saute a little onion, not too much, in butter. Add eggs and scramble over low heat. When the eggs are getting nearly done, add your chopped spinach and continue scrambling.

 

I didn't know this was called poke salad or that it is from Louisiana. I've been making something the same for years.  In fact, I've even posted an example here somewhere. Probably in the Breakfast thread a while back.

 

Much as I love spanakopita  I can't get filo/phyllo pastry here and ain't about to be trying to make it.

 

My late wife used to do a nice quiche, but it's not something I've attempted.

[MelissaH]

Other than in salads, the two most common ways I'll use spinach are in a soufflé (I use a slight mod of Julia Child's recipe) or in a Chicago-style deep dish pizza.

[kayb]

I'm not a spinach fan, but my kids love the stuff, and this is how I used to make it when they were small. I'd hardboil two or three eggs, peel and dice them. Dice up 4 or so strips of bacon and fry until they were crispy; pour off all but about a tablespoon or so of the bacon fat. Toss in the spinach and egg, and saute just until it wilts; add a splash of wine vinegar and some salt and pepper.

 

I couldn't handle it, but they loved it.

 

[shain]

5 hours ago, liuzhou said:

Much as I love spanakopita  I can't get filo/phyllo pastry here and ain't about to be trying to make it.

 

 

You can use puff pastry and make spinach burekas, some will say it's even better

[liuzhou]

I did a simple salad of spinach, scallion and crisp chicken skin "croutons" as part of dinner last night (as shown on the Dinner thread). Dressed with a simple lemon vinaigrette.

 

The spinach wasn't as "young" as I would prefer, but it went down fine.

 

 

Edited November 5, 2017 by liuzhou
added link to Dinner post (log)

[oofencocotte]

 I just cooked up a batch of chickpea and spinach egusi using this recipe (swapped out the chard for spinach which is apparently more traditional- no chard where I was). Couldn't find polenta today so just had rice.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/nov/04/chickpea-chard-sunflower-seed-stew-egusi-ghanaian-vegan-recipe-meera-sodha

 

Edited November 6, 2017 by oofencocotte (log)

[haresfur]

Adding spinach to tuna-noodle casserole tonight. Does that count?

[liuzhou]

1 hour ago, haresfur said:

Does that count?

 

Why not?

[chromedome]

It's one of our staples around here. Baby leaves, mature cooking leaves, or even frozen...I go through a lot of it. Right now I'm gearing up to make a batch of savory custards for my GF, who is Atkins-ing in the hope of dropping a few pounds before Christmas. At least a few will contain spinach. 

[Katie Meadow]

One of my favorite spinach recipes comes from Martha Rose Schulman via the NYT. It's called Provencal Spinach Gratin, and involves neither cheese nor eggs, but just a lot of spinach with a minimalist crunchy breadcrumb topping. There was a time in my life as a student when I was hooked on Stouffers Spinach Souffle. Remember that? It was basically a nice green salt lick and I wouldn't call it a scuffle. This recipe is what that should have been. Julia Child has several takes on real spinach souffle, and those are also very nice.

 

I am not a fan of raw spinach, nor do I like spinach leaves in soup; I think they just dissolve and have an unappealing texture. For toothsome greens in soup I prefer chard or Tuscan kale. For green blended soups I like a mix of spinach and other greens. Spinach and dandelion greens are a nice mix. 

 

 

[ninagluck]

one of my favorite salads: young spinach with mushrooms