Spinach splurge
Spinach has come a long way since the canned pulp Popeye promoted when I was a child. Now we can buy it fresh and organic year round, and we’ve come up with lots of imaginative recipes for it too.
Why spinach?
- low cal -12 calories per cup raw
- low fat
- good source of fibre (2-5 g per cup)
- good source of phytonutrients
- rich in calcium, folate, iron, magnesium, vitamin C and vitamin A
- included on all the ’super food’ and ‘power food’ lists I’ve read
Spinach solos well; just quickly saute it in a pan with a little olive oil and garlic, or steam it, being careful not to overcook. It also complements many other foods and sneaks well into sauces, soups, meat and pasta dishes, as well as salads and sandwiches.
I don’t like spinach, and I’m glad I don’t, because if I liked it I’d eat it, and I just hate it. Clarence Darrow
Spinach is a staple in my kitchen. It’s amazingly convenient if you buy it already cleaned, or frozen. I really enjoy it raw, and I often include it in recipes like enchiladas and lasagna. This week I’ve been using it in salads (as my extra dark green vegetable) but on special occasions, I like to serve it up as dip in a freshly baked loaf of bread. I debated long and hard, but finally decided to share my secret prized spinach dip recipe with you, dear readers…
Spinach dip served in freshly baked bread
125 g cream cheese
125 ml mayonnaise (1/2 cup)
125 ml sour cream or plain yogurt (1/2 cup)
300 g chopped frozen spinach, thawed
2 green onions, finely chopped (optional)
4 slices crisp cooked bacon, finely chopped
1 small clove garlic, minced
Salt & pepper, to taste
1 round loaf sour dough, pumpernickel, or rye bread
- Beat cream cheese and mayonnaise together. Stir in sour cream. Thoroughly drain & dry spinach, chopping finely if necessary and add it to the cream cheese mixture. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.
- Slice off circle of crust from the top of the round loaf. Hollow out the loaf, leaving at least a one inch shell. Cut or tear the removed bread into pieces to serve with the dip.
- Spoon the dip into the bread bowl just before serving. I also serve raw veggies with this dip.
Enjoy!
Hi! I’ll have to try this recipe as I just looooooove spinach. Unfortunately I hate the normal variety but I love fresh baby spinach. I usually eat heaps of it with red salmon and bok choy. Baby spinach takes so little time to cook. Seconds in fact. Anyway enough of that, thank you for the recipe and take care.
Hi! Me again. I forgot to say why I eat so much spinach. It’s reported to protect people from age-related macular degeneration, which runs in our family.