Dreamy Creamed Spinach
Poor Popeye! He was relegated to eating canned spinach for which I can find no words of praise. Instead he could have enjoyed fresh, tender spinach, one of the first vegetables to appear in the spring. Since spinach is almost 90% water, it is best to wilt down the leaves and not boil them which only add more water and will result in a loss of nutrients.Use this no added water technique for cooking it and make this elegant looking and delicious tasting creamed spinach side dish.The large amount of spinach called for in this dish seems excessive but trust me, it isn’t. Creamed spinach is a side dish that goes with everything, and is even delicious smeared on a slice of toasted sourdough bread.
Ingredients
- 3lbs fresh spinach, well washed and drained (yields approximately 3-4 cups cooked)
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup whipped cream cheese
- 1/2 cup Half/Half or light cream
- 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
- 1 tsp salt or more to taste
- 1/4 tsp teaspoon ground nutmeg
Directions
- Place all the spinach in a soup pot without any additional water. Cover the pot and cook over medium heat just until the spinach begins to wilt, about 2 minutes. Remove pot from heat and drain spinach in a colander. Squeeze out most but not all of the water. Coarsely chop and set aside.
- Return pan to the heat and melt the butter; stir in the whipped cream cheese and combine well until blended. Add spinach, Half/Half or cream cook for a couple of minutes just until the spinach is well coated. Stir in the cheese, salt and nutmeg and combine well. Serve hot.
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