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| Garlicky spinach is dressed up with crispy croutons and quartered egg. |
Sure, steamed spinach is good, tossed with a little butter or olive oil, maybe a few drops of vinegar. But, it’s even better dressed up with sauce or extra flavorings. Here’s a version of “creamed” spinach that’s especially good.
In this recipe for spinach, typical of Jaén (interior Andalusia) and La Mancha, the “cream” sauce isn’t a bechamel, but is made with bread and garlic. Caraway seeds are typical and are unusually good with spinach. Croutons of fried bread add texture.
If served as a side dish, quartered, hard-boiled eggs make a good garnish for the spinach. Or serve a good-sized portion topped with a fried egg for a terrific (vegetarian) lunch or supper dish. Alternatively, stir one or two beaten eggs into the spinach immediately before removing from the heat.
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| Serve this spinach dish as a side or add eggs and serve it as the main dish for lunch or supper. |
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| Add a fried or poached egg per person to the spinach. |
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| Spinach is creamy from mashed up bread. |
Spinach with Crispy Croutons
Espinacas con Picatostes
Serves 6 as a side or 4 as a light main dish.
3 slices bread, crusts removed (about 5 ounces)
3 cloves garlic
½ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
Pinch of ground cloves
½ teaspoon pimentón (paprika)
Water
1 ½ pounds fresh spinach, washed and trimmed, or 1 (14-ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed
2 tablespoons chopped onions
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon caraway seeds
Eggs
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| Fry croutons, garlic. |
Cut 2 slices of the bread into ¾-inch croutons. Lightly crush 2 cloves of the garlic. Heat the oil in a small skillet with the 2 cloves of garlic. When garlic begins to sizzle, add the diced bread in a single layer. Fry until bread is browned on one side. Turn the croutons so they brown on all sides. Skim croutons and garlic out of the oil and reserve them.
Add the remaining slice of bread to the skillet and brown it on both sides. Remove the bread. Remove the skillet from the heat and reserve the oil.
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| Scissors to cut up spinach. |
If using fresh spinach, place it in a pan large enough to hold it. Cook over medium heat until the spinach is wilted. Add water if necessary. Drain the spinach. Use scissors to cut the spinach up. (If using thawed frozen spinach, chop it if necessary.)
Remove skins from the 2 cloves of fried garlic and one uncooked garlic. Place them in a mortar or blender with the slice of fried bread, broken into pieces. Add the vinegar, cloves, pimentón and 2 tablespoons of water. Allow a few minutes for the fried bread to soften, then crush or blend to make a smooth paste.
Heat 2 tablespoons of the reserved oil in the large pan. (Remaining oil can be strained and used for another purpose.) Sauté the onions until they are softened, 3 minutes.
Add the spinach to the pan and stir it in the oil for 1 minute. Add the bread-garlic paste, ½ teaspoon salt (or, to taste), pepper and ½ cup of water. Cook 10 minutes. Stir in the caraway seeds and cook 1 minute. (If using beaten eggs, stir them in at this point.)
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| Fry one egg per person. |
Place the spinach in a bowl or platter and scatter the fried croutons on top. Serve garnished with quartered hard-boiled eggs or 1 fried egg per person.
That looks good with a fried egg on top and much quicker than with garbanzos.
ReplyDeleteThat looks fabulous!
ReplyDelete