Spinach Basil Pesto

 

This is a new staple in my house.  I make fresh batches every other day so it is always in a jar in my fridge.  My kids literally put this on EVERYTHING.  My oldest daughter's favorite way to eat this is spread on a piece of crusty bread with a drizzle of balsamic glaze!  Soooo super good and this is really so simple to make if you have a small food processor or blender.

Ingredients:

4 big cloves of garlic

1 1/2 Cups  baby spinach

1 Cup fresh basil

1 Tablespoon pine nuts (omit this if anyone has an allergy to nuts)

1/3 Cup grated parmesan cheese

5 Tablespoons olive oil (more or less to your taste)

Preparation:

Place the garlic cloves whole into your food processor or blender and pulse until finely chopped.  Now add spinach, basil and pine nuts and blend until broken down.  Next add your parmesan plus 1-2 tablespoons of oil.  Blend again until pesto starts to come together.  Add more olive oil until desired consistency.  You can service immediately or cover and refrigerate and store up to a week but it won't last that long!!

Spicy Chicken Sausage and Veggie Quiche "crustless"

Great for those of you who are trying to cut out carbs. This crustless quiche is jam packed with delicious flavorful veggies and a yummy spicy chicken sausage.  You won't even miss the crust when you have this.  Great for breakfast, brunch, lunch or even a light dinner.

Ingredients:

5 links of spicy chicken sausage(I used the jalapeño chicken sausage from Trader Joes) you may substitute any sausage that you prefer.
1 package of frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and drained well
1 yellow squash, sliced
1 zucchini, sliced
6 eggs (or 8 egg whites)
1 1/2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease a 13x9 casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray.  In a large  saucepan add about a tablespoon of olive oil and brown sausage links.  Once sausage is browned on all sides remove from pan, slice and set aside.  Add another tablespoon of olive oil to the hot saucepan and add in the yellow squash and zucchini slices and sauté on medium heat until slightly soft.  Next add the drained, chopped spinach to the pan and warm through.  Add back in the sliced sausage and cook contents for an additional 3 minutes.  Turn off heat and set pan aside to cool.  In a large bowl add in your eggs (or egg whites) and beat until frothy.  To the egg mixture add the cooled sausage and veggies and mix well.  Lastly, add in the shredded cheese and mix.  Pour quiche mixture into the prepared casserole dish and place in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes.  Quiche is done when lightly browned on top and firm to the touch in the center of quiche.   Slice into squares and serve hot.

Spinach and Parmesan Stuffed Portabella Mushrooms

This recipe was created for a catering job that Nanci and I had last summer.  I'm not sure why it took me so long to blog it because it's really a fantastic, delicious recipe.  It's a new take on the traditional "stuffed" mushroom.  I love using portabella mushrooms because it's easy to portion as a side dish, (one mushroom per person) or this would make a great vegetarian dish and in that case two mushrooms per serving would be plenty. A great side dish for a BBQ and I know we are all always looking for something new and different to make than the typical colesloaw and potato salad.

Ingredients:

8 small/med whole portabella mushroom caps

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

1 garlic clove, minced

1 large bag of fresh spinach

1 cup grated parmesean cheese, divided

1 cup plain bread crumbs

1/4 cup fresh parsely, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

 

Preparation:

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a large baking sheet and lay each mushroom cap gill side up on the sheet.  Lightly oil the bottoms and inside of each mushroom cap and season both sides with salt and pepper and bake in the oven for about 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and set aside.  Meanwhile,  in a large skillet over med heat sautee minced garlic in about 1 tablespoon of olive oil for a minute.  Add in fresh spinach to hot garlic oil, season with salt and pepper and cook spinach down until it is fully wilted.  Transfer spinach into a small bowl and set aside to cool.  Once spinach is cooled add in 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese and stir to combine.  In another bowl mix bread crumbs with remanining parmesan cheese, fresh parsley and season with salt and pepper.  Now to assemble the mushrooms;  Add about 2 tablespoons of spinach mixture into the gill side of the mushroom cap and then sprinkle with about 1-2 tablespoons of the bread crumb mixture, continue until all filling and bread crumbs are used up.  Drizzle a little olive oil on top of each mushroom (add an additional sprinkle of parmesan cheese if desired) and bake in the oven for about 30-35 minutes.  Add another sprinkle of chopped fresh parsley before serving, serve hot!

 

Sauteed Spinach with Caramelized Red Onions and Pine Nuts

When my family lived in London for two years we had an amazing housekeeper/nanny who was also a fabulous cook. This is her recipe she made for us all the time because my kids loved it so much. This is how I got my kids to eat spinach. Thanks Emmie!

Ingredients:

3 5 oz. bags of washed baby spinach

2 small red onions sliced

2 T brown sugar

1/3 C pine nuts

2 T margarine (divided)

1 tsp seasoned salt (I use Jane's Crazy Mixed Up Salt)

Preparation:

In a large saute pan melt 1 T margarine and add the seasoned salt. Add the pine nuts and toast until lightly golden in color and remove from pan.

Melt the remaining 1 T margarine in the same pan and add the onions and saute until softened. Then add the brown sugar and continue to cook over medium high heat until caramelized. Remove from pan and set aside. Add spinach to the pan and cook until just wilted.

Place cooked spinach on a shallow serving dish and spread out to cover the dish . Place the onions on top of the spinach and spread out. Then top with toasted pine nuts and serve warm.

Spinach Croquettes

Our Mom used to make these all the time growing up and now we make them for our kids.  A good way to get your kids to eat their veggies. These are crispy and delicious!  My kids love them.

Ingredients:

1 bag of frozen chopped spinach thawed and drained well
2 eggs
1/3 cup bread crumbs
salt and pepper

Preparation:

Mix spinach with eggs, bread crumbs, salt and pepper.  Heat vegetable oil in a large frying pan over med/hi heat. Form spinach mixture into patties and fry in hot oil for a few minutes on each side until golden brown.  Drain on paper towel and sprinkle with a little kosher salt.  Serve hot.

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Parpardelle with Spinach, Chives and Ricotta

This is a great, light pasta dish that is so simple to make.  I served it as a side dish with a lemon garlic turkey roast but it would be a great main dish as well.

Ingredients:

8  ounces  uncooked pappardelle (wide ribbon pasta)
1  tablespoon  kosher salt
1/3  cup  whole-milk ricotta cheese
3  cups fresh baby spinach leaves (I used regular fresh spinach chopped)
1/4  cup  chopped fresh chives
1/4  cup  chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
3  tablespoons  grated fresh pecorino Romano cheese
2  tablespoons olive oil (I omitted this)
1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
1/4  teaspoon  kosher salt

Preparation:

Cook pasta with 1 tablespoon kosher salt according to package directions. Drain in a colander over a bowl, and reserve 1 cup cooking liquid.  Combine 1/2 cup reserved hot cooking liquid and ricotta cheese in a food processor or blender, and process until well blended.  Combine hot pasta, cheese mixture, spinach, and remaining ingredients in a large bowl; toss gently to coat. Add additional cooking liquid to moisten, if needed

Pasta with Chicken Sausage and Spinach

Every once in awhile I go through my freezer and pantry and create a dinner from the ingredients that I find.  So this time I used, pasta shells, chicken sausage, spinach and a can of crushed tomatoes.  Voila Dinner!

Ingredients:

1 lb of pasta shells

8 oz frozen spinach (drained)

1-28 oz can of crushed tomatoes

1 lb of chicken sausage (casings removed)

1 tablespoon of minced garlic

1 small onion diced

1/4 cup white wine

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste 

2 tablespoons of olive oil

Preparation:

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in large skillet, add sausage and cook through.  Remove sausage, set aside.  Heat additional tablespoon of olive oil in the same skillet, add onions and cook until starting to brown.  Add 1/4 cup of white wine and deglaze pan but scraping up brown bits on the bottom of the pan.  Cook for 2 minutes and then add spinach and cook for another 2 minutes.  Add crushed tomatoes, parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper.  Add sausage back to tomato mixture and cook over med heat for 15 minutes.  Cook pasta, drain and add to sauce.  Add additional parmesean cheese if desired.

Spinach Mushroom Quiche

This is a standard Brunch recipe for our family.  It's super easy, it always comes out good and every loves it. 

Ingredients:

6 eggs
1 16 oz package of frozen, chopped spinach
1 package of sliced fresh mushrooms
1 medium onion, chopped
1-2 T. oil
1 frozen deep dish pie crust
1 ½ cups of shredded cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:

Thaw frozen spinach and drain very well. Saute onions and mushrooms in a skillet until lightly brown. Add spinach and warm through. Beat eggs in a large bowl. Combine spinach mixture, beaten eggs, cheese, salt and pepper and pour into frozen pie crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until set. Cool slightly before serving.