It’s All About Nutrition!

Spinach Facts and Recipes

Spinach is a native plant of Persia and was introduced to China in the 7th century.

Spinach is a member of the goose-foot family and is closely related to beets and chard.

Spinach is of the highest quality when eaten fresh. It loses nutritional properties every day after picking. Refrigeration can slow the deterioration but even doing that does not prevent half of the major nutrients from being lost by the eighth day after harvest.

There are advantages to both cooking spinach and eating it raw. While cooking spinach reduces Vitamin C and folate levels, it boosts beta-carotein and lutein bioavailability at the same time. Lightly steaming spinach will help preserve nutrients. Best option is to maybe alternate both cooked and raw.

There are many different varieties of spinach, these are some of the main types:

Savoy (Dark green, crinkly and curly leaves. Commonly found in supermarkets.)

Flat/smooth leaf spinach (Most commonly used for canned and processed spinach products.)

Semi-savoy (Hybrid variety with slightly crinkled leaves. It has the same texture as savoy, but is esier to clean.)

Baby spinach leaves are soft and tender in texture and are flat, spade-shaped . Unlike mature spinach varieties that generally require blanching to mellow the bitter taste, baby spinach has a very clean and mild flavor. Unlike other spinach varieties baby spinach is not gritty or sandy and the stems do not need to be removed.

Spinach Recipes

Spinach And Pasta Salad Recipe

Ingredients
9 ounce package linguine
7 ounce package pesto with basil
5 cups shredded fresh spinach leaves
1 cup chopped fresh tomato
1 cup halved thinly sliced red onion
1/4 cup pine nuts toasted
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions
1.Cook linguine according to package directions then rinse and drain.
2.Combine pasta, spinach, tomato, onion and pine nuts in large bowl.
3.Combine pesto, lemon juice and salt in small bowl then add to pasta and toss well.
4.Serve immediately or refrigerate.

grouprecipes.com

Spinach and Cheese Recipe

Ingredients:
3 medium eggs, beaten.
20 oz of frozen chopped spinach.
4 oz of cheddar cheese, grated.
1 cup of cottage cheese.
¼ cup of butter, softened.
2 teaspoons of flour.
Salt and pepper.

Preparation Instructions:
Cook the spinach as directed on its packaging, then drain.
Mix the spinach, cottage cheese, cheddar, butter, eggs, flour, salt and pepper in a bowl and mix throughly.
Spoon into a greased baking dish and Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 50-60 minutes.

spinachrecipes.org

Spinach Dip Recipe

1 cup safflower mayonnaise
1 bunch freesh spinach, chopped
1 cup chopped green onion
1 cup plain non-fat yogurt
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
2-3 drops Tabasco auce
ground pepper to taste
1 cup chopped fresh parsley

Put mayonnaise in a blender; add spinach and green onion.
Blend for 2-3 minutes.
Spoon into medium size bowl; fold in the yogurt and remaining ingredients, except parsley.
Chill
Just before serving, add parsley.

cooks.com

Tags: Baby Spinach, spinach, spinach recipes

Four Amazing Spinach Recipes

The following spinach recipes will give you some delicious options for using the harvest you worked so hard to produce.

Easy Spinach Salad

1 lg. bunch of spinach
1 sm. onion, chopped
1 (8 oz.) can mushrooms
1 hard-boiled egg
1/3 c. Parmesan cheese
1/3 c. safflower oil
1/4 c. sugar
2 tbsp. vinegar (cider)

Thoroughly wash spinach but do not soak. Remove stems and gently tear large leaves into bite-size pieces. Pat dry before tearing. In large bowl put spinach, mushrooms, chopped egg, Parmesan cheese and onion. Toss gently. Blend oil, sugar and vinegar. Beat with egg beater until mixture becomes thick and milky color. Pour dressing over salad and toss. Serve immediately.

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Dilled Spinach

1/2 tb xtra virgin olive oil
1 Garlic clove, minced
1 sm Onion, chopped, or
1 bn Green onions, chopped
1 Yellow crookneck squash, cut into bite-size pieces
1 pound fresh rinsed spinach leaves, stems removed
1/2 bn fresh dill, stemmed and finely chopped
1/2 Lemon

Heat xtra virgin olive oil in a skillet; saute garlic 15 seconds. Add onions and cook until wilted. Add squash and saute. Add spinach and dill and stir to mix well. Cover and cook over medium heat until heated through. Squeeze juice of 1/2 lemon over all before serving.

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Spinach Salad with Mushrooms and Bean Sprouts

1 Bunch fresh spinach
1/2 lb Fresh mushrooms
1/2 lb Fresh bean sprouts

Dressing:
1/2 c xtra virgin olive oil
2 ts Soy sauce
1 Lemon; juice of
1 ts Prepared mustard
1/2 ts Paprika
1/2 ts Salt
1/2 ts Pepper

Wash spinach, mushrooms & bean sprouts. Pat dry or allow to drain. Arrange on salad plate. Combine dressing ingredients & blend with a wire whip. Spoon dressing over each salad.

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Spinach Salad with Fruit and Honey

8 cups loosely packed fresh spinach leaves
2 cups cantaloupe balls
1 1/2 cups halved fresh strawberries
2 tablespoons seedless raspberry jam
2 tablespoons raspberry white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons xtra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chopped macadamia nuts

Combine spinach, cantaloupe balls, and strawberry halves in a large bowl; toss gently.

Combine jam, raspberry white wine vinegar, honey and xtra virgin olive oil in a small bowl; stir with a wire whisk until blended.

Drizzle over spinach mixture, and toss well.

Sprinkle with nuts. Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1-1/3 cups).

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Make sure to check out our other posts about spinach…

Picking (harvesting) Spinach

Spinach Has High Nutritional Value

Tags: It's All About Nutrition Kitchen, Salad, spinach

Turkey and Spinach Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

8 cups fresh spinach
8 ounces cooked turkey, cubed
2 grapefruit peeled and sectioned
2 oranges peeled and sectioned
1/4 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon poppy seeds
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
2 tablespoons sliced almonds

Preparation:

Place spinach, turkey, grapefruit and oranges into a large bowl.

Dressing:
Mixing the dressing requires using a screw top jar or other air tight container where you will combine orange juice, extra virgin olive oil, honey, poppy seeds, salt and dry mustard.

Cover and shake well.

Pour dressing over salad and toss gently.

Sprinkle with almonds.

Makes 4 servings

Nutrition facts per serving:
228 calories
10 grams total fat (2 gram saturated fat)
43 milligrams cholesterol
261 milligrams sodium
16 grams carbohydrates
8 grams dietary fiber
20 grams protein

Tags: Healthy Recipes, spinach, turkey

Storing Your Vegetables After Harvest

As a general rule you should pick all your vegetables in the coolest weather you can using a clean, sharp knife. Cloudy days, early mornings, and evenings are always best. Those vegetables that need to be moist when stored should be covered with plastic with slits or holes. Or, if you have a humidifier in your cooler, set it to 95%.

Cabbage: Keep cold and moist.,,spoils after about five months.

Carrots: Keep cold and moist…spoils after about eight months.

Garlic: Dry at room temperature two to four weeks.,,store under dry and cold conditions…spoils after about four months.

Onions: Store dry at room temperature for two to four weeks…then move to dry and cold storage…spoils after about four months.

Potatoes: Keep cold and moist and away from the light…spoils after about six months.

Basil: Put stems in water…keep at room temperature…spoils after about five days.

Beans: Keep moist and cool…not less than 40 degrees…spoils after about one week.

Cauliflower: Keep cold and moist…spoils after about three weeks.

Corn: Keep cold and moist…spoils after about five days.

Cucumbers: Keep cool but not less than 40 degrees…do not store with apples or tomatoes…spoils after about one week.

Eggplant: Keep cool but not less than 50 degrees…spoils after about one week.

Lettuce: Keep cold and moist…spoils after about one week.

Peas: Keep cold and moist…spoisl after about one week.

Peppers: Keep cool but not less than 45 degrees….spoil after about two weeks.

Radishes: Keep cold and moist…spoils after about one month.

Spinach: Keep cold and moist…spoils after about ten days.

Squash: Keep cool…spoils after about one week.

Tomatoes: Keep cool but do not refrigerate…spoils after about five days.

Tags: Cabbage, Cauliflower, Cucumber, Garlic, spinach, Vegetable

Picking (harvesting) Spinach

Depending on your desired leaf-size and tenderness spinach can be harvested at any stage. Many of the different spinach varieties will be ready for you to harvest anywhere between 40 to 50 days after seeding. The smaller the plants the more tender they will be. It is very important to make sure to harvest spinach before the plant starts to bolt or make a flower shoot.

Spinach can easily be harvested two or three times if only the leaves are cut. This will force new leaves to form from the center or the plant. Cutting the outside leaves about half way down the stem is the best method. If the entire plant is cut at the soil level, new leaves will not form. You should only cut spinach when dry and then immediately refrigerate in an airtight container or plastic bag to preserve freshness. Do not store spinach wet or it will quickly deteriorate.

Tags: Flower, Garden, Harvest, Plants, spinach