Growing up-I was one of those picky kids-often declaring I DID NOT LIKE certain foods-even though I’d never tasted most of them. Since I wasn’t necessarily someone who was crazy about eating in the first place, my picky-ness held on tight until I was a grown married woman or truth be told till The Deer Hunter forced me to try some of the foods he liked or else! Spinach was one of those foods.
After IÂ accepted spinach was indeed good to eat-I came across a creamed spinach recipe and after making it a few times-we realized it was our favorite way to eat spinach. The first recipe I used was somewhat complicated-but over the years I’ve narrowed down the steps required. If you’re a creamed spinach fan you may have already streamlined the steps yourself-or if you’ve never tried it-here’s an easy recipe to start with before moving on to the more complicated ones.
My recipe doesn’t really have any set amounts for the ingredients-it’s one of those taste as you go kinda things. It does work well with fresh spinach or frozen. This time of the year-I go out and pick a colander full of spinach.
Since this character-Wild Bill-is King of my yard-I make sure to wash the spinach well. He actually likes the glasses-and sometimes he wears a hat with them too.
I believe the first recipe I used back in the day called for boiling the spinach for a certain amount of time, but somewhere along the way I realized if you can eat it raw how cooked does it need to be? So I started giving the spinach a quick saute before adding the other ingredients.
Cook spinach in oil or butter for a few minutes.
Add additional butter, salt, pepper, and nutmeg to taste. Some folks add in garlic or onions, but we prefer just spinach. Cook while stirring for a couple of minutes till butter is melted.
Pour in some heavy cream. The amount depends on the quantity of spinach you’re working with, but like the butter it doesn’t take much.
Allow the spinach to cook a few minutes till it thickens slightly and you’re done.
Are you a spinach fan? A creamed spinach fan?
Tipper
I use cream cheese for the cream. I saute some garlic and onion in a little olive oil, add the washed raw spinach and stir it around to wilt it…maybe cover the pan a couple of minutes…then add a little cubed cream cheese and stir till it melts. Sprinkle with a little vinegar (balsamic vinegar is especially good)and a little salt, and serve with cornbread! This is also very good using Swiss chard or collards. I also love spinach salad…and canned or frozen spinach…and nearly any other way!
Not really a creamed spinach fan, but I could eat plain spinach until it runs out of my ears. Fresh, canned, doesn’t matter. I LOVE it! xxoo
Tipper: I’m a spinach fan but not so much a cooked spinach. It is so good fresh that I kind of try to stick to eating it raw.
I’m not a fan of cooked spinach. And I’ve never heard of creamed spinach.
Most of the vegetables I eat are raw. I just like them better that way.
I loved ‘canned’ spinach growing up! We never had fresh, or if we did I do not remember. We mostly ate collard and other greens, since my grandmother grew them, and there were so cheap.
I however love it now and mine is very garlicky! Watch out I am exhaling a big breathe of garlic as I write he he
Ummmm. Spinach is good anyway and this recipe sounds really good.
You make a good point about the cooking. Greens overcook real quick, and can lose their visual appeal in a moment.
I like wild greens, wild turnip greens and dock. Just a few seconds of overcooking and the texture is ruined.
Your songwriters are amazing. They sing purty too.
Tipper,
Wild Bill sure is a cute dog. I bet he’s king of his home.
I didn’t like spinach as a child either. I was a picky eater, too when I was growing up. Now I love mustard greens. We’ve planted a lot of greens in our garden and I sure hope they do well. Your recipe for spinach sounds good. I may try it. I hope you have a very Happy Mother’s Day!
I love spinach in all forms. I have your feed on my igoogle page and when I saw the title…well, here I am. Thanks for the great recipe!
Wild Bill looks like a character.
Spinach … LOVE it fresh, HATE it cooked! It’s like 2 totally different foods depending on how it’s prepared … go figure 🙂
I turned up my nose at many vegetables as a child too, but once married and gardening I discovered how tasty fresh vegetables really are, along with home canned and frozen too. Your recipe sounds yummy and I’m going to give it a try this week end.
I was a late comer to spinach as we didn’t have it growing up, but I had a wilted spinach salad salad and loved it. Since then I have enjoyed spinach in quiche, salads, cooked but never creamed. Now I’ll try it that way. Like Vicki, I love, love, love a good spinach salad with blue cheese.
I love spinach and creamed is good too. I also like it with a little olive oil and garlic.
I love spinach, I have always loved spinach. I was a very picky eater as a child but even then I would always eat spinach…..guess the Deer Hunter comes by it naturally!lol
Even as a small child the Deer Hunter would eat all kinds of cooked greens. He ate spinach, mustard, turnip greens, polk, collards, and his very favorite was creases. Creases are hard to come by now days. I sure do like them when I can get them!
Sometimes I put cheese or creamed cheese in when I cook creamed spinach. I also like spinach quiche and spinach salad.
I like spinach any way you want to cook it. The creamed spinach in your picture looks soooo good, I can taste it!
Drooling! I’m a fan of spinach everywhichaway. My favorite is Spinach salad with sliced mangoes, green onions, blue cheese, toasted pecans and vinaigrette dresssing.
I love spinach very much but I can’t say I’m a great fan of the creamed version. In Greece and Cyprus, we cook it with olive oil and fresh tomato sauce or we make our popular spinach pie with feta cheese and/or halloumi cheese. But I love grilled meat garnished with some hardly boiled spinach leaves. However, I am going to try your recipe because I love trying new things!
Hi Tipper, I am one of those people who love spinach–anyway I can get it. Your creamed spinach sounds wonderful!!!! Thanks.
Hugs,
Betsy
I was never what you would call a picky child, though my parents might argue that point. I have always loved spinach and creamed spinach is one of my favorite ways to eat it. I’m one of those who adds onions. Mmmm. I might need to go make me some now!
my mother creamed everything we ate, most of the time to strectch whatever it was to feed the family. her creamed spinach was just like this but she added a sprinkle of flour to make the sauce thicker. I bet this way is just as good. it looks delicious.
and I love your King of The Yard and his glasses. give him a kiss or hug for me.
I don’t think I have ever had creamed spinach, or ever had it offered to me, but it looks rather lovely. If I eat it cooked, it is lightly steamed with butter, salt and pepper sometimes vinegar. I’m thinking I might try this out.
That looks good! I love spinach. I like it raw in salads, spinach dip, creamed spinach, I like it on a pizza with mozzarella cheese. It’s yummy. I was surprised that my husband tried creamed spinach once and liked it!! Don’t think he’d ever eaten spinach before.
I love spinach cooked then sprinkled with salt & a capful of vinegar, mmmm good…and good for you.
Stacey
As a kid we were never offered spinach, We didn’t grow it. I didn’t even try it until I was in my 30’s. I had a raw spinach salad and loved it. BUT….I’m allergic to it. My throat closes up and I can’t breathe. What a shock. When I was in the hospital last week, what did they send for my lunch??? Vegetarian lasagna just filled with spinach. LOL They made me well just to kill me with lunch.