Spinach made easy, a couple different ways

Oh the wonderful world of spinach!  Seriously spinach is an incredibly easy, fun, and versatile side dish that can accompany almost any type of meal.  There are so many wonderful ways to prepare spinach just by changing up a few of the added ingredients.  So next time your at a loss for what to serve with your meal, think spinach.  Here a couple different takes on how to prepare sautéed spinach, enjoy!

Easy Sautéed Spinach

Ingredients:

• 1 T. extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 (10 oz.) bag spinach leaves
• 1 1/2 t. garlic salt
• 1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat
2. Add the spinach to the skillet and cover; allow to cook for 5 minutes
3. Stir in the garlic salt and cover again for another 5 minutes; remove from heat
4. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese to serve.

Sautéed Spinach with Mushrooms

Ingredients:

• 2 T. extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 lb. mushrooms, wiped clean, trimmed and sliced
• 1 to 2 garlic cloves (to taste), minced
• 1 t. fresh thyme leaves
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:

1. 1 pound baby spinach, rinsed but not dried
2. Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy skillet, and add the mushrooms
3. Cook, stirring, until seared and beginning to sweat, about five minutes
4. Turn the heat to medium, and add the garlic, thyme, salt and pepper
5. Stir together for another minute or two until the mushrooms are tender
6. Add the spinach, and stir until wilted, about two minutes
7. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and remove from the heat

Sautéed Spinach with Toasted Pine Nuts

Ingredients:

• 1/4 c. extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2 lbs. baby spinach
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 lemon
• 1/4 c. pine nuts, toasted

Directions:

1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil and 1 garlic clove in a 12-inch straight-sided skillet over medium-high heat, until garlic is golden, about 3 minutes
2. Add a quarter of the spinach, and cook just until it wilts, about 2 minutes
3. Transfer to a colander; drain
4. Repeat with remaining oil, garlic, and spinach
5. Transfer spinach to a bowl
6. Season with salt and pepper
7. Squeeze lemon over spinach, and top with pine nuts

Tags: cooking ideas, cooking recipes, fast and easy, side dishes

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 4th, 2011 at 11:32 pm and is filed under Vegetarian recipe, cooking recipe, hosting, side dishes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.