Tag: spinach

Soups and Stews

Creamy Butternut Squash and Sausage Soup

cathysmahaLeave a comment

This 30 minute, one pot soup is easy and delicious. I love a recipe that comes together so easily and delivers the flavor!

Creamy Butternut Squash and Sausage Soup

INGREDIENTS:
  • 15 oz spicy Italian sausage crumbled
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning or Herbs from Provence
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme (no sprigs, just leaves)
  • red pepper flakes to taste (if sausage is spicy, you may want to skip the pepper flakes)
  • 1 cup orzo uncooked
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 5 cups chicken stock
  • 10 oz butternut squash peeled and cubed
  • 5 oz fresh spinach
  • ½ cup heavy cream (I used half and half)
  • ⅓ cup Parmesan cheese shaved, shredded, or grated (for garnish)
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Add crumbled Italian sausage, Italian seasoning, a generous amount of fresh thyme (no sprigs, just leaves), and red pepper flakes to a large saucepan. Cook on medium heat, regularly stirring to break the sausage.
  2. Once the sausage released juices and is half cooked, add 1 cup of uncooked orzo and minced garlic, and cook, constantly stirring, for about 2 minutes on medium heat to brown the orzo.
  3. Add 5 cups of chicken stock and cubed butternut squash, stir everything well, cover with the lid, bring to a boil, reduce to visible simmer, and cook for about 5 or 10 minutes until the orzo and butternut squash is cooked.
  4. Add spinach to the soup, cover with the lid and let it wilt on low heat, occasionally stirring.
  5. Once the spinach has wilted, remove the soup from the heat and add heavy cream. Stir everything and season with salt and pepper. Add more chicken stock (or water) if the soup is too dense. Add more red pepper flakes, if you like. Top with Parmesan cheese (shaved, shredded, or grated) and fresh thyme.

Recipe from JuliasAlbum

Casseroles · Poultry · Vegetables

Tuscan Chicken and Spaghetti Squash

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Tuscan Chicken and Spaghetti Squash was an easy dish to put together and used things I had on hand. I thought the flavor was very good but a little too rich for me. Next time, I would either use half and half or substitute half of the cream with chicken broth. My spaghetti squash have produced well and I’m always looking for new dishes to try!

Tuscan Chicken and Spaghetti Squash

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 medium spaghetti squash
  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken (cut into bite size pieces)
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 4 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 1 shallot (minced)
  • 2 tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes (packed in oil, drained, julienne cut)
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese (grated)
  • 3 ounces baby spinach
  • fresh parsley (optional, garnish)
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Carefully pierce the spaghetti squash into the center with a knife several times. Place on a microwave-safe plate and cook on high for 8-12 minutes or until tender. Let cool while you prepare the chicken.
  2. Season the chicken with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.
  3. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until it’s no longer pink in the center, about 7 minutes.
  4. Remove the chicken from the pan, place on a plate and tent with aluminum foil to keep warm.
  5. Add the remaining butter to the pan along with the garlic and shallot. Cook 1-2 minutes or until they just start to soften.
  6. Mix in the sun-dried tomatoes and cook an additional minute.2 tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes
  7. Pour in the heavy cream and cook until hot and bubbly, about 1-2 minutes.
  8. Turn off the heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese and spinach. Add the chicken and any accumulated juices back to the pan.
  9. Once the squash is cool, cut it in half length-wise, remove the seeds and scrap out the strands with a fork.
  10. Stir the squash into the cream sauce until evenly coated.
  11. Garnish with fresh parsley, if desired.

Recipe from DeliciousLittleBites

Pastas

Chile Crisp Fettuccine Alfredo With Spinach

cathysmahaLeave a comment

What a flavorful, delicious pasta dish! I a spicy wimp so I was surprised that I need to double the amount of chile crisp to get the flavor punch I was looking for. I shared leftovers with one of my daughters and she was equally a fan of this recipe.

Chile Crisp Fettuccine Alfredo With Spinach

INGREDIENTS:
  • Salt
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons chile crisp, plus more to taste (I used double this amount to get the flavor I was looking for)
  • 1 cup heavy cream (I used Half & Half)
  • 1 pound dried fettuccine
  • 1 (5-ounce) package baby spinach
  • ¾cup finely grated Parmesan (2¼ ounces), plus more for serving
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. While the water heats, melt the butter with the chile crisp in a very large skillet or Dutch oven over low heat.
  2. Whisk in the cream and keep warm over low. (It should steam, not bubble.)
  3. Cook the fettuccine until al dente according to the package directions. Use tongs to transfer the noodles to the cream mixture, reserving the pasta water.
  4. Add the spinach and turn with tongs until the noodles are well coated.
  5. Add the Parmesan and toss, still over low heat, until the noodles are slicked with a creamy sauce, adding a spoonful or two of pasta water if needed to loosen the sauce. Divide among serving dishes and top with Parmesan and more chile crisp, if you’d like. Serve immediately.

Recipe from TheNewYorkTimes

Poultry

Tuscan Chicken

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Tuscan Chicken is an easy, flavorful dinner fit for entertaining. I served this dish over Trader Joe’s Multigrain Blend with Vegetables and liked the combination. Serving with a pasta or potatoes would be equally delicious. I had enough sauce but think doubling the sauce would be even better.

Tuscan Chicken

INGREDIENTS:
  • 2 (8-ounce) boneless skinless chicken breasts 
  • 1 cup roughly chopped fresh baby spinach
  • 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (I used half & half)
  • 1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving 
  • 1/4 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes (blot off excess oil)
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons salted butter
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • salt and pepper, to taste
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Prepare Chicken: Cut each chicken breast horizontally so it’s half as thick as before, resulting in 4 thinner pieces. Pat them dry with paper towels. Generously season both sides of each chicken piece with salt and pepper.
  2. Sear Chicken: Heat 10-inch sauté pan over medium to medium-high heat until hot. Add olive oil to cover pan, and place chicken breasts in single layer over oil. Cook until each side is golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes per side. When chicken is cooked through, transfer to large plate. Work in batches if your pan is not large enough to hold all at once.
  3. Make Sauce: Reduce to low heat. Add heavy whipping cream, butter, and parmesan cheese to pan. Stir until butter and cheese are melted, scraping up any browned bits on bottom of pan. Increase to medium heat and bring to simmer. Stir in spinach until wilted. Stir in minced garlic and oregano until well-mixed.
  4. Return Chicken & Serve: Transfer chicken back to pan, leaving any liquid on plate, and simmer for 1 minute. Top with sun-dried tomatoes. Turn off heat. Serve, and optionally top with additional grated parmesan cheese.

Note: I served this on top of Trader Joes Multigrain Blend with Vegetables

Recipe from SavoryTooth

Italian Dishes · Vegetables

Spaghetti Squash Lasagna

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Spaghetti Squash abounds in my garden and I needed new recipes and this one is a winner. Daughter, Sarah, told me about this recipe and it was a must try. The recipe is sooo good and flavorful. For mushroom haters, you could easily leave those out. The garlic herb cheese really adds a new dimension to the recipe.

Spaghetti Squash Lasagna

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 spaghetti squash
  • 1 lb. Italian sausage
  • 8 oz. sliced raw mushrooms
  • 38 oz. jar Rao Marinara sauce (or sauce of choice)
  • 1 cup fresh spinach (or more to your liking)
  • 5.2 oz. Garlic herb cheese (or garlic herb goat cheese)
  • 8 oz. shredded mozzarella
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Preheat oven 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut the spaghetti squash in half and remove seeds. Roast the spaghetti squash flesh side down on a baking sheet with parchment paper for 45-60 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool. Once the squash is done baking, use a fork to remove the spaghetti-like threads.
  2. Brown Italian Sausage. When the sausage is almost cooked through, add mushrooms. Once sausage and mushrooms are cooked through, drain and remove to a paper towel on a plate to absorb the extra fat.
  3. Lower oven temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  4. Grease a 9×14″ pan. Cover the bottom of the pan with a layer of marinara sauce. Top with half of the spaghetti squash, half of the sausage/mushroom mixture, then a layer of fresh spinach leaves. Dallop with garlic herb cheese. Repeat a layer of spaghetti squash, marinara sauce, sausage/mushroom and top with more marinara sauce. Top all with a layer of Mozzarella cheese.
  5. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes.
  6. Note: I used about 3/4 of the Marina sauce in the recipe and used the reserved sauce when reheating leftovers.

Recipe from Sarah’s good friend, Megan

Asian Dishes · Poultry

Ginger Peanut Chicken with Coconut Rice

cathysmahaLeave a comment

What a delicious dish! Daughter, Megan, recommended this recipe since I love Thai dishes. I doubled the chicken part of the recipe and made a single of the coconut rice and still had a lot of leftover rice. In the future, I would make double the chicken and halve the rice recipe. Since I doubled the recipe, I used 1 cup of fresh sprinach and one cup of chopped bok choy. The leftovers were equally delicious. For the leftover meal, I served with balsamic roasted brussel sprouts and it paired well.

The coconut rice was a great idea. I never thought of adding coconut milk to the rice cooker but it adds another level of delicious to this dish.

Ginger Peanut Chicken with Coconut Rice

INGREDIENTS:
  • Ginger Peanut Chicken
    • 1 1/4 pounds chicken thighs, fat trimmed, cut into small bite-sized pieces
    • 1-inch piece of ginger, grated
    • 3 green onions, thinly sliced (white parts and green parts separated)
    • zest and juice of 1-2 limes
    • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
    • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
    • 1 tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil
    • 2–3 cloves garlic, minced
    • 1/2 cup chopped roasted peanuts
    • 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
    • 1 cup spinach, bok choy, etc.
  • Coconut Rice
    • 2 cups white or jasmine rice
    • 1 1/2 cups water
    • 1 can coconut milk
    • a pinch of salt
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Marinate Chicken: In a stainless steel bowl, mix the chicken with the ginger, green onions (white parts), lime zest, brown sugar, salt, and oil. Marinate for 20 minutes-2 hours.
  2. Rice: Add the rice ingredients to an Instant Pot. Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes, followed by a natural pressure release for 10-15 minutes (it won’t be quite done yet after 3 minutes – it needs the rest time to finish cooking). Release the steam, fluff with a fork, and attempt not to eat the whole thing! (Don’t have an Instant Pot...use these instructions:
    • To cook the coconut rice on the stove or in a rice cooker: Cooking the rice in a rice cooker or just on the stove top should work well. To make it on the stove, you can add 2 cups of rice, 1.5 cups of water, and a 14-ounce can of coconut milk to a large pot and bring it to a boil. Once it’s boiling, you can reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the pot, and cook the rice for about 15-20 minutes. (Fork-Lore: I live at high altitude and had to add more water during the process so the rice didn’t stick or burn).
  3. Cook Chicken: Heat a large skillet (nonstick or cast iron work well) to medium-high heat. Add the marinated chicken to the pan, working in 1-2 batches depending on the size of your pan. Leave the chicken sitting undisturbed for several minutes to get a nice caramelization on the chicken.
  4. Adding Extras: When all the chicken is cooked, turn the heat down slightly and add the peanuts and garlic to the pan. Sauté for 3-5 minutes to get the peanuts roasty and the garlic nice and fragrant.
  5. Finish by adding in the cilantro, green onion, and spinach. Squeeze lime juice into the pan and season with more salt and pepper as needed.
  6. Serve over coconut rice! SO simple but so good.

Recipe from PinchofYum

Fish

Baked Cod with Boursin

cathysmahaLeave a comment

First, my apologies for the terrible photo. As I’ve said before, I’m not a food stylist but just enjoy sharing recipes that I’ve enjoyed. This is an easy and delicious way to prepare cod with a yummy, cheesy topping. I don’t prepare a lot of fish at home but this one was easy and something I’ll make again.

Baked Cod with Boursin

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 pound cod or haddock (try to get thick filets also called Captain’s cut)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • ¼ cup onion chopped
  • 2 ounces crimini or porcini mushrooms, chopped
  • 3 ounces fresh spinach
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • Zest from half a lemon
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • ¼ teaspoon white pepper
  • 1 sleeve Ritz crackers, 30 crackers, crushed. See note above.
  • 5.2 ounce package Boursin cheese flavored with herbs and garlic
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Line a small pan with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Lay fish in center. If using a piece with the tail, fold tail under so the fish is even thickness.
  3. In a medium pan, melt butter in olive oil over medium heat and add onions and cook for three minutes. Add mushrooms and cook for three more minutes. Add spinach and cook one minute or until spinach is wilted.
  4. Pour this mixture into a medium bowl and add lemon juice, lemon zest, milk, pepper and crushed Ritz. Mix thoroughly to combine.
  5. Spread the Boursin cheese over the fish evenly. Spread the stuffing loosely over the cheese pushing back up any stuffing that falls off.
  6. Cover with parchment and foil and bake covered for 20 minutes.
  7. Remove foil and parchment and bake for an additional 10 minutes.
  8. Great served with white rice.

Recipe from Afamilyfeast.com

Breakfast · New Favorite

Sweet Potato Toasts with Eggs, Avocado & Spinach

cathysmaha1 Comment

Whoever heard of Sweet Potato Toasts? They are delicious! Making them in the toaster…brilliant! I love recipes from IowaGirlEats and this one did not disappoint. The only change I made was using Everything But the Bagel seasoning on the Sunny Side Up eggs and that was a game changer. I mentioned this recipe to a friend who suggested replacing the sautéed spinach with mushrooms…that is next on the list!

IowaGirlEats also suggests eating the sweet potato toasts with other toppings. I tried it with peanut butter and it was so good. I toasted several slices of sweet potato to use another day, storing them in the refrigerator. Heated up in the microwave, they were equally as good.

Sweet Potato Toasts with Eggs, Avocado & Spinach

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 small sweet potato, cut lengthwise into 1/4″ slices
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1 giant handful baby spinach
  • evoo, garlic salt, seasonings (I used Everything But the Bagel Seasoning)
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Add a sweet potato slice to each toaster slot then toast on high for the longest duration offered by your toaster. Flip and rotate the sweet potato slices then toast again on high and for the longest duration. If the sweet potato slices aren’t tender by this point, flip and rotate once more then toast a third time (might only need half the duration as previous rounds.) Top toasted sweet potato slices with avocado mashed with a little garlic salt then set aside.
  2. Meanwhile, place a small skillet over medium-high heat then add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Add baby spinach then season with garlic salt and saute until tender. Place on top of mashed avocado.
  3. Turn heat down to medium then cook eggs to your liking – sunny side up, fried, scrambled, etc. – seasoning with the seasoning of your choice (I used steak seasoning but garlic salt and pepper is just fine!) Place eggs on top of spinach then serve.

Recipe from IowaGirlEats

Italian Dishes · New Favorite · Soups and Stews

Italian Wedding Soup

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Welcome to 2022! Italian Wedding Soup was on the menu after seeing this recipe on one of my favorite blogs, IowaGirlEats. I had the ingredients on hand and needed to take a meal to my daughter after giving birth to my 5th grandbaby. Be careful that you don’t eat all for the tiny meatballs when they come out of the oven. They are delicious! Next time I would make a double or triple batch of the meatballs, so I would have them in the freezer when I want to make the soup. Serve with a hearty Italian bread.

Italian Wedding Soup

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 medium carrots, thinly sliced (~1 cup)
  • 2 celery stalks, thinly sliced (~1 cup)
  • 1 large shallot or small onion, chopped
  • salt and pepper
  • 10 cups chicken stock
  • 1 parmesan cheese wedge rind (optional)
  • 3/4 cup dry gluten free orzo
  • 3oz fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
  • 1 egg
  • 2 Tablespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • For the Pork Meatballs (makes ~75 meatballs):
    • 1/2 cup small-torn pieces of soft gluten free white bread (crusts removed first)
    • 1/4 cup finely grated onion + juices
    • 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
    • 1 egg, whisked
    • 2 cloves garlic, microplaned, pressed, or finely minced
    • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • Pepper, to taste
    • 1lb ground pork (I used Italian Sausage)
DIRECTIONS:
  1. For the Meatballs: Preheat oven to 400 degrees then line a half sheet pan with parchment paper or non stick sprayed foil. To a large bowl add torn bread and grated onion then mix to combine and let sit for 1 minute. Add parmesan cheese, egg, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper then stir to combine. Crumble ground pork over the top then use your hands to mix until just combined.
  2. Use a teaspoon to portion meatballs out then gently roll in your hands and place on prepared baking sheet – meatballs can be very close together but not touching. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and cooked to an internal temperature of 160 degrees. Set meatballs aside – can be done a few days ahead of time.
  3. Meanwhile, heat extra virgin olive oil in a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add carrots, celery, and shallot/onion, season with salt and pepper, then saute until the vegetables are tender, 8-10 minutes. If the vegetables are taking too long to soften, I like to add a glug of extra chicken broth to the pot then place a lid on top and let them steam for a few minutes.
  4. Add chicken stock and parmesan cheese rind (if using) then turn heat up to high to bring liquid to a boil. Add pasta then turn heat down to medium-low and simmer until pasta is al dente, 20 minutes or so. Add cooked meatballs then stir to combine. Bring soup back up to a bubble (may need to turn heat up a touch) then add spinach and cook until wilted and tender, 2-3 minutes.
  5. Whisk egg and parmesan cheese together very well in a small dish. Give the soup a couple of big stirs to get the liquid swirling in one direction then slowly stream in egg mixture. Continue to stir to create small threads of egg (NOTE: the eggs are NOT curdled, they are COOKED – like egg drop soup!) Taste then add more salt and/or pepper if desired. Let soup sit and thicken for 10-15 minutes before removing parmesan cheese rind, scooping into bowls, and serving.

Recipe from Iowagirleats

Gluten Free · New Favorite · Salads · Vegan · Vegetarian

Strawberry, Blueberry and Spinach Salad

cathysmahaLeave a comment

It’s salad time, again.  I love salad 365 days a year but with fresh produce and fruit in spring and summer, it’s the best! This salad is so simple and so delicious and you can have it anytime. Experiment with different greens, fruit and nuts and enjoy!

What a yummy patriotic salad to share this Memorial Day weekend.

STRAWBERRY AND SPINACH SALAD

Baby Spinach salad mix
1 cup fresh blueberries, rinsed and drained
1 cup fresh strawberries, rinsed, drained and sliced
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (or pecans)

 Sweet Balsamic Dressing

1.5 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Salt & pepper, to taste

  • Blend salad dressing ingredients together and chill.
  • When ready to serve, toss salad with dressing and serve immediately.

Recipe from Faithfulprovisions.com