Creamed Spinach

A very good Brazilian friend who sent her daughter to my cooking courses for years shared this tasty recipe with me.
She has since moved to France and opened a very
successful restaurant there.  You know that she is a good cook to be able to convince the French to eat her dishes with applause! 

I cook frozen or fresh spinach quickly in the microwave but the hob can be used almost as easily.  Make the Bechamel sauce using a double boiler (or a bowl over a pan of boiling water)  for flavoring the milk, and then a frying pan on the hob to finish.  The thickened sauce stirred into the beautiful healthy emerald green leaves can be eaten as the vegetable with many family meals.  We love it with fresh deep red Alaskan salmon.  In my cooking courses it is one of the fillings for crepes on Pancake Day.  

Ingredients: Serves 4 or fills about 6 to 8 crepes

one pound/500g frozen or fresh spinach

To make the Bechamel sauce, place in the top pan of a double boiler, over simmering water:

1 1/4 cup/10 fl oz/300 ml whole milk

1 quarter yellow onion, peeled but left in one piece

1 bay leaf

2 whole cloves

Cover, and leave on the heat for 15 minutes.

In a medium heavy skillet, heated to medium, add:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter; when melted, stir in:

2 tablespoons flour, with heat turned to low; add slowly, stirring to a paste.  Add  seasoned milk (above) and stir to blend.
Simmer briefly to thicken.

Add, with stirring:

ground nutmeg, good shake

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

3 heaping tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese 

To cook the spinach:

Frozen:

Microwave.  Remove spinach from packaging and place in a non-metallic bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and puncture with a knife to make 3 to 4 holes.  Cook on full power for 5 minutes.  Remove, stir, recover and cook for 5 minutes more.  Remove from microwave.  Drain in a colander. 

Hob.  Place one cup of water in a medium size pan and bring up to the boil.  Add frozen spinach and bring back to the boil.  Cover and simmer 2 minutes.  Drain in a colander.

Fresh;

Microwave.  Do not remove spinach from packaging.  Pierce package 3 to 4 times with knife.  Cooking time will very with the weight of spinach per bag so follow instructions on package.  Remove from microwave and allow to cool in bag at least one minute.  Remove from packaging.

Hob.  Place 1 cup of water in a large pan and bring up to the boil.  Add one pound/500g  fresh spinach and bring back to the boil.  Simmer for 2 minutes.  Drain in a colander.

Stir cooked spinach into Bechamel sauce above.  Heat thoroughly and serve.   © Judy Labi 2013