Sauteed Spinach with Garlic and Lemon

When I was a kid, I thought I hated spinach. Heck, maybe I did... kids are notoriously horrible judges of what constitutes good food. But all the way through high school I also didn't care for it, although I grew able to choke it down.

And then the day of revelation: My mother always served canned spinach, with white vinegar passed on the side. Canned spinach is, I am quite convinced, a food conceived in Hell. Fresh, on the other hand, is really quite amazing. Once I started cooking (or not) and eating fresh spinach, I couldn't get enough of it. Still can't.

I was only serving two people, so I grabbed a 10-ounce bag of fresh spinach. Since I didn't exactly have a plan in place while I was at the store other than some vague idea involving bacon and garlic (which obviously isn't what I ended up using), when it came time to cook this is what I came up with. It totally worked! But you should feel free to use fresh lemon juice and Parmesan that doesn't come in a can; I imagine it would be even tastier.

Rather than mincing the garlic, I decided to slice it so we would have big pieces to bite into. I sauteed it for a couple of minutes in olive oil until it was beginning to brown slightly, then started adding the spinach.

I've probably mentioned before the necessity of adding fresh spinach in batches to wilt it. This was about 1/3 of the bag, which I let cook down for a couple of minutes before gradually adding more. It's important to stir it as it wilts not only so the fresh leaves on top end up nearer the heat, but also to ensure all of it gets coated with oil and the garlic doesn't burn in the process.

Something like 10 minutes later, I had the entire bag wilted, well-coated with oil, and the garlic slices fairly evenly distributed throughout. I could have stopped there, but I had other ideas.

I sprinkled in some salt and pepper, drizzled some lemon juice, and stirred to make sure the flavours got to all the spinach. then I sprinkled the top with some Parmesan cheese, because I wanted to. It ended up being really tasty, and definitely will hit the rotation on my table.

Looking at this picture, I wish I'd made more. I could really go for some for my snack about now.

Sauteed Spinach with Garlic and Lemon

Serves 2

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

4 garlic cloves, sliced

10 ounces fresh spinach

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1/8 cup Parmesan cheese

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic slices and cook, stirring occasionally, 2-3 minutes until starting to brown.

Add spinach in batches, stirring to coat with oil, until all spinach has been used and is wilted. Make sure you stir often, and watch that the garlic doesn't burn.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper and add lemon juice, stirring to distribute seasonings throughout. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve.

Serving Size: 190 g

Calories: 195

Calories from Fat: 123

Total Fat: 13.7 g

Saturated Fat: 5.2 g

Trans Fat: 0.0 g

Cholesterol: 20 mg

Sodium: 668 mg

Total Carbohydrate: 8.4 g

Dietary Fiber: 3.3 g

Sugars: 0.8 g

Protein: 13.6 g

Paired with the Glazed Salmon I posted yesterday and a simple lettuce salad, this made a healthy, filling, and delicious meal that cost me barely 30 minutes in the kitchen.