A Simple Spinach Salad

I've got another quick recipe from our Thanksgiving feast. Spinach salad!

Thanksgiving is filled with so many heavy dishes that I thought I'd offer something on the lighter side in case anyone was interested.

Just wash and spin-dry some spinach and sprinkle it with dried cranberries, walnuts, crumbled bacon, and if you'd like cheese. I totally forgot to put the cheese in (oops!) but normally I like blue cheese though goat or feta would probably be great too.

I made a simple balsamic vinaigrette that I put on the side so that the salad wouldn't get soggy.

So easy and you can make it way ahead of time too!

Spinach dip

I've got another "healthy alternative" and a use for the leftover yogurt from the naan and crispy yogurt chicken.

I love the spinach dip made with knorr vegetable soup mix, but it's not the healthiest of dips. Replacing the sour cream/mayo with yogurt healthens it up and doesn't change the taste much. It is a bit tarter, but still yummy. The trick, which isn't even necessary, is to drain about half of the yogurt with a cheesecloth to thicken it up. If you don't drain it, it's still perfectly fine. In fact, I always reserve the liquid I drain out in case I want to add some back later for consistency reasons.

And to make it super healthy, serve it with carrot and celery sticks instead of chips, crackers or bread!

This spinach dip makes a great snack to munch on while watching football and Melissa of Made by Melissa is hosting a fun event called Snack Food Sunday every Sunday until the Superbowl. Check out her blog to see other great football snack ideas.

Recipe:

1 pkg frozen chopped spinach, drained and squeezed dry
1 pkg Knorr's vegetable soup mix
1 small can water chestnuts, chopped (I skipped this because we aren't water chestnut fans)
1 container of yogurt (I used fat free)

This part is optional: take half of the yogurt and put it in cheesecloth over a bowl to drain some of the liquid. Save the liquid in case you want to add it back later.
Pour in the soup mix, water chestnuts and spinach. Mix thoroughly and refrigerate for at least four hours. Add back some of the liquid from the yogurt if necessary. Stir before serving.

Pseudo creamed spinach

This is actually really healthy! No cream, no cheese, minimal butter and still quite tasty.

If you're expecting the super rich creamed spinach you're used to, you'll probably be disappointed, but if you want a delicious, healthy way to make spinach that feels just a bit indulgent, I think this will do the trick...


Ingredients*:
- 2 packages of frozen spinach
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 shallot or small onion finely diced
- 2 minced garlic cloves
- 3 Tbsp all purpose flour
- 1 cup of milk (I used non-fat soy)
- 1/2 cup of milk or chicken stock
- 2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- fresh cracked pepper
* As usual, I didn't follow any recipes or measure anything out, so these are all estimations, so do taste tests
Directions:
- Thaw the frozen spinach and squeeze out the water using your hands or cheesecloth
- Melt butter in the bottom of a saucepan
- Put in shallot/onions and sautee until softened
- Add minced garlic
- Sprinkle in flour and mix until wet. If there's not enough moisture to wet the flour, don't worry, we're adding the milk next. - Pour in the soy milk and add the seasonings
- Add the spinach and mix until warmed through and the right consistency
- Add more liquid/seasoning as needed. Flour can also be added if it's not "creamy" enough