Catalan Spinach

Now that you have pine nuts and currants in your larder for Swordfish, Sicilian style,

here's another Mediterraneanish recipe for spinach! You can find spinach at the Long Beach Farmer's Market now!  As always, ingredients that you should be able to purchase at the market are asterisked*. 

Choose spinach with thin stems.

But first, I have to share some good news and some bad news with you about spinach.  Here are some facts (source: the Wikipedia) to consider:

First, the good news:

Spinach has a high nutritional value and is extremely rich in antioxidants, especially when fresh, steamed, or quickly boiled. It is a rich source of vitamin A (and lutein), vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin K, magnesium, manganese, folate, iron, vitamin B2, calcium, potassium, vitamin B6, folic acid, copper, protein, phosphorus, zinc, niacin, selenium and omega-3 fatty acids. Recently, opioid peptides called rubiscolins have also been found in spinach [where were they?]. It is a source of folic acid (Vitamin B₉), and this vitamin was first purified from spinach. To benefit from the folate in spinach, it is better to steam it than to boil it. Boiling spinach for four minutes can halve the level of folate.

Now the it wouldn't kill you to know this news:

To improve iron absorption, spinach should be eaten with foods that contain 

vitamin c.

Spinach loses much of its nutritional value with storage of more than a few days. While refrigeration slows this effect to about eight days, spinach will lose most of its folate and carotenoid content. This is worth considering when purchasing spinach out of season. If the product has been "in transit" (picked, cleaned, shipped and shelved) for more than one or two days it will need to be used almost immediately to have much nutritional benefit. This is in spite of the taste and appearance of the plant which may still seem fine.

Fresh spinach should be cleaned thoroughly and then can be stored loosely in an unsealed bag in the crisper tray of the refrigerator for a few days. Even at 4°C, spinach loses much of its nutritional value by eight days so for longer storage it should be fresh frozen, cooked and frozen or canned. Storage in the freezer can be for up to eight months.

And here's the bad news:

The oxalic acid contained in spinach can be harmful. About 10 pounds of spinach is fatal. [Don't quintuple my recipe.]

The oxalic acid contained in spinach is bad for cast iron pans and carbon steel

pans.

Spinach will turn black when cooked in such pans.

The oxalic acid contained in spinach can prevent your body from absorbing iron and

calcium and you will become anemic. [Isn't this ironic? We were always told that

spinach had iron and we should eat it to combat anemia. sigh]

Here's my angle:

Spinach has been around since the year 1.  

I can't remember reading any obit in the Times where cause of death was spinach.

If you have anemia, don't rely on spinach to bail you out.

Popeye was a cartoon.

If you're wondering why there are all kinds of weird indentations, don't look at me.  Blogger has issues today.

Catalan Spinach

Adapted from Janet Fletcher’s Fresh From the Farmer’s Market

The iron in spinach is absorbed only when combined with vitamin c.  Dried apricots have a small amount, but blood oranges have more, and will pair well with this dish. They're also gorgeous.  If you can't find blood oranges, use any orange.  In a bind? Use canned mandarin oranges. (they probably have no nutritional value, but they taste great and will look great too.)

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp. dried currants

2 Tbsp. pine nuts

1 1/2-2 lbs. fresh spinach*

3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1 large clove of garlic*, minced

4 dried apricots, diced (I prefer organic, unsulphered)

1 blood orange, sections removed from skins

salt and freshly ground pepper

Procedure:

Plump the currants by placing them in a small bowl with warm water to cover and let them stand for up to 30 minutes. Drain.

Preheat oven to 325º F. and toast pine nuts on a cookie sheet until golden and fragrant, shaking the sheet occasionally to ensure even toasting, for about 8-12 minutes.  Cool.

Wash spinach well in sink with cold water, lifting it from the water.  Do this several times, if necessary, until completely clean.  Discard any thick stems and drain in a colander.

Place spinach in a large pot with just the water clinging to the leaves. Cover and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until leaves are just wilted, 3-5 minutes.

Drain in a sieve under cold running water.  Squeeze between your hands to remove excess moisture. 

Heat olive oil in a 10-inch skillet over moderate heat. (Do not use cast iron or your spinach will turn black.) Add garlic and sauté until it begins to turn golden. Add spinach, tossing, to separate the leaves, coating them with the oil.  Add currants, pine nuts and dried apricots.  

Cook, stirring, until hot, about 2-3 minutes.  Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Garnish with orange sections.

serves 4 as a small side dish