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Spinach and Pine nuts with
Parmigiano-Reggiano
My love of food, cooking and feeding people has been a life-long affair. I was raised in a home where fresh was the norm, meat was purchased at the butcher shop, and we were on a first name basis with the producer at our favorite Farmer’s Market stall. This was the time of TV dinners, frozen corn and canned peas, in 1950's “middle” America. My mother would have no part of these processed items, a practice I follow to this day. I did not come from Italian heritage, my cultural background is Lithuanian and German, and I grew up surrounded by Polish and Hungarian families. My “Italian heart" came when I had the good sense to move to beautiful Portland, Oregon, sister city to Bologna, Italy, 20 years ago.
The love for all things Italian was everywhere in Portland. I honed my skills, learned everything I could, then headed to Bologna to The International Cooking School Of Italian Food And Wine to study with teacher and mentor Mary Beth Clark. After a week of the culinary glories of Emilia-Romagna, I returned to Portland to continue my quest for more, more, more. I was able to round-out my education exploring the wines of every region in Italy. I returned a second time to Bologna, this time spending two weeks, and upon returning, I held a huge party honoring this experience. This was such a huge success, I then had a "wait list for my parties"!
By day I am an Operating Room nurse in a Level 1 Trauma Center. By night I am a private chef. Knowing my passion for food and cooking, I was asked to cook dinner for a surgeon, his wife who is also a physician, and their two young children. After 6 months, demand for my services grew to include another busy physician couple and others. Growing up, I didn't understand why grocery shopping took us to several different places, after all, everyone else shops at one grocery store. Well Mom, I finally "get it". Thanks.
This dish will appeal to both the vegetarian and carnivore in your household. Delicious served as a side dish, it
also makes a great pasta sauce “as is” or combined with chicken then tossed with pasta. In addition, you may stir this into risotto at the end of its cooking time, or put it over mashed potatoes or rice. Rainbow Kale works as an addition to, or instead of, chard or spinach. This is a quick dish, adapts to “extras” found in the fridge, and makes
a great mainstay. ~
Serves 4
-
2
large bunches fresh spinach, Swiss chard or kale (1 pound), cleaned, discard stems
-
1/2
cup toasted pine nuts
-
1/2
cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
-
2-4
tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
-
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
-
freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano for garnish
1. Prepare the leafy greens as follows:
Spinach - Saute: Rinse the leaves under cold running water, shake off excess water, leaving a little water still clinging to the leaves. In a large frying pan without oil, over low-medium heat, add the rinsed leaves and saute for a minute or just until wilted. The water helps cook the spinach and should prevent burning. Remove spinach from the pan and drain...OR...
Spinach, Swiss chard or kale - Blanche: Blanche leaves in salted boiling water for a few seconds for spinach and up to one minute for Swiss chard or kale, or just until wilted, then drain. When cool to the touch, squeeze, dry, then chop and reserve.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the chopped wilted spinach, chard and/or kale, pine nuts, grated cheese and the main ingredient you are using (such as cooked pasta, cooked chicken). Begin by adding 1 tablespoon at a time of olive oil and toss until it slightly glistens; if it seems a bit dry, add a spoonful of reserved pasta cooking water and continue until the dish seems moist enough for you. Season to taste. Serve extra grated cheese as a garnish.
Cook’s Notes: As a pasta sauce, serve this combination tossed with 1 pound of boiled pasta, using cuts such as farfalle (bow-ties), rotelle or fusilli. Reserve some pasta cooking water from boiling the pasta to help create a sauce with the olive oil.
Add a Sicilian touch? Eliminate the pine nuts if you wish, but toss some golden raisins into the pasta pot when the pasta has about one minute left of boiling so the water plumps the raisins. Drain and toss the pasta and raisins with the rest of the ingredients.
Or add some grated or julienned raw carrot or zucchini to the pasta pot during the last minute of cooking and proceed as above.
This is delicious when combined with leftover cooked chicken (shredded or diced); or tossed with chopped ripe tomatoes when they are at their best. Need a little heat? Add some red pepper flakes. You can use any combination for this recipe.
Spinach, Swiss chard or kale - Blanche: Blanche leaves in salted boiling water for a few seconds for spinach and up to one minute for Swiss chard or kale, or just until wilted, then drain. When cool to the touch, squeeze, dry, then chop and reserve.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the chopped wilted spinach, chard and/or kale, pine nuts, grated cheese and the main ingredient you are using (such as cooked pasta, cooked chicken). Begin by adding 1 tablespoon at a time of olive oil and toss until it slightly glistens; if it seems a bit dry, add a spoonful of reserved pasta cooking water and continue until the dish seems moist enough for you. Season to taste. Serve extra grated cheese as a garnish.
Cook’s Notes: As a pasta sauce, serve this combination tossed with 1 pound of boiled pasta, using cuts such as farfalle (bow-ties), rotelle or fusilli. Reserve some pasta cooking water from boiling the pasta to help create a sauce with the olive oil.
Add a Sicilian touch? Eliminate the pine nuts if you wish, but toss some golden raisins into the pasta pot when the pasta has about one minute left of boiling so the water plumps the raisins. Drain and toss the pasta and raisins with the rest of the ingredients.
Or add some grated or julienned raw carrot or zucchini to the pasta pot during the last minute of cooking and proceed as above.
This is delicious when combined with leftover cooked chicken (shredded or diced); or tossed with chopped ripe tomatoes when they are at their best. Need a little heat? Add some red pepper flakes. You can use any combination for this recipe.
