CSA Box Ideas: Spinach

The spinach we have been getting from our CSA has been completely delicious! It tastes nothing like grocery store spinach. And it is one of the most nutrient-dense vegetables available (behind kale, collards and bok choy, according to Whole Foods' ANDI rating system). We get a LOT of it and have found so many ways to make it "disappear." Here are a few:


1. Just use it as a salad. Top it with a hard-boiled egg, some spring onions, nuts and even strawberries for a perfectly delicious and perfectly seasonal spring salad.

2. Stir it into soups at the last minute and let it wilt.

3. Stir it into polenta (along with parmesean cheese) and top with fresh farmer's market tomatoes with garlic, olive oil, balsalmic vinegar, salt and pepper. So delicious! We tried this last week and it was really wonderful!

4. Make spanikopita.

5. Use it in quesadillas. It will wilt down to almost nothing and add a good dose of iron to your meal!

Recipe for disappearing spinach: Split pea, lentil and barley soup

This is a really simple recipe I love because it fulfills my three primary criteria for a weeknight meal: 1. It's highly nutritious, 2. It's very inexpensive, 3. It's easy!

I suggest buying the dry ingredients in bulk so you get just what you need and spend the least amount of money. I buy enough for three or four batches at a time and divy it all up and store it in the pantry for an easy weeknight meal.

1/4 cup dry lentils
1/4 cup barley
1/4 cup dry split green and/or yellow peas (I mix both)
1/4 cup tiny pasta, like stars or alphabets
fresh or dry thyme
4 cups low-sodium broth (veggie or chicken) or 4 cups water and a low-sodium bouillon cube (veggie or chicken)
olive oil
any extra veggies you like
a hearty double handful of spinach, washed and chopped
grated parmesean
salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in your soup pan and sautee any veggies you have on hand. In the spring I use spring onions and possibly carrots (both chopped small) because I get them in my CSA box. Add the lentils, peas, barley, pasta, broth and thyme once you have sauteed your veggies for a few minutes, stir, bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cook covered for approximately 45 minutes or until peas and lentils are soft. When I make this, most of the liquid boils off and is absorbed into the food by the end of the 45 minutes. If you want yours soupier, just add more broth. Once the peas and lentils are soft, throw in your spinach and turn off the heat. It will wilt as you stir it in. Add a handful of grated parmesean and mix until melted. Serve garnished with a little more grated parmesean and some fresh thyme.

This dish is FULL of protein (over 20 grams) and fiber and iron (thanks to that spinach) and has almost no fat and minimal sodium if you use a good broth. Like I said, it is easy to measure and mix the dry ingredients ahead of time and have a few of these ready to go in your pantry. You can easily alter this dish with the different seasons by changing up the veggies you add to it. When spinach is out of season, try tomatoes or squash instead.

Enjoy!