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Storage Tips

Store spinach in a damp towel or plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

For longer term storage, spinach may be frozen. Blanch for 1-2 minutes, rinse in cold water to stop the cooking process, drain well and pack into airtight containers, such as zip-lock freezer bags.

Nutritional Value

Excellent levels of manganese are found in spinach. It also contains very good amounts of magnesium, potassium, iron and calcium. Copper, phosphorous, zinc are all found in good amounts in spinach. In addition, traces of selenium are also found. Spinach contains excellent amount of Vitamin K and Vitamin A. It is a very good source of Vitamin C. Good amounts of Vitamin E, Vitamin B6 and Riboflavin are also found in spinach. It also contains traces of Thiamin and Niacin.

Health Benefits

Spinach is a bundle of nutrients and has numerous health benefits. Flavoniods is a compound in spinach, which has anti oxidant and anti cancer properties. Spinach helps in lowering blood pressure due the presence of magnesium. Vitamin K, which is important for maintaining bone health, is also available in spinach. Moreover, spinach protect against heart disease. Vitamin C in spinach provides anti-inflammatory benefits. Spinach can give smarter brain and better eyesight due to its richness in vitamins.

Organicfacts.net

Deb’s Arugula-Spinach-Beet-Orange salad

Arugula
Spinach
1 or 2 small beets, chiogga preferred (for appearance sake, but any beet’ll do), raw
1 orange
kalamata olives
champagne vinegar
olive oil
salt and pepper
croutons (optional) (crouton recipe follows)

Throw arugula and spinach together in a big bowl. With a vegetable peeler, peel beets (leaving stems attached if you can, as this makes ‘em easier to hold for this next part), then use the peeler to shave off nice paper-thin slices across the grain and into the bowl on top of the greens. If you use chiogga beets, the magenta-and-white-ringed slices are absolutely gorgeous against the dark green! With a zester or fine grater, grate off some of the orange peel into a small cup for use in the dressing. Slice top and bottom off orange, and squeeze the juice from these into the cup with the zest. Set orange on flat/cut side, and then with a sharp knife, cut peel off radially, down the sides of the orange, until all peel is removed. If you like, you can squeeze a little more juice out of the fruit attached to the peels you’ve just cut off. Slice and cut orange up into bite size pieces and add to salad bowl. Scatter in kalamata olives. To make dressing, add a little champagne vinegar to the zest/juice in the cup, plus some olive oil, salt and pepper. Whisk dressing ingredients together until well blended, then toss with salad ingredients (I always like to use a BIG bowl; makes it easier to toss without so many escapees!) Divide salad among bowls and top with optional croutons (which are easy to make, by the way!

Croutons - Just cube up some of your favorite bread – I like to use the crust ends of sourdough – toss with olive oil and sprinkle with crumbled dried basil or other herb. Spread in a pan in a single layer [don’t crowd ‘em] and bake in a moderate oven, 350/375 degrees for 15 minutes or so, until crisp. Cool completely and store in a ziploc bag for later use.)

Recipe taken from Debbie's Kitchen Live Earth Farm

Greek Salad With Baby Mint, Oregano, and Feta

By Elaine Gavalas

Serves 4

Greeks pick new mint leaves growing wild in the field. Fortunately, we can pick our own fresh mint in season in our gardens or at our local markets. You can use any kind of mint in this recipe, but my favorites are spearmint and peppermint.

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil (preferably Greek)
• Juice of 1/2 lemon (about 2 tablespoons)
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• Salt to taste (go easy on the salt as the feta cheese is salty)
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 4 cups mixed salad greens (such as spinach, radicchio, endive, arugula, baby lettuce, and romaine hearts), rinsed and patted dry, then torn or chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh, baby mint leaves, chopped
• 1 tablespoon dried Greek oregano
• 2 ripe tomatoes, chopped
• 1 cucumber, peeled and cut into bite-size pieces
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced and separated into rings
• 1/4 cup Kalamata olives
• 4 ounces feta cheese (preferably Greek), crumbled

Combine the olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper in a salad bowl. Add the salad greens, baby mint leaves, dried Greek oregano, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, and Kalamata olives. Toss to mix well. Chill until ready to serve. Garnish with feta before serving.

Herb Companion

Japanese-style Leafy Greens (Chard, spinach, mizuna, etc.)

Blanch leafy greens such as spinach and mizuna.  After blanching, rinse the leaves with cold water as quickly as possible in order retain as many nutrients as possible.  Then we squeeze all the water out by wringing the blanched leaves, cut them into bite-size pieces and dress it with 'ponzu', a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar and a little seasoning.  If you don't have ponzu, you can use any dressing you like.  The key is to use as little as possible because we don't want to overpower the flavor of chard or whatever leafy veggie we are eating.  We always top it off with tons of sesame seeds, either whole or ground.
 
Live Earth Farm