For those who don’t like the ascetic Lent, the countdown to Easter usually begins with Maundy Thursday at the latest. Anyone who grew up in an average Austrian household probably knows the tradition: spinach is on the table on Maundy Thursday! Especially classic in the variant Iglo cream spinach with roasted potatoes and egg.
Since Easter was very important to me as a child – who didn’t like it, the story of Jesus and the donkey on the road to Nazareth (#hosanna), the exciting middle part with high betrayal and drama pure and finally, the happy ending (#halleluja) – I dutifully participated in everything from egg coloring to the gourmet meal on Maundy Thursday to the extensive nest hunt. In fact, these traditions were so important to me that I was sitting at dinner in New York a few years ago, ordering steamed spinach leaves as an additional side dish to salmon at the steakhouse, when it suddenly dawned on me that this was no ordinary Thursday.
Long story short: my love of Catholicism didn’t stand up to growing up, but my love of food did (spinach is no exception!) and I don’t even need to talk about gifts.
If you want to take your culinary game up a notch, get inspired by our incredibly delicious spinach recipes today. Healthy, vegan-friendly, and most importantly, mega-yum! On offer this time we have a Green Smoothie as a power breakfast, Flammkuchen, and an at first glance extravagant pasta that almost reminds a little of Carbonara in terms of taste. Happy Cooking!
Creamy Green Breakfast Smoothie
For about 3 servings you will need:
- 2 small bananas
- a good handful of fresh spinach leaves
- about 3 tablespoons of rolled oats
- about half a liter of oat milk (depending on the consistency you want more)
Put everything in the blender and chop it up – no na. Mix a few ice cubes and use Barista oat milk for extra creaminess!
Of course, other fruits and vegetables, flax seeds, chia, or superfood powder can be mixed in.
Mediterranean tarte flambée with spinach leaves
- Ready-made tarte flambée dough (ain’t nobody got time for that)
- approx. 250-300g fresh spinach leaves
- cherry tomatoes and cashew nuts to taste
- about half a packet of Creme Vega (or sour cream)
- capers
- garlic, salt & pepper
1.) Sauté leaf spinach briefly in a pan with olive oil and garlic.
2.) Roll out dough and spread with cream Vega
3.) Add spinach, quarter tomatoes, and sprinkle with capers and roasted cashews.
Super easy, super quick, and really good finger food!
Creamy spinach kale pasta
Recipe for approx. 4 servings:
- approx. one package of spaghetti
- 200g Kale (green or black cabbage)
- 100g fresh spinach leaves
- 4 cloves garlic
- 3-4 tsp yeast flakes (or parmesan)
- Chipotle Flakes (= smoked chili flakes)
- Smoked salt for extra flavor (or regular salt)
1.) Cook spaghetti (and set aside some pasta water for the last step).
2.) Then cook garlic, kale, and spinach in the pasta water for a few minutes until soft
3.) Strain and put in a blender, add yeast flakes and a little olive oil
4.) Season to taste and blend with the pasta water put away. Fold in pasta and enjoy! Smoked salt and chipotle on top provides that certain bacon flavor 😉
