We recently visited Terry’s daughter and her husband and were treated to a delicious dinner of lasagna and something she called “Italian Spinach.” It was really yummy and a dish I had never had before. Spinach and pasta have a real affinity with each other and the addition of sweet tomatoes just enhances it. She shared her recipe with me, and I’ll share it with you. I have also included two other recipes pairing spinach and pasta. And you can use frozen or fresh spinach interchangeably. Just be sure to thaw and aggressively squeeze the water from the frozen spinach.
I first had lasagna roll-ups decades ago when I managed a restaurant in Atlanta called The Peasant Uptown at Phipps Plaza. Part of the Peasant Restaurant group in Atlanta, the Uptown had several signature dishes, as did the other seven restaurants. One was the lasagna roll-ups (I think they had a cuter name, but I can’t remember it) and the other was the Chicken Puff Pastry, known as “the Puff.” It was a very old-school entree of creamed chicken served in a puff pastry shell. Ladies loved it and we’d serve 20 or 30 every lunch. The spinach roll-up, to my recollection, was much like the recipe below. It is so simple to make and has possibilities for creativity. I’ve used leftover spinach artichoke dip before and I’ve used a tomato bechamel sauce or a white cream sauce on the bottom and marinara on top. You could add crabmeat or chicken or ground beef.
Mark your calendars for this Saturday, May 14. It is opening day for the Hitching Lot Farmers’ Market in Columbus. It’s early in the season, but I’m sure there will be some baked goodies, a few vegetables and Mr. Ellis usually has strawberries.
Hope to see you there!
ITALIAN SPINACH
Serves 3-4
1 (10 ounce) box frozen chopped spinach
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1⁄4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
Fresh Parmesan cheese (to garnish)
LASAGNA ROLL-UPS
Serves 6
12 uncooked lasagna noodles
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
2 1/2 cups (10 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 jar (26 ounces) meatless spaghetti sauce
ONE-POT PASTA WITH SPINACH AND TOMATOES
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 (14.5 ounce) can petite diced tomatoes, undrained
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
8 ounces whole-grain spaghetti or linguine
1/2 teaspoon salt
10 ounce fresh spinach
1 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated (about 1/4 cup)
Note: You can swap out whole-grain for semolina pasta, add chicken or shrimp, or use halved grape tomatoes instead of canned.
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