Quick Ginger Chicken & Spinach Soup

Quick Ginger Chicken & Spinach Soup

Printable Recipe

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes

Serves 2

Ingredients:
4 cups chicken broth
1 slice of ginger
¼ cup whole wheat fusili (or other small pasta)
1 tsp lemon zest
¾ -1 cup cooked chicken, skinless and cubed or shredded
2 cups spinach, wilted & chopped
1 tbsp canola or olive oil
1 cup mushrooms, thinly sliced
Dash of Cholula chipotle sauce (or your favorite hot sauce)

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a small skillet and sauté mushrooms.

2. Combine the broth, ginger, pasta, and in a medium sized pot and cook over medium heat until it begins to boil. Reduce heat, add the chicken, sautéed mushrooms and wilted spinach*, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Season with hot sauce and serve.

* To wilt the spinach, rinse well and microwave for a minute to wilt.

Hot Spinach Cheese Dip

Hot Spinach Cheesy Dip
Adapted from Everyday Food: Fresh Flavor Fast

Printable Recipe

Hands-on time: 20 minutes
Baking time: 25-30 minutes

Makes 2 cups

Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 large garlic cloves, minced
4oz/112g baby spinach (the recipe called for 2lb/1kg, but all I had was 4oz and I added the Swiss chard – total weight was still less than 1lb and plenty for the dip)
1 bunch Swiss Chard leaves (stems removed), coarsely chopped (beet greens are nice too)
½ cup milk
6oz/25g cream cheese, cut into small cubes and allowed to soften on the counter
3-4 dashes Worcestershire sauce
3-4 dashes Cholula Chiptle hot sauce (or whatever your favorite is – do try to find some Cholula though, it’s awesome)
¾ cup mozzarella cheese, shredded + ¼ cup for topping
Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 425°F/220°C

2. In a Dutch oven, sauté the onions and garlic in the olive oil over medium heat until the onions are translucent and fragrant, stirring occasionally (five minutes). Don’t let the garlic burn or the dish will taste bitter.

3. Add the spinach and chopped Swiss chard and sauté until wilted (another 5-8 minutes).

4. Transfer the greens to a colander or large strainer and press out any moisture. Place the drained mixture on a chopping board and coarsely chop.

5. Back in the Dutch oven, bring the milk to a boil and add the diced cream cheese, whisking until melted (about 3 minutes). Return the chopped cooked greens to the pot and add the seasonings and mozzarella. Stir to combine and pour into a baking dish – preferably one you can serve from. Sprinkle more mozzarella (about ¼ cup) over top.

6. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Let set on the counter for 5 minutes or so – just until it cools down a little. The dip will thicken and … of course, keep you from burning your tongue.

I like to serve it with multigrain chips or homemade pita chips.

Chickpeas & Spinach Spanish Style

Chickpeas & Spinach Spanish Style
From Everyday Easy: Cheap Eats

Printable Recipe

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients
3 tbsp olive oil
1 thick slice of crusty white bread, torn into small pieces (I left it out for South Beach Diet Phase One – still delicious)
1lb10oz/ 750 g leaf spinach (I used baby spinach that wilts much quicker)
1 can (8.5oz/240g) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp ground cumin
Salt & pepper to taste
1-2 tbsp sherry vinegar
2 tbsp water

Directions
1. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a heavy bottomed skillet over medium high heat. Add the torn bread and fry, stirring occasionally, until crisp. Transfer to paper towel to drain.

2. Remove any thick stems from the spinach. Wash well and shake off any excess water. Put the spinach in a large saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring often until the spinach is wilted. Drain in a colander and cool. (Ruth’s note: I used a microwave). A handful at a time, squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Transfer to a chopping board and chop coarsely.

3. Add the remaining oil to the skillet, over medium high heat. Add the garlic and cook for a minute or so – just until it becomes fragrant – you do not want it to brown. Add the chopped spinach, and toss. Add the chickpeas, paprika and cumin. Season with salt and pepper. Crumble in the fried bread and toss again.

4. Add the vinegar and 2 tbsp water and cook, stirring often for about 5 minutes or until the chickpeas are hot.

Serve immediately. Great as a side or as one Tapas dish with some full bodied red wine.

Chicken & Lentil Stew

Chicken & Lentil Stew
Slightly modified from The South Beach Diet Super Charged

Printable Recipe

Hands-on time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes

Serves 4-6 (6 SB standards, 4 by ours)

Ingredients:
1 tbps extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 large cloves garlic, minced
½ -1 tsp dried basil
½ - 1 tsp dried oregano
Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
1 tbsp tomato paste
½ -1 tsp chipotle chili in adobo sauce (I usually puree a whole can and freeze them in teaspoon portions)
1 lb/450g boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut cross-wise into thin strips
1 (15oz/454ml) can of lentils, drained & rinsed
1 (15oz/454ml) can of diced tomatoes & their juice (fire-roasted are my personal choice)
¾ cup lower sodium chicken broth
4 cups baby spinach

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, herbs, pepper and a pinch of salt. Stir until everything is well mixed. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook, stirring occasionally for about 4-5 minutes. The onions should start to become translucent and everything begins to smell heavenly.

2. Stir in the tomato paste and chipotle chili paste and cook for another 3 minutes. Add the chicken strips and cook for 2 minutes , stirring everything together.

3. Add the lentils, tomatoes and juice, broth and bring to a gentle simmer. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until the chicken is cooked through (7-10 minutes).
4. Stir in the spinach…I know, it looks like it won’t all fit in the pot, but spinach wilts down quickly, if you “fold” it into the stew. Cover and cook for just another minute or two. Taste for seasoning and serve warm.

Curtis Stone's Sauteed Mushrooms & Baby Spinach

Curtis Stone’s Sautéed Mushrooms & Baby Spinach
Adapted from Relaxed Cooking with Curtis Stone

Prep time: 5 minutes
Sauté time: 10 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1lb/450g fresh wild mushrooms (I settled for a mix of cremini & shitake), quartered or chunked
2 cups fresh baby spinach
1 tbsp fresh Italian/flat leaf parsley, chopped
Sea or Kosher salt & freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes or until the onions soften but don’t turn brown.

2. Add the mushrooms and sauté for about 8 minutes or until they are tender.

3. Remove the pan from the heat and add the spinach and parsley. Toss until the spinach wilts and turns bright green. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Raw Spinach Soup

Raw Spinach Soup
From The Healthiest Meals on Earth


Prep time: 5-10 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients:
4oz/120g baby spinach, washed well, drained and dried
1 cup water
2-3 cloves roasted garlic or 1 clove raw garlic
1-2 tsp lemon juice
Pinch of salt
1 ripe avocado, cut in half and pitted
2 tbsp toasted hazelnuts or pine nuts

Directions:
1. (The book suggests using a blender, but mine had trouble chopping the spinach so I used my food processor.) Puree spinach, water, garlic, lemon juice and salt. I would start with less water and only add more at the end if it’s too thick.

2. Spoon the avocado out of its shell and into the blender/food processor and process until smooth. Taste for seasoning. (I didn’t like the texture of the spinach in the food processor so at this point I transferred the soup to the blender for a final buzz.)

Divide into 4 equal portions and garnish with toasted nuts.