Today I want to share an easy recipe that will transforms plain old cooked spinach into something special! It’s Spinach with Raisins and Pine Nuts. We saw it served on a Spanish cooking show (they called it espinacas con pasos y piñones in case you were wondering). We came in at the end of the recipe, but it was very simple to reproduce. There’s no fixed measurements. In fact, I’m going to give the recipe “Rachael Ray style” and use my hands…
Enjoy this dish over rice or as a side to just about any protein. If you’re following the Whole30 or a clean eating plan, you’ll want to add it to your meal rotation. For those eating low carb, you could reduce or eliminate the raisins to meet your needs.
- 2 large bunches of spinach, trimmed and washed (bagged spinach will work, too...enough for four servings after cooking)
- 1 generous handful of raisins soaked in warm water for about 10 minutes
- 1 handful of pine nuts, toasted
- 1 medium onion, diced
- pinch red pepper flakes
- olive oil for sauteing
- salt and pepper to taste
- Soak the raisins and toast the pine nuts before dicing the onion.
- Heat some olive oil and red pepper flakes in a large skillet or dutch oven. Saute the onions until they soften and begin to change color.
- Meanwhile, prepare the spinach.
- When the onions are ready, drain the raisins and add them to the pan. Stir to combine.
- Add the spinach in batches, adding another handful as the previous one cooks down.
- Add the toasted pine nuts and stir everything together to combine well.
There are so many directions to take this simple dish. Use kale or chard or a mix of greens. Vary the nuts. Use chopped dates instead of raisins. Of course, it would no longer be spinach with raisins and pine nuts, but that’s the beauty of cooking, isn’t it? Have fun!
This is a repost from 2014. Whenever I buy pine nuts for another recipe, I make this with the leftovers. It’s always good and we enjoy the change.
More spinach recipes:
Terrific looking dish! Loads of flavor and pretty easy — my favorite kind. 🙂