spinach Archives - A Calculated Whisk

Dairy-Free Slow-Cooker Spinach & Artichoke Dip

January 26, 2018 By Becky 12 Comments

This post is sponsored by Cost Plus World Market.

This dairy-free slow-cooker spinach and artichoke dip is a snap to make and perfect to snack on while watching the big game. It’s also totally acceptable and delicious as a lunch!

Who’s excited to watch some football (read: eat some snacks)? My husband is a big football fan and I love a good snack, so we are both pretty pumped. This slow-cooker spinach and artichoke dip will totally be on the menu on game day, but if you’re not a football fan, I think it’d also be a great recipe to whip up to show your valentine how much you love them.

Spinach and Bacon Soufflé from Paleo Planet

January 18, 2016 By Becky 3 Comments

Did you know you can make an amazing soufflé without cheese? This spinach and bacon soufflé is gluten free, paleo, Whole30-compliant, and an ideal way to treat yourself to a decadent breakfast or brunch that’s still super healthy.

Big news! Paleo Planet was nominated for Best New Specialty Cookbook as part of Paleo Magazine’s Best of 2015 awards! I’m so happy and excited to be nominated, and so grateful for all your amazing support. If you’re a fan of Paleo Planet, would you take a minute to cast your vote for the book here? Voting is open until January 31st, it’s super quick (you only have to vote in the categories you want to vote in, so you won’t be forced to choose if there’s a category you don’t have an opinion on), and there’s a special discount on the magazine as a reward for taking the survey in case you’re interested in becoming a subscriber.

The nomination is actually perfect timing because I was already planning to share a recipe from Paleo Planet with you today, along with a free download of a special table of contents I put together that lists all the Whole30-compliant recipes in the book (there are over 80 of them!).

So today I’m sharing one of my favorite recipes from the Breakfast & Brunch chapter: Spinach and Bacon Soufflé. Soufflés are notorious for being kind of a pain to make, but I disagree with that: I think they’re relatively easy, super fun, and so worth it. If you haven’t tried one, you need to add it to your list: the fluffy, airy texture is like nothing else. Plus, this one is packed with spinach and bacon–how can you go wrong?

My first time ever making a soufflé was in April of 2013, and it was actually one of the very first recipes I posted on this site, back in the days when I spent 2 minutes on each photo shoot and hadn’t discovered paleo yet. (If you want to see it, here it is, but you have to promise not to judge!) That one had spinach and parmesan in it, and planted the inspirational seeds for the paleo spinach and bacon soufflé I’m sharing today. I also shared a pumpkin and pecorino soufflé later that year that’s gluten free and grain free but still contains cheese. When I was developing recipes for Paleo Planet, I challenged myself to make a delicious soufflé with no dairy other than ghee, and lucky for me, it was quite easy! A bit of nutritional yeast provides a hint of cheesy flavor, and bits of bacon interspersed throughout ensure that each bite has textural interest, too. It’s a perfect breakfast or brunch to make when you want to treat yourself to something fancy and a little off the beaten path but still really nutritious.

Saag Paneer

February 10, 2014 By Becky 12 Comments

It’s easy and fun to make your own saag paneer at home! It’s especially delicious with rice or paleo flatbread.

Have you ever made your own cheese? I made some ricotta last year, and wanted to try my hand at paneer. Fresh cheeses like paneer and ricotta are easy to make at home, and totally worth it. All you need is milk, a lemon, some cheesecloth, and a little patience.

Saag paneer has been my favorite Indian dish for years, and I’m so glad I finally made it myself. The creamy spiced spinach studded with chewy bits of paneer is totally addictive, and my major Indian takeout/delivery habit is all saag paneer’s fault (oh, and Eat24–you guys didn’t help, either). This homemade version is just as good as my local restaurant’s, and the paneer is far superior: it’s meltingly tender, with a wonderfully creamy flavor. It’s a little labor intensive to make the paneer and the saag on the same day, but it was a perfect project for a Sunday afternoon. Next time I might try making a big batch of paneer, stashing some in the fridge, and freezing the rest. That way I can make saag paneer happen on weeknights!

Paleo Poached Eggs with Creamy Spinach

July 18, 2013 By Becky 4 Comments

Okay, big news. A Calculated Whisk is going paleo for one month. There. I said it. Now if I go and try to post some kind of insane ice cream cupcake cookie sandwich, you guys will call me out on it. Right?

Nobody tells you this, but the ugly downside of starting a food blog is you EAT so much of the delicious food you make that your figure kind of falls by the wayside. I love desserts, obviously, but you can only have so much. It’s time for a change. In the past I’ve lost a lot of weight following the Zone diet, but this time I wanted to try something different.

I’ve been hearing so much about paleo, and it makes sense to me that eating the foods we evolved eating would be the healthiest way to go. I checked out this website for the Whole 30, and thought I would give it a try. I got The 30 Day Guide to Paleo Cooking: Entire Month of Paleo Meals, and I’m ready to go. The book is great, but I always think it’s more fun to create my own recipes. So, here it is! My first paleo breakfast. It tastes great, and I didn’t feel like anything was missing since it’s so filling, rich, and creamy.

Oh, and by the way! I’m on an exercise program, too. I’ve started barre3‘s 28 to Great. That’s six days of workouts a week (they have an awesome online library of 10, 30, 40, and 60 minute videos) for four weeks. I’ve done two workouts so far, and they are exhausting. It’s really targeted muscle work and I can tell it’s going to have an impact.

Phew. This is a lot of changes, but I hope you guys will support me and try some of the recipes. Let’s start with the most important meal of the day.

Ingredients (serves one):

2 teaspoons coconut oil, plus extra

2 eggs

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups baby spinach (or more!)

2 teaspoons coconut milk or cream

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet, heat the coconut oil over medium low heat. Add the garlic and saute until it starts to brown. Turn the heat up to medium high, add the spinach, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook the spinach, tossing frequently, until just wilted, 3-5 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the coconut milk or cream.

Meanwhile, poach your eggs. See this post about how to do it on Smitten Kitchen, or use an egg poacher. I greased the cups of my egg poacher with a little bit of coconut oil.

When the spinach is ready, make it into a nest on your plate. Slide the finished eggs into the nest, sprinkle with more salt if desired, and serve hot.

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Spinach and Parmesan Soufflé

April 6, 2013 By Becky 2 Comments

This is my first attempt at making soufflé. I like to cook breakfast pretty much every weekend morning, and was in the mood for blueberry muffins. Unfortunately, I was out of frozen blueberries and too lazy to go to the store. I had baby spinach, lots of eggs, and a hunk of Parmigiano Reggiano. Also, I had two four-cup soufflé dishes that had only held lemon mousse so far. Right now, they’re living up to their name since they’re filled with spinach parmesan soufflé. This recipe is adapted from Bon Appétit.

I was so paranoid that the soufflés would fall that I started snapping pictures while they were still in the oven. But, they actually held up really well!

Ingredients (serves 2-3):

1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

2 tablespoons butter, plus extra for greasing dishes

6 tablespoons flour

1 1/4 cup buttermilk

3 cups baby spinach

6 egg yolks

8 egg whites, at room temperature

1 teaspoon lemon juice (optional)

Salt and pepper to taste

Pinch of nutmeg (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375. Place two four-cup soufflé dishes (or eight one-cup dishes for mini soufflés) on a cookie sheet. Grease the bottom and sides of the dishes with butter.

Melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk for a minute. Add the buttermilk and whisk until combined and almost smooth. Add the spinach, parmesan cheese, egg yolks, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir to combine and remove from the heat.

In a non-reactive bowl, place the room-temperature egg whites and lemon juice, if using (this just makes it a little easier to whip the whites). Beat until the whites hold medium peaks.

Fold the egg whites into the other mixture a little bit at a time. Divide mixture among the dishes, and bake for 30 minutes for one-cup dishes or 40 minutes for four-cup dishes, or until puffy and golden brown. Serve immediately.