Creamed Spinach With Goat Cheese And Pepper Jelly Food

CREAMED SPINACH

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until soft and translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute more. Do not brown. Add the heavy cream, salt, pepper, and nutmeg and bring to a gentle boil. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the cream is thick enough to coat a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes. Add the cheese and stir until melted. Add the spinach and stir until evenly combined with the cream sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. (If the spinach seems a little watery, cook over medium-low heat until any excess liquid evaporates.) Serve warm.
• Note: Cut leaf spinach is not the same as chopped spinach. If your market doesn't carry cut leaf spinach, look for frozen whole leaf spinach. (Chopped spinach will work but the texture won't be as appealing.) Some markets carry 1-lb bags and some carry 10-oz boxes; if you can only find the 10-oz boxes, you'll need three of them. If you'd like to start with fresh spinach, you'll need about 2 pounds baby spinach leaves. Steam and drain the baby spinach, then roughly chop and measure out 2 packed cups.
• Make-Ahead Instructions: This dish can be made and refrigerated a day ahead of time. Reheat in the microwave, uncovered, stirring every 30 seconds or so, until hot, a few minutes. When reheated, the spinach won't be quite as creamy-looking as it was originally (though the taste will be the same); you can add a bit of cream when reheating to get a creamier consistency, if you'd like.

CREAMED SPINACH WITH CRISPY CHEESE

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the onion and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook until the onion is soft and translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about a minute longer. Stir in the flour until combined and cook for 2 minutes to cook out the flour taste. Add the heavy cream and cook, stirring, until the sauce is thick and there are no lumps, about 5 minutes.
• Add the spinach, breaking up any frozen chunks with the back of a wooden spoon. Stir to combine with the creamy mixture until uniformly incorporated. Taste and season with salt. Cook until the spinach is heated through and mixture begins to bubble, about 3 minutes. Add the Cheddar, lemon juice and hot sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Turn to the lowest setting.
• Heat a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Make 2-tablespoon mounds of Parmesan in the pan, leaving 3 inches between each (work in batches if your pan isn't large enough). Allow the Parmesan to melt and bubble until it starts to brown around the edges. Use an offset spatula to carefully lift each cheese crisp to the lined baking sheet. Allow to cool for 2 minutes. Crumble or serve whole on top of the creamed spinach.

GOAT CHEESE AND HOT PEPPER JELLY

Steps:

• Place the goat cheese on a serving plate and spoon the jelly evenly over the top. Serve with crackers and celery sticks.

SIDE ESSENTIALS: SAUTéED SPINACH & GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• 1. PREP/PREPARE
• 2. Gather your Ingredients (mise en place).
• 3. Add the butter to a skillet over medium heat.
• 4. When the butter melts, add the shallots and garlic, and cook in for 1 minute.
• 5. Add the defrosted spinach to the skillet, sprinkle on a bit of salt and pepper, to taste, and allow to cook for 3 - 5 minutes.
• 6. Evenly dollop on the goat cheese, and then cover and reduce the heat to medium low, for about 3 minutes.
• 7. Chef's Tip: One of the tricks is to not stir the goat cheese into the spinach; leave it in nice soft dollops. When you stir it into the spinach, it really diminishes the distinct flavor notes of the cheese and spinach.
• 8. Chef's Tip: Goat cheese comes in creamy or crumbled; in addition, some have spices infused into them. For this recipe, I choose creamy/plain goat cheese; however, you may wish to experiment with other types... Just for the fun of it.
• 9. Remove the cover, and drizzle on the lemon juice.
• 10. Chef's Note: And if you are feeling particularly randy, sprinkle on some freshly toasted pine nuts.
• 11. PLATE/PRESENT
• 12. Serve as a side with beef, pork, chicken or fish. Enjoy.
• 13. Keep the faith, and keep cooking.

HOT, CREAMY SPINACH AND GOAT CHEESE DIP

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425°F.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, until golden. Add the spinach by handfuls as it shrinks down until it is all added and very wilted, about 5 minutes in all. If there looks to be significant excess liquid in the pan, transfer it to a strainer or colander and gently press it to extract any extra liquid.
• Return the skillet to the heat and add the milk, cream cheese, goat cheese and about half the Parmesan and whisk occasionally over medium heat until the cheese is melted and everything is smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the Worcestershire, hot sauce and salt and pepper, and whisk to combine.
• Transfer it to a three or four cup baking dish, sprinkle over the rest of the Parm,and bake until bubbly and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve hot.

CHEESY CREAMED SPINACH

Steps:

• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add spinach and cook until wilted, stirring constantly. Remove from the skillet and drain in a colander. Try to squeeze out as much liquid as possible.
• Melt the butter in the skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and onions; cook and stir until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the spinach and stir in the heavy cream. Sprinkle in the provolone cheese and stir to melt and coat the spinach. Once the provolone has melted, stir in the Parmesan cheese and continue to cook and stir until thickened. Season with salt and pepper and serve hot.