Creamed Spinach
Whether you’re looking to recreate a fancy steakhouse dinner at home or want to add some green to your holiday table, my easy Creamed Spinach recipe is just what you need!
Servings 8 servings
Calories 201kcal
Equipment
- Large Pot
- Large skillet
Ingredients
- 3 (10-ounce/282g) bags baby spinach
- 1 yellow onion chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup heavy cream (240ml)
- 2 ounces cream cheese (56g)
- ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese (40g)
- 2½ teaspoons salt divided
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon grated nutmeg
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Season with two teaspoons of salt then add one-third of the spinach (1 bag). Press the spinach down to submerge in the water, then cook for about 30 seconds, until bright green and just barely wilted.
- Using a spider, transfer the cooked spinach to a colander set over a large bowl. Repeat, cooking the remaining spinach in two more batches. Drain all of the spinach and rinse with cold water until cool.
- Place the drained spinach in a towel and squeeze it to wring out most of the extra moisture.
- Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the cream and whisk to combine.
- Cut the cream cheese into cubes. Add the cream cheese and Parmesan to the skillet, and whisk until fully melted and incorporated into the cream sauce.
- Break up any large clumps of the spinach and add to the cream mixture. Season with black pepper and nutmeg. Stir and cook over low heat until warmed through and the spinach is well coated in sauce. Serve immediately, or remove from the heat and cover to keep warm.
Notes
- Don’t squeeze too hard! You don't need to squeeze the spinach extremely dry, just remove what water you can in 2-3 good squeezes. While too much water can make the sauce thing, leaving some of the moisture helps to make the sauce silky.
- Make ahead magic. The spinach can be blanched and squeezed (through step 3) up to 24 hours in advance.
- Grate your own cheese. While the pre-grated kind is quite convenient, it’s also coated in a starchy substance to keep the shreds from clumping together. That starch does such a good job that it also prevents the cheese from melting properly.
- Add a little kick. Stir in cayenne pepper to taste or the zest of a lemon into the creamy spinach at the end of cooking.
Nutrition
Calories: 201kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 52mg | Sodium: 915mg | Potassium: 667mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 10626IU | Vitamin C: 32mg | Calcium: 176mg | Iron: 3mg