Spinach Feta Cheese Frittata Bites ほうれん草とフェタチーズのフリッタータバイト

This is the third iteration of the small egg bites series my wife made. This time she used spinach and dill. She also reused a “feta cheese dip” which we initially made for another dish but didn’t use because we thought it was too strong by itself. This was quite a good bites. Hopefully we may derive some health benefit from the added veggie greens.

Ingredients:
6 eggs
1/2 cup cream
1/4 cup Buttermilk
1 garlic  clove 
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard 
1/2 cup fresh dill, finely chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1 large package of  spinach, cooked without adding water, drained, finely chopped
Feta cheese dip*
1/2 log of goat cheese

*fetacheese dip
8 oz good-quality teta cheese (block form)
1 clove garlic, chopped
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Directions:
In a bowl, whisk together the ingredients eggs through salt and set aside. In another bowl, mix together the feta cheese dip and the goat cheese until completely combined. Add the cooked spinach to the cheese dip and completely combine. Scoop the cheese mixture into mini muffin tins lined with paper cups. Do not fill completely. Gently pour the egg mixture over and around the cheese mixture. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes until the eggs are set (shown in picture)

These cheese bites were quite different from the other ones my wife made recently. The feta cheese dip by itself was quite strong flavored but the addition of the spinach and goat cheese really tamed it down making it pleasantly savory. The egg mixture essentially formed a shell around the cheese mixture (which can be clearly seen in the cross section picture). The dill really added a good additional flavor dimension.

Tomato-Spinach Roulade Bread トマトとほうれん草のルラード

This is another one of my wife’s baking projects. This is based on a recipe in the “Silver Palate Good Times Cookbook”. When I made “no-cook tomato sauce” and “marinara sauce” using “Cento San Marzano Tomatoes” for Neapolitan-ish pizza, we ended up with extra tomato sauce. Since the bread recipe called for canned Italian tomatoes and we had left over tomato sauce made with canned Italian tomatoes, my wife saw an opportunity and asked if she could use the left-over sauces. I, of course, said “By all means”.  This is a very complicated bread recipe and I would not even consider trying it but my wife is not deterred by complex baking recipes. In any case, the pic shows the bread she produced. This is a very soft tender bread with lots of flavors. The spinach and ricotta cheese spread does provide a nice color and texture contrast to the surrounding bread but it didn’t bring much additional flavor to the show. In my humble opinion, the bread could be made with the marinara as a simple loaf omitting the spinach spread, especially since this would make this bread much easier to make. (Wifey’s comment: In my humble opinion I agree.)

Here comes my wife to continue.

Ingredients: 
For Bread
14 ounces (half 28-ounce can) Italian plum tomatoes (We used the marinara sauce we made for pizza)
2 packages active dry yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon dried basil (We didn’t include this)
1 tablespoon dried oregano  (We didn’t include this)
1/2 teaspoon celery seeds (We didn’t include this)
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup grated Swiss, mozzarella, or Fontina cheese (We used mozzarella)
5 to 6 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

For spread
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2 cups finely chopped fresh spinach (We precooked the spinach)
½ cup Mascarpone or ricotta cheese (We used ricotta)
1 tablespoon Marsala
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:
For bread 
In a saucepan sautee the onions and garlic. Purée the tomatoes with their liquid in a blender. Add to the onions and garlic, Stir in the sugar and salt. Then add the grated cheese and stir to mix and melt the cheese. If you are using them stir in the basil, oregano, and celery seed. (We just used the left-over marinara sauce we made for pizza. We used the same amount as the tomatoes called for in the original recipe.) Cool to room temperature. In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the yeast and 3 cups of flour to start. With the machine running add the tomato mixture. Stir in enough additional flour, 1 cup at a time, to make a firm dough. Knead in the mixer for 7 to 10 minutes. Turn out onto a floured surface and continue kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic, adding more flour if necessary (#1). 

Place the dough in a buttered large bowl and turn to coat with butter. Cover with a damp towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1 to 1½ hours.

For the spread
While the dough is rising, melt the butter in a medium-size saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté until translucent. Stir in the spinach and cook 5 more minutes. (We precooked the spinach). Stir in the cheese, Marsala, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate covered until firm enough to spread.

Assembly:
Punch the dough down and divide it in half. Roll each half into a rectangle about ¾ inch thick and spread with the spinach filling (#2). Roll up each rectangle like a jelly roll (#3) and place on greased baking sheets. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 375°F. 
Bake until the loaves are lightly browned (#4) and sound hollow when lightly thumped, 40 to 50 minutes. Allow to cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes.  
Turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.



The bread had a very soft tender texture. The flavor was very complex melding together all the flavors of the tomato/marinara sauce and cheeses. The filling made a nice texture contrast but despite the many varied flavors that went into it, particularly the marsala, their flavor didn’t really come through. It is a very unique (in a good way) bread.

Creamed Spinach with Cauliflower Puree カリフラワーピュレのクリームほうれん草

I make cauliflower puree occasionally. I modified how I make cauliflower puree mostly for my convenience. I steam the cauliflower florets for 10-15 minutes until very soft. Then I place the cauliflower in the container used for the emersion blender, add warm (in the microwave oven) milk (1/2-2/3) cup and puree first on medium speed and then on high speed until very smooth. This takes a few minutes on high speed. Then add several pats of unsalted butter and salt to taste and puree to incorporate the butter . The resulting puree can be used as is or many other ways which I have posted.  We found it is particularly good as an accompaniment to white fish. This time, we bought “baby arugula and spinach salad mix” and found out the vast majority was spinach. So instead of salad, we decide to make this into“creamed spinach using the cauliflower puree. It was quite good. This blog entry is for us to remember how we made this.

To make creamed spinach: Cook a bag of spinach in a wok without adding water with a tight fitting lid on low flame. Occasionally turn the spinach over until all wilted and cooked. Squeeze out excess moisture (I use a potato ricer to do this). Chop the spinach finely. Mix the spinach into the cauliflower puree. We also added cheeses (Gruyere and parmesan). Place the creamed spinach in a ramekin and bake in the toaster oven 350F for 20-30 minutes.

We had this as a side for “Tsukune with lotus root” 蓮根つくね, pickled daikon and cucumber 大根, キュウリの漬物.

This is a very acceptable substitution for bechamel based creamed spinach. It had a very rich flavor and creaminess.