Spinach Cake

Sweet Amandine’s recipe for Spinach Cake sounded healthy and solid for a breakfast alternative—and the huge load of spinach I scored from the verduleria.

Ingredients:

• About 2 pounds of spinach, stemmed, washed, and more or less dried
• 2 medium leeks
• 2 T. butter
• Freshly ground salt and black pepper
• Several dashes – about ¼ tsp. nutmeg
• 2 c. whole milk
• 6 large eggs
• A generous pinch of cayenne
• About 2 T. of freshly grated Parmesan

Directions:

1. Over a medium flame, melt the butter in a deep, heavy-bottomed pot. Add the leeks, a few grinds of salt and pepper, and sauté, stirring occasionally, until they are tender but still green, about five minutes.
2. Sprinkle the nutmeg over top, add a layer of spinach, and season with a few grinds of salt. Next, add another layer of spinach, a few more grinds of salt, and repeat until all of the spinach is in the pot. Turn up the heat slightly, cover the pot, and let the spinach steam over the leeks. Lift the lid to stir once or twice so that you get an even steam. You want the spinach to be just barely wilted, so the steaming should take no longer than two minutes. Allow leeks and spinach to cool.
3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, and butter a deep, 10-inch pie dish. When the spinach-leek mixture is cool, taste it and adjust the seasoning, as necessary. Remember that you are about to blend it with a lot of unseasoned eggs and milk, so if the spinach and leeks taste a little over-seasoned, that’s actually okay.
   In a blender, puree the vegetables with the milk and eggs in two batches. Add a few final grinds of salt and pepper, and a pinch of cayenne. Add any remaining cooking juices from the pot to one of the batches before you puree.
4. The batter will be thin and soupy. Pour it into the buttered pie dish, and grate about two tablespoons of Parmesan over the top. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean and the top is lightly browned. The cake will puff up and dome slightly in the oven and then collapse back onto itself as it cools. Serve at room temperature, or chilled.

Yield: 6 servings

Comments: I subbed 4 egg whites plus 3 regular eggs, since I had egg whites I wanted to use up after my Challah experiment. I think my spinach was way too wet for the recipe, and adding the leftover liquid created a very wet cake. I let it cool and spend a day melding after cooking, as it is supposedly enjoyed best at room temperature after a day, but I still wasn’t impressed. It was a bit bland, and otherwise unexciting. (You’ll see in the photos that some of the egg sunk to the bottom, forming a lighter colored layer. Maybe I didn’t blend everything long enough.)

Baked Apple Pudding

I first heard breakfast puddings mentioned on Oh She Glows. But, as she’s wont to do, Angela used a ton of “special” ingredients—some I didn’t have on hand, others are probably impossible to even find here. So, I tracked back to her reference, in Diet, Dessert and Dogs, which may just get added to my Reader lineup real fast. I’ve been to that site about 5 times in the last week!

Diet, Dessert and Dogs had a slightly simpler recipe, but it still was a bit more complex than ideal, and had another reference in Have cake, will travel. Jackpot!

This recipe called for the complicated ingredient of applesauce—I know I’ve seen it here, but I gave up on looking real quick, when I realized how easy it is to make!

• 1/2 teaspoon butter, to grease the ramekins
• 1/4 cup (20 g) old-fashioned oats
• 3/4 cup (75 g) walnuts halves
• 1/4 c raisins
• 1/2 cup (122 g) applesauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus a little extra to sprinkle on top
• Pinch fine sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4). Lightly coat two 6-ounce oven-safe ramekins with butter.
2. Combine oats and walnuts in food processor. Blend until finely ground, and that the walnuts start to release their oil a little.
3. Add dates, and process until the pieces of dates disappear into oblivion.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients and process until smooth, scraping sides and bottom once to make sure everyone joins the party.
5. Divide the sticky batter into the prepared ramekins. Sprinkle just a pinch of ground cinnamon on top of each ramekin.
6. Bake for 10 minutes. Let cool and chill in the fridge before eating.

Yield: 2 servings

429 calories, 29 grams fat, 6 grams fiber

Comments: This was tasty, but heavy. I baked it all in one pan, since that’s what I had, and it worked out fine. It wasn’t as creamy as the photos appeared, but I probably should have processed it more. Next time I’ll make three servings and have some fruit with it, as that’s more in line with my typical breakfast patterns. I also can’t wait to experiment!