Spinach has long been hailed as a super-food. From its folate content to its caretenoid levels it tends to stand up to its celebrity, but how can you make it work for you and in a tasty way? Let's look at some of the many things you can do with spinach to fill in the blanks on a hungry day.

Did you know that fresh spinach is a storehouse of vitamins, A, C, Iron and dietary fibre? It is. And although there are specific ways you'll want to eat them in order to gain access to some of its more dense nutrients, you can prepare it in many ways to liberate those important elements that will all-in-all give you what you should be looking for, health first and flavor most. Try these ideas:

A Quick Skillet Steam
In a skillet add enough water to barely line the bottom of the skillet. Throw in some slivered onion, garlic and a pinch of coarse sea salt. Wash your fresh spinach, drain and bring your water up to a rapid boil and immediately throw in your spinach and toss until bright green. Now plate.

You can eat this with a baked potato or, one of my favorites, boiled cassava and a vegetarian meatloaf.

Saute
In a skillet put a drizzle of oil, extra virgin olive oil or one of the many others (be sure not to have the heat too high! If it smokes, throw it out and start over). Toss in your seasonings and some diced tomatoes. Stir and immediately toss in your washed spinach, a pinch of sea salt (optional) and a lot of love (mandatory). A few seconds is all it takes, then plate.

You can have this with some, low fat/no fat, refried beans & tortillas/roasted corn and squash.

Salad
Let's never forget the classic spinach salad. We'll add a good twist to this though. Wash and dry your spinach. Slice some red onion, dried cranberries, slivered spiced-almonds, some soy feta and a nice dressing and you're good to go. For another variation you can add some other dried fruit or raisins and to give a bigger digestive boost grate some fresh ginger into it.

You can eat this with a nice soup or stew, some crackers or a hearty piece of grilled multi-grain toast and for those gluten-free enthusiasts, try it with the gluten-free crackers.

Well... You have the quick steam, the saute and the salad ideas. I'll have to get back to you on some of the many other techniques you can use to make spinach both healthy and tasty, but until then why not try your hand at mapping out some of your own thoughts on making spinach take on new dimensions.

This is what I use:


For more information or to have one of your questions answered, drop me a line, stop by my forum, join my Vegetarian Resource Newsletter and definitely stay tuned in as I bring you more articles to help you effortlessly achieve your best, health, well being and wholeness throughout the life of your diet.

As always it's been great sharing with you. Until next time...