This recipe never fails to surprise me with both its ease and its deliciousness. It’s from a friend who’s daughter absolutely loved cheesy spinach when she was a year old. This was remarkable for many reasons, especially since greens are often a tough sell with kids. But Violet’s mama, Virginia Sole-Smith, is also super smart and figured out a crazy-quick and yummy way to make greens for kids that even the littlest eaters love. There are many quick ways to cook baby spinach, so I have an option here to use a microwave since it means you can have wilted spinach in about 30 seconds, you don’t need to clean a pan, and the nutrients are sealed in since the cooking time is so fast. But if you’d prefer not to use a microwave, you can also make this on a stove top. This is a nice option for an iron-rich food for kids that’s crazy fast to cook. (You may also like my Spinach Pasta Sauce, Spinach Muffins, Spinach Eggs, and Spinach Grilled Cheese.)
Ingredients You Need
To make this quick side dish, you’ll need to have the following ingredients on hand and ready to go. Sign up for our email updates to get tips and ideas sent to your inbox.
Baby spinach: I use fresh baby spinach here since it cooks so quickly. Olive oil: I prefer to use extra-virgin olive oil in my kitchen. You can use butter here instead, if you prefer. Shredded cheese: I usually use cheddar cheese, though you can vary this according to your preference. Lemon juice: A little fresh lemon juice perks up the flavors of the spinach.
TIP: You can use shredded cheddar cheese, mozzarella, fontina, Gouda, Havarti, or a pizza or taco blend. It’s really quite versatile!
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s a look at how to make this simple spinach recipe. Scroll down to see the full recipe at the bottom of the post, including the amounts and the timing. TIP: Microwaves preserve nutrients in food while cooking, despite commonly held beliefs that they do the opposite, but you can simply use the stovetop option if you prefer.
Stove-Top Cheesy Spinach
To make this on the stove top in a pan, you just change the order of the steps slightly: Warm the oil in a pan, then add the spinach, then the cheese and lemon juice. It’s a quick and easy way to make cheesy greens like these.
Other Greens to Use
If you’d like to change things up or you find other greens at your market, you can make this recipe using full-size spinach, baby kale, regular curly kale, lacinato (or “dinosaur”) kale, or Swiss chard. If using kale or chard, remove the leaves from the stems and use the leaves only.
Serving Suggestions
This easy spinach recipe pairs well with Pan-Seared Chicken Tenders, Cooked Quinoa, Cooked Eggs, Healthy Meatballs, and more. It’s a healthy side dish you can pair with almost anything your family likes.
Best Tips for Success
These cheesy greens are best eaten right after making. Use baby spinach, spinach, kale, baby kale, or Swiss chard. Remove the inner stem from greens including kale and chard. Cut greens into small pieces with kitchen shears. To make these dairy-free, omit the cheese and sprinkle with nutritional yeast. You can double or triple the recipe to feed more people in your family.
I’d love to hear what you think of this recipe so please comment below to share.
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This recipe was first published June 2019.
