Recipe: Creamed Spinach with Shallots and Bacon

This recipe for Creamed Spinach with Shallots and Bacon came about, believe it or not, when I intended to make my Southern Creamed Corn recipe, and in true Linda fashion… just began cooking… all the while thinking I had a large bag of frozen corn in the freezer… ahhh BIG surprise… when it wasn’t there… then I remembered I had used it when we had company… yikes… time to find what I did have… and spinach it was.. and so yet another creamed spinach recipe for my file.

I decided to use shallots… mostly because I really like them.. the flavor is decidedly oniony but far more delicate than onions… and so it went… the result.. is one darn good creamed spinach recipe that has a pleasant smokey bacon flavor that doesn’t overwhelm it…

TIPS

I used heavy cream.. you can use half and half… but then I would eliminate all or most of the water… if you decide to go even lower fat with milk… plan on adjusting the flour quantity quite a bit otherwise it will be runny… I would add about 2 tablespoons of flour if using milk…. I personally prefer the heavy cream.. it gives a really smooth texture to the creamed spinach.

I recommend that you don’t add the salt and pepper until the very end… and I caution you about adding any salt at all… the bacon will add considerable salt to the dish.. taste it before adjusting the seasoning.

While we’re talking about seasoning.. I added a pinch of cayenne… to add a bit of punch… actually it didn’t add a lot of punch… again taste it.. if you like it.. great.. if you want more .. add more…

You don’t thaw the spinach… it will thaw during cooking.

I chopped the cooked bacon with a knife the first time… I recommend if you have a mini chopper.. use that to chop the bacon.. it makes far smaller bacon bits and the bacon then can be dispersed throughout the creamed spinach better.

I like to chop my shallots and garlic together in the mini chopper.. it mixes them together very well…

I hope you like this as much as we did!







Recipe: Creamed Spinach with Shallots and Bacon

All you need:

4 cups frozen chopped or cut spinach
2 tablespoons flour
3 slices thick smoked bacon
1 large shallot, finely chopped
1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
1 cup heavy cream
½ cup water
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper to taste

All you need to do:

Cook bacon in a skillet until it is fairly crispy. Drain on paper towels. Leave 2 tablespoons of rendered bacon fat in the pan and discard the rest.

Preferred Method: In a mini chopper, chop together the shallot and garlic.

Alternative Method: Chop the shallot and garlic very finely with a knife.

Add the chopped shallot and garlic to the skillet with the rendered bacon fat and cook for about 2-3 minutes over medium heat until soft.

Meanwhile, put the frozen spinach in a large bowl and add the flour. Toss to evenly coat the spinach.

Add the cream and water to the spinach and mix well.

Add the spinach to the skillet and cook over medium heat until mixture bubbles, stirring frequently.

Meanwhile, chop the drained bacon in the mini chopper… then add it to the skillet. mix well.

Cover and cook about 15 minutes, stirring periodically.

Add the cayenne and mix well.

Add any salt and pepper to taste.

Serve hot.