Catalan-Style Spinach Recipe

Lately, we are having our dinners, out in our balcony. I do not mean to brag about it, but our balcony is looking over to the Atlantic Ocean. There is always a nice breeze coming from the ocean.

Believe me, in the hot, “always summer” days of the Caribbean Islands, you need this kind of breeze in your life.

Sometimes we open a bottle of wine and just enjoy it while listening to the sound of the ocean. To accompany our “Ocean Breeze and Wine” evenings, lately, I have been experimenting on making several small dishes instead of a big-meal dinner.

My husband loves it, especially because he comes home pretty late from work and does not want to have a heavy meal at that time of the day.

Why I love this simple Spanish spinach recipe:

I love this small dish because it is:

1. Easy and quick to make
2. Full of simple yet delicious flavors.
3. A Perfect spinach tapas recipe that goes so well with a bottle of wine.

When I think about small dishes, I either look for tapas, Spanish appetizers, or meze, Middle Eastern appetizers. Both cuisines are full of Mediterranean flavors like olive oil, tomatoes and fresh herbs.

How To Make This Catalan Spinach Recipe

As I mentioned earlier, this Catalan Style Spinach is a fantastic Spanish Tapas dish, that is quick and easy to make. When I say quick, it is really quick. Simply:

1. Soak the raisins in hot water: We want the raisins to be nice and juicy so we start by soaking them for 15-20 minutes as you are working on the rest of the ingredients.
2. Cook the spinach: Bring a pot of water to a boil and blanch the spinach for 2-3 minutes until lightly wilted. Drain and set it aside.
3. Cook the aromatics: Heat oil in a skillet and add in the onion. Cook, stirring frequently, 5-6 minutes or until translucent. Add in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds or so.
4. Prep the final dish: Drain the raisins and add them into the skillet along with spinach and pine nuts. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Serve: Serve it with crusty bread like my Artisan Bread or even more Mediterranean, Kalamata olive bread.

More About Catalan and Catalan Recipes.

When I google’d “Catalan”, I found out that Catalonia is in the Northeast part of Spain and they are known with their distinctive cuisine called “Cuina Casalona”.

One thing that they are famous for is to squash a tomato, spread it on a slice of bread and drizzle it with extra virgin olive oil. They call this “Pan con Tomate” and it is served everywhere with everything.

The world renowned Chef José Andrés, invented this spinach dish and named it Catalan-Style Spinach because he believes that this dish demonstrates the Catalonian penchant for making savory food sweet with the addition of dried fruits.

If you are not familiar, he is credited as the chef who brought the “small dishes dining” concept to the U.S. and owns several restaurants in several U.S. cities.

So here is a wonderful Catalan-Style Spinach dish from La Cocina de los Sanford ♥

Other Similar Small Dishes You Might Also Like:

• Bread Dipping Oil
• Turkish Muhammara Recipe
• Mediterranean Style Hummus
• Carrot Hummus
• Turkish White Bean Salad
• See all the appetizer recipes that are perfect to serve with drinks
• See similar vegetable side dishes you can serve with meals

Catalan-Style Spinach

By Aysegul Sanford

Yields: 4 servings

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 10 mins

Total Time: 20 mins

This Catalan Style Spinach is a fantastic Spanish Tapas dish, that is quick and easy to make. Flavored with tomatoes, pine nuts, and raisins, it is a flavor-packed dish that is guaranteed to impress.

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• ▢ 3 tablespoons raisins
• ▢ 1 lb. spinach washed, dried and roughly chopped
• ▢ 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• ▢ 1 medium onion finely chopped
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ 3 tablespoons pine nuts lightly toasted
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• ▢ 1/4 black pepper freshly grounded

Instructions

• Soak the raisins in hot water and let them plumb up for 15-20 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Bring a pot of water to a boil; cook the spinach for 2-3 minutes. Drain and squeeze the excess liquid.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet, add the onion and cook for 5-7 minutes until translucent, stirring occasionally.
• Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
• Add the spinach, raisons, pine nuts, season with salt and pepper and cook for 3 minutes.
• Serve it right away.

Notes

This dish can be served both warm or cold.

Nutrition

Calories: 185kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 385mg | Potassium: 810mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 10633IU | Vitamin C: 35mg | Calcium: 124mg | Iron: 4mg

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Spanish

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This recipe post was published in August 2013 while we were living on a small Caribbean island. It has been updated in June 2020 with additional helpful information and with no changes to the originally published recipe.