Our winter garden is in! From my home-office window and looking out past my deck toward the garden plot I see the onion shoots and the new spinach and red and green lettuce plants. These were put in the ground late last week after the snow melted and the temperatures rose above freezing. Afterward, steady, gentle rains throughout the weekend were absolutely perfect to soak the soil and give those baby plants a great start.This year marks the earliest in January we've gotten the plantings in the ground. We've also never planted quite this much this early. If even a portion of our onion starts turn out, we'll be well-supplied with onions for months on end. Hallelujah! What a feeling of accomplishment!
Soon, Lord willing, the spinach I use for this and other recipes will be plucked straight from our leafy plants outdoors, but for now, bags of fresh, prewashed spinach from the grocery produce aisle help me get this food item on the table fast. Spinach with Feta Sauce can be served alone as a delicious side or as a sauce over pasta, cooked vegetables, or chicken. The first night we dined on it as a solo veggie. For later meals I cooked up a little spaghetti and topped it with the remaining spinach and sauce. That was divine-tasting as well.
The days ahead hold great promise because of our early 2011 garden (and hopefully the spring/summer plantings to follow). On gray January days—with a lot of winter-doldrum sameness to them—having a fun garden to look toward is a great morale booster.
Spinach and Feta Sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup low-fat evaporated milk
1/2 cup feta cheese, packed firmly
14 cups (about 2 packages of prewashed) spinach
Cook oil, onion, and garlic in skillet over medium heat until soft. Add evaporated milk and cheese; simmer for 5 minutes or until sauce thickens slightly. Add spinach; stir and cook until spinach just wilts. Serve as a veggie side or as a sauce, as described above. Makes four servings.
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