Cooking Baby Kale And Spinach Blend: Quick And Easy!

Baby kale and spinach blend is a nutritious and delicious dish that can be prepared in a variety of ways. Both baby kale and spinach are packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, offering numerous health benefits. One popular method of cooking this blend is sautéing, which involves heating olive oil in a pan, adding garlic, and then the greens, resulting in a tasty side dish with a perfect balance of flavours. Alternatively, blanching the greens in boiling water for a couple of minutes can also be done, followed by tossing them in a dressing of choice.

Sautéed baby kale and spinach

Ingredients:

• Baby kale
• Baby spinach
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Sea salt
• Garlic cloves, minced
• Lemon juice
• Pine nuts (optional)
• Parmesan cheese (optional)
• Red pepper flakes (optional)

Instructions:

• Wash the baby kale and spinach thoroughly.
• Cut the centre stem out of the kale leaves and chop the kale and spinach leaves into strips.
• Heat extra virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat.
• Add the baby kale and cook for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. If the kale seems dry, add more olive oil.
• Add the baby spinach, garlic, and sea salt. Cook for an additional 3 minutes, stirring every minute.
• Pour in the lemon juice, stir, and remove from heat.
• Serve immediately. Add salt and black pepper to taste, if desired.
• For added texture and flavour, top with pine nuts, parmesan cheese, or red pepper flakes.

Tips:

• This recipe works well with a variety of leafy greens, such as Swiss chard, collard greens, beet greens, or mustard greens. Adjust the cooking time according to the thickness of the leaves.
• Sautéed baby kale and spinach is best served fresh but can be stored in the fridge and reheated.

Korean seasoned baby kale and spinach

Ingredients:

• Baby kale
• Baby spinach
• Soy Sauce (or Coconut Aminos or Tamari Gluten-Free Soy)
• Garlic
• Korean Red Pepper Powder (or Gochugaru flakes)
• Sugar (white, brown, or honey)
• Scallions
• Sesame seeds

Method:

First, prepare the baby kale by removing the leaves from the stems and chopping them into bite-sized pieces. Put a large pot of water on to boil, adding salt generously. Once the water is boiling, add the baby kale leaves and cook for 2-3 minutes until bright green. Remove the kale from the pot and gently squeeze to remove excess moisture.

Repeat this process with the baby spinach.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients (soy sauce, garlic, Korean red pepper powder, sugar, and scallions). You can adjust the measurements of these ingredients to your taste.

Finally, toss the greens with the dressing and top with sesame seeds. This dish can be served immediately or stored in the refrigerator for up to 7 days. It can be enjoyed warm, hot, or chilled.

Tips:

You can blanch the kale and spinach to reduce the cooking time and produce tender greens. To do this, briefly immerse the greens in boiling water for about 2 minutes, then remove them from the heat. You can also add other ingredients like pine nuts or parmesan cheese for added texture and flavor.

Baby kale and spinach smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1 cup milk of your choice (e.g. almond, coconut, dairy)
• 1/2 cup Greek yoghurt
• 1 cup spinach
• 1 cup kale, stem removed
• 1 cup frozen mango
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter (optional)
• Honey to taste (optional)
• Ice (optional)

Method:

• Add milk, yoghurt, kale and spinach to the blender.
• Puree until smooth and with no chunks of greens remaining.
• Add mango, banana, and peanut butter to the blender.
• Blend again.
• Check the consistency and add water, ice, or more milk and reblend if needed.

Tips:

• If you are using frozen spinach and kale, use 1/2 cup of each.
• You can also use frozen banana; just add a little more milk or water to help the spinach smoothie blend easily.
• Make it dairy-free and vegan by substituting yoghurt with silken tofu or plant-based yoghurt, and milk with dairy-free yoghurt.
• Try adding in some chia seeds, hemp seeds, flax seeds, protein powder, or honey.
• For a thinner smoothie, add more liquid. For a thicker smoothie, add a few ice cubes.

Baby kale and spinach as a salad

Baby kale and spinach make a great salad. Both are packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, fibre and carotenoids, and have been shown to reduce the risk of cancer, prevent osteoporosis, promote heart health and reduce inflammation in the body.

To make a salad, you can use baby kale and spinach raw, or you can gently par-cook them first. To par-cook, heat some olive oil in a pan, add the baby kale and spinach, and cook over medium-low heat for around 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. If the greens seem dry, add a little more olive oil. You'll notice that they wilt quickly and release a lot of water.

Once cooked, you can add other ingredients such as pine nuts for crunch, Parmesan cheese, or red pepper flakes for a kick.

For a simple salad dressing, whisk together some extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, minced garlic or garlic powder, and lemon juice.

If you want to add a Korean twist to your salad, try tossing your greens with a dressing made from soy sauce (or coconut aminos or tamari gluten-free soy), garlic, Korean red pepper powder or chilli flakes, and a little sugar (white, brown or coconut palm).

Garlic sautéed baby kale and spinach

A delicious and nutritious side dish, garlic sautéed baby kale and spinach is a quick and easy dish to make.

Ingredients:

• Baby kale and spinach
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Sea salt
• Garlic, minced
• Lemon juice

Optional:

• Pine nuts
• Parmesan cheese
• Red pepper flakes

Method:

• Wash the baby kale and spinach thoroughly, removing the centre stem from the kale leaves. Chop the leaves into strips.
• Heat a large skillet/frying pan on medium-low heat and add the olive oil.
• Add the kale and cook for around 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. If the kale seems dry, add a little more olive oil.
• Add the spinach, garlic, and salt. Continue to cook for another 3 minutes, stirring regularly.
• Finally, add the lemon juice, stirring to combine.
• Serve immediately with your choice of protein or other vegetables.

Tips:

• This dish is best served fresh, but it can be stored in the fridge and reheated.
• Adjust the cooking time depending on the thickness of the leaves. For example, curly kale may take longer to cook than baby kale.
• This recipe can be adapted to include other leafy greens such as Swiss chard, collard greens, or beet greens.
• For a spicy kick, add some Korean red pepper powder or chilli flakes.

Frequently asked questions