Hands down, the most decadent smell that can fill a kitchen is that of roasted garlic. Just like with other produce, roasting whole cloves of garlic with a touch of oil brings out the garlic’s natural sweetness and turns each clove into a tender, buttery bite of culinary delight. Not only is it a taste favorite of mine it is also deemed to have incredible health benefits. Whether spread on a piece of crusty bread, mixed into butter, or spread on the bottom of a savory tart—if you’re roasting it, I’m eating it. I like to experiment with simple ways to incorporate roasted garlic into not so traditional dishes. Take this simple side dish for example; a simple sauté of healthy baby spinach in olive oil, served with fresh lemon juice and cloves of roasted garlic. Just another incredible recipe that calls out to all of us garlic lovers!
(To view this recipe, click on the blue title of the blog post above*)
Sautéed Spinach with Roasted Garlic & Lemon
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon plus 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 head of garlic
- Crushed red pepper flakes
- 12 oz. baby spinach
- Salt and pepper
- ½ lemon, thinly sliced
- ½ lemon, for squeezing
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the top ½ inch off of the head of garlic; place it in a foil rectangle and drizzle with 1 teaspoon of oil. Tightly close the foil wrapper and place the garlic on a baking sheet. Roast the garlic for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly browned and tender. Allow the garlic to cool, then gently squeeze each roasted clove out individually. (Alternatively, if you have jarred, peeled garlic you can roast it the same way, but check it after 20-25 minutes to make sure it isn’t burning!*)
- In a straight-sided sauté pan, heat the remaining tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Add in the crushed red pepper flakes and the baby spinach; season with ½ teaspoon salt and a pinch of black pepper. Sauté for 3-5 minutes, or until wilted. Squeeze with lemon juice; serve with thinly sliced lemon and the roasted garlic cloves.
Tagged: garlic, lemon, lemon spinach, roasted garlic, sauteed spinach, side dish, spinach, vegetarian
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