The Best Spinach Gratin Recipe Ever - Everyday Dishes (2024)

FAQs

Can you make Ina Garten's spinach gratin ahead of time? ›

This spinach gratin, from her fabulous 2001 “Barefoot Contessa Parties!” cookbook (Clarkson Potter), is perfect for the Thanksgiving table. Make it a day ahead, cover, refrigerate and bake while the turkey is resting. Garten told me she keeps Thanksgiving as traditional as possible.

In contrast, loose spinach needs thorough washing in a colander to remove dirt and grit. Shake the excess water off (if you plan to stir-fry it or eat it raw in a salad, you should pat it dry with kitchen paper, too). Older spinach may have tough stems - cut these off.

Cook it quickly over very high heat, stirring very frequently so the liquid that cooks off evaporates more or less immediately, the pan stays dry, and the spinach leaves are cooking in dry heat, not wet heat.

Spinach formulated with 20% of lemon juice had the highest total phenol mass fractions. Therefore, the addition of 20% lemon juice can increase the stability of spinach total phenols.

Spinach releases a lot of water as it cooks. So my father's trick is to drain and dry the spinach leaves as well as you can, using a salad spinner if need be, before cooking them. Then, sauté some garlic in olive oil in a large wide pan, and add the cleaned, drained, and dried spinach leaves to the pan.

Therefore, although spinach can be eaten raw, it is best to eat cooked spinach. Many nutritionists believe that steaming and boiling is an effective cooking method that can reduce the oxalic acid in spinach by 80% to 90%.

What's bad about spinach? If you eat spinach every day in excessive amounts (more than a bowl) there can be adverse health effects. Most commonly these include gas, bloating and cramps due to its high fiber content. Eating too much spinach can also interfere with the body's ability to absorb nutrients.

Too much of anything is going to be a bad thing. But when it comes in spinach, you have to eat quite a lot of it to any serious damage. It is recommended by nutritionists that you eat maximum 2 cups of spinach per day; eating any more over a long period time could incur health complications.

Overly Sweet Foods: Spinach generally has a mildly bitter or earthy flavor, which may not complement very sweet foods or desserts. Some people might not enjoy spinach in overly sweet dishes. Certain Vegetables: While spinach can be combined with many other vegetables, some combinations may not be to everyone's liking.

Garten recommends letting the gratin sit for 10 minutes before serving it hot. She also notes that the gratin can be cooked a day ahead and reheated at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, a helpful tip if you want to save some time on Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Can you make Ina Garten's mac and cheese ahead of time? ›

Since you can make it a day or two ahead, it's a great pasta for a dinner party where you'll be juggling quite a few things — or a quick but easy dish to delight everyone at a potluck. Garten's dish is so cheesy and comforting, I'll definitely make this pasta for a busy and chilly week in winter.

It is possible to pre-prepare the gratin up to 2 days ahead by simmering the potatoes and transferring them to the buttered baking dish, then refrigerating them until needed. You should cool and refrigerate the mixture as quickly as possible, and within 2 hours of cooking.

These scalloped potatoes can be made ahead. You can assemble the dish and refrigerate for about 8 hours before baking, or you can bake it and refrigerate for about 24 hours before serving.