I was reminiscing with some friends the other day about childhood memories and our conversation turned to games, cartoons and children’s shows.
You know: Uncle Wiggily and the decidedly unsavory Pipsisewah, Shari Lewis and sweet little Lamb Chop, Engineer Bill and the milk drinking game “Red Light/Green Light,” and, of course, The Mouseketeers. (Hands down, it was definitely wholesome Darlene over the too-cool-for-school Annette for us!)
Personally, I’ve always had a warm place in my heart for Popeye the Sailor Man. I can still sing the song and, now that I’ve written that, probably won’t be able to get it out of my head for the rest of the day. (Lyrics: Popeye The Sailor Man)
The irascible Popeye turned me on to spinach with classic cartoons like this one “Gopher Spinach.
But, alas, things are never quite as you remember them. I have to admit that re-watching Popeye menace the sweet little gopher with that big black rifle in Gopher Spinach took me aback. I found myself rooting for the gopher all the way. I guess I’ve evolved from a wannabe tough little girl who could beat all the “palookas” to a definite softie for gophers. Go figure!
Whether you have fond memories of Popeye or of some more modern children’s hero like The Cookie Monster, here is a recipe for a great spinach soup with just a hint of Indian spicing. As Popeye would say, “You’ll be “strong to the fin-ich.”
Spinach Soup With Indian Spices
Ingredients
- 6 T. clarified butter
- 1 large red onion (sliced)
- 1 clove garlic (chopped)
- 3 T. white rice
- 1/2 t. salt
- 4 cloves
- 1 t. cumin seeds
- 1/4 t. freshly-grated nutmeg
- 7 C. vegetable broth
- 1 pound baby spinach
- 1/2 C. heavy cream
- Grated peel of 1 lemon
- Juice of 1/2 fresh lemon (optional)
- Pepper and salt to taste
- 1 C. small sourdough bread cubes
- Sour cream to garnish
- Cayenne pepper (optional)
Directions
- Step 1 Melt 3 T. clarified butter in a heated soup pot. Add the onion, garlic, rice and salt. While the onions sauté, grind the cloves and cumin seeds to a powder and add the ground spices along with the nutmeg to the onion mixture. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes.
- Step 2 Add 1 1/2 C. vegetable broth to the onion and spice mixture. Simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Step 3 Prepare the spinach by washing it thoroughly in two changes of water to be sure there is no grit left in the spinach. Chop off the spinach stems if you have the time and inclination. I was using tender baby spinach greens and left the stems on the spinach. Add the spinach to the soup pot and simmer (covered)until the spinach wilts.
- Step 4 Add remaining 5 1/2 C. vegetable broth to the soup pot. Bring this mixture to a boil and then lower heat and simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Step 5 Take the soup pot off the stove burner and let the spinach mixture cool for a few minutes before you puree the soup.I used my blender but a food processor or an immersion blender would work fine.
- Step 6 Pour the pureed soup back into the soup pot. Stir in the cream and the grated lemon peel. Taste and add lemon juice to your taste. Add salt and pepper to your taste.
- Step 7 Serve soup garnished with some squiggles of sour cream, a sprinkling of cayenne pepper (optional) and the bread croutons you have sautéed in the remaining clarified butter.
The original recipe for this soup appears in Deborah Madison’s 1987 cookbook The Greens Cook Book. You can buy the book in your local used book store or at Amazon here.
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