Sunday, January 2, 2011

fritters, popeye style

Now that the holidays are officially over, and I've had my fill of the rich and decadent, I find myself craving green. Somewhere back in my ancestry, a certain Grandfather "Pop" Eye must be lurking.  I adore spinach, but my forearms aren't that big.

The very first recipe I made from my new I Know How to Cook  by Ginette Mathiot was this lovely side dish.  They are vibrant jewel-toned green, crisp and creamy delicious inside. Actually, I would say they were more of a fritter than a croquette. A pinch of flour to the mixture might make them a bit fatter.  I served them as a brunch side dish, but they would be delicious with just about anything.


Spinach Croquettes

1 cup Béchamel sauce (mother of all sauces, a basic white sauce)
1 3/4 pounds cooked, drained and pressed spinach (two 10 oz. bags of fresh to start)
2 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup grated Gruyère cheese, 1/2 cup butter scant

Make the Béchamel sauce. Process the spinach in a food processor until smooth, and mix with the sauce. Add the eggs and cheese. Heat the butter in a skillet. When it is hot, drop spoonfuls of the spinach mixture gently into the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, until browned.  Serves 6.  Note: make sure you press all the cooking liquid from the spinach.  I twisted it in a clean tea towel.

56 comments:

  1. Your spinach croquettes look yummy and almost too beautiful to eat! By the way, I love your new profile picture. Have you ever been a model?

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  2. Yum. I'm craving vegetables. These sound delicious.

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  3. I love Spinach too.Thanks for croquettes-idea.Tis funny, as a kid I hated the stuff......but my tastebuds have changed & i no eat it at every opportunity.

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  4. YUM....will do. . .popeye style! with gruyere! fab!
    happy new year over there in the next state! ..as the snow flies!

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  5. WHooooooo yes! I love spinach and these look really yummy! They should strengthen my neck too!

    Happy New Year, Willow!

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  6. Gorgeous healthy spinach - the intense green is enough to make one grab a bunch and do something or other with it. So versatile too - raw it's great, steamed its awesome, and here you share another way which looks delicious.

    Here's to green in all its glory - healthy beyond words when naked, but a large pan of Spanokopita is calling out to me right now. Darn those Greeks, they really know how to handle spinach in a fattening way too, sigh!

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  7. Janelle, tee-hee, you are too kind. xx

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  8. Hello, Willow. I thought I would pop in and wish you a Happy New Year. I had hoped to be able to spend more time with my blogging friends when I retired, but I ended up working as the Chamber photographer as well as the photographer for our local newspaper. I went from a daily to a weekly, but there is just as much work invloved, and by the time I get through editing photos, I don't want to look at the computer.

    You blog rocks, and I do myself an injustice for not visiting more often. It looks like I came in on a good day (are there any bad days at Willow Manor?) because, as a vegetarian, I am going to add those spinach fritters to my recipe box. Of course, I don't have time to cook, but next time I retire, it will come in handy.

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  9. Mmm - those look yummy! I will definitely have to try them sometime.

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  10. It's interesting...I was just thinking this morning how good non-rich, vegetable-dense food sounded. Great minds think alike!

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  11. This has to be wonder! Can't wait to try it!

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  12. I love spinach, but damned if those don't look like cow patties. LOL! But I'm gonna try the recipe. Thanks for sharing and Happy New Year!

    Blessings,
    Marion

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  13. Mary, I know, I've never tasted a spinach I didn't like, in fact, most times I like to eat it raw. The Spanokopita sounds wonderful!

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  14. Hey, Patty! So good to see you, my friend. I wondered what happened with your retirement. Congrats on your new photographic position! Yes, WM certainly has it's fair share of bad days; I just don't like to mention them here. ;^)

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  15. Marion, hah-hah! This city girl wouldn't know a cow pattie if it came up and kissed her!

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  16. Like Tony, as a kid, I never
    liked that stony taste in the
    back of my throat after ingesting
    spinach, and now I crave it
    every which way. I will have to
    get Melva to try and make these
    popeye fritters; damn, they sound
    awesome!

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  17. Yum. These sound positively decadent --

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  18. When I make these, I will not mention they hailed from Willow Manor's blog. One of my hooligans (I'm NOT excluding my husband here) would rush over and select the "Delete" option to your blog.

    And, as a I was born and raised in the country, these really do resemble cow patties. LOL

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  19. I feel the same about craving salads and light meals - shall try these.

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  20. These look gorgeous. I am the same, I love getting back to 'real' food after many celebration meals.

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  21. feeling the "need to avoid the sweets" a bit myself.

    back to a more restrained diet. these look good.

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  22. ...i love spinach... and popeye.... coOllll....(^^)b..

    Blessed Morn!!!;)

    ~Kelvin

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  23. Not a spinach fan, but if you run across a recipe for turnip greens, I'd definitely try that. Happy cooking!

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  24. I'm sold. This has my FAVORITE cheese - gruyere. So easy. I'm planning on this for a breakfast this week.

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  25. Oooh, that sounds easy and really good, Tess! Man, what a great photo--they're jewel-tones! Sounds delicious.

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  26. Ohhhhhhhhh I gotta try these! Thanks for this recipe. They don't look pretty, but I know I would love them!

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  27. Man, look at your blog! It looks so ... so ... so fresh. Yes, fresh. I like it.

    I like spinach too :-)

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  28. Thanks, Me, I wanted a fresh look for the new year. Don't worry. I'm sure I will be changing it in the not-so-distant future!

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  29. These look delicious and they'll make such a bold presentation on the table. Delicious AND nutritious : )

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  30. I have made these before, and they are just wonderful with a dollop of sour cream..but what isn't? Thanks for reminding me!

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  31. Yum! they look really delicious, will have to make some myself :))

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  32. Yeow, that's some green, love it! Reminds me of the time I tried to make spinach chicken nuggets for some children, didn't fool 'em for a minute, but I sure enjoyed them. Way to work veggies into a meal!

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  33. Yummo ... I love spinach! And like my mumma always says "your greens are good for you" so they've just gotta be healthy.
    These, I'm sure, would be a sensational eat! Here is Australia we would probably call them fritters!

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  34. Willow... you put me to shame. This dish looks really healthy compared to the cherry pie I made this weekend.. hee hee! :)
    Have a great first 2011 week!
    xoxo
    Unks

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  35. Popeye isn't the only one who loves spinich! This sounds so good, I will be making it this week!

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  36. This looks wonderful. A must do soon!

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  37. Now I know what to do with all that spinach I bought before Christmas.

    Love the new look.

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  38. They look as if they're made with some delicious seaweed. Once again the pond divides us; what is butter 'scant'?

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  39. Just dropping by to wish you a very happy 2011!!

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  40. Don't like spinach Tess but I love the idea of your Chapbook and it being a prize-winning Chapbook. Can't think of anyone who deserves it more 'cause I can't think of any blogger more talented than you. Have a great 2011.
    Alan

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  41. Cro, we say "scant" in a recipe when we mean "just barely" or "just under".

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  42. I would eat anything with spinach in it. My favorite omelet is spinach and swiss cheese with mushrooms. These look good. I know what you mean about holidays over and now the foods we want are veggies and fruits.

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  43. I love spinach ... any way it's cooked. This looks like an interesting way to prepare it .. I'm going to give it a try.

    Your photo looks like an exotic piece of jewelry. I would wear it on my arm or around my neck!

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  44. Oh I am a massive spinach lover and will def. try these. Yumm-Oh!!

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  45. I had been craving green but only because the land had been white for far too long. Thank God it is green again. My Irish blood is to blame I think!

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  46. These look like cow pies...yum!

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  47. I had to chuckle...the photo of you under 'click here for my poetry' Looks like you ate a bunch of those delicious sounding spinach fritters! Hahaha...I love that picture!

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  48. Wow! This looks good and it is something really new to me! I would love to try this one!

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  49. Nice to read your words again. . . I took a sabbatical of sorts. I too love spinach raw!

    My best

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  50. Every best joy;
    every best happiness;
    every best expectation.
    Every best dream;
    every best thought;
    every best kindness.
    Every best hope;
    every best wish;
    I hope for you, my dear friend. in 2011.

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  51. I need some spinach right now.

    This fits the bill of finding some new eats nicely.
    Thanks!

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  52. Man that looks good. Except it also looks a little like something a cow ate yesterday. But mostly it looks good.

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Inject a few raisins of conversation into the tasteless dough of existence.
― O. Henry (and me)