After having lots of treats and proper three course meals and Champagne and wine over the holiday season and then with a myriad of visiting guests, I was craving something simple and green after they left. This was a good thing because I had a fridge full of partial bunches of herbs and some leftover spinach.
This is curiously restorative and healthy tasting and your body with thank you as you sip it after overindulging. This is also really good in the spring made with a variety of shoots and plant thinnings.
3 cups of spinach
1 1/2 cups of assorted herbs (I used a mix of Italian parsley, mint, dill and coriander)
1 1/2 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
Juice from one lemon
2 tsps preserved lemon paste or 1 teaspoon of store bought preserved lemon, finely chopped into a paste
1/4 tsp cumin powder
Salt to taste
Wash all the greens very well (especially the spinach and parsley which get very gritty.) Remove as many stems as you can without going nutty about it. Chop everything finely and set aside in a bowl.
Heat the chicken stock in a medium saucepan until bubbling around the edges.
Add the greens, cumin and some salt and cook until wilted and tender, three to four minutes.
Remove from the heat. Add the preserved lemon paste and the lemon juice and stir to combine.
Check for seasoning and serve with a generous dollop of full-fat Greek yogurt and a drizzle of your favorite hot sauce (I used charred green onion paste - a recipe that will follow soon)