Aloo Palak (Potatoes with spinach) - gravy version

Ingredients:
Potatoes, peeled and cut into bite size pieces - 3 large
Spinach leaves, fresh - 1 big bag
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Onions, finely chopped - 2 med
Green chillies, slit lengthwise - 2
Ginger-garlic paste - 1 tsp
Red chili powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Water - 1.5 cups
Oil - 1 tbsp
Salt - 1 tsp or to taste

Time: 10 min prep + 30 min cook
Servings: 4-5

Method:
Heat a tsp of oil in a wok and sautée the potato pieces for a few minutes. Set aside.

Blanche the spinach leaves and immediately dunk in cold water. Drain and set aside.

In a wok, heat 1 tbsp of oil and add the cumin seeds. When they start to splutter, add the onion and fry until translucent. Mix in the ginger-garlic paste and fry for a few minutes. Now add the red chili powder and coriander powder and mix to coat well. If the mixture is too dry, you can add a small amount (1 tsp?) of water and mix well. Add the spinach leaves, stir fry for 5 min and add the potato pieces and garam masala (once again, if mixture is too dry add a tsp of water). Cook for 7 min on low heat.  Add enough water to cover the potato pieces. Add salt and cook on medium flame until the potatoes are cooked through (10-12 min). Serve hot with chapatis or rice.

Author: Shrinkingsodacan
Source: Based on this recipe.

Murgh Saagwala (Chicken in Spinach)

Ingredients:
Chicken breasts, diced - 2
Spinach, frozen (thaw a bit, but without additional water) - 3/4 kg
Onions, sliced thick - 2
Tomatoes (diced if fresh, whole if canned) - 4-5 small
Ginger-garlic paste - 1.5 tbsp
Garam masala - 1.5 tbsp
Turmeric (optional) - 1/2 tsp
Red chili powder (optional) - 1 tsp
Cloves - 4
Cardamom seeds - 1/2 tsp
Bay leaves - 1-2
Heavy cream - 2 tbsp
Vegetable oil - 2 tbsp

Time (prep+cook): about 40 min
Servings: 2-3

Method:
Heat the oil. Add cloves, bay leaves and cardamom and fry for a couple of minutes to release the aroma of the spices. Add the ginger-garlic paste, mix well and add the onions. Stir fry until the onions are golden brown. Add the tomato pieces (if using canned tomatoes, add as little juice as possible). Cook for 5-10 minutes. Mix in salt, garam masala and turmeric (optional). Cook until the oil separates to the sides. Add the chicken and cook on a medium flame until the pieces are cooked through (up to 15 min). Now add the thawed spinach, mix well and cook covered on a low flame for 10 min. Stir in the heavy cream and simmer for about five minutes. Serve hot with rice or chapatis.

Author: Shrinkingsodacan
Source: Inspired by this recipe.

Spinach/Fenugreek Leaf Pakodas

Introduction:
This is a basic snack dish involving batter made of chickpea flour, with chopped onions and any one of many leafy greens. Delicious and easy to make (I got it right on the first try) and the recipe below is a stepping stone to more intricate ones. It requires amchoor (dried mango powder), which is a good thing to have in your spice rack (available at Indian stores) as it is used in quite a few Indian dishes. You can replace 1 tsp of amchoor with 3 tbsp of lime or lemon juice.

Ingredients:
Chickpea flour (besan) - 2 cups
Chopped spinach or fenugreek (methi) leaves - 1 cup
Amchoor (dried mango powder) - 1 tsp [Or 3 tbsp lemon/lime juice]
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Red chili powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt - about 1 tsp or to taste
Oil for deep frying - 3 cups

Time: 15-20 min (5 prep, 15 cook)
Servings: 4

Method:
In a large mixing bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together. Make a depression in the middle and slowly add water (I didn't have to add more than 3/4 to 1 cup of water for the 2 cups of flour, so be careful), mixing to dissolve any lumps that form. You should end up with a thick batter. Now add the greens and onions (and, if you aren't using amchoor, also the lemon/lime juice) and mix well. Heat the oil in a wok until you can smell it. Lower the heat to medium and drop tablespoonfuls of batter into the oil, four or five at a time depending on the size of your wok. Fry until both sides are browned. When removing from oil, use the spatula to squeeze out any excess oil. Transfer to paper towels to absorb any remaining oil. Keep warm. Repeat with the rest of the batter. Serve warm with ketchup or Sriracha sauce.

Suggestion 1: Try with other greens? Let me know how it goes.
Suggestion 2: These pakodas can also be incorporated into gravy dishes like soups. A traditional Indian favourite is yogurt soup (kadhi) with pakodas (kadhi pakoda). For use in soups, after removing excess oil, immediately soak in warm water for a few minutes. Squeeze out water and add to soup.
Author: Shrinkingsodacan

Spinach (or Kale/Chard/Fenugreek) Paratha

Ingredients:
Whole wheat flour - 1 cup
Spinach/Kale/Chard/Fenugreek, washed, drained and chopped - 1 cup
Green chili, chopped - 2 med
Salt - 1 tsp
Oil - 2-3 tbsp

Cooking time: 20 min
Servings: 2

Method:
If you're using frozen greens, thaw them at half power. Depending on what kind of greens, how they're frozen and how powerful the microwave is, the times will differ, but keep checking every 4-5 minutes if it's thawed all the way through, and mash lightly to help with thawing. When thawed, drain the water into a separate bowl, squeeze as much of the water out of the greens as possible.

In a mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt. Start adding tablespoonfuls of chopped greens while mixing continuously. The water in the greens should help in kneading the dough; for extra water use the drained greens water you set aside, but add bit by bit until the dough is of the right consistency. At this point, to avoid the dough sticking to your palms, rub them with a few drops of oil and continue kneading. Add a little flour or a little water if the dough is too mushy or not soft enough. Knead into a soft ball, set aside in a covered bowl for 10 min.

Divide the dough into six equal pieces. Heat a pan and roll each piece out as thin as possible. When the pan is hot (test with a few drops of water, they should dance on the surface), place one paratha in it. With a spatula, lightly press the sides of the paratha so that bubbles form on top and the colour starts to change. Flip over and repeat the procedure. Before turning again, spread a teaspoon of oil/ghee over the top side. Repeat with the other side, repeat with the rest of the dough.

Serve hot with yogurt, chutney and/or pickles.

Note: Spinach and fenugreek are the traditional fillings for this dish, but kale and chard could probably be substituted, which may be useful for you CSA people.

Author: Shrinkingsodacan