Broccoli and Spinach with Raisins and Pine Nuts

As much as one might like to live off dessert, you do need actual food as well. So a few hours after the bread and butter pudding snack, I thought we should have a light dinner. I had all those raisins left, so I wanted to do something with them, and when I’d been at the grocery store, I’d been tempted by tender-stem broccoli, which you don’t see all that often. M and I both love spinach, so I’d gotten a package of fresh baby leaves too. Thus a recipe for slightly sweet greens began to take shape, inspired by a dish I saw in a magazine of spinach and pine nuts.

I don’t think M was totally convinced by this dish, but I liked the balance of flavours, the sweetness of the raisins with the veggies, all topped with piney tones. Maybe it’s worth pointing out that the recipe includes several flatulence-inducing ingredients, so you might want to be careful about who you serve it to and when, but then again, you can vary it with other ingredients if you prefer (or if necessary!). The recipe can be easily doubled to serve as a side dish for more people or as a larger meal. I just made a small amount, as we weren’t particularly hungry.

Ingredients:
.25 cup raisins (or half a handful)
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
olive oil
200 g spinach
6-8 tender-stem broccoli
30 g pine nuts
freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

1. Boil some water and soak the raisins in it for 5-10 minutes, until they get plump.
2. Finely chop the onion and garlic.
3. Fry the onion and garlic in a pan in olive oil.
4. Wilt the spinach by putting it in a Teflon or similar pot, with the lid on, over medium heat. Do not add any water. It takes just a few minutes, so keep an eye on it.
5. Chop the broccoli.
6. Add the spinach and the broccoli to the pan with the onion and garlic.
7. After a few minutes, add the drained raisins and the pine nuts. Stir and cook for another 5-10 minutes.
8. Season with pepper and serve.