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This is a quick appetizer for St. Patrick’s Day or any day of the year. The crunchy, buttery puff pastry crust encases a super creamy spinach filling.
I chose not to overdo this filling – no added onions, bacon or other accents. It’s just fresh spinach cooked down and seasoned with a bit of salt and a hint of nutmeg blended with cream cheese.
This wasn’t the recipe I planned on making today. I actually wanted to make green puff pastry sandwiches filled with spinach and cream cheese. I cooked down the spinach to make homemade green food coloring, but it wasn’t vibrant enough. So I added green food coloring paste to it. That worked, but after I brushed it over the pastry and baked it, it didn’t look appetizing at all.
So I went with something that’s not all that creative, but it’s so simple and perfect for spring. I used puff pastry crust (instead of pie crust) because the filling is so unassuming, the crust really pulls together all the flavors. Enjoy.
- 6 cups raw spinach
- ½ cup water
- 1 8-oz. block cream cheese
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1/8 tsp. nutmeg
- 1 box Pepperidge Farm puff pastry sheets
Place the spinach and water in a pot.
Cover with a lid and cook on medium-high for 10 minutes, until it wilts.
Place the spinach in a salad spinner to remove all the water.
In a large bowl, stir together the cooked spinach, cream cheese, salt and nutmeg.
Unfold puff pastry sheets and cut out circles with a cookie cutter or glass.
Place the pastry circles into a mini muffin pan.
Fill with spinach filling.
Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes.
Zestuous Spinach Cups,
6 comments
Denise Collins says:
March 27, 2013 at 23:43 (UTC -7)
I’m going to try this today. Looks delicious and healthy at the same time.
Lara says:
June 29, 2012 at 07:11 (UTC -7)
They look delicious! Are these best served warm or can you bake them and serve an hour or two later? Thanks
zestuous says:
June 29, 2012 at 07:23 (UTC -7)
Thanks Lara. They are best warm, but you can serve them at room temperature, too. I’ve even eaten them cold.
Anonymous says:
June 30, 2012 at 14:30 (UTC -7)
Great, thanks so much! Do you use 2 puff pastry sheets? How many does this recipe make? Thank you!
zestuous says:
June 30, 2012 at 14:34 (UTC -7)
I use one box (2 sheets). The recipe yields 24.
Donna Dicenso says:
April 23, 2012 at 17:07 (UTC -7)
I have made these many times. They became popular in the 1980;;;s.