Yesterday was one of those days where you wonder why you bother, I had a busy day rushing around, work was stressful, my head ached, my shoulders were in knots and I just wanted to flop when I got home.
 
Lucky for me, one of my best friends is an amazing Sports Masseuse and she very kindly popped round to give me a quick massage. It was heaven and just what I needed. Thank you so much Linzi, you are a star. I was so relaxed afterwards that I was floating and cooking dinner was the last thing that I could be bothered with, but luckily for me tonight’s dinner was just so easy to make. Hardly any prep, simple and on the table in no time.
 
Sometimes the most simple of dishes, with few ingredients can be the ones that surprise you the most, this dish is just like that, it takes minutes to make but doesn’t disappoint on taste. We enjoyed it last night as a main meal, with crusty bread and a nice glass of crisp white wine, but I think serving just a few shells, filled nicely with the sauce would make a lovely starter.
 
Buon appetito
Serves 6 (As a main meal)
 
50g unsalted butter
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
500g English spinach, washed & blanched (see instructions below), squeezed dry & coarsely chopped
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
150ml thickened cream
700g ricotta
300g conchiglioni (If you can’t find this is the Supermarket, try an Italian Deli)
Freshly grated parmesan, to serve
 
Place the butter, oil and onion in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the onion is soft, then add the spinach and grated nutmeg. Stir in the cream and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring gently, then add the ricotta, season to taste and remove from the heat.
 
Meanwhile cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water until al dente, with the large dried shells, thats about 13 minutes, but check your packaging for timings. Drain, place in a large serving bowl, add the ricotta and spinach sauce and toss well. Serve immediately with sprinkled parmesan. Hubby and I always like freshly ground pepper on ours as well, you could even try a little freshly grated nutmeg to serve if you like it.
 
If you are serving as a starter, drain the pasta well, fill the shells individually with the sauce and serve in a pretty small bowl.
 
How to blanch spinach :-

1. Fill a large pot with water, bring it to a boil, and add your packaged or separated, pre-washed spinach leaves.

 

2. Blanch the spinach for approximately 30 seconds—or until they turn a brilliant green.

3. Remove the spinach from the pot with a slotted spoon and drain.

4. Plunge the leaves into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.

5. Squeeze out all of the excess water or you’ll ruin your sauce or recipe with too much liquid.

6. The spinach doesn’t look that great when you’ve completed the blanching process, but it will taste wonderful. One large bag will reduce to a small ball of leaves. So don’t panic, it will be fine.