Last week I read this article in the New York Times about how Americans don’t eat enough vegetables. I am so guilty of this. So I decided to make a concerted effort to cook and eat more green (and orange and red and yellow) stuff. Spinach seemed like a good place to start.

OK, obviously that’s not spinach. I guess you can use puff pastry for a quiche crust, but I didn’t have any and wanted to make my own anyway. Unfortunately, I am still having issues with crusts — I think I added too much water, and then had to add more flour when rolling… and then it cracked when I was rolling it out. But it ended up surprisingly flaky and good.

As picky as I am (and have always been), I have always liked spinach. Not a huge fan of Popeye though. I prefer Marines to sailors.

I still had Gruyere left over from the croque monsieurs, but you can use cheddar if you prefer. I may try a little more cheese next time, actually. Oh, also: I didn’t really look at the recipe very carefully before going to the grocery store, so I foolishly bought fresh spinach instead of frozen. I managed to dig some long-forgotten spinach out of the freezer, but only after I figured out what to do with the fresh spinach. Instructions on that after the recipe.

One thing that is a little confusing about this recipe is the 3 ounces of cream cheese. I have never seen this alleged 3-ounce package, and when I saw it in another recipe I assumed it was a typo and used 8 ounces. Apparently it is a real thing. I just cut part of my 8-ounce package and threw it in there.

You are kinda supposed to pre-bake the crust, but I didn’t. It was perfectly good, but I’m guessing it would have been browner if it was pre-baked. Do whatever you have time for.

Spinach quiche (adapted slightly from Smitten Kitchen)
3 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/3 cup half and half (or milk)
3 eggs
1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained*
1/2 cup grated Gruyere cheese (or cheddar)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Crust**

Preheat oven to 425. Beat cream cheese in a medium bowl until smooth. Gradually beat in half and half and eggs. Stir in remaining ingredients. Pour mixture into prepared crust. Bake until crust is golden brown and filling is set, about 25 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before serving.

*I didn’t have any green onions, but the original recipe calls for 4 to 6, thinly sliced. You throw them in with the spinach and cheese. Or you can use 1/2 cup finely diced red or white onion, or shallots. Or nothing.

**I am not a big fan of Martha, but I did as Smitten Kitchen said and used half of this recipe, minus the sugar, for the crust. For those who are math impaired, that is: 1 3/4 cups flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 stick butter and 3 tablespoons to 1/4 cup ice water. You can also use a sheet of puff pastry dough, or another crust you enjoy.

If you only have fresh spinach: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Stir the spinach into the boiling water and cook until wilted, 2-3 minutes. Remove and rinse with cold water to stop cooking. Squeeze out excess moisture, then roughly chop.