Sformato di Spinaci /  Baked Spinach in a Creamy Parmesan Sauce

Serves 4-6:

• 700 g of baby spinach leaves, washed thoroughly
• 2 medium eggs
• 250-260 ml of double cream
• 75 g of grated Parmesan cheese
• grated nutmeg
• flaky sea salt
• black pepper
• some butter for greasing

Cook the spinach in salted water for no longer than 1-2 minutes.

Drain very well and  leave to cool down a little (in the colander).

Once the spinach has cooled down enough to handle, squeeze all the water out using your hands – you may have to do it in batches. This is a very important step and make sure you do it properly, otherwise the sformato will turn watery. Roughly chop the spinach and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 200 C / 180 C Fan.

Grease an ovenproof dish with some butter.

In a large mixing bowl whisk together the eggs, the cream and the Parmesan. Season with the nutmeg, salt and black pepper to taste. Stir in the chopped spinach.

Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish and place on the middle shelf of the preheated oven.

Bake for 40-50 minutes, the top should turn golden brown by then.

If you are using a large and shallow baking dish the sformato will cook through a bit quicker than indicated (I tend to use a deep oval baking dish), or, if you find that the spinach mix still feels too soft, keep it in the oven for a bit longer.

Serve warm (use a large metal spoon to cut through the crust to the moist creamy spinach underneath), with hunks of fresh crusty bread and a good crunchy mixed salad on the side.

If there is any sformato left, keep it in the fridge until needed, reheat on a medium heat –  covered with a sheet of aluminium foil.