Instructions: In the days when Popeye was a star, canned spinach was the norm, and never was there a vegetable so in need of promotion. Cooking is not kind to spinach.

It strips away its texture and color and most of its subtle flavor is lost in the process. By the time it is canned, it is another food entirely. Frozen spinach fares a little better, but still the character and flavor of the fresh vegetable is lost. In my kitchen, spinach is served most often uncooked, and most often as a salad green.

Spinach is a native of the northern Middle East, and is first noted historically in Iran. The extended cool season would make it a natural for that region, as spinach is a crop that is best grown in cool temperatures. In my Kentucky garden, spinach is a crop for early spring and late autumn. When the weather gets too warm, the plants bolt and flower very quickly, and spinach that has bolted is only fit for the compost heap. Good refrigeration and shipping techniques bring spinach to our table all year around, and with it the treasure trove of vitamin A, vitamin C, folic acid and iron that made Popeye strong to the finish in his cartoon battles.

Because spinach is most often cultivated in sandy soil, it needs to be carefully washed before serving. When I buy it at our produce market, I bring it home and wash it quickly in cold water, and then remove the central stalk from each piece. Just to be sure all of the grit has been washed away, I rinse the spinach once more before spinning it dry in the salad spinner. I buy enough to serve spinach salad several times within a week, and store it in zipper-closure plastic bags until I am ready to serve it. The two salads below are ones that my family likes a good deal. They are sufficiently different to serve within a few days of one another, and spinach leaves can also be added to any green tossed salad.

If you would like to email yourself the recipe for later use, or share the recipe with your friends or family, enter the email addresses below and this recipe will be emailed to you and others as well.