Ingredient: Spinach

In 647 AD the King of Nepal sent spinach to the Chinese emperor as an exotic leafy diplomatic gift. Because it originally came out of Persia, the Chinese court scribes filed it as “the Persian vegetable”. The Persian word aspanākh turned, eventually, into our word spinach.

Catherine de’ Medici brought her Florentine cooks and her love of spinach to France when she married Henri II in 1533. She wanted it at every meal, and French kitchens have called anything on a bed of spinach “à la Florentine” ever since.

Spinach likes cool weather, so it’s mainly a spring and autumn crop. It’s especially rich in vitamin K, which helps to keep your bones healthy. You’ll also find folate, vitamin C, magnesium and iron in those green leaves. Its plant-based iron is easier to absorb if you add tomatoes, peppers or a squeeze of lemon.

Stir chopped spinach into curries, pasta sauces, soups and scrambled eggs, or blend a handful into smoothies and muffin mixtures. I always keep some frozen spinach handy for an easy vegetable boost. A whole bag can feel enormous, but it wilts to almost nothing in the pan, which is handy for wary little eaters.