Sephardic Spinach Patties – for Passover and Year Round!

Each year during Passover we’re faced with the same challenge: How to keep Passover while eating as little matzah as possible. Lately we’ve realized there are plenty of foods that don’t contain any Passover ingredients, yet can be kosher for Passover. We also like to try new recipes; it’s no fun eating the same dish for 8 days in a row.

For Rosh Hashannah, we had Sephardic Spinach Patties. The patties are Passover-friendly and I’ll be having them for lunch today! The recipe is from the cookbook Olive Trees and Honey: A Treasury of Vegetarian Recipes from Jewish Communities Around the World.

Ingredients

· 3 tablespoons olive oil or vegetable oil
· 1 large onion, chopped
· 2 to 4 cloves garlic, minced (optional)
· 2 pounds fresh spinach, stemmed, cooked, chopped, and squeezed dry, or 20 ounces thawed frozen chopped spinach, squeezed dry
· About 1 cup matza meal or fine dried bread crumbs
· About 3/4 teaspoon table salt or 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
· Ground black pepper to taste
· 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg or 1/2 teaspoon cayenne (– optional) , but great
· 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
· Vegetable oil for frying
· Lemon wedges for serving

Preparation

1. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and, if using, the garlic and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the spinach, matza meal, salt, pepper, and, if using, the nutmeg. Stir in the eggs. If the mixture is too loose, add a little more matza meal. The mixture can be stored in the refrigerator for a day.

2. Shape the spinach mixture into patties 3 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide, with tapered ends. In a large skillet, heat a thin layer of oil over medium heat. In batches, fry the patties, turning, until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels. Serve warm, accompanied with lemon wedges.

Sephardic Spinach Patties with Cheese (Keftes de Espinaca con Queso):
Add 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Muenster, Swiss, Gouda, or Cheddar cheese; or 1/4 cup grated kefalotyri or Parmesan cheese.

Sephardic Spinach Patties with Walnuts (Keftes de Espinaca con Muez):
Substitute 1/2 to 1 cup finely chopped walnuts for the matza meal.

Italian Spinach Patties (Polpettine di Spinaci):
Add 3/4 cup raisins soaked in white wine for 30 minutes, then drained, and 3/4 cup toasted pine nuts.

NOTE To reheat the spinach patties, place in a large skillet, add 1 1/2 cups vegetable stock, and simmer over low heat for about 5 minutes.