Spinach Soup - I

Why does Popeye the Sailor Man eat spinach? According to WHFoods: We all know that Popeye made himself super strong by eating spinach, The BBC has reported that this portrayal is partially due to the iron content having been mistakenly being reported as ten times the actual value; a value that was rechecked during the 1930s, whereby it was revealed that the original calculations of the German scientist, Dr. E. von Wolf, contained a misplaced decimal point, but you may be surprised to learn that popeye may also have been protecting himself against osteoporosis, heart disease, colon cancer, arthritis, and other diseases at the same time.

This is a very easy recipe, my mom usually makes it with ground beef, I like vegetarian version just as much. If you want to add ground beef brown the meat first before you saute the onion.

Ingredients:

1 lb spinach (savoy or semi-savoy)

2 tbs canola oil

1 big onion

1 1/2 tbs tomato paste

1/3 cup rice

5 cups of water

Salt, pepper

Lemon juice (optional)

Directions:

1. Fill your sink or a large bowl with fresh, cold water. Add the spinach and swish them around with your hands to dislodge grit and dirt, washing gently but thoroughly. Let the spinach stand a few minutes so the dirt sinks to the bottom of the bowl or sink. Change the water couple of times.Lift the spinach from the water and spin dry in a salad spinner or blot with paper towels. Finely chop the spinach and set aside.

2. In a large pot heat the oil and saute the onion until transculent.

3. Add the tomato paste and stir for 2 min.

4. Add the spinach and stir for 1 min. then add the water and the rice.

5. Cover and cook on low heat until the rice is cooked.

6. Serve with lemon juice on top.