- August 8, 2021
- Gluten Free
Keto Creamed Spinach with Boursin Cheese
This easy creamed spinach recipe is made with delicious boursin cheese and six other ingredients for the perfect side dish that’s low carb and keto friendly too.
I love side dishes. While it’s important to create a good solid protein for your main dish, a really good meal comes down to the sides you also pair with it. What’s better than a healthier take on a traditional creamed spinach?
If you love a good steak house style meal, then this healthy creamed spinach side dish is calling your name. I mixed in both fresh spinach and kale with rich and delicious herbed boursin cheese (similar texture to cream cheese but more airy and flavorful).
This recipe is good for weeknight meals or serve it up with for the holidays with a Champagne brined turkey recipe, this delicious keto friendly holiday ham, or even a delicious coffee rubbed rack of lamb!
Below I will guide you through this recipe and outline ingredient substitutions and helpful cooking tips and techniques for successfully cooking with spinach and kale. Ready to get cooking? Jump to the recipe below and dive in!
“School” Supplies:
- Large Skillet
- Measuring cups
- Whisk
- Wooden spoon or spatula
- Fine Strainer
- Baking dish or 9 inch Cast Iron Pan
“Class” Notes:
Need to know more about this recipe? Use my culinary notes below to help guide you through. Enjoy!
Easy Creamed Spinach Ingredients:
- Fresh Baby Spinach- I like fresh, baby spinach for this recipe. You can use frozen spinach if you have to, but it’s not my favorite method. See notes about this below.
- Fresh Baby Kale- Baby kale is a lot more tender, if you don’t want to use kale you can use more spinach instead.
- 5 oz. Boursin Cheese- Boursin cheese is a whipped cheese spread you can find in the finer cheese section of your grocery store. They have a few different flavors, I like the garlic and fine herb. No boursin? Use another creamy herbed cheese or swap with cream cheese.
- Parmesan Cheese- Use a high quality grated Parmesan for this recipe for best taste.
- Fresh Garlic- Fresh garlic is best for this for the real intense garlic flavor.
- Butter- For the base of your sauce
- Heavy Cream- You can substitute for half and half. This is not a dairy free recipe, so there are no good substitutions for this. Regular milk is not a good sub here.
- Pork Rind “Bread” Crumbs- Crushed pork rinds mimic cracker crumbs or bread crumbs for the perfect topping. You can also use almond flour or almond meal as an alternative.
- Salt and Pepper
Can I use frozen spinach or kale for this recipe?
You can, but you will have to make sure you fully defrost it. You will also have to work a little harder to remove a lot of the natural liquid that is released. If you don’t do this, you will end up with a watery side dish (and no one wants that).
I find fresh to be a lot less work and easier across the board personally. Use what you prefer!
Tips for cooking with fresh spinach and kale:
- Use the “baby” version of each for a more tender leafy green (especially the kale)
- Cook it down in a large skillet over medium heat without any fat or liquid.
- Use a fine mesh strainer or even cheese cloth to squeeze the liquid out. The liquid does contain a lot of great nutrients so you can also save it and add to a smoothie for later (or let it go down the drain, no judgment).
- Remember cooking down spinach and kale greatly reduces the volume. It may seem like a lot, but you will need it all for this recipe.
How to make the boursin cheese cream sauce:
I like to use a heavy bottom skillet to create the cream sauce base. I cook the spinach and kale first and then reuse the pan to dirty fewer dishes.
- In a skillet, start by melting your butter over medium heat. Once the butter melts and the minced garlic and cook until it becomes fragrant. This takes about 30-45 seconds.
- Take your boursin cheese and add it to the skillet with the butter and garlic mixture. Break it down into the pan and then whisk in your heavy cream. I like to add about 1/4 cup of the heavy cream at a time to ensure the boursin cheese is mixed in.
- Once the sauce begins to heat through, slowly sprinkle in the grated parmesan. Whisk after each addition of the parmesan to ensure it fully melts and incorporates. This is what also helps thicken the sauce.
- Taste test your sauce and season with salt and pepper as needed. Once the flavor profile is good, add your cooked down spinach and kale into the pan and fully mix the sauce into it.
- Bake in this pan (if oven friendly) or transfer it to a baking dish or even a cast iron pan.
- Top the mixture with the pork rind crumbs and bake it until its bubbling and the top is golden brown. This takes about 30 minutes at 350 F.
Can I pre-make or prep this ahead of time?
If you’re planning on cooking up a large meal for a party or holiday, you can definitely make this ahead of time.
Plan on cooking the spinach and kale and assembling your cream sauce. Once you combine the two, transfer it to the chosen baking dish and refrigerate until you plan on serving it. Do not add the pork rind crumbs yet, because they will get soggy.
To bake coming out of a cold fridge, you will need to add another 30-45 minutes onto the baking time. Additionally you can remove it from the fridge and hour or two before cooking as well to bring it back up to room temperature.
Can I freeze creamed spinach?
Yes, place them in smaller foil pans and cover and freeze for up to 3 months. You can allow it to defrost 36 hours ahead of time in the fridge or bake straight out of the freezer. Adjust your baking time to 60-75 minutes depending on the amount you froze.
Keto Creamed Spinach with Boursin Cheese
Ingredients
- 12 oz. Bag of Baby Spinach
- 12 oz. Bag of Baby Kale
- 5 oz. Boursin Cheese
- 1 tbsp. Butter
- 3 Garlic Cloves minced
- 1 cup Heavy Cream
- 1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese grated
- 1/4 cup Pork Rind Crumbs
- Salt and Pepper
Instructions
- Begin by cooking down your spinach and kale in a large skillet over medium heat. Cover it with a lid for a minute or two, then gently fold it over in the pan until it cooks down.
- Remove from the heat and use a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth to remove the excess moisture. I use a wooden spoon or spatula and push down on the mixture in a strainer to squeeze as much out as I can. This is a key part to the recipe, don’t skip this step!
- Set the spinach and kale aside and use the same skillet to melt the butter over medium heat.
- To the pan, add the minced garlic and cook for 30-45 seconds.
- Add the boursin cheese and break it down into the pan with a whisk.
- Slowly add the heavy cream into the pan and whisk the boursin cheese into it. Let the mixture heat through and allow the cheese to fully dissolve into the liquid.
- Slowly whisk in the parmesan cheese to the sauce and whisk continuously until smooth. Turn of the heat.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. Then fold the spinach and kale into the cream sauce.
- Bake in the current skillet if oven safe or transfer to another pan or baking dish. I used a 9 inch lodge cast iron pan.
- Preheat your oven to 350 F. Add the pork rind crumbs over the top and bake until golden brown and bubbling, about 30 minutes.
- Let rest 5 minutes or so before serving and enjoy!