This is not an authentic palak paneer, I most definitely don’t have the skills for that. Anyone who knows how to make a proper palak paneer should avert their eyes (and invite me over for dinner).

However, if you are looking for a weeknight dinner that comes together easily and tricks you into cheerfully eating a LOT of spinach, look no further.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil or coconut oil
• 2 yellow onions, roughly chopped
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 8 cups (or more) spinach, roughly chopped
• 1 can coconut milk
• 2 roma tomatoes (optional), chopped
• 1-2 cups cubed paneer
• 1 can no-salt added chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat oil (1 tbsp) in a large pot
2. Add onions and garlic and sauté on medium until the onion is translucent, do not brown
3. Lower heat and add ginger (1 tbsp), stir for about 30 seconds
4. Add cumin (2 tsp), garam masala (2 tsp) and turmeric (1 tsp) and stir for about 30 seconds
5. Add spinach and stir until it wilts down (take a moment to wonder where all the spinach went!)
6. Add coconut milk (1 can)
7. Put on an apron – just trust me on this, it is an important step
8. Use a handheld mixer to puree the curry as roughly or smoothly as you like
9. Add tomatoes (2), paneer (1-2 cups) and chickpeas (1 can) and simmer for 5-10 minutes
10. Add salt and pepper to taste

Notes:

• This is best served over rice, with naan bread, or both.
• Do you remember that bunch of spinach that is wilting at the back of your fridge? You can blanch it (dunk it in boiling water, count to 10, then dunk in ice water) and then freeze it for when you are ready to make this.
• If you find spinach on the bitter side, blanching it before you use it in this recipe will mellow that out.