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National Spinach Day

Food · March 26

A day for spinach, the tender leafy green eaten raw in salads, wilted into pastas and soups, or folded into dips and pies.

National Spinach Day falls on Friday, March 26, 2027. That is 150 days away.

Spinach is a leafy green with soft, dark leaves and a mild, slightly mineral taste. It is one of the most adaptable vegetables in the kitchen, at home raw in a salad or cooked down into almost anything warm.

That cooking down is the first thing new cooks notice. A heaping pile of fresh leaves shrinks in a hot pan to a modest spoonful in a minute or two, which is why recipes often call for what looks like far too much. Baby spinach is tender enough to eat as it is. Larger, mature leaves have sturdier stems and a deeper flavor that suits sauteing with garlic or simmering in soup.

People mark the day mostly by cooking with it. Spinach dip, creamy and served warm with bread or crackers, shows up at plenty of gatherings. Spinach goes into lasagna, omelets, quiche and smoothies. In Greek cooking it fills spanakopita, a pie of flaky phyllo pastry layered with spinach and feta. Indian kitchens pair it with cheese in saag paneer.

Fresh spinach can hold grit in its leaves, so a good rinse in a bowl of cold water, lifting the leaves out rather than pouring them off, leaves the sand behind at the bottom. Frozen spinach, sold chopped, is handy for dips and fillings once it has been squeezed dry.

Ways to celebrate

• Try wilting a big handful of spinach into tonight's pasta or soup.
• Make a warm spinach dip to share with friends.
• Look for spanakopita or saag paneer at a local restaurant.
• Toss baby spinach into a simple salad with fruit and nuts.
• Compare the taste of baby spinach with larger mature leaves.

Dates

All national days on March 26

Also on March 26

• National Make Up Your Own Holiday Day
• National Nougat Day
• National Science Appreciation Day
• Solitude Day
• Good Friday

Categories: Food days