Creamy Spinach with a Sweet Potato Dumpling Crust

There are some food words that just make me happy. Chocolate, cookie and gravy are some examples. But one of my favorite happy food words is dumpling. Something about it conjures up all sorts of delicious, comforting thoughts. Dumplings in soup, dumplings in stew...yum. You could, of course, make dumplings using a box of Bisquick. It's quick, easy and tasty. That partially hydrogenated oil part doesn't make me so happy, though.

Not only is this dumpling recipe easy and tasty but it's also much healthier, doesn't use any hydrogenated oils and even gets a boost of nutrition from the sweet potato. It also gets a serious boost of flavor. You can use this dumpling crust to make chicken pot pies, veggie pot pies or just about any vegetable side dish. I happen to love spinach and think it pairs fantastically well with the flavor of sweet potato.

You can bake this in any casserole dish but I like serving individual ramekins because it makes it seem like so much more fuss went into making these when they're actually quite easy. It's also a great make ahead dish. Just store the ramekins in the refrigerator until you're ready to bake them off. Thanksgiving side dish, anyone? Enjoy!

Ingredients

For the Crust:
1 Cup all purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/4 Teaspoon salt
1 Stick unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1" pieces
1 Tablespoon milk (low fat is fine)
1 Large or two small sweet potatoes
2 Tablespoons scallions or chives, chopped

For the Filling:
2 10 oz. Packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and wrung dry
1 Tablespoon butter
1 Clove garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon all purpose flour
1 Cup low fat milk
1/4 Cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Salt and pepper to taste

Peel and chop the sweet potatoes into bite size pieces. Boil in water until just fork tender. Drain, mash and set aside to cool.

To make the spinach filling, place the tablespoon of butter into a large saute pan, add the minced garlic and cook on low heat for a couple of minutes. Add the tablespoon of flour and whisk until the butter and flour are incorporated. Slowly whisk in the cup of milk and the Parmesan cheese. Continue to whisk for another couple of minutes until slightly thickened and then add the spinach. Mix together and season to taste. Remove from the heat and spoon equal amounts into each of four (3") ramekins.

To make the crust, add the flour, baking powder and salt to a large bowl. Cut in the butter using a pastry cutter or fork until the mixture resembles course crumbs. Add the cooled sweet potato mixture, milk and herbs. Mix together until well combined and spoon equal amounts on top of each ramekin. Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for approximately 45 minutes or until the tops are lightly golden brown. Makes 4 servings.