Spinach Maria (Calhoun's Knoxville, TN)
Spinach Maria is the famous creamy spinach and cheese bake from Calhoun’s in Knoxville, made at home: spinach folded into a rich, spiced cheese sauce and baked under melted Monterey Jack. Serve it as a side or scoop it with tortilla chips.
YIELD
4 servingsPREP
30 minCOOK
15 minREADY
45 minIf you’ve eaten at Calhoun’s in Knoxville, you know Spinach Maria, the creamy, cheesy spinach bake people order again and again. This copycat brings that restaurant favorite into your own kitchen.
The base is a proper cheese sauce, and a couple of steps keep it silky. A roux of butter and flour, cooked a few minutes first, thickens the spiced milk smoothly without lumps. Then cubed cheese melts in slowly off direct high heat, the gentle approach that keeps the sauce creamy instead of grainy or broken.
Squeezing the thawed spinach really dry is the unsung must-do here. Wet spinach waters down the sauce and leaves the whole thing loose and bland, so wring it out hard before it joins the cheese. Folded in and baked under a blanket of melted Monterey Jack, it turns hot, bubbly, and hard to stop eating.
It pulls double duty: a cozy side dish, or an appetizer scooped up with tortilla chips.
Chef Tips
- Wring the thawed spinach as dry as you can. Excess water thins the sauce and dulls the flavor.
- Melt the cheese gently over low heat so the sauce stays smooth and doesn’t turn grainy.
- Let the sauce cool a bit before folding in the spinach so it doesn’t break.
Variations
- Add a diced jalapeno or a pinch of cayenne for a little heat.
- Use pepper jack in place of Monterey Jack for a spicier, cheesier top.
- Stir in chopped artichoke hearts for a spinach-artichoke style dip.
Ingredients
5 (10oz) packages frozen chopped spinach
4 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 Tbsp butter
5 Tbsp melted butter
6 Tbsp flour
8 oz Velveeta cheese (cubed)
8 oz cheddar cheese (cubed)
4 oz Monterey jack cheese (cubed)
1 1/2 cups grated Monterey jack cheese for topping
Directions
~Thaw spinach ~Squeeze as much excess water as possible from spinach ~Heat mild and spices in 4 quart sauce pan on medium heat to just below a boil ~Reduce and simmer ~Sauté chopped onion in 1 tablespoon butter on medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes ~add onion to sauce pan ~combine the 5 tablespoon melted butter with the flour in a small saucepan, mix until completely blended. cook on low heat 2 to 3 minutes ~add to milk in saucepan and mix; continue to cook until sauce thickens ~cut cheese into small cubes and add to saucepan ~continue to mix until all the cheese is completely melted and blended into the sauce; be careful not to burn the sauce while cheese is melting ~remove from heat ~allow to cool for 15 minutes ~add drained spinach to cheese sauce and mix until completely blended ~spoon into a 11×9×2 or large casserole and top with grated Monterey Jack cheese ~bake at 350℉ (180℃) for 12 to 15 minutes until hot and bubbly ~this can be served as a side dish or as an appetizer with tortilla chips
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