TOWN OF DICKINSON (WIVT/WBGH) – This month’s In The Kitchen with CCE has a suggestion on how to prepare a leafy green that has traditionally been a tough sell with children.

Cornell Cooperative Extension Nutrition Educator Ann Supa is preparing a Summer Spinach Pesto Pasta.

Supa cooks down the spinach with olive oil and garlic before adding it to a blender with parmesan cheese and milk before serving it over whole wheat pasta.

She then tops it with roasted tomatoes, more parmesan and some basil leaves.

She says spinach is loaded with nutrients, including potassium, fiber and iron which helps to oxygenate your blood cells.

Supa says that while it won’t necessarily give you forearms like Popeye, it does pack a punch.

“You’re getting those vitamins and minerals that your body needs. Especially your muscles need those vitamins and minerals to actually function at a good rate for you to continue. You don’t get the muscle like Popeye but it’s still great for your body,” she says.

Supa says spinach is very versatile.

She recommends eating it raw in a salad, cooking it in a stir fry, baking it into a quiche or omelet or mixing it into a smoothie.

For the backyard gardener, spinach has two short seasons in the Spring and Fall when it isn’t overly hot.

However, she says local farmers grow it in greenhouses and it’s available year-round at the Broome County Regional Farmers Market.

You can watch her prepare the dish below.