Poached Cod on Wilted Spinach with Blueberry Vinaigrette for #CrazyIngredientChallenge

Well the votes have been tallied and the Crazy Ingredients in this month's challenge are....drum roll please.....Spinach and Blueberries.   Wowza....can't get any crazier than that LOL.

Well, okay, not very crazy unless you are talking about crazy good and then they are the perfect ingredients!

I considered taking the easy way out and doing a smoothie, but my blender is packed.  Then I thought about taking an even easier way out and making a spinach salad that contained blueberries...well, I kinda did that....but I felt guilty about it so I decided to try to amp it up a bit.

I had picked up a gorgeous bag of spinach when I was at the Farmer's Market over the weekend.  It is not blueberry season here yet in Michigan but the produce market was filled with some wonderful looking blueberries so I picked some up.  

I had bought some cod that was on sale to serve on Fish Friday and thought the Spinach and Blueberries would be a great foil for the fish. I decided to poach the fish in white wine flavored with jalapenos, salt and limes.  

I cooked down some of the blueberries with white wine, balsamic vinegar, a little brown sugar, and some minced jalapeno pepper.

When the blueberries were softened and bursting open, I strained them through a fine mesh, pressing to release all the inner goodness into the bowl.

I whisked in some extra virgin olive oil and while the vinaigrette was still warm I tossed it with the spinach and fresh blueberries to wilt it without cooking it.

I plated the wilted salad on a plate, topped it with the poached cod and drizzled on some extra vinaigrette.  It was very tasty.  The buttery goodness of the cod played off very nicely to the sweetness of the salad.  I paired this with a Domaine Daulny Sancerre from the central Loire Valley in France.  You can read about the pairing here.

I hope you enjoy my spinach and blueberry concoction.  You will find the other posts featuring blueberries and spinach following the recipe.  

Poached Cod on Wilted Spinach with Blueberry Vinaigrette

2 (6 oz) portions cod fillet

1 c. dry white wine

1 lime cut into chunks

salt to taste

1 jalapeno pepper, halved (remove seeds and membrane according to taste)

1 large bunch spinach, washed and dried

2 c. blueberries, divided

1/4 c. dry white wine

1/2 T. brown sugar

1 jalapeno, minced

1 T. balsamic vinegar

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

Place wine, lime, salt and jalapeno in a med skillet over med high heat.  Cover and bring to a boil. Add the cod, lower heat to low and simmer until flaky, about 7-10 minutes.

Place spinach and 3/4 c. blueberries into a large bowl.

Place 1 1/4 c. blueberries in a small sauce pan with the 1/4 c. wine, brown sugar, vinegar and jalapeno.  Bring to a boil and cook until liquid is reduced and berries are softened and bursting. Strain into a small bowl through fine mesh, pressing on solids.  Whisk in the olive oil.  While still warm add desired amount to the spinach and blueberries, tossing to wilt the spinach.

Divide the spinach between 2 plates, top with the poached cod and drizzle with additional vinaigrette if desired.  Print Recipe

More Spinach and Blueberry Combinations.

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