Flipping through the pages of a cookbook from Hawaii, I spy recipes for classic Hawaiian dishes such Laulau and Pipikaula. Turning a couple more pages, a recipe called Krasnapolski catches my eye. Krasnapolski? That doesn’t sound Hawaiian at all. A Google search for Krasnapolski reveals little information other than it is the name of a five-star hotel in Amsterdam that began as a restaurant in 1865. Whether this rich spinach and cheese casserole has fancy origins or not, it is versatile enough to be served as a tasty main dish for brunch or an easy-to-make side dish for supper.
Krasnapolski
A Taste of Aloha
INGREDIENTS
6 eggs
2 (10-ounce) packages chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1/2 cup melted butter
1 (32-ounce) carton of cottage cheese
1 pound sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
2 tablespoons flour
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Beat eggs.
3. Add spinach, butter, cottage cheese and Cheddar cheese.
4. Sprinkle flour over ingredients and blend.
5. Bake for 1 hour in a greased 3-quart casserole.
Serves 6-8
LINNELL’S NOTES
1. Squeeze out as much liquid from the spinach as you possibly can. I thought I had, but I still found the casserole to be a little liquidy. After taking one slice out, I felt compelled to spoon out the extra liquid.
2. Bake the casserole until it is set in the center. It will solidify more as it cools down, so plan on serving it only after it has sat for a while.
3. The next time I make this, I will use a 9 by 13-inch baking pan instead of a 3-quart casserole. I think the depth of my casserole dish contributed to the longer cooking time (73 minutes).
4. This is not a low-fat or low-cholesterol recipe! I plan on experimenting with low-fat substitutions the next time around.
Enjoy!
