Georgian Spinach Walnut Dip is a traditional dish from the country of Georgia. It can be served as a dip or made into small balls for a fun presentation.
Georgian Spinach Walnut Balls
Georgian Spinach Walnut Dip contains heart-healthy walnuts and nutrient rich spinach, so it’s a very healthy dish, with no added oil.
My husband and I were treated to a traditional Georgian feast a number of years ago. I became obsessed with the Georgian Spinach Walnut Dip that we had that special evening. Although I cannot replicate the exact Spinach Walnut Balls we had that evening, these are mighty good. This traditional Georgian dish is also served as a dip.
Spinach Walnut Balls
Ingredients
- 2 bunches fresh spinach about 1 pound, stems trimmed, rinsed well
- 1/3 cup walnuts finely chopped
- 1/2 small onion finely minced
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro minced
- 1/8 teaspoon fenugreek powder
- 1/2 teaspoon coriander powder
- dash of cayenne powder
- 2 teaspoons tarragon vinegar
- 1 tablespoon water
- salt to taste
- pomegranate seeds for garnish
- fresh chopped cilantro or parsley for garnish
Instructions
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Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add spinach leaves and cook until just tender, about 1 minute. Let cool, then squeeze dry. Place in a food processor and process until finely chopped, but not overly pureed.
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Combine walnuts, onion, garlic, cilantro, fenugreek powder, coriander powder, cayenne, tarragon vinegar and water in a medium bowl. Add chopped spinach and mix well. Season to taste with a little salt.
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Cover and refrigerate for 6-8 hours to let flavors melt together.
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Use a spoon to scoop out little balls of spinach walnut dip. Form round balls, make an indentation in the center.
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Place a few pomegranate seeds in the indentation and sprinkle with fresh chopped cilantro or parsley
Recipe Notes
For added fragrance and flavor, I pan toasted whole coriander seeds and ground them.
Georgian Food and Pkhali Recipes:
An Overview of Georgian Cuisine, Uncornered Market
Spinach pkhali (dip), Los Angeles Times, adapted from a recipe in “Please to the Table” by Anya von Bremzen
Eggplant Pkhali, Ashbury’s Aubergines Eggplant Recipes
I would really enjoy these. They sound wonderful and look so pretty on the plate. Nice presentation!
I’ve been meaning to explore Georgian cuisine more as they use wonderful flavours. This looks like a great way to enjoy spinach! Yum!
Georgian cuisine is new to me and I find it fascinating. Hoping to try making a few more Georgian dishes!
Loving these – am working so hard to maintain a healthy diet and it’s a pleasure to come to a blog and be able to cook something!
Thanks for the feedback Claudia – I’m glad you’re finding some healthy eats to try from my blog. It’s definitely helping to keep me on track too!
fabulous healthy idea!
What you say is so true. My grandmother was ill and never once complained. By the time her illness was discovered it was too late. She lived a good, long life but it might have been a little longer if she had spoken up about the cues her body was giving her.
This recipe is healthy and has a lot of flavor. It looks beautiful on the plate, too. 🙂
So sorry to hear about your grandmother. Thank you for sharing her story as hopefully we will all learn something by her experience.
This sounds good enought to eat by the spoonful and I’m betting it would be a great spread for sandwhiches!
What a great idea Naomi – I think it would make a nice appetizer served on toast points too.
GO heart health. These remind me of the spinach “meatballs” I just made, so I definitely need to give them a try. I would love them in a salad or on top of a bed of quinoa.
Not only is this recipe full of health-building ingredients, but it looks absolutely beautiful too! Here’s to your happy, healthy heart 🙂
There’s a similar Persian recipe for a spinach and walnut dip as well, delicious!
Okay, totally love this. I love anything with walnuts, really and I love how healthy this is!
Lovely recipe Jeanette. I love the flecks of red pomegranate that really make the photos pop. I make a walnut feta dip but this version is lovely with all that spinach!
As for heart disease, I’m curious if you’ve heard or read any of the recent studies coming out and research through the Weston A Price foundation that promotes the use of butter and animal fats for heart and overall health?
here’s a link to a video entitled “The Truth about Heart Disease” (the first video after you scroll down a little bit) that just looks at a glimpse (9 min) of some the evidence coming out.
I’m curious to hear your thoughts on this outlook.
http://www.helladelicious.com/our-food/food-facts/2011/11/wise-traditions-london-2011-dvds-available-now/
Interesting France, I’ll take a look.
these spinach walnut balls look so exotic! flavorful and delicious. i would love to try them! i’m all about green and healthy :).
So pretty, and they sound delicious too! Count me in for anything with cilantro in it!
What a great mix of flavors! I love spinach dips of any kind, but especially ones with walnuts:-) Beautiful! Hugs, Terra
How pretty, healthy and delightful! I love them.
Hi Jeanette,
Just came across these on Pinterest and absolutely loved them.They are very unique and creative.On my must-make list now :)Thanks for sharing such a healthy dish!Love your blog, happy to be your newest follower!
Great job recreating them :):). But if you grate or crush the walnuts they release more flavor.
In Georgia we eat these with palm-sized baked cornbread (not the sweet kind). There is a recipe here I think http://georgiaabout.wordpress.com/2012/06/25/about-food-mchadi-georgian-cornbread/
Thanks for the tip on grating/crushing the walnuts. The cornbread sounds fantastic. I was so taken by the variety of Georgian bread when we were treated to a Georgian feast. Incredible cuisine.