Spinach Roll-Ups -- The Charcuterie Board That Brought Us Back to Ourselves

Memorial Day weekend. I did not have La Cocina (between cohorts). I did not have the food bank Monday because of the holiday. I had three days of nothing. I did not know what to do with them. Eduardo did. He drove us to the shore. Madison, Connecticut. We rented a small cottage for two nights — Friday-Saturday-Sunday return — through some online thing Sofía set up.

The cottage was small and slightly damp and had a screened porch and a view of the water through the trees. Eduardo and I sat on the porch Friday night with a bottle of wine and a charcuterie board I had assembled from the bodega and the Italian deli. We did not talk for an hour. We just sat. He said at one point, "Carmen, when did we last do this?" I said, "Eduardo, 2008." He said, "Yes." We laughed at how long.

Saturday we walked on the beach. The water was sixty degrees, too cold to swim, but I took my shoes off and walked with my feet in the wet sand. Eduardo watched me from a bench. He took a picture on his phone — me from behind, the gray ocean, my white hair. He sent it to me. I cried at it. He said, "Carmen, what is wrong?" I said, "Eduardo, I am sixty next year." He said, "Carmen, yes." I said, "Eduardo, sixty." He said, "Carmen, you have lived a life that has been worth sixty years and forty more after that." I said, "Eduardo, that is a good thing to say." He said, "Carmen, I have practiced." I laughed.

Sunday morning we drove home. The traffic was bad. We listened to a podcast Sofía had recommended about a Puerto Rican woman in New York who had grown up in the same era as me. We disagreed with about half of what she said and agreed with the other half. Eduardo said, "Carmen, you should have a podcast." I said, "Eduardo, I have a blog." He said, "Carmen, the blog is not enough. People need to hear your voice." I said, "Eduardo, the blog is plenty." He smiled. He drove.

I called Mami when we got home. Carmen the aide put her on. Mami said, "Carmen, you went somewhere." I said, "Mami, I went to the beach." She said, "The beach in Connecticut? It is not a real beach." I said, "Mami, no. It is a beach." She said, "Carmen, real beaches have palm trees." I said, "Mami, the palm tree is at home." She laughed weakly. We hung up. I made dinner. Wepa.

That Friday night on the screened porch — the wine, the quiet, the board I had put together from the bodega and the Italian deli — it reminded me that the best food is the kind you don’t labor over, the kind that lets you stay present with the person in front of you. Spinach roll-ups were always part of my charcuterie thinking: something green, something creamy, something you can set out and forget about while you just sit. Eduardo and I needed that board to say nothing and let us say everything. This is the recipe I’ll bring to the next porch, wherever that porch turns out to be.

Spinach Roll-Ups

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes (includes chilling) | Servings: 12

Ingredients

• 4 large flour tortillas (10-inch)
• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 packet (1 oz) dry ranch seasoning mix
• 2 cups fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup roasted red peppers, drained and diced
• 1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup sliced black olives (optional)
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Make the spread. In a medium bowl, beat together the softened cream cheese, sour cream, and ranch seasoning until smooth and well combined. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and black pepper as needed.
2. Layer the filling. Lay a tortilla flat on a clean surface. Spread a generous, even layer of the cream cheese mixture across the entire tortilla, going nearly to the edges. Distribute a quarter of the spinach, roasted red peppers, green onions, cheddar, and olives (if using) evenly over the spread.
3. Roll tightly. Starting from one end, roll the tortilla up as tightly as you can without tearing it. Wrap snugly in plastic wrap and twist the ends closed. Repeat with the remaining tortillas and filling.
4. Chill. Refrigerate the rolls for at least 1 hour (up to overnight). This step is essential — it firms up the filling and makes slicing clean.
5. Slice and serve. Unwrap each roll and use a sharp knife to cut into 1-inch rounds, discarding the uneven end pieces. Arrange cut-side up on a platter or charcuterie board and serve cold.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 185 | Protein: 5g | Fat: 11g | Carbs: 16g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 380mg