greens greens greens greens greens greens............

[wildeyed]

Any idea what to do with greens? This week, from my community farm, I have a big bag of kale, spinach, some other green that is slightly hairy with a bitter taste (but good), chard, a cabbage and three heads of lettuce. Apparently the unseasonably cool spring we are having has increased greens production at the farm, but many of the other warm weather veggies are not yet ready.

Anyway, I need some ideas. I used the cabbage to make slaw for a bbque I am going to this afternoon. It is not pot luck, but I insisted on bringing it so I would not have to eat it all myself.

Last week I made a greens and sausage dish and chicken soup with greens, plus lots of salad. I also did a pizza with spicy sauteed kale topping. That was yummy.

But I am running our of ideas! Help!

[supernova]

1. You can try them southern style

I love steaming or boiling them just a little (with some bacon if you want it, for flavoring. But that's optional)

Serve them with vinegar at the table. Yum! You can do at least kale, mustard and turnip greens this way.

Spinach is good in veggie lasagna and a salad of spinach, gorgonzola (or any blue cheese) and walnuts.

Cabbage? Hmmm, there's stuffed cabbage leaves, although that's kind of a cold weather dish.

Do you like Kim Chee? That's a Korean pickled cabbage. I think it's usually made with Bok Choy; but you might want to experiment. I love it because I love hot stuff.

[Warpy]

2. Try dried kale

Wash, dry and chop the kale, discarding the woody stems. Arrange it on a baking sheet in a slow oven, 200-250 degrees. Stir occasionally. Remove when it's just begun to dry, the process will continue outside the oven. Put into a sealed container when fully cooled and crispy dry.

Sprinkle it on everything from baked potatoes to salads. It adds crunch as well as an explosion of flavor.

I find I'm not overly fond of cooked kale, but I love it this way, as a dried condiment.
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An interesting thing to do with spinach is to cut it into thin ribbons and deep fry it. YES, deep fry. Plunge it into the oil and remove it when it stops bubbling quickly. At that point, repeat these words: "oh gawd, what have I done?" as the spinach will be a black, gooey mass more resembling road tar than something you'd eat. Take heart! Within a very few minutes the spinach will crisp up.

I like to serve it with stir fries. It's a way even kids will eat spinach!

[wildeyed]

6. Drying kale is a great idea for saving it beyond the

one week limit. I bet it would work for chard, too :)

[livetohike]

3. Pan fried spinach

Spinach
Olive oil
Butter
Garlic, sliced
Salt and Pepper to taste

All amounts are flexible. Melt the olive oil and butter in a large frying pan, saute the garlic for a few seconds. Add spinach and quickly cook until reduced.

I also have added some raisins to these and cannellini beans. I have done the same thing with other greens, swiss chard is really good prepared this way.

[NMDemDist2]

4. steam it, then toss with butter and parmesan (pine nuts optional)

this will work on any green

add a touch of honey for the bitter ones

[fortyfeetunder]

5. garlic , rosemary, and olive oil

Sauteed until tender/crisp...yummy

[eleny]

7. You can treat chard like spinach and steam it

Or you can make a soup with chard and some beef stock. You can use a beef bone with some meat on it to have bits of meat n the soup. Chard tastes a little like beet tops to me. It's an excellent source of potassium, btw.

[politicat]

8. Spinach mango smoothie.

Don't look at me like that. I'm not crazy.

Basic:
1 banana
6 natural almonds (skin on)
1 cup peeled and chopped mango
2 cups fresh, raw spinach
1 cup cranberry juice
Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until fully combined. Refrigerate until chilled. Pour into a tall glass and serve chilled.

I also add yogurt, strawberries and pineapple or pineapple juice. I sub out the cranberry juice with pineapple orange juice or whatever is on hand.

[wildeyed]

9. Ooooh, very exotic.

I will try it next time a get some mangos.