ETL: Sauteed Winter Greens

This is a very simple recipe, it takes only few minutes to execute. You can cook any kind of winter greens like Swiss chard, kale, collards, spinach, etc.

"All types of greens leave other veggies behind in the nutrition competition. Greens are extremely low in calories (a one cup serving packs a mere 25 calories), but they provide substantial amounts of vitamins A and C, essential immune system boosters and smaller quantities of calcium, iron, potassium, folic acid and fiber. They may even be protective against certain types of cancer.


Kale


Kale (Brassica oleracea) is a member of the cabbage family. The leaves are blue-green in color and almost frilly in appearance. Younger leaves are tender enough to eat raw, but more mature leaves require cooking. Kale is "stemmy," but removing the stems completely does away with most of the leaf, so it is better to chop the leaves and stems well prior to cooking. The leaves should be washed well, especially if harvested from a home garden as kale is very susceptible to aphids. They can then be steamed or sauteed, as in the recipe below.

Chard

Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris) is a member of the beet family. It is known as a "beetless beet:" the greens without the bulb. The leaves are large and deep green. Chard stems come in various colors depending on variety: white for Fordhook, red for Ruby or Rhubarb and all the colors of a sunset for the Bright Lights Variety. It can be eaten raw in salads or lightly steamed. "


Ingredients:

• 2-3 large bunches greens: kale or chard or spinach or a mixture
• 3-4 shallots, chopped
• 2-4 garlic cloves, chopped or minced
• 1/2 teaspoons olive oil or more
• 3-4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
• 4 or 5 fresh strawberries, sliced
• 1/2 cup water or broth of your taste
• salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Wash greens well, devein and chop roughly. Set aside in a colander to drain.

2. In a large non-stick skillet, heat oil and saute the shallots and the garlic. Add the pepper flakes. I used mostly water and just a little bit oil.

3. Add the greens and the water. Stir and cover to steam for about 10-15 minutes.

4. Add the strawberries and the balsamic vinegar. Cook, stirring occasionally, until greens are bright, dark green and tender, and heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Oh well, it might not look that appetizing, but wait till taste it. I can  assure you, the greens are extremely delicious! I am addicted :). You can eat them as a main dish, or put them in a bed of steamed cauliflower, sauteed mushrooms, or beans.  

Beans and greens for Thursday lunch

I had a business dinner on Wednesday evening and did not get a chance to cook. The lunch below took no time to prepare on early Thursday morning:

Bean salad:

• grape tomatoes
• canellini beans
• red onion
• parsley
• wheatberries for crunch
• pinot noir vinegar
• EVOO
• samardala
• ground black pepper

Sauteed swiss chard

• swiss chard
• chili pepper flakes
• EVOO
• salt

Greens served on a bed of brown rice+whole wheat berries with bean salad on the side

P.S. Got an e-mail from Scratchunka Mimunka later in the day that the lunch was delicious!

Lentil and greens mish-mash

We got our veggie box yesterday and it came with the usual winter greens: chard, kale and spinach. I did not have any real ingredients for a full blown dinner so I decided to improvise and do something like a lentil mish-mash (i had only about one cup of lentils, and they were mixed red lentils and regular brown lentils) and it was really easy and quick to make:

1. In olive oil, sautee garlic, spinach, chard, kale, some arugula over medium heat (caution: the arugula gave slightly bitter taste, so if you don't like arugula too much you can leave it out)
2. In a separate pot, boil the lentils in ~4 cups of water and add spices to taste (salt, pepper, cumin, turmeric etc.. whatever you like... lately I am all about cumin!)
3. Once the lentil is fully cooked (~20min or so), drain the water and add the lentils to the sauteed greens and mix. You can add back little bit of the lentil water so that it is not too dry (~1/4 cup).




I also made a red cabbage salad with the rest of the veggies from the box by shredding everything in the food processor:

• 1 head of red cabbage, shredded
• 2 tokyo turnips, peeled and shredded
• 4 carrots, peeled and shredded
• 2 baby bok choy, finely sliced
• juice from 1 mayer lemon and olive oil, salt and black pepper to taste

Mix everything in a bowl and enjoy!