Category — Greens

This is another recipe I have adapted from Greens Glorious Greens. I am loving this book!

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

• 6 cups chopped kale
• 2 cups water
• 1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 celery stalks, thinly sliced on the diagonal (1 cup)
• 1 tsp. minced fresh garlic
• Sea salt to taste

Directions:

1. Wash kale and strip the leaves off of the stalks, discarding the stalks. Tear or chop the kale into bite-sized pieces.
2. In a 10- to 12-inch skillet that has a lid, bring the water to a boil, then add the kale, cover, and cook over high heat until tender, approximately 5 minutes. Stir occasionally while cooking.
3. Remove the kale and drain, saving the liquid for drinking.
4. Rinse and dry the skillet, then heat the olive oil in it over medium heat, lifting and tilting pan to coat.
5. Add celery and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes.
6. Add garlic, cover, and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes.
7. Add kale and stir until heated through, then remove from heat.
8. Season with a pinch of sea salt and serve immediately.

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This recipe, adapted from AllRecipes.com, is admittedly not one of my favorites. Some of the chard had a slightly bitter taste. We thought maybe it was because I inadvertently got some Swiss and some red chard mixed together from the farmers’ market, but after looking it up, it seems they should taste pretty much the same! It could be that I didn’t cook it quite long enough, or maybe the dry white wine (which neither my husband nor I enjoy drinking on its own) tainted the taste for us. It has potential, to be sure, so I’d love to hear others’ experiences or thoughts on this recipe!

Serves: 2

• 1/2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 small red onion, diced
• 1/2 bunch Swiss chard, stems and center ribs cut out and chopped together, leaves coarsely chopped separately (about 6 cups loosely packed)
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice, or to taste
• 1 Tbsp. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Sea salt to taste (optional)

Directions:

1. Melt butter and olive oil together in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Stir in the garlic and red onion, and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
3. Add the chard stems and the white wine. Simmer until the stems begin to soften, about 5 minutes.
4. Stir in the chard leaves, and cook until wilted.
5. Finally, stir in lemon juice and Parmesan cheese; season to taste with sea salt if needed.

I found this recipe in Greens Glorious Greens by Johnna Albi and Catherine Walthers. This book is a fabulous resource for everything you ever wanted to know about greens, including how to select, store, and prepare them in a ton of yummy ways!

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

• 6 cups chopped kale
• 2 cups water
• 2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 15 fresh basil leaves, washed and cut into fine ribbons
• Sea salt to taste
• 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice

Directions:

1. Wash kale and strip the leaves off of the stalks, discarding the stalks. Tear or chop the kale into bite-sized pieces.
2. In a 10- to 12-inch skillet that has a lid, bring the water to a boil, then add the kale, cover, and cook over high heat until tender, approximately 5 minutes. Stir occasionally while cooking.
3. Remove the kale and drain, saving the liquid for drinking. (I did this—it’s not tasty but it’s really good for you!)
4. Rinse and dry the skillet, then heat the olive oil in it over medium heat, lifting and tilting pan to coat.
5. Add garlic and sizzle for 30 seconds, stirring constantly to prevent browning or burning.
6. Add basil and saute for 15 more seconds.
7. Add kale and stir until heated through, then remove from heat.
8. Season with sea salt, stir in lemon juice, and serve immediately.

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I’ve been meaning to try making these for a while but finally tried it for the first time last night. I loved it! I wanted something to munch on, and just didn’t feel like making popcorn, so I gave it a try and it made a fantastic crunchy snack.

I’ve seen a lot of various recipes for these online, and a lot of them use a food dehydrator, but they worked just great for me in the oven!

Kale Chips

Ingredients:

• Kale (I used about 1/2 bunch and it covered 1 baking sheet)
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Celtic sea salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Remove kale from middle stalk, leaving the greens in 2-3 inch pieces.
3. Pour olive oil into a bowl, dip your fingers and rub a very light coat of oil over the kale pieces. Alternatively, you could spray it if you have that option.
4. Sprinkle the kale with celtic sea salt.
5. Lay kale on baking sheet and bake for 4-5 minutes or until it starts to turn just a little bit brown. Keep an eye on it! Turn the kale over and bake for another 4-5 minutes.
6. Remove from oven and serve!

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This recipe is fantastic! New favorite for sure. It doesn’t hurt that it combines several of my favorite ingredients (mushroosm, garlic, sweet potatoes, and the newly-discovered kale) and the combination, served over quinoa, was delicious.

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I had asked Cameron what I should eat with guacamole, since I love it and she had mentioned a few times how great all the main ingredients are for you. Check this out:

• avocados: promote heart health & contain potassium (more than a medium banana) and more fiber (11 to 17 g) than most cereals
• tomatoes: have antioxidant and cancer-preventing properties
• onions & garlic: have been shown to lower high cholesterol levels and high blood pressure

She suggested that I use celery instead of chips, or that I put the guacamole on top of a salad instead of dressing. That sounded good, so tonight that’s what we had for dinner–guacamole salads!

The guacamole-making was definitely a success, and we got to use that mortar and pestle set we got for our wedding and then haven’t taken out of the box! Serving it on salads of cabbage and kale was a little brave,  because we have always been spinach/lettuce people. I liked it,  but my husband has decided he does NOT like raw kale. Lesson learned!

Pictured is my plate, with the guacamole salad with a little bit of shredded goat’s milk cheese on top, and a handful (12!) of raw cashews alongside for protein.

P.S. The recipe says it serves four but, um…we ate it all!

Guacamole

Serves: 4
Ingredients:

• 2 ripe avocados
• 1/2 red onion, minced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 to 2 jalapeno peppers (for mild to moderate) OR 1 to 2 habanero peppers (for moderate to spicy) stem and seeds removed, minced—note: I used 1/2 of a jalapeno pepper…might try 3/4 next time
• 2 Tbsp. fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped
• Juice of 1/2 lime
• 1/2 tsp Celtic sea salt
• 1 tomato, chopped

Source: Cameron Rupprecht

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