RECIPE: Stuffed Collards

Note: We made this recipe -recently and it was delicious - we used turkey sausage. You could easily use a non-meat filling with the rice as well. They are like stuffed peppers but the collard greens stay beautifully and they are easy to work with once blanched. The only problem is that the recipe takes an hour to cook - which can be painful during this summer heat when people in NYC try not to turn on their ovens (as least that is what happens in our house. We made enough to put some in the freezer as well. 

Makes: 16

16           collard leaves or halves, a little bigger than hand size

1 1/2 cups cooked white rice

1/2         pound ground pork

1/2         cup diced onion

1/2         cup diced celery

1/2         cup diced green bell pepper

2              teaspoons of your favorite creole seasoning

1              egg, lightly beaten

1/4         cup chicken broth

Blanch the collard leaves in boiling water for about one minute. Rinse, cool and pat dry. Brown the ground pork in a saute pan, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as you go until it loses its pink color. Add the onion, celery, bell pepper and creole seasoning to the pork and continue to saute until the vegetables soften a bit. Cool the mixture to room temperature. Once the mixture has cooled, stir in the cooked rice and beaten egg. Place about 2 (coffee) teaspoons of the mixture just above the base of the collard leaf. Roll up the bottom, tuck in the sides and roll the rest of the way. Repeat for the remaining leaves and place in a shallow baking dish. If you have extra filling, just sprinkle it over the top of the rolls. Pour the quarter cup of broth over the casserole, cover tightly and bake at 350F for about 1 hour. Serve warm or at room temperature.