RECIPE: Hearty Greens with Tomatoes and Curry

Ingredients:

At least two big bunches of hearty greens, shredded like slaw

2-4 Tablespoons butter or coconut oil, or other oil of your choice

1 onion, diced

Big can of tomatoes, diced, or however you like

2 Tablespoons Curry

If you don’t have pre-made, you can make your own using cumin, coriander, tumeric, mustard seeds and maybe even a sprinkle of cinnamon.  Be bold! Curry is an art, not a science.

Heat the butter in a pan on medium-high heat.  When it’s foaming, add the diced onion. Sprinkle with salt and stir often till the onions are sweated and turning slightly brown.

Add the hearty greens and the curry.  Cook till fragrant, about two minutes.

Add the can of tomatoes and bring to boil.

Reduce heat to low and cook, covered, for 30 minutes.  (In an Instant Pot, cook on high pressure for 7 minutes.)

Serve with meat and/or over rice, or eat in a bowl while it’s still warm.  Delicious!

RECIPE: Last-Minute Cooked Hearty Greens with Butter and Lemon

Ingredients:

1 bunch Kale, Collard Greens, Swiss Chard, or any other hearty green

2-4 Tbsp butter, or fat of your choice

Juice of 1 or 2 lemons

To prepare the greens:

Remove the spine from each leaf;

Cut into thin strips;

If using the spines, chop them into small pieces and cook them first before adding the leaves as they take longer to cook.

Heat the butter in a large pan or pot over medium-high heat.  

Once the butter has melted and the pan is hot, add the greens.  

Cook the greens, stirring, for a few minutes to coat in fat and start them wilting.  Then add 2 Tablespoons of water and put a lid on the pan so the greens steam and cook down.  Cook at a lower heat for 5-10 minutes, stirring and checking on it once or twice. You decide if you want chewier kale (shorter cooking time), or falling-apart, tender kale (longer time at a much lower temperature, probably adding more water as it cooks).

When the kale is cooked to your desired tenderness, remove from pan leaving juices behind.  Coat in lemon juice and taste. Add salt and pepper if desired.

RECIPE: Kale Chips

Preheat oven to 350.

Two recipe notes:

- The leaves shrink in the oven, so cut the kale larger than you want the resulting chips.

- Because they shrink, flavoring goes a long way.  I always over-salt the first time I make each season even though I know this!

Remove spines from the kale and cut leaves in half or quarters.  

Transfer kale to a baking tray and coat the leaves with a small amount of olive oil and salt; mix well.

Place into a 350 oven and don’t walk away, these go quickly.  Stir them after five minutes in the oven and see how much they’ve cooked.  They may need up to 10 - 15 minutes depending on their size, the amount of olive oil, etc, but keep a close eye as they cook.

Enjoy!

RECIPE: Fast and Easy! Fresh Lemon, Olive Oil and Kale Salad

Ingredients:

Shredded kale, cut once lengthwise and then into thin strips like a slaw

Kosher Salt

Olive Oil, the best you have

1-2 Lemons

Transfer the kale strips to a bowl and sprinkle a pinch or two of kosher salt.  Using your hands, massage, twist, and beat the kale and salt together till the kale starts to sweat and wilt.  This step makes the kale easier to eat and brings out a nicer flavor for the dish.

Pour a thin coat of olive oil and the juice of one lemon and mix thoroughly.  

Taste, and add more olive oil or lemon juice.  

VARIATIONS:

Garlic: add gently cooked or raw garlic to the salad according to your taste.

RECIPE: Pasta with Spring Pea Pesto

You might look at peas (or the big shelling peas!) and think of frozen food dinners from your childhood, but they’re actually sweet and delicious to eat (and therapeutic to shell).

1-1.5 cups peas (from approximately 1-1.5 lbs shelling pea pods)

2 garlic cloves, diced

2 tablespoons nut of your choice (I used pine nuts here, but cashews would also be great and bring an extra sweetness to the sauce), toasted and cooled

½ cup grated Parmesan or pecorino cheese

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

Approx. ⅓ cup olive oil

Juice from 1 lemon

1 box pasta of your choice

Sliced fresh herbs (basil, mint, parsley, oregano would all be good here)- optional

Prepare a small bowl with ice water.  Bring a small pot of salted water to a boil. Drop peas in boiling water for about 2 minutes.  Drain peas and add to your ice bath.. drain your peas again.

In a food processor, combine ⅔ of your peas with the garlic, toasted nuts, ⅓ cup cheese, and salt and pulse until smooth.  With the food processor running, add in the olive oil and lemon juice.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add salt, then add some more.  The key to delicious pasta is salty water!! Your boiling water should taste like the ocean!

Cook your pasta until al dente (about 2-3 minutes less than the package calls for.. trust me, it’s worth it here!).  Save about a cup of pasta water before draining your pasta. Do not rinse the drained pasta!!

In a skillet, heat ¾-1 cup of your pea pesto.  Once warm, add some pasta water, your drained pasta, and your reserved peas.  The pasta will continue cooking here. Toss or stir to coat the pasta, adding more pesto and pasta water as needed.

Top with sliced fresh herbs and remaining cheese!

RECIPE: Collard green wraps with cabbage slaw

Here’s a fun and low carb recipe that’s both easy to make and refreshing to eat on a hot summer day!

Collard green wraps

1 brunch collard greens

Cut the long part of the stem off of the collard green leaf and trim the thick middle stem of the collard green so that the stem feels flat.  Try not to tear the leaf here, but don’t worry if you do!

Bring a pot or tall skillet full of water to a boil.  One at a time, place the trimmed collard green leaf in the boiling water (it should be submerged) and let it sit for about 20-30 seconds. You’ll know it’s done when it’s bright green in color and a little bit wilted.  Let the collard green leafs dry on paper towels before using as wraps!

Cabbage slaw

1 head cabbage

1 bunch scallions (optional), chopped

1 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs (your choice!)

1.5 teaspoon vinegar (I like apple cider and rice vinegar here, but any will work)

1 teaspoon olive oil or sesame oil

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

Cut the cabbage in half, and place the cabbage cut-side down on the cutting board.  Thinly slice the cabbage so that you have “shreds.”

Combine and toss cabbage and the remaining ingredients.  Let marinate in the fridge while you prepare the rest of your meal!

To create the wraps:

Lay one of your collard green leafs flat on the counter or your plate.

Use protein filling of your choice (I used sliced steak) and place a few pieces on the middle of the collard green. Top with a few spoonfuls of your slaw and any other toppings of choice (grilled onions and hot sauce are great here too).

Fold in the two long sides of your collard green (the top and bottom of your leaf- where you trimmed off the stem). Starting on one end of the leaf that is not folded in, roll the leaf in to create a “burrito” or wrap that encases your fillings!

Eat and enjoy!

RECIPE: Kale and Orzo Pilaf

This is a great little dish to make with any sturdy green, think collards, kale, chard or even spinach or romaine.

It is a great side to anything and you can always add other vegetables as well. Think asparagus, peas, mushrooms or anything you would like to saute and can keep its shape. Use it as a side, or add leftover roast chicken, roast pork or even salmon and have it for lunch the next day. It is equally good at room temperature.

Ingredients:

- Bunch of kale, or other leafy greens

- ¼ cup orzo, I recommend Rummo as the brand which is very tasty

- 1 tbs olive oil or butter

- 2 tsp “better than bullion” chicken stock, or 1-2 bullion cubes. (you can also use normal chicken stock about 2-3 cups.  OPTIONAL: (1 tsp “better than bouillon” mushroom stock)

- Any other vegetables you would like to add

- 1 tsp garlic powder

- Salt and pepper to taste

- ½ lemon (optional)

Equipment needed

- A deep non-stick skillet such as a cast iron or normal non-stick

Start by chopping the greens in i inch thick pieces. Add the greens to the pan and add 1-2 cups water or stock, if using cubes use ¾ of what you are going to use. Put the heat to medium high. Add garlic powder, some salt and pepper

Cook until greens uncovered for about 15-20 minutes.  There should still be some stock in the pan. Add another 1.5  cups stock and add the orzo.

Put the heat to medium low and cook until the orzo is cooked, add more stock or water if needed (i.e. the orzo is not cooked and there is no more water).

Add whatever other vegetables you want to add at the end.