Pamela, Author at Pamela Salzman

Parchment baked halibut with cilantro and ginger recipe

Parchment Baked Wild Caught Halibut with Cilantro and Ginger | Pamela Salzman

When I was a child, my mother would announce on Ash Wednesday, “Since it’s Lent, I would like all you kids to give up something for the next 40 days that would be meaningful to you, something that would be a sacrifice.” I wanted to give up going to church on Sundays, but my mother suggested that I give up arguing with my sisters. Hmmm…. There was also the announcement that we would be limiting our meat intake, especially on Fridays when she would serve fish. My sisters were carnivores and would always grumble about the lack of animal protein to be had. This was fine by me, however, since I decided when I was 9 years old that I was a vegetarian who liked fish.

I’m not a vegetarian anymore, although I don’t think there’s anything wrong with not eating meat. Your body will tell you if your not getting enough of something. But every time Lent rolls around I think about fish on Fridays. I make fish for my family once a week and I am thankful they like it. Halibut, especially, is a favorite since it is so mild and works with many different flavors. Cooking fish in parchment, or en papillote, is one of my favorite ways to prepare it. Not only is it easy, the parchment keeps all the moisture inside the little packet to basically steam the fish and make it really moist. Plus, it is a really gentle way to cook fish and protect the wonderful Omega-3 fats that we all need.

I love the combination of cilantro, ginger and green onions, but the recipe works just as well with mint or a mix of cilantro and mint. Even though I can easily customize each parchment packet, I make everybody’s the same. If Mr. Picky would like to scrape off his herb mixture, he can (and he does.) But there are unlimited ways to flavor your fish if you tire of this recipe. A drop of olive oil or butter, a squeeze of lemon, lime or white wine, a few fresh herbs, salt and pepper and that’s a delicious and light dish. You can even add some quick-cooking vegetables to the packet, such as thinly sliced zucchini, carrots, spinach leaves, or leeks and you have a one-packet meal. If it’s a long work day for me or if we have a Little League game just before dinner, I’ll assemble my packets in the morning and refrigerate them. Take them out before you preheat the oven and bake them for an extra minute since they’ll still be a bit cold. It’s like someone gave you a gift, in more ways than one.

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Parchment Baked Halibut with Cilantro and Ginger

Author: Pamela

Serves: 6

Ingredients

¼ cup unrefined, cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped or fresh mint, or a combination
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
¼ cup green onion, chopped
pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
6 4-6 ounce* portions of wild Alaskan halibut, defrosted, if frozen
6 14-inch squares of unbleached parchment paper
½ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Place each piece of halibut in the center of a sheet of parchment. Season lightly with sea salt.
In a small bowl, mix together the remaining ingredients until well blended. Place a heaping spoonful of the mixture atop each piece of halibut and spread evenly.
Bring 2 opposites sides of the parchment together and fold. Continue to fold all the way down until you reach the fish. Twist both ends of the parchment so that it looks like a hard candy wrapper. Place each packet on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.
Transfer each packet to a plate and use caution when opening – the steam will be very hot!

Notes

You can also add thinly sliced vegetables to the packets and cook with the fish.

*If you are using pieces of fish that are bigger than the recipe specifies, you may need to make a little more of the herb mixture. I would also consider baking the fish for an extra minute.

Minted sugar snap peas recipe

When I’m not teaching cooking classes, I volunteer as a garden educator for a non-profit organization called Growing Great. I help students at a local elementary school maintain a beautiful organic garden as well as teach them the fundamentals about growing vegetables and fruit. I think it’s really important that our kids know where our food comes from. I am fortunate to have grown up with gardens my whole life. My father has an unbelievable green thumb and we were lucky enough to be able to go to the backyard before dinner and find something that looked good enough to eat. Yet, no matter how many times I plant a seed in the ground, I am still amazed at what happens. With some sun, water and a little TLC, that little granule turns into a gorgeous plant that bears incredible-tasting vegetables.

This year our little school garden had a bounty of sugar snap peas. We picked baskets upon baskets of them to sell at the school’s annual farmer’s market, although we would have had pounds more but the kids couldn’t resist eating them straight off the vine. Far be it from me to discourage them! Sugar snap peas are always the most popular spring vegetable that we sell. They are even more sweet and juicy when they are freshly picked — a real treat! They are perfect raw in a lunchbox or as an afterschool snack. But I just love any peas when paired with mint. It’s a match made in heaven.

If you can find really fresh snap peas, you won’t have to do much to them to make them taste divine. This recipe is incredibly easy to prepare and delicious in its simplicity. The only “work” here is trimming the peas and I usually have one of my kids do that.

Since the peas cook so quickly, I usually call everyone down for dinner and then turn the heat on under the pot. I can always count on a little bickering before everyone settles down to his or her seat, so the timing is perfect. Just keep to the short cook time. I do think snap peas are better with a little crunch. This preparation also works with carrots, asparagus, and English peas, too. If you mix a few together, you’ll just have Springtime in a bowl.

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Minted Sugar Snap Peas

Author: Pamela

Serves: 6

Ingredients

1 pound sugar snap peas, trimmed
¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter or unrefined, cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil
1 shallot, thinly sliced or 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
2 Tablespoons thinly sliced fresh mint
3-4 Tablespoons water

Instructions

In a medium saucepan, add all the ingredients. Bring the water to a boil, lower the heat, cover and simmer for 2-3 minutes or until crisp-tender.
Remove garlic if that’s what you used. Season to taste for salt. That's all there is to it. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve immediately.

Notes

Sometimes I like to add the zest of one small orange, lemon or lime to the pot.

mint peas

What lurks in your cookware?

A very important element in cooking is the equipment you use. The quality of your cookware, as well as knowing which skillet to choose for the job are both factors which will affect your food for better or for worse. If you have ever sautéed with a thin-bottomed pan, you know what I mean.

But something else to consider is the material from which your pots and pans are made. By arming yourself with a little knowledge, you can steer yourself towards safer options and away from cookware that can compromise the quality of your food and your health.

BEST CHOICES:

Stainless Steel – my first choice for sauté pans, saucepans and stockpots. Look for heavy bottomed pans which distribute heat evenly and help prevent scorching. You may see a “18/10” stamped on the underside of the cookware to indicate a composition of 18% chromium and 10% nickel. If you are sensitive to nickel, stainless steel may not be a good option for you, but it is otherwise non-reactive. Even though I do love my All-Clad, it’s not necessary to buy the most expensive stainless out there. There are plenty of good quality, affordable lines available.

Cast Iron – Good quality cast iron should last you your whole life, maybe even your grandchildren’s lives. My mother still has an amazing cast iron skillet that was passed down to her from her grandmother. It has built up a fantastic natural nonstick finish and is my go-to pan to cook perfect eggs every time. The downside is that cast iron can be heavy for some people, but the upside is that it is very reasonably priced. In addition to a 10-inch skillet, I have a griddle by Lodge and grill pans by Staub. The key with new cast iron is to follow the manufacturers instructions to “season” the pan before using to form a protective seal. I have also found that I burn food less easily with cast iron than I do with other cookware. Bonus!

Enameled Cast Iron – Among my favorite pieces of cookware are my beautiful enameled cast iron Dutch ovens and saucepans by Le Creuset. Heavy, yes. Durable and dependable, absolutely. Le Creuset can be costly, but it will last forever. I have pieces that I have used almost daily for 15 years and they still look amazing. I have tried cheaper “enameled” cast iron pieces that I purchased in reputable stores with a famous chef’s name on them. They chipped within a week. Make friends with a nice salesperson in the housewares section of your local department store that carries Le Creuset and ask him or her to alert you when the line will be on sale. I have bought one new piece per year this way, most of the time at 50% off retail.

WHAT I AVOID:

Aluminum – I don’t own a single piece of cookware lined on the interior with aluminum, nor do I heat food in direct contact with aluminum foil. Aluminum is a highly reactive metal which at the least can impart a unpleasant taste in your food. But worse is that when heated, aluminum, which is toxic to our bodies, can leach into our food and then enter our bloodstream. Cooking with acidic foods, such as lemon, tomatoes or vinegar, can cause aluminum to leach even more quickly. If aluminum is anodized, it is dipped into a hot acid bath to seal the aluminum and it should not leach. However, if you use metal cooking utensils and scratch the surface of the pan, I think you’re taking a risk.

Non-stick – Notice I didn’t come right out and say Teflon. This is because Teflon is just a brand name trademarked by Dupont and contains a dangerous chemical called PFTE. Most non-stick finishes are basically plastics bonded to an aluminum pan and contain PFTE even if they claim it’s Teflon-free. Once these surfaces chip and scratch, toxins can be released into your food. In addition, Teflon and Teflon-like pans are not meant to be used over high heat since they release gases into your kitchen poisonous enough to kill your pet parakeet. To cook your morning eggs without sticking, heat your skillet, then add the fat to the warmed skillet. When the fat is heated, add your eggs and they won’t stick.

JURY’S STILL OUT:

Ceramic and Titanium-Coated Non-stick – There are new types of non-stick pans that are PFTE and PFOA-free, and instead use a ceramic or titanium coating. The surface is supposed to be durable and non-reactive. There are different brands using this new technology from Cuisinart to Bialetti to Xtrema.

Please let me know if you have purchased any of these new, supposedly safer, non-stick pots and pans and which brand. What has your experience been? What are your favorite pieces of cookware in your kitchen?

cookware

Lemon and cumin-scented quinoa recipe

I will admit, the first time I ever made quinoa, I didn’t like it at all. I cooked it like rice with nothing added and it really wasn’t very tasty. Who cares if something is super nutritious if it tastes like sawdust? I am all about deliciousness first. But then I gave quinoa a second chance by adding some favorite flavors and now we are very good friends.

Haven’t tried quinoa yet? Pronounced keen-wa, it’s a tiny grain (well, technically a seed) with a light, bouncy texture and a subtle nutty flavor. Quinoa’s claim to fame, however, is that it is one of very few plant foods with all 8 essential amino acids making it a complete protein. It is rich in minerals and fiber and is gluten-free. It is also surprisingly light and much easier to digest than many grains.

One of the best things about quinoa, though, is that even though it is a whole grain, it cooks very quickly — 15 minutes! If I am home for lunch and I need something fast and easy, I will usually make a pot of quinoa. While it is cooking, I can assemble a few add-ins like herbs, nuts, cooked beans or leftover vegetables from the night before and tie it all together with whatever vinaigrette is in the fridge or simply squeeze some lemon and drizzle with olive oil. Better yet, make a big pot earlier in the week and keep it in the refrigerator for salads or to add to soups. (I even eat it for breakfast, but we’ll save that for another post.)

If you and quinoa never really hit it off the first time, this recipe might bring the two of you back together. It is a great, easy basic with lots of flavor. The lemon gives it a nice kick and the cumin adds a mellow earthiness. I especially like quinoa with something crunchy, like nuts or a crisp vegetable. I think this recipe is perfect just the way it is, but my daughters always add feta to it (as pictured below, with their favorite kale salad.) If I haven’t convinced you yet, use quinoa in place of cous cous or orzo in one of your family’s favorite recipes, and I have a feeling you’ll be back for more.

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Lemon and Cumin-Scented Quinoa

Author: Pamela, tweaked from martha stewart living

Serves: 4

Ingredients

1 cup uncooked quinoa
½ teaspoon sea salt
⅓ cup raw pine nuts, toasted
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
½ cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley or mint or a combination
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 Tablespoons unrefined, cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Crumbled feta (optional)

Instructions

Rinse quinoa in a bowl with water or place quinoa in a fine mesh sieve and rinse under cold water until water runs clear. This removes the natural bitter coating on the grain. Transfer to a saucepan and add ½ teaspoon of sea salt and 1 ¾ cups of water. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer until water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit, covered, for 10 minutes.
Transfer quinoa to a serving bowl and add pine nuts, lemon zest and parsley. In a measuring cup, whisk together cumin, olive oil and lemon juice. Add to quinoa and toss to combine. Taste for salt and pepper and season accordingly. Top with crumbled feta, if desired.
Serve warm or at room temperature. Really tasty even the next day out of the fridge!

Vegetable stock recipe

I really think it’s worth the effort to make stock from scratch, not only because it’s more nutritious, but because homemade just tastes so much better than the one you get from a box. Many times you can get away with using water in a soup, but using a flavorful stock will usually make it better. Vegetable stock is much easier and quicker to make than chicken stock (you actually don’t want to simmer it for longer than an hour.) I like to cut my vegetables first because I think you get more flavor released into the broth. This vegetable stock is also great to use in pureeing baby food if you need a little extra liquid.

The recipe below is for my basic vegetable stock, but if I know what I’m using it for, such as a soup with asparagus and leeks, I will add other extras from those vegetables, too. The tops of leeks and the woody ends from asparagus make a great addition to stock. Just make sure everything is washed before putting it into the pot. My mother taught me to take fresh vegetable scraps that you would normally compost and keep a bag of them in the freezer. When you have a full bag of scraps, just put them in a pot with some additional chopped vegetables and water, and presto! practically free stock. The addition of kombu in my recipe is completely optional. It is a sea vegetable and gives your stock an extra boost of minerals. Use it if you have it on hand.

Make sure you simmer the stock and don’t boil it vigorously since more liquid will evaporate that way. I don’t add salt to make vegetable stock, so keep that in mind when you are using this in a recipe. You may need to add a little extra salt to have the proper seasoning.

Vegetable stock lasts for 5 days in the refrigerator and up to 3 months in the freezer. I like to freeze it in 2-cup and quart containers because those are the sizes I use most often. But you can freeze the stock in any size container, even ice cube trays. If you are freezing in glass, make sure you freeze your liquid without a lid since it will expand. Once the stock is frozen solid, cover it tightly to protect is from freezer burn. Also check out my recipe for homemade chicken stock.

Happiness is a freezer full of homemade stock!

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Vegetable Stock

Author: Pamela

Serves: makes 3 quarts

Ingredients

3 large onions, cut into large chunks
2 large parsnips, unpeeled, cut into large chunks
2 large carrots, unpeeled, cut into large chunks
3 celery stalks, cut into large chunks
8 ounces white mushrooms, chopped
6 large garlic cloves, crushed
a few sprigs fresh parsley
2 sprigs fresh thyme or 2 bay leaves
4 quarts water

Instructions

Place all the ingredients in a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat and simmer uncovered for 30-60 minutes.
Remove the pot from the heat and strain the stock into a large bowl. Push against the vegetables to extract additional liquid. Discard the vegetables.
Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Notes

To increase the nutrients, simmer the stock with a strip of kombu.

Other vegetables or scraps you can add that you might otherwise compost or discard: tops of leeks, parsley stems, woody ends of asparagus, shiitake mushroom stems, carrot peels, ends from squashes, etc. You can freeze these scraps until you are ready to make stock. I usually avoid sulfur-containing vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower since their flavors can be overpowering.

Cauliflower and roasted garlic soup recipe

Cauliflower and Roasted Garlic Soup | Pamela Salzman

Who wouldn’t love a soup that is sophisticated enough to serve at a dinner party, but simple enough to make on a weeknight? I know I would! It’s amazing what happens when you blend cauliflower and a few ho-hum potatoes and give them a big boost from a whole head of roasted garlic. Utter creamy deliciousness, and not just by my standards. Mr. Picky gave me a fabulous back-handed compliment when he tried this soup, “this tastes like French fries!” To set the record straight, this soup does not taste like French fries, but I why would I argue?

There aren’t too many white foods that I am gung-ho about, but cauliflower happens to be one of them. So it’s missing some chloropyhll. That’s nothing to get worked up about when there’s so much more going for it. Since Mr. Picky really likes broccoli, we called cauliflower “white broccoli” for many years. That isn’t much of a stretch since both are members of the cruciferous family of vegetables which include cabbage, brussels sprouts, collards and bok choy, too. These vegetables are known for their powerful anti-cancer properties and it is recommended that you regularly include them in your diet. This soup is just one delicious way to do that.

One of the reasons I love cauliflower is for its versatility. My favorite way to eat it is tossed with coconut oil and a sprinkle of sea salt and roasted until it’s sweet and golden. I couldn’t resist adding a few crispy baby florets as a garnish on this bowl of soup here, but really, you can have so much fun with toppings. You can go fancy with some truffle oil or shaved Parmigiano. Or you can go in a homey direction with a grilled cheese sandwich cut into croutons. This soup seems very elegant and earthy at the same time, which is why I think you can get away with not peeling the potatoes. Why give up all the fiber and nutrients right under the skin just so you can have a perfectly smooth soup? Sure when you puree the soup, you’ll be left with a few small flecks of peel here and there, but I’ve never been one to get hung up on things like that.

My strategy is usually to get the garlic in the oven right away and while it roasts, start prepping the vegetables. By the time you finish simmering the cauliflower for 20 minutes, the garlic is ready to be squeezed into the pot. To save maximum time, roast your garlic a few days in advance and keep it refrigerated. Prep your onions and cauliflower and keep them refrigerated in airtight containers in the fridge. The potatoes will only take a minute to chop. You can make this a day or two ahead if you like, but it will thicken slightly as it sits. The next day, add some cooked white beans to your child’s thermos and pour the hot soup right on top for a well balanced school lunch.

Now if I can only make spinach taste like French fries …

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5.0 from 4 reviews

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Cauliflower and Roasted Garlic Soup

Author: Pamela

Serves: 6

Ingredients

1 large head of garlic
Olive oil for drizzling
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, chopped
⅓ cup dry white wine
1 large head cauliflower (about 2 ¼ lbs), or 2 small heads, cut into florets
1 large Yukon Gold potato, about 8 ounces, cut into 1-inch pieces
6 cups chicken or vegetable stock, preferably homemade
2 teaspoons sea salt (or more if your stock is unsalted)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Slice off the top fifth of the head of unpeeled garlic. Add a drop of olive oil. Replace the top. Wrap with parchment paper, then aluminum foil. Roast for 1 hour. Your house will smell amazing. (You can also speed this up by roasting for 45 minutes at 400 degrees, but I usually like to keep olive oil in the 350 degree range.)
In a large pot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and sauté, covered, until tender and translucent, about 6 minutes. Stir occasionally. Pour the wine over the onions and simmer uncovered until the wine has been reduced slightly, about 2-4 minutes.
Add the cauliflower, potato, stock and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat and then lower to a simmer. Cook partially covered until potatoes and cauliflower are tender, about 20 minutes. Unwrap the garlic and squeeze the soft garlic directly into the pot. Discard the papery skins. Cook for another 5 minutes.
Puree soup in the pot with an immersion blender or in batches in a blender. It is important that you taste for seasoning since all stocks have different levels of sodium. Add extra salt if you need it.

Notes

There are lots of ways you can garnish this soup whether for a dinner party or for the family: Freshly ground black pepper, truffle oil, chopped fresh chives, shavings of parmesan cheese, small florets of roasted cauliflower, garlic croutons, chopped up grilled cheese sandwich....

Chicken and vegetable curry recipe

Growing up in a traditional Italian home, I learned very little about food that wasn’t Italian. I could tell you the names of about 80 different shapes of pasta (you could, too if you ate it four times per week) and I knew my Parmigiano from my Pecorino. In the garden, I could differentiate between the many varieties of eggplant or basil plants. This was my culinary comfort zone.

It wasn’t until I was in college that I was exposed to “ethnic” foods and I fell hard for curries. Raise your hand if you thought like I did that curry was a spice — one spice. I imagined fields somewhere in Asia with people picking curry berries. (Actually, there is such a thing as a curry plant, but it is somewhat like a lettuce and has nothing to do with Indian or Thai curries.) I learned not too long ago that curry powder is a blend of several different spices and no two curry powders are the same. Most contain turmeric, cumin, coriander, fenugreek, and red pepper in their blends. Depending on the brand, additional ingredients such as ginger, cinnamon, mace, nutmeg, and black pepper can be added. Some chefs prefer to toast their own spices and grind them to make their own curry blends, which sounds like such a nice thing to do if it wouldn’t completely put me over the edge. I give you permission to use a premade curry powder which will not compromise anything in this recipe.

Chicken and vegetable curry is a staple in our house. It is an incredibly flavorful dish enriched with coconut milk and cashew butter. I vary the vegetables according to the season: butternut squash or yams in the fall/winter with cauliflower; asparagus and peas in the spring; green beans and eggplant in the late summer/early fall; and I always throw in a few handfuls of spinach at the end because I will add leafy greens wherever I can. We love this over brown jasmine or basmati rice, but recently I served this over some leftover soba and it was so tasty with the sauce coating all the noodles — everyone devoured it, especially Mr. Picky!

This curry is gluten-free. Vegetarians can substitute chickpeas instead of chicken and vegetable stock for chicken stock. This freezes really well as long as it’s tightly covered with as little air as possible coming into contact with the top of the food.

I love sharing all the nutritional highlights about the recipes I post. You can read about all the benefits of curry powder’s anti-inflammatory spices, especially turmeric, in the Harira post, and I would likely sound like a broken record if I told you why we need to eat more vegetables and less animal protein. But don’t make this dish just because it’s good for you. Make it because it’s delicious. When I served this to my Italian father for the first time he said, “I have no idea what this is, but it’s fantastic.”

4.7 from 9 reviews

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Chicken and Vegetable Curry

Author: Pamela

Serves: 6

Ingredients

3 Tablespoons unrefined coconut oil or ghee
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken meat (breast or thigh or combination), cubed
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
2 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
2 stalks celery, cut into chunks
4 cups vegetables, cut into same size as carrots and celery (e.g. cauliflower, root veggies, green beans, eggplant, potatoes…)
2-3 Tablespoons curry powder*
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 ½ cups chicken stock, vegetable stock or 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
½ cup cashews, finely ground or ¼ cup cashew butter
1 cup coconut milk
A few handfuls of baby spinach leaves

Instructions

Season chicken pieces with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Heat oil or ghee in a large, heavy pot over medium heat. Without crowding, add the chicken in batches and lightly brown. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate and continue cooking all the chicken in the same manner.
Add the onion, garlic and ginger to the pot and cook, stirring until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the carrots, celery and remaining vegetables. Cook another few minutes.
Add the chicken and any accumulated juices on the plate back in the pot. Add the curry powder, spices and salt and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add the stock (or diced tomatoes) and chopped cilantro and bring to a simmer. Cover the pot and simmer gently, stirring occasionally until the chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes.
Add the ground cashews or cashew butter to the curry along with the coconut milk, and simmer gently uncovered, stirring until sauce is thickened, about 5-10 minutes. Stir in spinach leaves and stir until wilted. Delicious over cooked basmati or jasmine rice or noodles.

Notes

*Different brands of curry powder taste differently. “Simply Organic” is a little stronger with more depth of flavor than “Spicely Organic.” You can probably use 2 Tablespoons “Simply Organic” and 3 Tablespoons “Spicely Organic.”

Braised greens and beans (collards and cannellini) recipe

Could you pick collard greens out of line-up? It’s not an easy thing to do considering how many varieties of leafy greens are available. The bigger question is, have you ever picked up collard greens at all??

I avoided collard greens for a long time because they looked so intimidating, and because I didn’t know how to cook them. I had never seen a recipe that didn’t boil those beautiful leaves to oblivion. A typical collard greens recipe is from the South where they simmer the greens with bacon and pork stock for an hour so that they’re tender and the bacon masks some of the bitterness that goes along with collards. I’m sure they’re tasty, but I try to lightly cook my vegetables as much as possible, especially greens to keep that beautiful bright green color and the vital nutrients.

The only time I had actually tried collard greens was raw, wrapped around hummus, sprouts and shredded vegetables — kind of like a veggie wrap, but a raw collard leaf instead of a tortilla. Not delicious. Fine, but who wants to eat fine?

I am obsessed with dark green leafy vegetables and I am always trying to find new ways to incorporate them into our diet. I always say they should be their own food group since they are some of most nutrient-dense foods available to us and they can be prepared in so many delicious ways. Dark green leafies are incredibly rich in calcium, magnesium, beta-carotene, Vitamin K and iron. They also contain loads of fiber, Vitamin C, folate and antioxidants. Collards, specifically, are also members of the cruciferous family of vegetables which studies have shown may reduce the risk of many cancers. I knew I needed to give collards a chance.

Collards can be a little bitter, which is not a flavor picky children and ~~formerly picky children~~ husbands warm up to. My first attempt to simply saute chopped collards with garlic olive oil was not the solution. But I found that if you blanche collards first in plenty of salted water, it cuts the bitterness significantly. I am aware that blanching, which means to boil in water for a short amount of time, reduces the vitamin content more than steaming. But you still keep most of the vitamins.

This recipe for collard greens has become one of my favorite ways to eat greens. After the greens are blanched, they join garlic, olive oil and high-protein, creamy white beans for a very satisfying side or vegetarian main dish. The addition of grated Pecorino-romano is optional, but adds a nice richness. I have enjoyed collards this way by themselves or over cooked millet or rice. Daughter #1 loves this on top of a toasted wedge of whole grain bread. Maybe you’re not sure if your family is ready for collards. Even if that’s the case, do try this recipe anyway with another favorite leafy green, such as kale, Swiss chard, or escarole (even broccolini.) In time, you’ll want to pick this recipe out of your menu line-up, trust me!

4.7 from 3 reviews

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Braised Greens and Beans (Collards and Cannellini)

Author: Pamela

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

3 bunches collard greens or other sturdy greens of choice, tough ribs removed
1 Tablespoon Kosher salt, such as Diamond Crystal
2 Tablespoons unrefined, cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil
6 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
½ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 ½ cups cooked white beans (such as Cannellini or Great Northern) or 1 15-ounce can, drained and rinsed
½ cup chicken stock, vegetable stock or water used to blanche greens (the blanching water will be a little more bitter and salty)
3 Tablespoons grated Pecorino-Romano or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (optional, but delicious)

Instructions

Fill a large pot three-fourths full with water. Bring to a boil over high heat and add kosher salt. Submerge greens in salted water and blanche for 5-8 minutes, or until tender.
Remove some of the cooking liquid if that’s what you want to use. Drain the greens in a colander and press against the leaves with a large spoon to squeeze out some of the excess water. You can also do this in a clean kitchen towel, but it will be hot! Transfer to a cutting board and chop in large pieces.
Warm the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and add the garlic and red pepper flakes, if using. When you see the first signs of a golden color on the garlic, add the collard greens. Sprinkle with the sea salt and stir to coat with the oil. Add the beans and stock or cooking water and simmer uncovered for 5 minutes, until the liquid has reduced a bit. Stir in the grated cheese and taste for salt. Serve immediately.