Dark Leafy Greens

[DirtyMartini]

The man & I have been cooking a lot more greens as of late. In looking at the carb content of various greens, it appears that mustard greens are the lowest (3g per cooked cup). Chard, kale, beet, and collards all appear to have similar amounts (7-8g per cooked up).

We typically just chop them up and sautee them in a pan. Probably one of my favorite methods is to cook the meat part of our dinner in a pan, then while the meat is resting, sautee the greens in the drippings of the pan. Really adds flavor to the greens, and saves on dishes.

I've been adding chili flakes and/or cayenne, with salt & pepper. Anyone else have some favorite ways of prepping these?

[InterpreterJess]

I use garlic & lemon juice or garlic, sea salt, and pepper.

[Lost Dog]

Don't worry about the carbs in the greens. All greens are good.

I make this quite a bit.

Cooked Salad with Flattened Meatballs
by Lost Dog


Makes about 4 servings (maybe 3-ish…)

Flattened Meatballs

1 lbs misc. ground meat (½ lbs beef, ½ pork, for instance)
½ red onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced (reserve a small amount for the salad)
2 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano, rubbed between palms
4 basil leaves, minced
1 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper

Cooked Salad *

1 large bunch of collard greens, cleaned
1 tsp olive oil or reserved pan drippings
½ red onion, sliced into thin strips
the reserved garlic, from the meatballs
1 tbsp water
salt and pepper to taste


Directions:

Meatballs

In a large bowl, mix all the meatball ingredients together with your hands. Form the meat into 12 meatballs. Flatten them into oblong patty shapes.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Cook the flattened meatballs until they are browned on both sides. If possible, only turn the meatballs once. When cooked, drain the meatballs on paper towels.


Salad

Slice the collard greens across the ribs into strips that are about a ½ inch wide.

Heat a large lidded pan over medium high heat. Add the oil or pan drippings. Add the onions and cook until the onions are soft, but not browned. Add reserved garlic and stir fry for about 30 seconds. Add water and collard greens. Lightly stir or toss to coat the greens. Cover and turn heat to low. Check the greens every minute for doneness. They cook quickly. They are done when they have slightly wilted but are not soft. We’re looking for a salad feel here…

Immediately remove the pan from heat and immediately plate the greens onto salad plates so they stop cooking. Salt and pepper the greens to taste.

Arrange three of the flattened meatballs onto each plate of greens.

Eat.


* Sometimes, collard greens are hard to find. The salad works well with salad greens or spinach, too. Just don’t cook them. You’ll need a dressing. Thinned yogurt, some pan drippings, and salt/pepper sounds good.

[DirtyMartini]

That sounds fantastic! Thanks for posting it.

[Emoore]

I always put 'em in egg scrambles. A greens/feta scramble for breakfast.

[Lost Dog]

Glad to be of service.

BTW, for those of us who're southern (or have a mom who talks funny) there's a whole gumbo devoted to greens! Gumbo Z'herbes

I just wing it, but here's Emeril's.

Gumbo Z'herbes

[DirtyMartini]

WOW. I have never heard of that (typical yank, right?). Sounds fantastic! I like a lot of emeril's recipes; I'll add this to the list of recipes to try

[nutbar]

Originally Posted by DirtyMartini

We typically just chop them up and sautee them in a pan. Probably one of my favorite methods is to cook the meat part of our dinner in a pan, then while the meat is resting, sautee the greens in the drippings of the pan. Really adds flavor to the greens, and saves on dishes.

I've been adding chili flakes and/or cayenne, with salt & pepper. Anyone else have some favorite ways of prepping these?

I love it the same way as you but with a generous splash of vinegar, especially good with bacon drippings.

[DirtyMartini]

Vinegar! That's a new one.

I'm going to have to get some good quality balsamic. I put some on asparagus the other day and it tasted okay but not fantastic. And the BF didn't care for it. I'm thinking some top-notch balsamic would be quite tasty on kale.

[Amblus]

Here's what I like to do to kale:

sauté with olive oil and garlic, add a little chicken or veg broth as it cooks down, then at the end sprinkle with some red wine vinegar. I also sometimes drizzle it with a bit of sesame oil or rice wine vinegar and sprinkle on some sesame seeds.

Another favorite is to sauté sliced mushrooms and when they get a bit soft, add the greens in with some broth. Once it all cooks down, add crumbled feta cheese and toasted pine nuts.

[BikiniGirl24]

Anyone have any ideas for what to cook up with spinach?

[Mark57]

Spinach salad with warm bacon dressing

I like some crumbled blue cheese on it, too. If I want to make a meal out of it I add some sliced grilled chicken breast or small cooked shrimp.

[sidonia]

Just like a cold spinach salad with hard boiled eggs, I have eggs with my sauteed spinach too! I usually use egg whites that I microwave tho. (it REALLY cuts down the prep time!) I substitute olive oil for vegetable oil as well. And I'm not so into the red pepper so I usually don't use it! Here's a recipe from Cooking Light that's really quite good:

Sauteed Spinach with Chopped Egg

[Erika]

With spinach: tomato, feta, pine nuts, fresh basil tossed in a salad. I love it right now with all the fresh tomatos (not sarcasm, Arkansas maters are not unsafe).