It’s winter greens time.  I love my dark greens.  Other people don’t.  Most people don’t, probably.  Shannon has traditionally been one of these people, and this is convenient for me because 1) I live with her, and 2) one of the things I love in life is winning converts to foods they’ve previously sniffed at.  I have yet to convince Shannon that V8 is awesome, but I did manage to whip up some greens last night that won approval and even an extended life in the form of a second helping.  Greens are insanely healthy for you, and you’ll notice a difference in your day if you eat them regularly.  With a little creative spicing and coupling with beans, they’ll easily become one of your staples.

We had a bunch of braising greens from the CSA, a clutch of mustard greens and kale and turnip greens and other things I couldn’t identify.  We also had some nice new carrots, and I twisted off their greens (6 times as high in Vitamin C as the roots, plus high in magnesium, potassium, and Vitamin K) and added them to the mix.  I then proceeded with the following simple recipe.  Any mix of dark greens will work.

Ingredients:

• 1 large bunch of greens
• 1 can of cannellini beans (or other white bean)
• 1 bulb garlic
• 1 jalapeño pepper (or any hot pepper)
• olive oil & butter
• salt & pepper
• cumin
• 6 tbs of za’atar (more to taste)

Crush the bulb of garlic and divide it between two pots.  In one, add olive oil, the diced jalapeño, and a pat of butter.  In the other, add just a bit of olive oil.  Set the first pot aside.

Heat the oil and garlic in the second pot over medium heat so the garlic doesn’t brown.  Drain most of the can of cannellini beans, leaving about a third of the, uh, bean juice, at the bottom.  Keeping some of the juice, I’ve found, helps create a gravy.  Empty the beans and juice into the pot, add salt, pepper, and cumin to taste, stir until the pot is just shy of boiling, and then turn the heat down and let things simmer.

I paired the dish with roasted lemon-thyme potatoes and a salad of lettuce, tomato, walnut, and Jonagold apples. Then we watched the last episode of "Enlightened." Laura Dern is awesome.

Put the remaining pot over medium heat and stir, allowing a few minutes for the garlic and pepper to suffuse the butter and oil.  Then add the washed, chopped greens.  Stir until they’re coated.  Then add the za’atar.  If you don’t know za’atar, it is a Middle Eastern herb blend that these days seems to be frequently found atop plastic pints of hummus in your grocer’s refrigerator case.  It’s salty and tangy and nutty and all-around awesome and, whether you make this recipe or not, I’ll paraphrase Ferris Bueller and say that if you have the means, I highly recommend picking some up.  Stir until the spice is spread.

Such is the power of za’atar that this is all you need to do.  When the greens are wilted, add the beans and gravy and stir together for another minute or two.  Paired with some good bread, this meal gives you complete proteins and is a fine, quick dinner for a weekday night.