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. Continue reading →