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Cooking Greens

As an adult I have always loved a mess of greens, it's the Southerner in me. When I was younger, I would take the required bite and then move on. Granted, my prejudice came straight out of a can of spinach. If you've ever had canned spinach, you know just how foul it is.

Fresh spinach is a delicate and tasty veggie. It's a crime what they do to it before they can it, but that's another story. This year I'm growing chard, kale, and spinach in my garden. I love cooking them up Asian style with chili paste and sesame oil. They look great served on square dinnerware and even greens haters can be won over by them.

Last night I cooked up some chard with crushed garlic and added it to a layer of the smoked mozzarella lasagna I made. It was delicious. I've been using kale in a white bean stew with fresh oregano. You can puree them and stick them in a pasta sauce to get little kids to eat them (or adults that want to eat like children).

It won't take long to appreciate the taste of greens as much as the nutrition that they provide. Then you'll move on to the harder stuff like I have. My latest additions to my greens repertoire is radish greens. Since the radishes in my garden have decided not make radishes, I've been Googling to see what I can do with their greens.

I found radish green salads, radish green and hazelnut pesto, and even radish green soup served in a beautiful dinnerware bowl. I have enough radish greens of my own to try them all. If you aren't growing any radishes this year, make a trip to the farmers market. You should be able to find an assortment of radishes with the greens still attached. The Easter egg ones really liven up a salad with purple, red, and white spicy roots. Give them a try and let me know what you think.

Author: Kathy Hester

Posted: Monday 31st May 2010, 12:32 AM




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