It's June in Wisconsin. Therefore, I have lots of greens. Help!

[eyesroll]

Anyone have an interesting preparation for the following:
• Beet greens
• Turnip greens
• Swiss chard
• Baby bok choi

(Not necessarily all at once! :D)

I also have beet and turnip roots, sugar snap peas, and strawberries, but I know what I'm going to do with those.

Thanks.

[NMDemDist2]

1. we've had several threads on greens, here's a few to check out

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=236&topic_id=21649

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=236&topic_id=17361

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=236&topic_id=5641

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=236&topic_id=14106

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=236&topic_id=9003

and I bet a bigger search would find more......

[grasswire]

2. I saw a preparation of turnip greens on FOOD TV that looked...

...interesting. I've never had turnip greens, but I might yet give it a try. The greens were stewed with a smoked ham hock, and then little buttermilk cornmeal dumplings were mixed up and cooked in the "likker."

Gee, here's the recipe!

Turnip Greens with Cornmeal Dumplings
Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Yield: 4 to 6 servings

3/4 pound smoked meat

4 quarts water

1 teaspoon House Seasoning, recipe follows

2 chicken bouillon cubes

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1 bunch turnip greens with roots

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter

1 teaspoon sugar (optional; may be used if greens are bitter)

Cornmeal Dumplings, recipe follows

Place smoked meat in water along with House Seasoning, bouillon, and ginger. Cook over low heat for 1 1/2 hours. Strip turnip leaves free of the big stem that runs down the center of each leaf. Wash in a sink full of clean water. Drain and wash twice more, since greens can often be sandy. Peel and slice or quarter roots. Add greens to meat; cook for another 30 minutes, stirring often. Add roots and continue to cook for approximately 15 minutes, or until roots are tender. (Reserve 2/3 cup turnip liquid for the dumplings.) Add butter and sugar. Serve with dumplings.

House Seasoning:

1 cup salt

1/4 cup black pepper

1/4 cup garlic powder

Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

Cornmeal Dumplings

1 cup all-purpose cornmeal

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 small onion, chopped

1 egg

2/3 cup liquid from cooked turnips

Mix all ingredients together. Dipping by teaspoonfuls, gently roll batter in the palms of your hands into approximately 1-inch balls; drop into boiling turnip liquid Make sure each dumpling is completely covered in liquid by shaking the pot gently; do not stir. Boil for about 10 minutes.

Episode#: PA1B04

[mike_c]

3. there is an absolutely awesome recipe for a greens gratin...

...in a Fine Cooking from last winter. It is fantastic with chard-- let me know if you want me to dig up the recipe. I've made it several times-- it's very good.

Here's a link to the article, but not the full recipe unless I'm mistaken: http://www.taunton.com/finecooking/pages/fc_077_039.asp

[TygrBright]

4. It's a boring old staple...

...but I NEVER get tired of it.

Cook a couple of strips of bacon in a skillet, remove them when they're CRISP, and lay them on a paper towel to drain.

Put your washed, air-dried greens in the skillet and saute them in the bacon fat until they're wilted but still have some body.

Take 'em out and roll them over a paper towel, then put them in a bowl and sprinkle over them either:

juice of 1/2 fresh lemon
a squirt of cider vinegar
a sprinkle of balsamic vinegar
a tablespoonful of Bols (has to be Bols) gin

crumble the bacon over them, toss the whole mess and sit down to have a mouth orgasm.

helpfully,
Bright

[Warpy]

5. Maybe what I do with kale would work with chard

I chop it and dry it on a cookie sheet in a slow oven, get it crispy. It retains a beautiful green color.

I store it in the freezer (don't want to take any chances with wildlife) and pull it out all year to sprinkle on baked or mashed spuds, on salads, on green peas, on anything that blends nicely with the aggressively "green" taste of kale.

I'm not overly fond of cooked greens and I don't eat meat, so most normal people recipes are out for me. I do like them dried, though.

[htuttle]

6. You could stuff them like grape leaves

Basically, mix together cooked rice, lamb and spices, then roll up in a leaf and bake it. I've only had them as appetizers at parties, but they would be good as a side dish in any meal.

Here's one recipe:

http://www.arabicnews.com/recipes/Grape_Leaves.html

1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
70 leaves grape leaves
1 pound ground lamb
1/8 cup parsley finely chopped fresh
1 cup rice

Rinse rice in cold water, drain. Add all ingredients except lemon juice and grape leaves, mix well.Wilt leaves a few at a time by rinsing in hot water (a few at a time), be sure to cut off thick stems. Place a heaping teaspoon of lamb/rice mixture on edge of dull side of leaf. Begin rolling from stem end, after the first roll fold ends in to close and finish rolling. Place a few leaves in bottom of pan. Arrange rolls in compact rows, seam side down Cover with water about 1/2 inch over the top. Sprinkle 1 T salt over rolls. Place a pottery plate on top of rolls to hold in place. Cover pan, cook on medium 20 minutes. reduce heat, add lemon juice cook 10 more minutes. Drain most of the juice before serving.

Best way to eat: buy soft pita bread (preferably thin, from Middle Eastern bakery/shop). Buy plain yogurt/nonfat. Cut a piece of bread from the pita so that you can roll the bread around the grape leaf (as in a blanket). Dip the grape leaf (and bread) in a generous helping of yogurt bowl and eat all together like you would eat a very small size soft tortilla shell.

You'll want to experiment a bit to see if you want to adjust the flavor of the stuffing to go with various types of greens.

Here's another one that has a vegetarian stuffing mix (and some photos showing how to wrap the leaves).

http://whatscookingamerica.net/Vegetables/StuffedGrapeLeaves.htm

[japple]

7. Cook them with small pieces of ham, and make sure there's plenty

of pot likker. Then make a batch of corn muffins. Place a corn muffin in a soup bowl and fill the rest of the bowl with pot likker and greens. Yum, yum. MeriMac's Tea Room in Atlanta serves this as an appetizer. They use collard greens, but turnip greens would be good, too.

[Gormy Cuss]

8. Beet green and baby bok choy ideas.

Cooked, drained and chopped beet greens tossed with vinegar and chilled are a good summer side dish.

Stir fried garlic bok choy

About a pound of bok choy, trimmed so that the outer leaves are separate from the core.
2- 3 Tbsps oil
Either 1 tsp minced garlic (original recipe) or as much garlic as you want, sliced.
1/4 tsp sugar
1+1/2 tsps dry sherry or rice wine
1 Tblsp oyster sauce (or 1 tsp fish sauce plus 2 tsps water)
1/4 cup chicken stock at room temperature (have a little more reserved if needed)
1/2 tsp cornstarch dissolved in 1+1/2 tsps water.

Heat 2 Tbsp oil in wok or skillet until hot, toss in garlic and stir fry for about 10 seconds if using minced, about 20 seconds if using sliced. Add more oil if needed.

Add bok choy and toss to coat. Continue tossing for 1 to 2 minutes. The greens should be brightly colored but not wilted.

Add sugar, wine, oyster sauce and stock. Toss with the bok choy to mix. Cover the pan and cook for about 1 minute. Uncover the pan and stir in the dissolved cornstarch, mix, and transfer to a serving dish.

This dish is best if served immediately.