recipes using endive (not Belgian), chicory , escarole and/or chard
Do you have any favourite ways to prepare these greens? I've been using them in frittatas, or serving them steamed, sauteed or boiled, then dressed with evoo & vinegar or evoo & lemon juice. I also like sauteeing chard in evoo with garlic, raisins and pine nuts.
How do you like to prepare them?
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Gio
Sep 28, 2010 05:51 PM
We like a quick braise of those bitter greens in EVOO, garlic and minced anchovies seasoned with a little Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper along with crushed red pepper flakes. Alternatively, fresh inner leaves - the white inner leaves - dressed with EVOO, S & P and a good wine vinegar (or fresh lemon juice) and served with a slice of Scali is one of my favorites...
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Growing up we had a big garden. Mom used to clean and chop swiss chard, cook in boiling water briefly until just tender. While it was draining she'd make a roux with butter and flour, not letting it get too brown, and then mix the chard back in off heat, stirring well to combine. Don't remember exact proportions, but for 4 servings probably 4 tablespoons of butter with about 1-1/2 tablespoons of flour. The flour cut the sharpness of the chard a bit.
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LOVE this Penelope Casas recipe for chard. I could literally eat the whole 2 pounds of chard myself. I usually double it for my family and every bit gets eaten.
http://wegottaeat.com/Jess/recipes/cu...
Like Channa, beans and greens are another favorite. I like starting with dried beans cooking just in water and adding salt and the greens when the beans are almost cooked. Doesn't need much fussing, just some lemon juice and a tiganissi: fry onions, chile flakes and garlic over medium high heat in some olive oil until nicely colored. Pour over the beans and greens. Surprisingly flavorful.
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Channa
Aug 3, 2010 09:02 AM
For real comfort food (and fast and easy), there's Escarole and Beans. It's something like this:
http://almostitalian.com/escarole-and...
I use only one tin of beans per head of escarole, and two large cloves of garlic chopped. Of course, you could cook beans instead of using tinned. I cut the greens in fairly large pieces, as they shrink during cooking. Important -- be sure to stir in a few teaspoons of lemon juice just before serving. That really brightens the flavour.
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re: Channa
Good basic recipe, and yes to the lemon juice. Growing up, beans and greens wee a weekly dinner (still is)--you might try adding slivers of sharp provolone or pecorino and/or slices of dried Italian sausage, sweet or hot, to kick the flavors up. Also, if you're near an Italian market or bakery, get some freselle, or dried bread rusks--soak a minute in water to soften, and pour over them the cooked escarole minestra. Make sure to have crushed hot chilis to sprinkle on top.
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greygarious
Aug 2, 2010 08:43 PM
If I am feeling flush I buy frisee to combine with romaine or leaf lettuce as the basis of my tossed salads, but otherwise I use chicory, choosing a head with the most small, paler inner leaves. It's more bitter than frisee but a sweet onion dressing and a few raisins or craisins play well with it.
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There's a fantastic salad you can do with the curly endive.
For the dressing, you fry some chopped bacon and thinly sliced onions until the onions are soft and starting to carmelize. Remove the bacon and onion and add a bit of flour to the bacon grease. Cook for a bit and whisk in a mix of white vinegar and water. (Basically like a white sauce, but with bacon grease and vinegar instead of butter and cream). You want pourable but slightly thickened mixture. Toss the onions and bacon with raw curly endive, and then toss with the *warm* dressing. Serve immediately.
The dressing is tangy and smoky/salty, which beautifully complements the bitter taste of the endive, and the warmth of it partially wilts the endive, but not completely. It's amazingly good! Sorry for the lack of measurements, but I do this by eye. You have to eat it immediately, as the dressing isn't nearly as good once it cools down.
For bitter greens, I also like the Chinese style stir fry. Saute sliced garlic in oil on high heat. Add the washed greens and stir until they reduce in volume. Cover until done. Season with salt and a dash of sesame oil.
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