A reader requested any help possible to get more green veggies in the family diet. A couple of these ideas have been discussed in my previous diaries, but this diary is intended as a fairly comprehensive resource for the green-challenged. (do take a look back at the one on weeds, though. Several good recipes there.) I will have to break it into two or more diaries to get one ready on time.
Greens are great! Check out their nutritional offerings.
one cup cooked (unless otherwise noted) green vegetables yields
veggie |
|
vitamin a |
calcium |
iron |
vitamin C |
arugula (100 gm raw)
|
|
2373 IU |
160 mg |
1.46 mg |
15 mg |
beet greens |
|
7,400 IU |
144 mg |
2.8 mg |
22 mg |
broccoli |
|
3,880 IU |
136 mg |
1.2 mg |
140 mg |
brussels sprouts |
|
810 IU |
50 mg |
1.7 mg |
135 mg |
white cabbage |
|
190 IU |
64 mg |
.4 mg |
48 mg |
bok choy |
|
5,270 IU |
252 mg |
1.0 mg |
26 mg |
chard |
|
10,717 IU |
102 mg |
4 mg |
33 mg |
collards |
|
10,260 IU |
289 mg |
1.1 mg |
87 mg |
dandelion greens |
|
21,060 IU |
252 mg |
3.2 mg |
32 mg |
kale |
|
8,140 IU |
147 mg |
1.3 mg |
68 mg |
Romaine lettuce (raw 2 leaves) |
|
950 IU |
34 mg |
.7 mg |
9 mg |
mustard greens |
|
8,120 IU |
193 mg |
2.5 mg |
68 mg |
spinach |
|
14,580 IU |
167 mg |
4.0 mg |
50 mg |
turnip greens |
|
8,270 IU |
252 mg |
1.5 mg |
68 mg |
And that’s just what I had column space for. (I threw broccoli in for comparison to leafy types, it’s a flower bud really) Greens are also excellent sources of vitamin K, crucial for normal blood clotting and proper mineralization of bones. If you want all that calcium to go in your bones and not your arteries, you need both D and K. Magnesium, manganese, zinc, and many more trace elements are abundant in greens. Lots of antioxidants and phytonutrients that fight cancer, especially in the cabbage family.
And folate was named for leaves! Greens are the best source, followed by legumes and avocados, for this critical nutrient, required for DNA synthesis and maintenance of neurons and red blood cells. Greens are brain food!
As you can see, the most commonly eaten greens ( leaf lettuce and white cabbage) are the feeblest, nutritionally. And a comparable amount of iceberg lettuce isn’t much more than crisp water. Ain’t that always the way. So let’s try to branch out a little. And many greens are interchangeable in these recipes, so be bold when shopping. Variety is the spice of life, and frequently its support, too. Note, herbs are also leafy greens; though we use less of them, adding them to salads, soups, and other dishes can bump up the nutrition as well as the flavor. A lovely Persian custom is to serve a plate of fresh herb sprigs at the table and let everyone add sprigs to their food or just eat them with bread, or straight. And sprouts are greens! Pile them on your sandwiches and salads.
Cabbage with yellow lentils
from Cradle of Flavor by James Oseland
3 Tbsp peanut oil
1/4 tsp black mustard seeds, 1/4 tsp cumin seeds, 1 Tbsp Indian yellow lentils [moong dal or thuvar dal], optional 1 Tbsp crushed red peppers, 1/2 medium white onion, minced. 1 tsp turmeric, 1 pound green cabbage, chopped, 1 inch piece fresh ginger, grated, 1/2 tsp salt.
Grated fresh coconut or 1 can coconut milk.
Heat oil in large skillet toss in seeds, then lentils, chilies if using, and stir 45 seconds. Add onion and cook until just softened. Add turmeric and mix well. Add cabbage, ginger and salt. If using coconut milk, add now. Cook gently until crisp-tender. Top with coconut if that was your choice.
Stir-fried Asian greens with garlic and red chilies.
from Cradle of Flavor by James Oseland
about 13 ounces Bok choy, tatsoi, kai lan, or Chinese cabbage, cut in 1 inch pieces.
3 Tbsp. peanut oil
4 cloves garlic
1 or 2 fresh hot chilies {I like this dish just fine without these}
salt to taste
Stir fry the garlic and chilies with salt in the oil about 1 minute, add the greens and stir vigorously until they are crisp tender.
Creamed greens
from Soul of a New Cuisine by Marcus Samuelson
2 Tbsp. peanut oi
1 medium white onion, chopped
2 cups shredded white cabbage
one 3 inch piece ginger, peeled and grated
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 cup heavy cream
½ cup water
½ cup buttermilk
1 bunch Swiss chard or pound of baby spinach
½ tsp. salt
Saute onion in oil until translucent, about 7 minutes. Sir in the cabbage, ginger, and turmeric and saute until cabbage is wilted, about 5 minutes.
Add cream and water, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in greens and stir until wilted or done to your taste, add buttermilk and salt.
Braised kale
I like to stir fry kale in butter or oil, then add buttermilk and put a lid on, simmering until tender.
Spinach salad variants
How many ways can spinach be made into salad? (beet greens and chard are interchangeable here) Years ago, my favorite was just spinach, radishes, and Ranch dressing. Now I prefer to add mushrooms, mandarins, and a fruity vinaigrette. A restaurant I take a client to uses sliced almonds and bacon bits on its spinach salad. Craisins and walnuts have been on my plate at other places. My Irish cookbook uses spinach, bacon, beets, hazelnuts, and bleu cheese with a mustardy vinaigrette. The Herb Companion suggest spinach and watercress with baked rounds of chevre crusted with herbs de Provence and bread crumbs, and a mustard and shallot vinaigrette.
Kale soup by Erroneous [so called by me because it is a complete mis-translation of an ancient Roman recipe for beets that some redactor published]
6 cups chicken broth, 1 cup red wine, 4 cups chopped kale. Simmer 1 hour, or all day in the slow cooker. Stir in 3 Tbsp honey, and salt and pepper if desired.
noodles with shrimp and greens
1 pound cooked Chinese egg noodles, 1/2 lb baby bok choy or choy sum (spinach also works), 4 tbsp peanut oil, 2 cloves garlic, chopped, 2 Tbsp red miso, 7 oz medium raw shrimp, peeled and deveined, 1 1/2 cups bean sprouts (optional), 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 Tbsp blackstrap molasses, salt and pepper as desired.
Clean the greens well and let drain. Heat oil in large skillet. Add garlic and miso, stirring 1 to 2 minutes
Add shrimp, stir about 2 minutes
Add greens, then bean sprouts if using. Stir 2 minutes. Add noodles, soy sauce and molasses, any extra seasoning. Stir until well combined and noodles soak up the liquids.
frittata
saute (in an ovenproof skillet), your choice of green veggies, onions, maybe mushrooms and whatever else takes your fancy, then pour beaten eggs over all, top with shredded cheese of choice and put in the oven to bake until set.
kolcannon.
this Irish specialty is potatoes, and cabbage or kale, and green onion, leeks or chives, all mashed together with a good blob of butter and cream. British call it bubble-and-squeak.
Greens on sandwiches.
Anything leafy can be put on a sandwich with the meat, cheese, or what have you. Baby spinach or chard is very nice, any form of lettuce, arugula for the adventurous.
Lettuce wraps.
Chinese seasoned minced chicken, bean sprouts, shredded carrots, maybe noodles, ?? Put out leaves of butterhead lettuce and let family or guests roll their own.
Stuffed cabbage.
How many cultures have a variant on this? Usually rice and ground meat in the filling, though mushroom versions also exist. Cook the leaves of a Napa cabbage just until flexible, [cooking them in pickle juice is a marvelous variant] stuff and roll, arrange in a baking pan and drizzle with butter or top with tomato sauce, or ?? Bake until meat is done.
There will be more in a future WFD.