Luscious Lemon Greens

I served these greens to friends on Saturday night, along with a zucchini casserole and Beans with Fresh Sage.

I don't think people eat enough green leafy vegetables, so I make sure to serve them to guests. Greens are a great source of absorbable minerals and calcium, and taste far better than the daily calcium pill so many people inflict on themselves. (Read my article Strong Bones for other ways to get calcium into your bones.)

In this recipe, I cook the greens ahead, and then reheat them with the spicy lemon oil just before serving. Cooking greens in oil helps to break down the cell walls to make the bioflavanoids more available to our body. The quick blanching does remove some nutrients from the greens. My grandmother, who was a health-conscious vegetarian before I was born, saved her vegetable water in a container in the fridge and drank it as a vegetable cocktail or added it to soups.

I used dinosaur kale on Saturday, one of my favorites. I left the stems in to add texture, but the dish will be silkier if you leave them out. I also added some beet greens I had in the fridge. You can use any greens you have on hand. I recommend a base of chard if you are not used to greens or if you are feeding children, because it gets very soft and sweet when cooked.

(You could probably use frozen spinach in this recipe - thaw it and squeeze out the moisture.)

The lemon oil makes enough for 2 lbs of greens. It lasts a few days in the fridge, and is good in salad dressings or poured over steamed vegetables. (I used it last night to sauté some peppers, tomatoes and green beans from our garden.)

Luscious Lemon Greens
1/2 cup olive oil
zest of 1 lemon (not grated -- use a zester that makes thin strips of peel)
3/4 tsp whole cumin seeds
1/2 tsp crushed red chile flakes

Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and warm over low heat until the lemon zest curls and sizzles, 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat and let steep at least one hour. Strain and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

1 lb mixed leafy greens
salt
1 tbsp olive oil
1 whole clove garlic, peeled
1/4 cup spicy lemon oil (above recipe)

Bring a large pot of lightly-salted water to the boil.

Wash the greens and remove stems if desired. Cook one variety at a time in the boiling water until bright green, 2-7 minutes, then remove with tongs to a strainer to drain and cool.

When the greens are cool enough to handle, squeeze out all the liquid and then chop them finely. They can rest for a couple of hours at this point.

Warm olive oil and garlic over medium-low heat until you can smell the garlic, 3-5 minutes. Add the chopped greens and cook, stirring, until no liquid remains in the skillet, 3-4 minutes. Add spicy lemon oil 1 tbsp at a time and cook, stirring, until each tablespoon is absorbed. Continue cooking until greens are very soft, about 5-10 minutes.

Season to taste with salt. Discard the garlic clove, and serve immediately.

Serves 4-6.