Italian Dandelion Greens While the wild stuff is equally at home in your lawns or gardens, the dandelion greens in this week’s share are the cultivated cousin, better suited for the salad bowl or sauté pan. To prepare, remove any tough stems. Use the greens with their tender ribs as any other bitter cooking or salad greens. Here are two recipes to get you started:
Tabasco-Fueled Field Goal Greens
Although I was heard bemoaning the fact that it is too soon for Monday Night Football to be on TV, it did inspire me to include this Superbowl dinner recipe. Be sure to rinse the greens well to remove dirt and sand, and cook them with a little water still clinging to the leaves.
1 pound cooking greens, coarsely chopped
1/3 pound sliced bacon or pancetta
1/2 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
Salt, to taste
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Tabasco or other hot pepper sauce, or amount to taste
In a large skillet, fry the bacon until crisp. Remove the slices to drain. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the drippings. Over medium heat, sauté the onion and the garlic in the drippings until soft. Add enough greens to fill the pan and sprinkle with salt. As the greens cook down, add the rest of the greens to the pan. Partially cover and cook on medium heat until tender (about 15 minutes for collards, less than 5 minutes for spinach). Stir the greens occasionally as they cook. Season to taste with salt. Crumble the bacon and stir it into the greens. Stir in the lemon juice and Tabasco to taste. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Serves 4 By Kate Heyhoe
Dandelion Salad With Warm Hazelnut Vinaigrette
2 large bunches dandelion greens (about 2 pounds)
1/4 cup hazelnuts
3 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Optional toppings:
red onion and shaved Parmesan
Discard tough stems from greens. Cut top 5 inches from greens and reserve. Cut remaining greens into 3/4-inch slices. Transfer all greens to a large serving bowl. Coarsely chop nuts and finely chop garlic. In a small heavy skillet cook garlic and nuts in oil over moderate heat, stirring, until garlic is golden. Stir in vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Pour hot vinaigrette over greens and toss to combine.
Serves 6. from www.epicurious.com, Gourmet, April 1999
I’ve got Mail!
Marah at the Riverdale site e-mails… I really like these two salad dressings and look forward to all the lettuce in our shares. Hope you like these recipes, too. Happy salad eating :)
Garlic & Cheese Dressing
Marah also writes: This dressing from Joy of Cooking is
great for romaine but I use it on everything. It is enough for
two small heads of romaine or a big bowl of mixed greens. Thinly
sliced red onion also makes a nice addition.
Whisk together:
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbs. grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
2 Tbs. chicken or veg. stock
salt and ground pepper
Add in a slow stream:
1/4 cup of olive oil
Gerri Hirshey's Dressing Makes about 1 ¼ cups
Combine in a bowl of a mini food processor or shake in a glass jar with a tight fitting lid:
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
Add:
1 tbs. Worcestershire sauce
or 1 tbs. dill pickle juice
or smashed green olives
from “O Magazine”
