Spring Greens Recipes

 

Stir Fried Greens

Bunch of Swiss chard, shredded
thumb sized piece of fresh ginger

spring onions

soy sauce

a splosh of olive or rapeseed oil

Heat oil in saucepan, toss Swiss chard in with finely chopped ginger. Keep it moving for a minute or 2 then add a generous splosh of soy sauce and put the lid on for 2 mins. Stir, add chopped spring onions and serve. This could be a side vegetable dish or serve with chunks of fresh bread as a quick nutritious lunch. Leeks, broccoli or any other quick cooking veg can be added - whatever your preference.

 

Fried Kale with Garlic

Pan fry finely chopped fresh garlic in olive or rapeseed oil for 1 min, add shredded curly kale, stir for 2 or 3 mins then serve. It's tastier than it looks and full of vitamin C.

 

 

Creamy Spinach

40 g butter
2 cloves garlic crushed
75 g of white cheese grated

500 g spinach

nutmeg

50g double cream
Steam spinach for 2 or 3 mins till wilted, drain and squeeze excess water out. Melt butter on gentle heat and cook garlic till soft but not browned. Add spinach and nutmeg. Stir in grated cheese and cream and warm through for 1 minute before serving.

 

 

Egg, Spinach and Tomato Salad

4 hardboiled eggs

4 tbs rapeseed or olive oil
2 oz  crusty bread
2 tomatoes chopped
2oz sundried tomatoes plus 30ml oil from tomatoes

6 basil leaves

4 oz spinach

Heat oil in pan, tear bread into bite sized pieces and fry for 2 or 3 mins till golden. Mix tomatoes, basil and oil, season. Add eggs cut into quarters, spinach and fried bread. Toss and serve.

 

 

Stir Fried Greens with Honey and Mustard Dressing

Stir fry shredded greens, curly kale, broccoli florets, sliced leeks, spring onions, savoy cabbage, cabbage leaves shredded, whatever you have available in rapeseed or olive oil. Add pinenuts, roughly chopped hazelnuts or sunflower seeds. In another pan warm some honey, with rapeseed or olive oil. Add wholegrain mustard and a splash of balsamic vinegar. When this is mixed add it to stir fried greens, stir through and serve. A bowl of greens with fresh bread will make a healthy and satisfying lunch.

 

 

Customise these Recipes !

With all the above recipes feel free to experiment and swap one veg in for another or add more, just use what you have, bearing I mind that more dense vegetables will need to be thinly chopped or given longer to cook. In general kale and savoy cabbage are better for stir frying as they hold form better. Spinach and Swiss chard wilt when heated, become softer so better in dishes that are supposed to be soft and sludgey. Add nuts, seeds, ginger, garlic, chopped sun dried tomatoes, olives, herbs as you wish to vary the flavours.

 

 

Pasta Primavera

 

50g/2oz unsalted butter

1 garlic clove, crushed

200g/7oz asparagus, blanched, cut into bite-sized pieces

150g/5oz frozen fresh peas,

100g/3½oz broad beans,

100g/3½oz baby spinach

450g/1lb cooked tagliolini

1 lemon, juice and zest

large handful fresh spring herbs, including mint, basil, dill and parsley, chopped

salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve

25g/1oz hazelnuts, toasted and lightly crushed

parmesan shavings, or similar vegetarian hard cheese shavings

olive oil, for drizzling

Heat the butter in a pan, add the garlic and fry for one minute.

Add the asparagus, peas, soya beans and spinach and stir fry for 1-2 minutes, until the spinach has wilted slightly.

Add pasta & a little of the cooking water to pan, stir to combine

Stir in the lemon juice and zest and the herbs and season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

To serve, divide the pasta among four bowls, sprinkle over the hazelnuts and parmesan shavings and drizzle with olive oil.

Recipe taken from http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/