In this culinary expedition, we'll embark on a journey to create three distinct yet harmonious dishes that celebrate the vibrant flavors of spring. First, we'll craft a delightful Braised Greens with Anchovies, Golden Raisins, and Pine Nuts, where tender greens are lovingly braised in a savory broth infused with the briny essence of anchovies, the sweetness of golden raisins, and the nutty crunch of pine nuts. Next, we'll transport you to a Mediterranean paradise with our vibrant recipe for Farro with Roasted Vegetables and Lemon-Herb Dressing, where fluffy farro grains mingle with an array of roasted vegetables, kissed by the warmth of the oven and drizzled with a tangy and aromatic lemon-herb dressing. Last but not least, we'll indulge in a sweet and savory treat with our Baked Brie with Apricot Preserves and Pistachios, where a creamy and decadent brie cheese is enveloped in a flaky pastry crust, complemented by the lusciousness of apricot preserves and the delicate crunch of pistachios. Get ready to tantalize your taste buds and embark on a culinary adventure that promises to awaken your senses and leave you craving for more.
Let's cook with our recipes!
KALE WITH GOLDEN RAISINS AND PINE NUTS
Mix lemony kale with a sweet-and-spicy pine nut mixture.
Provided by Food Network Kitchen
Time 35m
Yield 4
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- Heat the oil in a large skillet set over medium heat. Add the raisins, pine nuts, red pepper flakes and garlic. Cook, swirling the skillet occasionally, until the pine nuts are toasted, about 2 minutes. Remove the ingredients from the oil with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Add the kale stems to the skillet and cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the kale leaves in batches, stirring to wilt each batch. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 cup water, cover and cook, stirring once, until tender, 7 to 10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice and the reserved pine nut mixture. Adjust the seasoning with additional salt.
SOUTHERN BRAISED GREENS
New Orleans - home to beignets, gumbo and jambalaya - is not exactly a mecca of healthy eating. Lifelong resident Courtney Clark grew up in the Lower Ninth Ward watching friends and family cook dishes that were loaded with salt and fat, and then tragedy struck: By age 35, she had lost her mom and her husband to heart disease. She was desperate to save others from a similar fate. Enter Backyard Gardeners Network, a nonprofit that maintains community gardens and teaches locals how to think differently about their diets. Courtney joined the team five years ago, and now she runs a 10-week course called Food as Medicine. In the class she teaches participants how to read nutrition labels, eat more plant-based foods and adjust their cooking (like making their own low-sodium Creole seasoning). Many of her students have lost weight, lessened or stopped medications and shifted their way of eating entirely. "It's hard trying to change the minds of people who have been cooking one way for all of their lives," she admits. "But to hear a lady in her late 60s say, 'This is the first time I'm tasting an avocado, and I love it,'...that's what I live for. We're gathering people around good, fresh food that's not going to give them a heart attack," she says. Here's Courtney's healthy take on a classic Southern side.
Provided by Food Network
Categories side-dish
Time 45m
Yield 6 to 8 servings
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- Remove the large stems from the collard greens, mustard greens and kale and cut the leaves into bite-size pieces.
- Heat the coconut oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add all the onions and cook until softened and translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute, or until softened.
- Add the stock, Creole seasoning, curry powder, paprika and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Start adding the greens in batches, letting them wilt slightly before adding more; it may take about 10 minutes to get all the greens to fit. Cover and simmer, stirring halfway through, until the greens are wilted and tender, about 25 minutes. Season with salt, if desired.
WILTED ESCAROLE WITH PINE NUTS AND RAISINS
Steps:
- Coat a large saute pan with olive oil and toss in the garlic and crushed red pepper. Bring the pan to a medium-high heat. When the garlic is golden and very aromatic, remove it from the pan and ditch it.
- Add the pine nuts, raisins, vinegar and 2 tablespoons water to the pan. Bring the liquid to a boil, lower the heat and toss in the escarole. Toss the escarole to coat with the oil and vinegar mixture and season with salt. Remove the pan from the heat and cover for 1 minute.
- Remove the lid from the pan, toss again and taste. Adjust the seasonings, if needed.
SPINACH WITH PINE NUTS AND RAISINS
A nice side for winter meat entrees, this bright and flavorful dish is a delicious way to get your greens onto any table. The simple list of ingredients makes it easy to prepare. -Gretchen Whelan, San Francisco, California
Provided by Taste of Home
Categories Side Dishes
Time 35m
Yield 6 servings.
Number Of Ingredients 7
Steps:
- Place raisins in a small bowl. Cover with boiling water; let stand for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside., In a Dutch oven, cook pine nuts and garlic in oil over medium heat for 2 minutes. Stir in raisins; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in the spinach, salt and pepper; cook just until tender, 4-5 minutes. Serve with a slotted spoon.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 171 calories, Fat 13g fat (2g saturated fat), Cholesterol 0 cholesterol, Sodium 175mg sodium, Carbohydrate 11g carbohydrate (6g sugars, Fiber 3g fiber), Protein 5g protein. Diabetic Exchanges
PASTA WITH SARDINES AND FENNEL
This traditional Sicilian dish makes a festive main course, especially when served from a giant platter. Sweet and savory flavors mingle beautifully here, with currants, raisins, saffron and pine nuts. Aromatic wild fennel fronds and fresh sardines are preferred, but even if made with cultivated fennel and canned sardines, this is a magnificent dish.
Provided by David Tanis
Categories pastas, main course
Time 1h
Yield 6 servings
Number Of Ingredients 21
Steps:
- In a small skillet, toast bread crumbs in 2 tablespoons olive oil until golden. Season with salt and pepper and a pinch of sugar. Set aside.
- Simmer the fennel fronds in a large pot of salted water until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove and spread out on a platter to cool. Do not discard cooking water. When fronds are cool, chop finely with a large knife (or pulse in a food processor with a little of the cooking water).
- Put raisins and currants in a bowl and cover with the white wine and 1/2 cup hot fennel-cooking water. Add crumbled saffron and let ingredients steep together for 10 minutes.
- In a large skillet, stew the onions and diced fennel in 6 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat until softened, about 10 minutes. Season generously with salt and pepper. Add anchovies, ground fennel and coriander seeds, garlic and red pepper flakes and cook for 2 minutes more. Stir in reserved fennel fronds. Add the raisin mixture and its liquid and bring to a simmer.
- Season the fresh sardine fillets with salt and pepper and lay them on top of the onion mixture. Put a lid on the pan and turn off the heat for about 5 minutes, so sardines cook through and are just done. Stir to distribute chunks of fish throughout mixture. (If using canned sardines, skip this step and simply stir them in.)
- Boil the bucatini in the fennel cooking water (add more water to the pot if necessary). Cook until noodles are on the firm side of al dente, then drain, reserving 1 cup of pasta water. Add pasta to pan with onion-sardine mixture, sprinkle pasta lightly with salt and gently toss together, adding a little pasta water to keep everything well moistened. Taste and correct seasoning; it should be well seasoned.
- Transfer to a large platter or wide pasta bowl. Sprinkle with bread crumbs, pine nuts and parsley. Garnish with lemon wedges. Add a drizzle of olive oil, if desired.
Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 674, UnsaturatedFat 11 grams, Carbohydrate 101 grams, Fat 15 grams, Fiber 8 grams, Protein 32 grams, SaturatedFat 3 grams, Sodium 846 milligrams, Sugar 24 grams
BRAISED GREENS
Chicken stock, white wine and red pepper flakes add flavor to this side dish that can be made with whatever hearty green is in season.
Provided by Marian Burros
Categories weekday, side dish
Time 15m
Yield 2 servings
Number Of Ingredients 6
Steps:
- Wash the greens and remove tough stems. Cut or break greens into 2-inch lengths.
- Heat a nonstick pan over high heat; reduce heat to medium-high, add the oil and sauté the garlic for 30 seconds. Add the greens, and sauté for 1 minute.
- Stir in the stock, Sherry and hot pepper flakes; cover, and cook 8 to 10 minutes, until greens are soft.
Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 105, UnsaturatedFat 3 grams, Carbohydrate 12 grams, Fat 4 grams, Fiber 3 grams, Protein 6 grams, SaturatedFat 1 gram, Sodium 535 milligrams, Sugar 4 grams
BEET GREENS WITH RAISINS AND PINE NUTS
From 'Vegetarian' by Linda Fraser with only a few small changes. Baby spinach or Swiss chard can be used instead of beet greens. Reminder: beet greens and Swiss chard require a little longer cooking time than baby spinach. For a less aggressive garlic presence, use mildly-flavored garlic whistles/scapes. Final comment: I thought the recipe was lacking something to take the dish to the next level. What pairs well with beets/beet greens? Ah, allspice!
Provided by COOKGIRl
Categories Greens
Time 15m
Yield 4 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- Note: you don't need to remove the beet green stalks unless they are woody and/or thick.
- Place the raisins in a small heat proof bowl. Pour boiling water over the raisins and let soak for 10 minutes. Drain.
- Meanwhile, cut the bread slice up into small cubes. (Directions say to discard the crust but I don't do that because I consider it a waste).
- Heat up 2 tablespoons of the olive oil on medium heat and saute the bread cubes until golden. Drain.
- Heat the remaining olive oil in the pan and saute the pine nuts until they begin to turn golden color.
- Add the beet greens, allspice and garlic.
- Cook quickly (lower heat if necessary to avoid burning) and cook just until beet greens start to wilt.
- Stir in the drained raisins and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Transfer the greens to a serving platter.
- Sprinkle with the croutons and serve hot.
Tips:
- Prep your greens: Before cooking, clean and trim your greens thoroughly. Remove any tough stems or wilted leaves to ensure the best texture and flavor.
- Choose the right pot: Use a large pot or Dutch oven that can comfortably hold all the greens without overcrowding. This will allow them to cook evenly and prevent them from becoming mushy.
- Don't overcrowd the pot: If you have a lot of greens, cook them in batches to avoid overcrowding the pot. Overcrowding can prevent the greens from cooking evenly and can make them soggy.
- Use a flavorful cooking liquid: The cooking liquid adds flavor to the greens, so choose one that you enjoy. Chicken broth, vegetable broth, or water are all good options. You can also add a splash of white wine or apple cider vinegar for a bit of tang.
- Season the greens: Don't forget to season the greens with salt and pepper, or other spices like garlic powder, onion powder, or paprika. This will help to enhance their flavor.
- Cook the greens until tender: The cooking time will vary depending on the type of greens you are using. Collard greens and kale will take longer to cook than spinach or arugula. Cook the greens until they are tender but still have a bit of a bite to them.
- Add the finishing touches: Once the greens are cooked, you can add additional ingredients to enhance their flavor. Anchovies, golden raisins, pine nuts, and lemon zest are all delicious additions.
Conclusion:
Braised greens are a delicious and versatile side dish that can be enjoyed with a variety of meals. They are packed with nutrients and can be made with a variety of different ingredients. With a little planning and preparation, you can easily make a delicious and healthy dish that the whole family will enjoy.
Are you curently on diet or you just want to control your food's nutritions, ingredients? We will help you find recipes by cooking method, nutrition, ingredients...
Check it out »
You'll also love