Sauteed Collards with Pomegranate
January 20th, 2011 · No Comments · Posted in garden, Recipes
Collard greens are an amazing thing. Despite blasts of arctic air, snow and freezing rain, the keep on ticking. Here you see what our look like this morning with the temperature around 34 degrees. Kale and certain types of mustard greens will do the same thing. If it gets really cold, they wilt and fall to the ground. But don’t count them out. As soon as the temperature warms up a little, they bounce right back.
There is such a thing as greens that are old and past the prime, however. Don’t expect them to make a miracle recovery. In our part of the country, if you want greens that last through the winter, you need to plant them around the beginning of October. Our fall greens–the ones we planted in late August–are pretty much done.
Except for these collards. I’d say they have a few miles to go. And when I spotted them from the front stoop this morning, I wanted a closer look to see if they might still be edible. Recently for a catering client we made a wonderful vegetarian entree dish of sauteed portobello mushrooms and wilted greens, dressed with a reduction of pomegranate and balsamic vinegar. I never would have thought collard greens would work in this–we usually boil them for a long time–but I was surprised.
The preparation is not at all difficult. Simply slice the mushrooms into strips and sautee these in butter or extra virgin olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Separately, wilt some greens–collards, kale, tat soi, or the like–with a bit of butter or oil and a splash of vegetable broth or water. Toss the mushrooms and greens together and season with pomegranate molasses and balsamic vinegar. Allow the juices to reduce a bit, then serve, garnishing the dish with pomegranate seeds.
If you can’t find pomegranate molasses (I get it at a Middle Eastern grocery), puree some pomegranate seeds in a blender, then pass the mix through a sieve.
We love it when our garden work from September rewards us in January.
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