Spring greens

I've been chatting a bit lately, on this blog, on the arrival of spring, and the beginning of the much heralded crops of spring. And I've been getting stuff at the market that, for a cook is exciting. I found the first nettles of the year ( I will confess to being a snob and loving their Italian name, "ortica"), and also, wild mustard greens. Spinach is here, as are the wintered over greens, the ramps, the baby garlic that I love so much. Greens and spring, spring and greens. Oh, and I forgot dandelion greens as well.

One of the things that characterizes all of these early vegetables, is their sharpness. And that is something that a cook has to keep in mind. These are young plants. And as I understand the biology, what happens is they produce all of their sharper components, early in their life cycle, and they exhaust them as they get more mature, as they grow bigger , etc (some of you are thinking very piggy thoughts. SHAME ON YOU. I'm the only one who's allowed to do that). Bite into a leaf of wild mustard and first you'll taste "dark green." Then you'll get sharpness, and know right away that you're eating mustard. You'll get the same thing with sorrel, one of my favorite greens. Sorrel is filled with oxalic acid, which is the same component of rhubarb that makes it so tart. So, bite into a leaf of sorrel, and it won't surprise you that it's sometimes called "lemon plant" or "vinegar bush" (I do NOT make this stuff up folks. Deal with it). Even baby spinach is sharper than the more adult plants. Nettles, when they're young, haven't developed their "nettles" yet, but they have a dark, "good for you" kind of taste that many people just don't care for. The other thing about them is that, when you cook them, if they are a bit old, they will turn your water dark black. This is scary, but it's nothing to worry about. It's just a dye leaching out. Dandelion greens are known for their bitterness, and I'd best warn you ahead of time: I forget the French word, but they are called "piss plant" in France, because dandelion is a natural diuretic. If you eat them in moderation, you'll never notice the difference. Eat a large dandelion salad, and you will. Trust me on this.

So, what do you do with all of these greens? Well, that's why Annalena is here, kids. I want you to try them. I want you to try them ALL. And I want to advise you, early on, that some of them will be your favorites, and it is very possible that you will not like some of them at all. And it is quite likely that you will like some of them one way, and not another way. For example, I LOVE nettles when they are mixed with cheese. Or in a cream sauce. Plain boiled nettles turn me off. But conversely, if I have my mustard greens with anything other than olive oil, I'm not eating them. So you DO have to play around some. I would like to offer some general guidelines.

Remember what I said about that sharpness? Well, cooking is going to deaden it. How you cook the greens will determine how much. If you like the sharpness, what you should plan on is a simple sautee. Wash the greens (and you MUST do this, because in many cases, these plants have been gathered wild, they ARE dirty, and you need to at least get them clean). Shake them to get off the water, and then cut them into bite sized pieces. You may have to use your judgement here, on some of them. Take a look at the stems. Are they woody? If they are, you aren't going to be able to eat them, and toss them. If the stems turn soft at some point, use the soft part, and ditch the rest. I really can't tell you at what "point" on a plant this happens, because it varies. You have to eyeball it, but it shouldn't take long.

Once you've got the greens washed and chopped or cut, all you need to do is heat up some oil and add them. Stir them around and watch them wilt (this is good to remember. Always buy more greens than you think you'll need, because they shrink so much when they cook). Add some salt, and you're done. That's all you need to do. This will give you a sharper tasting green, probably best served against something else, rather than by itself. And again, you need to experiment. I love putting mustard greens up against pork, or like I say, nettles with a white cheese. Spinach can be used just about anywhere. I love the sharpness of dandelion greens and sorrel so much that I almost never serve them any other way but raw, in a salad. But again, our friend pork comes in to play here. You know the classic "dandelion greens with lardons" salad, yes? Well, if you don't want to deal with lardons, you can use pancetta, you can use bacon, you can use gunaciale if you have it, anything you want. Sorrel's lemony taste just seems to call out to me "use nuts." So I make salads of it where I add pistachios, or walnuts, and if I have some of that particular oil around, that's the basis of my dressing.

But what about a milder approach? Well, in this one, you need to do two things. First, boil those greens in salted water. Mustard greens will take longer. Nettles will collapse almost immediately. If you do cook dandelions, that is true for them as well, as it is for sorrel. (I really think you'll be sorry if you cook the sorrel. One thing that is REALLY good with it, however, is if you make a bland soup, like a potato soup, and add the sorrel at the end. Wakes it up. Serve it cold). After those greens are cooked, drain them, and do the same thing that you did for the sharper taste: olive oil and salt in a frying pan. When I do the greens this way, I find a bit of hot red pepper flakes really helps them taste superlative, but that's a judgement call (as are all decisions in the kitchen, when you get right down to it).

And let me make a final recommendation about these greens: you're going to be buying them from a farmer, and there are also going to be other people at the stands, buying them. Try not to be timid. Ask. Farmers, if asked politely, will always tell you what the best ways are to cook their produce. Remember, they want you to come back. And in NY, if someone is cooking with a new, interesting vegetable, you're going to make an interesting acquaintance. I cannot tell you how many times I have exchanged recipes with people, as we met over some good greens. You do the same. And if you mention my blog, and you're talking to me, I'll 'fess up.