Need Winter Greens? Check Your Sidewalk!

It's the time of year when I'm longing for the appearance of spring greens like fiddleheads, nettles, miner's lettuce and the various sprouts of cruciferous vegetables known as raab or rabe. After all, on my dog walks through the neighborhood I'm seeing the first shoots of daffodils poking up through the dead leaves from last fall, and my daphne is already sporting pink heads of the blossoms that will be perfuming my front walk in short order.

Now my friend Katherine Deumling of Cook With What You Have has just reminded me that a great source of fresh greens is to be found by simply stepping out my front door. Better yet, they're free! Hairy bittercress, aka Cardamine hirsuta, is a member of the mustard family with the same peppery bite as its leafier cousins. The bane of gardeners and farmers alike, it can take over a raised bed in no time when its seed heads explode, giving it the moniker, or rather the much-cursed name, of pop weed.

A quick sweep around the yard revealed tons of the little buggers coming up in all the garden beds, with some more mature clumps like the ones above hanging out on some freshly turned flower beds.  To use in cooking, look for them in places you're sure haven't been sprayed with chemicals, and that are out of the reach of dogs who may have a yen to mark the spot for some reason. Bring them in, rinse them off and chop at will. Katherine recommends using them in deviled eggs, and says they're also terrific added to a salad, a sandwich or a quesadilla for a mustardy zing.

Lady in Waiting

While I'm waiting (and waiting and waiting) for my presumed tomatoes to ripen, I sometimes need to pump a little of that tomatoey goodness into a meal just to whet my appetite for the real flavor that is surely in my future. (It is, right?)

This dish was fortuitous convergence of a sale on cod in a nearby fish case, a half-pint of cherry tomatoes from a neighbor who was leaving on vacation (yes, I am not ashamed to say we accept donations of leftover food), a bulb of fennel and volunteer mustard greens a neighbor was cleaning out of her garden. Sounded like dinner to me!

Cod with Fennel, Cherry Tomatoes and Mustard Greens

2 Tbsp. olive oil plus additional for cooking fish
1/2 onion, cut in half and sliced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bulb fennel, cut in half and sliced
1/2 pint or more cherry tomatoes, halved
1 bunch mustard greens
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cod fillet, cut in 1 1/2" slices

Heat oil in oven-proof skillet. When it shimmers, add onions and garlic and sauté till translucent.* Add fennel and sauté till tender, then throw in cherry tomatoes and when they start to break down and release their juices, add greens and cook till wilted and tender. Remove tomato mixture to bowl and cover to keep warm.

Heat oven to 350°. Wipe out skillet and heat additional oil till very hot but not smoking. Add slices of fish and brown on one side. Flip over to other side, then add tomato mixture back into pan. Put pan in oven for 10 minutes or until fish is cooked through. To serve, spoon tomato mixture onto individual plates and top with slice of fish and a fennel frond.

* If one were so inclined, three anchovies could be added at this point and allowed to dissolve just before sautéing the fennel. Yum!

Farm Bulletin: Inspiration From a Customer

I have a sneaking suspicion that one of the prime reasons that Anthony and Carol Boutard of Ayers Creek Farm proffer their wares at the Hillsdale Farmers' Market is to cadge delicious recipes from customers like Rahul Vora, mentioned below. You may remember Rahul from a post on fenugreek earlier in the season and his delicious recipes for utilizing that under-appreciated herb.

Earlier in the summer we were talking with Rahul Vora and made some offhanded remark about cornmeal in Indian cooking. Rahul explained that cornmeal is greatly appreciated in the State of Punjab, and he told us about Sarson ka Saag and Makki ki Roti.

Makki ki Roti is a simple cornmeal bread, similar to the hoe cake of the southern US, served with mustard greens. Rahul tried our cornmeal, but it was not sticky enough to form the thin bread. The State of Punjab is roughly the same latitude as the Alabama but, unfortunately, at our latitude, about 10 degrees further north, we can't grow the softer types of corn suitable to making these simple breads. Like Rahul, we wound up having the Sarson ka Saag with polenta. A good solution.

Sarson ka Saag and Makki ki Roti.

Mustard greens, or Sarson, are popular in the Punjab, and the state's promotional photos often feature yellow fields of mustard in bloom. The Indian races of mustards are typically mild and fragrant. Frank Morton's Bau Sin, an Indian type mustard green, is the most delicate. The leaves are light green with a white rib, and greatly enjoyed by all manner of slugs. The field mustard that yields yellow mustard seeds is also very mild mannered. We will be putting together a mix of these mustards and other greens suitable for the saag and will try to include a fresh Aci Sivri pepper in as many bags as possible.

It is interesting to note the journey made by these two ingredients, the corn and the mustard. The corn traveled from the Americas through Europe and was adopted by people of the Punjab to make a simple cornbread. The mustards, spinach and turnips made their way from Central Asia through Europe to the Americas, and in the their new home they are also cooked until tender and fragrant. In both worlds, there evolved a meal of corn cake and mustard greens. But enough soft-headed contemplation. Here is Rahul's report:

"I made a delicious batch of saag last night with 2 bags of mixed greens I got from you, plus some spinach and some turnip greens. It was wonderfully fresh and fragrant. Unfortunately, the cornmeal was too coarse to make Makki Ki Roti, so I just made polenta and it was great with the saag.

"Here's my version of the saag, specially adapted for the Ayers Creek Saag Bag. - Rahul"

Sarson Ka Saag

1 bag mixed greens (about 1/2 lb.)
1/2 bunch spinach
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 Tbsp. minced ginger
1 green chili such as serrano
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. coriander powder
1/2 tsp. cumin powder
1 Tbsp. fine cornmeal
1 small tomato, chopped
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1/2 cup water
Juice of 1 lime or lemon
Butter

Cook the greens (stems and all) and the green chili with the water for about 5 mins. Add the spinach and continue to cook until all the greens are wilted and the stems are soft. Transfer the greens to a food processor and reserve the cooking liquid. Pulse the greens to chop coarsely.

Heat the oil in a medium-sized pan. Add the onions and saute for 2-3 mins. Add ginger, garlic, tomato, cornmeal and the spices. Cook, stirring gently to incorporate all the ingredients for a few minutes. Add the reserved cooking liquid and cook to incorporate. Add the chopped greens and salt to taste. Cook for about 5 mins, stirring and adding water if necessary to maintain a porridge-like consistency. Stir in the lime or lemon juice. Serve with polenta, warm corn tortillas, pita bread or naan and top with a dollop of butter.

Top photo of mustard greens by Karen Morton for Wild Garden Seed. Photo of Sarson ka Saag and Makki ki Roti from the Urdu Poetry Forum at HullaGulla.com.