Greens Greens and More Greens

This year I joined a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).  Over the weekend we took a farm tour and our family got to see where a portion of our veggies will be coming from.  My favorite part of the CSA is going on Thursday to pick up my veggies and getting to use veggies that I may not normally buy on a regular basis such as Kohlrabi.  Hoping to feature Kohlrabi on a future post.
It is early in the season so right now many greens are popping up.  A surprise for many is that even the leaves on beets, radishes and broccoli are edible and quite nutritious so you may want to think twice before chopping them off and throwing them out.  Unfortunately, one of the biggest complaints that I hear from people is that they are not sure what to do with these greens many of which can often be bitter tasting.  If you find it to be bitter, I recommend blanching them (place them in boiling water for 1-2 minutes and then rinsing them) before preparing them.  Below is a recipe that uses broccoli rabe but can be substituted with any other green and can even be a combination of greens such as beet greens, mustard greens, tatsoi the list can go on and on.  This can be served as a main dish (just double it) or it can be served as a hearty side.

Ingredients:

• Two bunches of Brocoli Rabe
• 3 cloves of garlic minced
• 1 can of organic navy or other white bean rinsed and drained
• 3 tbsp of chopped green or kalmata olives optional
• dash of red pepper flakes
• 1 tbsp of olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Blanche the greens in boiling water for 1-2 minutes, remove, rinse in cold water and chopped coarsely.  Place in large pan with beans garlic and olives with 3 tbsp of water.  Place lid on top and steam for 8-10 minutes.  Remove lid allowing any remaining water to evaporate.  Add remaining ingredients and toss.