So That's What Collard Greens Look Like!

With much anticipation, I picked up the 2nd installment of produce from our Farm today.  Our box contained red leaf lettuce, spring onions, cherries, strawberries, a handful of asparagus, a cute little cilantro plant, and a big bunch of collard greens.  That's a picture of them on the left there.  Unpacking them, I realized I have never seen uncooked collard greens before.  They look like weeds I have tossed out while cleaning out our flower beds.  And after cleaning them (tossing out the stems), there is nothing left but a pile of unimpressive-looking leaves. 

Good news is I found a recipe online that turned those piles of leaves into a tasty, traditional Southern dish:  Collards with Bacon (Canadian bacon, to be exact).   In my opinion, this recipe tasted better than last week's kale.  But my husband thought the kale was more tasty.  As for my boys, it was a toss-up for them.  In case you have been looking for a nice and relatively quick-cooking recipe for collard greens, here goes:

Short-Cut Collards

1 and 1/4 lbs. collard greens, stems removed and cut into 1/2-inch strips
1T. Water
2 slices Canadian bacon
1 T. Olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 T. cider vinegar
1 T. maple syrup
dash of pepper flakes
3/4 cup chicken broth
salt, to taste

Place greens in a large microwave safe bowl with water and cover tightly.  Microwave on high for 5 minutes.  In the meantime, preheat large skillet and cook bacon 2 minutes on each side.  Remove and chop up.  Add oil and onion to pan and cook until soft.  Add collard greens, vinegar, maple syrup, red pepper flakes, and broth.  Bring to a simmer.  Cook covered for 30 minutes or until tender.  Add chopped bacon and season with salt.   Serves 4

I'm not sure how many more weeks of greens we have to look forward to, but I have to say that I have enjoyed these first 2 more than I expected to.  Until next time, happy and healthy eating!