Sauteed Collard Greens

Collard Greens. My boys' faces crinkle up into painful expressions when I make collard greens. They see all the green happening and react with fear, thinking they will have to eat them. I get a kick out of watching their panic rise. But luckily for them, I haven't made them try them yet. Mostly because both my kids are pretty good vegetable eaters. 
I can get them to eat broccoli, corn, peas, carrots and salad pretty easily without too much of a fight. My nine year old will even eat Brussels sprouts, cucumbers and cabbage. That's a WIN in any parenting playbook, if you ask me!  So I'm not punishing myself trying to get them to eat collards. But I so wish they would! Because these are absolutely delicious! And just like my kids aversion to these beautiful vegetables, I suspect many adults, my hubby included, react the same when confronted with greens. Well, the good news is that I have the best recipe for collard greens. They are blanched at first to seal in their green color and then quick sauteed with aromatics and chicken stock that layer flavor into the tender leaves. You will never want them any other way. Enjoy!

PS. I love to eat them for breakfast when I have leftovers. Top them with an over-easy egg and some feta cheese...the perfect breakfast!  

Sauteed Collard Greens

(adapted recipe from Teri Appleton Villanueva)
Serves 6

 2-3 lbs Collard greens, stemmed and chopped
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt

Bring 2 quarts of water to boil in a large dutch oven. Add salt and greens and stir until wilted. Cover and cook until greens are tender about 7 minutes. Drain in colander and place colander into ice water to shock the greens and stop the cooking process. Squeeze greens dry using a potato ricer. Roughly chop greens and set aside.

3 Tbsp bacon fat (or olive oil)
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced.
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1 cup chicken (or vegetable) broth
salt and pepper
1 1/2 T apple cider vinegar

In a large saute pan, heat bacon fat (or olive oil) over medium heat and saute the red bell pepper until softened, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and pepper flakes and cook until garlic starts to sizzle. Add greens and saute to coat with oil. Add 1/2 cup stock, cover and cook over med-high heat, adding more stock during the cooking process if necessary, until greens are tender and juicy and most of the stock has been absorbed, about 5 minutes. Season well with salt, pepper and vinegar to taste. 

Other recipes to try:

Brussels Sprouts w/Bacon Dressing

Kale w/Onions and Balsamic Butter

Shakshuka