'Eat your greens too, darling one,' I suggest to my Peter in a gentle, mother hen fashion. Sometimes he forgets about them and then they've gone cold, which seems to give him the perfect excuse to push them to the side of the plate.
But I dislike that kind of waste and, besides, eating plenty of vegies not only contributes to good health, but also protects against diseases and helps maintain a healthy weight. Yaddah, yaddah, yaddah.
Call me crazy, I've always eaten my vegetables first. Oh, except for my mum's green bean stew or zöldbabfőzelék, which she would nag me to eat when I was a child. I'm sounding like my mother now, I know! Always on the look out for delicious new vegetable dishes, I turned to Mr Ottolenghi for a suitable recipe and adapted his green bean salad with mustard seeds and tarragon, which appears in his gorgeous book, Plenty. My Peter says 'NO' to mustard in any shape or form, so I've omitted the mustard seeds. However, if you wish to add them, fry them in a little oil and when they begin to pop, pour the oil over the greens. To be perfectly honest, I've suggested that a dressing of lemon juice and olive oil might be optional, as this platter of greens is perfectly delicious with it, too. But I'll leave it to your discretion and taste. BEANS AND PEAS WITH BABY CHARD AND SPINACH 200g green beans, topped and tailed 50g snow peas, topped and tailed 85g peas, fresh or frozen a bowl of iced water (to chill the greens after cooking) 1 cup of baby chard leaves 1 cup of baby spinach leaves baby coriander, parsley sprigs or tarragon sprigs ½ small red onion or French eschalot, thinly sliced sea salt (to dress the onion) black sesame seeds zest of ½ a lemon, finely chopped lemon juice, to dress, optional extra virgin olive oil, to dress, optional sea salt and black pepper, to season Blanch the green beans in a saucepan of boiling water for just 3-4 minutes; at the last minute add the snow peas and the frozen or fresh peas. Drain immediately and plunge the greens into the bowl of iced water. This will stop them from cooking further and will also keep them bright and fresh. Drain in a colander, and then pat them dry with paper towelling. Meanwhile, rinse the baby chard and spinach leaves. Drain in a colander, and then gently pat them dry with paper towelling. Sprinkle the thinly sliced red onion or eschalot with a little sea salt and allow it to sit for a few minutes. Then rinse the eschalot slices with cold water, drain and pat dry. Arrange the greens in layers on a serving platter, scattering them artistically. Sprinkle with the baby coriander, parsley and or tarragon sprigs, then the softened onion/eschalot slices, followed by the black sesame seeds and lemon zest. Season to taste with sea salt and black pepper. If you choose to dress the salad, combine the lemon juice with some extra virgin olive oil and dress immediately before serving. Serves 4-6.
Tell me dear readers, do you eat your greens first, as I do? And do you need to be reminded?
23 Comments
25/9/2015 02:03:10 am
I always eat my vegetables first, unless we are out at a restaurant, and then I eat my protein first :)
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Lizzy
25/9/2015 02:04:16 am
A girl after my own heart, Tandy... although I eat my vegies even at a restaurant! xx
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Lizzy the plate of greens look so fresh and yummy. I am about to retire for the night and oh this made me so hungry! I love fresh vegetables. But I browse and graze. A bit from here and a bit from there. And for the last bite I have a little bit of everything. :D
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Lizzy
25/9/2015 02:50:54 am
Ah, another lady who loves her greens xx Good night lovely. : )
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25/9/2015 06:28:21 am
I definitely eat my vegetables first. I enjoy them and I want to make sure that I don't get too full and then miss out on them!
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Lizzy
25/9/2015 11:15:58 pm
Great to hear it, Lorraine... so healthy too x
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Lizzy
25/9/2015 11:15:34 pm
Oh Amanda, so so true! x
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Lizzy
27/9/2015 01:06:29 am
Mandy, this is perfect for a vegetarian, but also a meat eater too! Have a lovely weekend xxx
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Lizzy
27/9/2015 01:07:00 am
David, thanks so much. I love the simplicity and style of YO's recipes.
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27/9/2015 03:52:01 pm
I just love greens - we always have loads in the garden that I cook similar to this but often add some fetta or shaved parmesan and chilli at the end...mmmmmmm
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27/9/2015 06:21:15 pm
i love completely green dishes like this. roll on warmer weather so we can enjoy salads like this!
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28/9/2015 05:19:04 am
I do love Plenty, so much inspiration there Liz. I usually eat my veggies first too, how funny I've never thought about it before :)
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28/9/2015 06:04:31 pm
Very pretty, Lizzy. I always eat my greens first too. I'll have mine with the mustard seeds xx
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29/9/2015 03:15:40 am
I love vegetables, these look very pretty and so good for you. I eat my protein & veg together as I enjoy them both. GG
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29/9/2015 10:09:19 am
I always eat my veg first, greens ahead of the other veg to boot. What a lovely way to dress and serve some gorgeous spring produce. We will she to wait a year for that now!
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30/9/2015 12:00:26 am
The moment I saw those delicious greens I craved them! I haven't had enough fresh greens in my life lately.
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30/9/2015 08:17:09 am
With a plate of greens like that, who could resist? Those look delicious.
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2/10/2015 06:12:04 am
Perfect spring dish Liz, and on eating our veg I’m with Zsuzsa, I like to eat a little bit of each thing on the plate and finish with even amounts! :)
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9/10/2015 01:47:44 am
What a pretty dish, and perfect for my new found dietary requirements. Making for sure. :) I used to eat all my greens first, now I find I rather enjoy them, so often save them for last, or try include in every mouthful.
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Cooking and writing have been a lifelong passion. Join me as I share with you my favourite recipes; postcards and morsels from my travels; conversations with cookery writers and chefs; and news on food, cookbooks and cooking. - Liz Posmyk
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