Three Greens Gratin

I’m always on the lookout for recipes to help people who struggle to keep up with all the greens in the early spring. This recipe peaked my interest and I thought some of you might find it useful. It is from Martha Rose Schulman of the New York Times Cooking Blog. She has a lot of interesting recipes for the health conscious veggie lover.

The recipe calls for a total of three pounds of greens and one pound of cabbage, so if you like this recipe you will never have too many greens again!

You could, if you think there are going to be too many greens to eat in one week, blanch and freeze the extras. Then once you have accumulated 3 pounds in the freezer, you can pull them out and make this recipe.

I think you can also substitute pretty easily for whatever greens and other vegetables are in season. For example, when I made this recipe I substituted grated root vegetables for some of the greens, since it was not peak greens season.

All and all I think it was a hit. It is hearty enough to serve as the main but is also good as a side.

 

Three Greens Gratin

Ingredients

  • 2 generous bunches Swiss chard about 2 to 2 1/4 pounds, stemmed and washed in 2 changes of water
  • Salt to taste
  • 1 pound beet greens or spinach stemmed and washed in 2 changes of water
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus additional for oiling baking dish
  • 1 onion chopped
  • ½ pound leeks 1 large or 2 smaller, white and light green parts only, cleaned and chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves chopped
  • 1 pound cabbage about 1/2 medium, cored and chopped
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 cup cooked rice or farro
  • Nutmeg
  • Freshly ground pepper
  • 2 ounces Gruyère grated (1/2 cup)
  • 1 ounce Parmesan grated (1/4 cup)
  • ¼ cup breadcrumbs optional

Instructions

  1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil while you stem and wash the greens. When the water comes to a boil salt generously and add chard. Blanch for 1 minute, until just wilted, and using a skimmer or a slotted spoon, transfer to a bowl of cold water. Drain and squeeze out excess water, taking the chard up by the handful. Chop medium-fine and set aside. You should have about 2 cups.
  2. Bring the water back to a boil and blanch beet greens for 1 minute; if using spinach, blanch for 20 seconds only. Transfer to a bowl of cold water, drain and squeeze out excess water. Chop medium-fine. You should have about 1 cup (less for spinach).
  3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Oil a 2-quart baking dish with olive oil.
  4. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat in a large, heavy skillet and add onion. Cook, stirring often, until tender, about 5 minutes, and add leeks. Cook, stirring, until leeks begin to soften, 2 to 3 minutes, and add garlic and a generous pinch of salt. Cook, stirring, until garlic is fragrant, 30 seconds to a minute, and add cabbage and thyme. Cook, stirring often, until cabbage collapses in pan, about 5 minutes, and add another generous pinch of salt.
  5. Continue to cook the mixture until the cabbage is tender, sweet, and beginning to color, about 10 minutes. Stir in chopped blanched greens and season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir together for about a minute and remove from the heat.
  6. Beat eggs in a large bowl and add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in rice or farro, vegetable mixture and cheeses. Scrape into prepared baking dish. If using breadcrumbs, toss with remaining tablespoon olive oil and sprinkle over the top. If not using breadcrumbs drizzle remaining oil over the top.
  7. Bake 40 to 45 minutes, until top is lightly browned. Remove from heat and allow to sit for at least 10 minutes before serving. Serve hot, warm or room temperature.

Recipe Notes

Advance preparation: The blanched greens will keep for 3 or 4 days in the refrigerator. The filling can be made through Step 4 a day or 2 ahead. The gratin will keep in the refrigerator for 3 or 4 days and can be frozen.