Nested Greens with Eggs

I am always on the lookout for new ways to cook greens. I make some sort of greens at least once, if not twice a week for their nutritional benefits, but mostly because I like their taste - bitter or sweet, no matter. Typically, I simply saute them in a bit of olive oil and garlic. Sometimes I add cut up potatoes to help balance the bitter taste of some greens. They are also great added to soups - bean, lentil, vegetable, in particular. So, when I found this twist (literally) on basic sauteed greens I had to try it.

The recipe comes from a beautiful coffee table-style book I bought many years ago called Tuscany The Beautiful Cookbook written by Lorenza de' Medici. Yes, you guessed it, a decedent of those de' Medicis. I was intrigued first by the presentation of individual nests of goodness. Then, by the ingredients themselves, eggs baked within the simply prepared greens. What more do you need for a simple, yet nutritious and inexpensive lunch or light dinner entree.

I took the liberty of embellishing the recipe a bit for fear as printed it would be too bland.  To spice up the greens I added some minced garlic and a dash of pepperoncini flakes. Yes, I too was surprised no garlic was part of the original recipe, but Italians don't really use as much garlic as Americans think they do. Since the cooked greens need to be twisted into the nests, select more tender varieties of greens like mustard greens, dandelions or spinach rather than kale or collard greens whose leaves are much tougher. After preparing this dish I also learned it would be best to remove as much of the stems as possible, especially if they are thick as they make twisting the nest a bit more difficult. Leave the leaves whole or split lengthwise also to facilitate twisting. As a final finish I rested the greens bundles on a small bed of nicely toasted Italian bread topped with some tomato sauce I had sitting in the refrigerator.


Nested Greens with Eggs 
about 2 lbs of greens - mustard, turnip, dandelion, spinach, chicory, escarole
2-3 T. olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely minced
dash of pepperoncini flakes
5 eggs
salt and pepper 

 Wash and trim the ends or tough parts of greens. Leave whole, or split lengthwise. Drain well or spin dry. I used a mixture of turnip greens and dandelion greens.

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. 

In a large skillet, heat 1 T. olive oil. When hot, add the minced garlic and pepperoncini flakes and cook for just a minute or two for the garlic to release its flavor and fragrance.

Add the greens, some salt and pepper and 3-4 T. of water. Mix everything together and reduce heat to medium or medium high. Cover and cook for 5 about minutes. 

Uncover, and continue to cook till the water has fully evaporated and greens are tender. Take off the heat to cool. 

Lightly coat a baking dish large enough to hold 5 nests.  When the greens are cool enough to handle, divide the mixture into 5 portions. With your hands, roll each portion into a ball and place into the baking dish. With your fingertips, make a hollow in the center of each ball to form a nest. As a helpful note, make sure the nests are high enough and dense enough to hold and fully contain the egg liquid.


Break one egg and drop just the egg white into the hollow of the nest, setting the yolk aside.  Repeat with the remaining eggs, dropping the white into each nest and setting the yolks aside so that they can be added individually later. 


Bake the nests until the egg whites begin to solidify, about 10 minutes. Remove the dish from the oven and carefully drop an egg yolk onto the egg white in each nest. Lightly season egg with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Return to the oven and bake another minute or two till yolks are heated through but not fully cooked - you want them runny when you cut into them. 

To serve place a slice of lightly toasted Italian bread on a plate. Top with a spoonful of tomato sauce and place a greens nest on top. Drizzle with a little olive oil or sprinkle with some grated cheese. 

Greek Spinach & Tomato Gratin with Pork Loin Cutlets

My refrigerator lately is stocked with ingredients typically used in making Greek style dishes. So, with ingredients like feta cheese, spinach, lemons, and mint leaves on hand I decided to put together a Greek-inspired dish to accompany the pork cutlets I had planned for my dinnertime meal. With no phyllo dough in the freezer, I was not in a position to prepare a traditional spinach pie so I decide to do the next best thing by turning a spanakopita-like filling into a gratin.  I am quite fond of gratins as side dishes for simply grilled or sautéed meats.  The richness of the gratin fillings balances well with the more subtle flavors of plain grilled meats or fish. The flavors of this gratin of spinach and tomatoes pairs especially well with the sautéed pork cutlets I have selected, but would work equally well with fish, poultry, beef, and of course, lamb.  

With a cup of heavy cream on hand, some cheese and breadcrumbs; gratins are relatively easy dishes to prepare.  Don’t have spinach; use any type of greens or veggie instead.  Change the herbs or choice of cheese and you can create an altogether different gratin. But, the process is essentially the same – a mixture of vegetables and cheese covered with heavy cream, and then topped with either grated cheese or a breadcrumb topping and voila, you’ve made a gratin!

This gratin is quite rich thanks to the heavy cream and feta cheese in the filling. The breadcrumb topping is especially crunchy due to the addition of olive oil; and the lemon zest and mint add lots and lots of flavor.  I added the chopped tomatoes simply because I had them on hand and needed to get rid of them soon, but the gratin would be equally good without them. 

Spinach & Tomato Gratin:

1 large bunch fresh spinach

3 T. olive oil

½ c. finely diced onion

1 clove garlic, finely minced

¼ c. chopped parsley, divided

¼ c. chopped mint, divided

½ c. crumbled feta cheese

Salt, pepper

4 plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped

1 c. heavy cream

1 c. fresh bread crumbs

¼ c. Parmesan cheese, grated

1 tsp. lemon zest

In a bowl combine the breadcrumbs, lemon zest, 2 T. chopped parsley, 2 T. chopped mint and season with some salt and pepper. The topping is best when using fresh breadcrumbs. I used a combination of an artisan-style French bread and multi-grain loaf processed in the food processor. Pour about 2 T. of olive oil into the mixture to lightly moisten and set aside. This adds a rich flavor to the topping and ensures a nice crunch.

Thoroughly wash the spinach. Drain well. Put the spinach in a microwave proof bowl and microwave for 1-2 minutes till wilted. Drain in a colander pressing spinach against the sides of the colander to squeeze out as much liquid as possible. When cool enough to touch with your hands squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Now coarsely chop the spinach.

Heat a medium sized sauté pan. Add a tablespoon of olive oil. When hot add the chopped onion, green onion and garlic. Sauté till veggies begins to soften, but do not let garlic burn.  Take pan off the heat and add the spinach, salt, pepper, 2 T. chopped parsley, 2 T. chopped mint and mix all together. Now add the crumbled feta cheese and combine well. Spread mixture in an even layer into 2 qt. baking pan. 

Pour the heavy cream over the spinach making sure the entire surface area is just covered with the cream.  Spread the chopped tomatoes which have been lightlyseasoned with some salt and pepper over the spinach. Now cover the tomato and spinach mixture with an even and generous layer of the breadcrumb topping. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 30-40 minutes till golden brown and bubbly. If the breadcrumbs begin to become too brown, lightly cover with some aluminum foil.

Pork Cutlets:

4 boneless pork loin chops

1 T. lemon juice

Salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano

¼ c. Wondra flour

1-2 T. olive oil for sautéing

While the gratin is baking prepare the pork cutlets. Pound each cutlet to an even width of about ¼ inch. Sprinkle with the lemon juice. Season the meat with the salt, pepper, garlic powder and dried oregano on both sides pressing lightly to make sure spices adhere to meat. Now lightly dust each chop with the Wondra, shaking off any excess. 

In a heated large sauté pan, add a few tablespoons of olive oil. When hot, add the pork chops and sauté, 3-4 minutes per side. Keep warm till gratin is ready.