SPRING GREENS

Words: Daniel Nowland

We’re now approaching that euphoric time of year where you can turn the heating off, enjoy a cuppa in the sunshine and hopefully venture outdoors without a jacket. Certainly by the time this magazine comes out, I hope to be doing all three. As we approach Easter, many of us also enjoy a change in our eating habits and start to use some of the produce which spring has to offer. Fresh leafy greens are some of my favourite things to eat, and I like to eat them at a level to compete with Popeye in terms of iron intake!

Kale, watercress, spinach, rocket, and various lettuces all become available from the UK during the spring, and all of them are fabulous whether used in salads, soups, or pasta dishes. With many of these vegetables, the less you cook them, the more of their nutrients they will retain. I would love to share with you a few ideas for using these, and you’ll most likely find all of these on the counter at the deli over the coming weeks.

RUBBED LEMONY KALE

Use green, purple, or black kale for this super quick healthy salad. It’s always better to buy the bunches of kale rather than the chopped and bagged type if you can. Rinse off any grit or soil and strip the leaves from the stalk. Add to a large mixing bowl along with a squeeze of lemon juice, a glug of olive oil, and a few pinches of sea salt crystals. Spend 4 or 5 minutes scrunching the kale in your hands, massaging the oil, lemon and salt into the leaves.

Finish with a sprinkling of crumbly white cheese such as feta, Wensleydale or Caerphilly, a sprinkle of pumpkin seeds, and a generous pinch of cracked black pepper.

WATERCRESS AND WALNUT PESTO

You’ll need: Bunch watercress (approx 80g), rinsed and chopped Juice of half a lemon 2 cloves garlic, peeled 80ml extra virgin olive oil 50g cheddar, grated 50g walnut pieces

Blitz all of the above together in a food processor until finely chopped. Season with sea salt and cracked black pepper and have a taste, adding more salt or more lemon juice until you have a tasty peppery pesto. Toss through freshly cooked pasta for a quick healthy dinner.

BACON SEARED ICEBERG CAESAR

This sounds strange — but it’s a game changer! A little heat helps create a fantastic flavour in the lettuce, and the core of it remains cool and crispy. Place 2 rashers of smoked streaky bacon per person in a large frying pan. Fry over a low heat for at least 10 minutes until the fat has rendered out and the bacon is golden. Remove the bacon from the pan and set aside and turn the heat to high. Discard the outer leaf and split an Iceberg lettuce into quarters, leaving the root intact. Fry the wedges on their cut sides in the bacon fat for just a minute on each side until lightly coloured. I tend to use one quarter per person. Remove to a plate and top with Caesar dressing, a grating of hard cheese such as parmesan, the crispy bacon, and a little cracked black pepper. I like to serve with some crusty bread and a glass of white wine.