{visiting back home}Nana's house part 2...trying new greens

{visiting back home}Nana's part 2

trying new greens

at Nana's (see part 1)

she had a winter veggie bed with among other things,broccoli, brussel sprouts & red cabbage. the plants alone are beautiful, but

i LOVE raw greens

& couldn't help noticing the gorgeous, broad, thick, very nutritious & delish looking leaves.

we started munching on them & loved them.

 my mind immediately went to work on how else they could be used to eat beside nibbling them raw off the plant.

or FOR COMPOST *GASP*

(when i got home i researched the leaves to make sure they were safe to eat. not only are they safe, according to my research, they are even more nutritious than the actual veggies)

as much as i love gardening i've never grown my own brussel sprouts.

had no clue they grew under the plant leaves!

A FUN SURPRISE DISCOVERY!

(they as well as the leaves are fantastic in curry lentil, quinoa & veggie stew (below) & alone simmered in balsamic dressing)

love the beautiful leaves & color of this red cabbage

the broccoli leaf as well

we made veggie leaf chips.

washed & dried the leaves very well,

coated with olive oil

& sprinkled with salt.

baked in preheated oven at 200 degrees.

these leaves are very thick & dense so it took @ 40 mins.

i didn't have nutritional yeast (or lemon juice) here to sprinkle on a little "cheesy" flavor.

would have been even more fantastic.

we ate them ALL right out of the oven.

sooo good!

the leaves are much more nutritious raw so i added them to salads.

(make sure you take your time & chew raw greens slowly)

{curry lentil, quinoa & veggie stew}

sorry no recipe just dump a bunch of veggies & & greens (don't forget the leaves)

in water & olive oil. 

boil to make a broth.

(ex:broccoli, carrots, onions,garlic, bell pepper, celery, brussel sprouts, greens, cabbage, kale, chard... wish i had okra!)

 add lentils & quinoa.

season to taste with curry & spices.

let it cook thoroughly.

serve with brown rice (GF)

this was a salad i made using what i had & took over for lunch before riding horses.

it's so quick & easy.

 you can make many variations of it from whatever is in your pantry.

chopped raw kale, canellini beans, albacore tuna, black olives, carrots, diced red onion & oil & vinegar dressing.

mix it all up & let set a few minutes before serving.

i think it is better at room temp.

i would definitely substitute any kind of the above greens.

cant wait to grown my own,

they are def a new fave!