2 lbs stew meat – chuck, boiling beef, brisket, or shanks

½ lb bacon or ham

2-3 cooking onions, peeled and sliced

Dusting of flour (optional)

1-2 bottles stout or porter

1 quart of stock or water

2 bay leaves

Sprig of thyme (or 1-2 tsp)

Some parsley

Up to a lb of mushrooms, sliced

Some butter to fry the onions and mushrooms

Cube the stew meat and the pork.  Cut the beef a little bigger than the pork - think beef stew size.  Heat some butter in a heavy frying pan and sweat the onions.  Once they have some color, transfer them to a stew pot or slow cooker.  Toss the beef chunks in the flour if you like, then brown the beef in the fry pan in batches.  Do the same with the bacon, transferring the meat to the stew pot when it’s browned.

Once all the meat is browned, pour a little of the stout into then and scrape it with a wooden spoon or spatula to get all the brown bits into the stew pot.  Pour the rest of the porter into the pot with the stock.  Add water if the meat is not covered.  Bring to a slow simmer, and reduce heat.  Add herbs (tied with cloth) and some pepper.  Simmer slowly all day in the slow cooker or for 2 ½ - 3 hours on the stove top. 

About an hour from the end of cooking, fry the mushrooms in the butter.  Add them to the soup along with the aromatic herbs and simmer slowly for the rest of the cooking time.

Serve with mashed potatoes or lentils.

-Adapted from The River Cottage Meat Book

step one: go to ocean state job lot to the Bob's Red Mill display and find some organic corn polenta (it is a coarse grind of corn). While you are there you can browse for cheap organic pastas. decent olive oil, jams, Newman's Own peanut butter cups. I digress . . .  the point is: don't spend $8.99 for a bag of polenta at Whole Foods.

Creamy Polenta ratio is 1 part polenta to 4 parts liquid.

I use a fairly deep saucepan and put in 1 cup polenta and then usually 2 cups stock and 2 cups milk (or any combination of milk, cream, 1/2 n 1/2). Add a generous pinch of salt. Whisk together and turn on the heat.

Don't let the heat be on too high or the polenta is bound to stick to the bottom. Make sure your whisk is stirring every few minutes. It doesn't need constant attention until it starts to come together completely. But really, don't let it stick in a big glob to the bottom.

Meanwhile, chop a couple cloves of garlic for sauteeing the kale. a large pan makes it easier. pour a good coating of oil in the pan, heat for a moment, add the garlic, immediately pinch salt on the garlic to prevent it from browning too quickly. Rinse and coarsely chop the kale. stripping the kale off the stems if they are tough. chopping the stems more finely if you still want to use them. once the garlic smells delicious, add the kale, toss to coat with oil, and sautee until bright green and tender. a dash of apple cider vinegar at this point can be delicious, although it does lead to a more 50's era army green color. whatever. it tasted great with this recipe, so I suggest a good dash.

keep an eye on the polenta.

the key to the creaminess is to throw in whatever creamy cheesy stuff you have as the polenta starts to come together. a few hunks of cream cheese is the best. a couple heaping tablespoons of yogurt or sour cream is good. some grated cheese of any sort can be good. 

chopped parsley, rosemary, thyme, basil are wonderful additions. you will definitely need to taste for salt and pepper. Italians have a word for not enough salt: insipido.

once the polenta is thick and you can no longer crunch on the grits, it is done and can be shut off.

the greens should be done by now. to save dishwashing i slide the kale into a serving bowl and add a pat of butter. fry an egg (one for each serving) pinch salt and pepper. pretty runny is good for over the polenta and greens.

make a nest of polenta with kale on top, then the egg. finish with parmigiano.

nourishment. with no meat.

    3 tablespoons olive oil                                        
    1 pound hot turkey or pork sausages, casings discarded and sausage crumbled
    1/2 pound kale, tough stems and center ribs discarded and leaves coarsely chopped
    1/2 pound or less dried egg fettuccini pasta                   
    2/3 cup chicken broth                                          
    1 ounce finely grated pecorino romano cheese plus additional for serving

Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then cook sausage, breaking up any lumps with a spoon, until browned, 5-7 minutes.  Meanwhile, blanch kale in a 6-quart pot of boiling salted water, uncovered, 5 minutes.  Remove kale with a large sieve and drain.  Return cooking water in pot to a boil, then cook pasta in boiling water, uncovered, until al dente.  Reserve 1 cup pasta-cooking water, then drain pasta in a colander. While pasta cooks, add kale to sausage in skillet and saute, stirring frequently, until just tender, about 5 minutes.  add broth, stirring and scraping up any brown bits from bottom of skillet, then add pasta and 1/2 cup reserved cooking water to skillet, tossing until combined.  Stir in cheese and thin with additional cooking water if desired.  Serve immediately with additional cheese on the side.

Gourmet, March 2006

6-8 cups fresh kale, stems removed.

2 TB olive oil

½ tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. grated parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place parchment paper on cooking sheet. Spread kale on sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat.  Place on lowest oven rack and bake for 10 minutes. Flip over kale and bake additional 10 minutes. Chips should be lightly brown and crisp. Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle with salt and cheese.

This recipe is incredibly healthy. It boasts 309% of the recommended daily allowance of Vitamin A, 201% Vitamin C, 14% calcium, 10% iron, 3 grams protein, 2 grams fiber, with 112 calories and 1 gram saturated fat.

·            3/4-1 lb. chard or kale, chopped finely

·            2 cloves garlic, minced

·            2 medium onions, diced

·            1 tsp. cumin

·            1/4 tsp. pepper

·            1 qt. spaghetti sauce

·            14 oz. ricotta or cottage cheese

·            6-8 tortillas, flour or corn

·            1 c. shredded mozzarella

Perfect for kale, collards, swiss chard, turnip greens, spinach, 

i rinse the greens and check out the stems to decide on their tenderness. If very tender i just coarsely chop the whole bunch (on a big cutting board with a good chef's knife). If not so tender I cut just below the leaves and then chop the stems into small pieces to be added to the pan a little early. If flat out woody, I strip the leaves and compost the stems (or make veggie stock, throw them in a roasting pan with a whole chicken - you get the idea: they are still a source of flavor and nutrients if not a feature vegetable)

I prefer a large wok style pan for these large bunches of greens. 

Dump in some good olive oil. add some sliced garlic, immediately put a generous pinch of salt on the garlic. wait till it smells wonderful (without browning or burning it). add all the greens. stir to make sure they all get coated in the oil. When they are bright green they are done.

excellent as a side dish, particularly with a grilled steak. leftovers are a great addition when chopped and thrown into a grilled cheese sandwich, a pasta, or served on a little slice of bread with a spread of real ricotta (= from Narragansett Creamery).