BAKED SPRING GREENS WITH COUS COUS STUFFING

8 large spring green leaves
125 g cous cous
2 large onions, peeled and sliced
175 g carrots, peeled and diced
2 tbsp olive oil
50 g hazelnuts, chopped roughly
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
2 tsp coriander seeds, lightly crushed
3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
25 g raisins
2 tsp plain white flour
450 ml vegetable stock
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven 200C/ 400F/ Gas Mark 6. Bring a large pot of water to the boil and blanche the leaves for about 1-2 minutes until they soften a little. Leave to drain thoroughly. Prepare the cous cous according to the directions. Meanwhile heat the oil in a frying pan. Add the onions and fry for 3-5 minutes. Next add the hazelnuts and fry for a further 3-5 minutes, or until the onions begin to brown. Remove 3/4 of the mixture from the pan and set aside. Add the garlic, carrots, cous cous, coriander, parsley and raisins to the pan and mix thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper. Divide this stuffing between the green leaves. Spoon the mixture into the centre and then fold the sides of the leaves over the filling. Roll this up to enclose all of the stuffing completely. Secure with cocktail sticks if they refuse to stick properly. Place the reserve of mixture into a casserole dish and place over medium heat on your stove. Stir in the flour and then gradually stir in the stock. Bring to the boil and season lightly. Place the cabbage parcels in the casserole in a single layer and bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with lots of crusty bread!

SPRING GREENS CURRY

This tasty curry comes from Debbie Fowler in our office.

1 cauliflower, cut into sprigs
4-5 large leaves of spring green, thinly sliced
1/2 red cabbage, thinly sliced
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 - 3 cloves garlic, chopped
extra virgin olive oil

For the curry paste:

1/2 tsp garam masala
1/4 inch piece ginger
juice of 1/2 lemon
sea salt
a few peppercorns
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp mild chilli powder
drop of olive oil
1 tsp cardamon seeds

Grind all the ingredients for the curry paste in a pestle and mortar. Place the cauliflower, spring greens and red cabbage in a large pan of cold salted water and bring to boil, cover and simmer for 5 minutes and then drain. In another large pan heat the olive oil, add the curry paste and fry for a minute. Then add the onion and garlic and soften, then add the tomatoes and cook on a low heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then add the rest of the vegetables to the curry mixture and cook for a further 5 minutes. In the meantime, cook some white or brown rice. You can add 3/4 tsp tumeric and a little crushed ginger to the rice and then serve with the curry.

CREAMY MUSTARD CHICKEN WITH SPRING GREENS

Serve with rice, couscous or mash - perfect with sweet potatoes too. Serves 4

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
4 chicken breasts, or 8 thighs
2 medium onions, chopped
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons wholegrain mustard
200 g spring greens leaves, chopped
Juice of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons crème fraiche or cream
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil and butter together in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the chicken and fry on one side only until it is browned. Add the onions, garlic and thyme. Turn the chicken over and spread the honey and mustard on each piece and cook for 5 minutes. Add the spring greens, and sprinkle on the lemon juice then cover and cook for 5 minutes more, or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken to plates. Stir the crème fraiche into the vegetables in the pan, season to taste with salt and pepper, spoon over the chicken and serve immediately.

CHILLI PEANUT SPRING GREENS

A fabulous side dish, or serve with sliced chicken or tofu over rice as a hearty main. Serves 2-4

400 g spring greens leaves, thinly sliced
5 tablespoons water, chicken or vegetable stock
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
1 red chilli, seeded and minced
Salt and pepper to taste
5 tablespoons ground peanuts
Juice of 1 lemon

In a large frying pan over a medium heat, cook the spring greens in the water or stock, covered, for 10 minutes. In another pan, heat the oil over a medium heat and cook the onion, garlic and chilli for 3 minutes. Add these to the greens, sprinkle the ground peanuts on top, then cover and steam for 10 minutes. Add the lemon juice, season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve.

SPRING GREENS & MUSHROOM SAUTÉ

Good sprinkled with goat cheese; 4 side servings

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 handfuls chopped mushrooms
½ medium onion, chopped
1 bunch spring greens, stemmed, torn into pieces
60 ml chicken or vegetable stock

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat, add the mushrooms and onions and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the spring greens and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the stock, and cover and cook for about 5 minutes until the greens are wilted.

GREENS CASSEROLE WITH TOFU TOPPING

This versatile, healthy dish can be served as a main (a great vegetarian alternative for Christmas), or as a side dish. Leave out the Parmesan to make the dish suitable for vegans. Substitutions can be made for the kale or cabbage - such as chard or spinach - and add more kinds of veggies, like broccoli, peppers or sautéed mushrooms, as you like. Sprinkle with fresh lemon juice just before serving, or to make this dish decadent, add cream or béchamel sauce (or leftover Christmas turkey or ham) before baking.

2 tablespoons olive oil 
2 medium onions, thinly sliced 
450g any cabbage, cored, cut crosswise into thin slices 
450g kale, stems and ribs removed, leaves coarsely chopped 200g carrots, cut into thick matchsticks 
240ml water 2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
150g fresh or 200g dried wholemeal breadcrumbs 
200g firm tofu, drained and roughly chopped 
50g Parmesan, finely grated 
50ml olive oil 
2 teaspoons dried basil, crumbled 
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano or marjoram, crumbled 
1 teaspoon paprika 
2 garlic cloves, chopped 
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 180C/350F/gas 4. Heat the oil in a large, deep frying pan over medium heat until hot but not smoking; sauté the onion until softened and beginning to brown. Add the cabbage, kale, carrots, water, soy sauce, and salt. Cook covered, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are just tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer all the vegetables and cooking liquid to a large, shallow baking dish. To make the topping, pulse the rest of the ingredients together in a food processor until combined well (or mash together with a potato masher). Spread the mixture over the vegetables and bake, uncovered, until the topping is golden brown, for 15-20 minutes.