What to do with vegetable leaves and tops

Veggies/ modelling courtesy of Trinity Farm Organics

July is an abundant month for beautiful British vegetables.
If you subscribe to a vegetable box delivery scheme or even visit your local farm shop/ greengrocer then you may be lucky enough to get your hands on a few veggies with the leaves and tops still intact.
Having a bunch of carrots with vibrant green tops or beetroot with the leaves is the ultimate sign of freshness. This is great news from a nutritional perspective because the fresher the vegetable, the more nutrients it contains.
The green tops and additional leaves needn't be wasted either. These too are full of nutrients and with a bit of creativity can be turned into some super tasty dishes.
Here are a few ideas to get you started.

Pesto
A versatile and super tasty classic.
Suitable for: carrot tops, tomato leaves, wild garlic, watercress, kale, rocket, all manner of herbs
Recipe: 65g of nuts/ seeds such as pine nuts, walnuts, cashews, sunflower or pumpkin seeds, toasted in the oven for 10 mins, 1-2 large handfuls of greens, 1 tablespoon of water, a couple of pinches of sea salt, some freshly grated black pepper, 1 clove of garlic, 100 - 150ml of good quality olive oil (or rapeseed oil for a milder taste), juice of half a lemon, some freshly grated parmesan (optional)
Pop everything in a blender and whizz until you achieve the desired consistency. A little bit less or more oil may be needed dependant on the amount of greens used.
Have a look at: this superfood kale & cashew pesto recipe
What to do with it:
Best uncooked to allow all of the flavours to truly shine so add it last minute or dollop it on top of things.

• use it as a salad dressing

• stir into pasta

• add a dollop on top of soup (you are welcome)

• add extra flavour to meat

• stir through roasted vegetables

Stir-frys, stews & chillis
All are great options for using up greens. Just stir them through towards the last 2-3 minutes of cooking and you are good to go.
Suitable for: onion tops, leaves from pretty much anything i.e. beetroot, broccoli, radishes, kohlrabi, carrots
Have a look at:

• turkey stir-fry recipe (also works with vegetarian substitutions)

• turkey chilli

• beans n greens

• peanut butter veggie stew
  

Chimichurri
This is a South American classic used to add flavour to steaks, fish and simply cooked chicken but it works well to punch up vegetarian/ vegan alternatives such as cauli steaks or roasted butternut squash too.
Suitable for: garlic & onion tops - finely chop both or either and halve the garlic quantity from the recipe
Recipe: Chimichurri recipe - this base works well with other herbs too
What to do with it: dollop on top of any dish, just don’t cook it

Smoothies
A nutritious way to start your day plus you can pretty much “hide” most greens.
Suitable for: broccoli leaves, beetroot tops, kohlrabi leaves, carrot tops in small quantities
Recipe: Berry Protein Smoothie

Enjoy!

Watercress, asparagus & sun-dried tomato salad

Much like the rest of the body, our digestive system is reliant on a set of nutrients for optimum function.
Stomach acid, for example, needs Vitamin C, zinc, salt and a few others.
Bile requires bitter foods to stimulate its flow.

Whenever I mention bile, I’m usually met with various scrunched up faces because chances are you tasted it the morning after a heavy session on the booze. And yes, it’s bitter.
It’s also pretty essential for the correct digestion of fats.
Not enough of this stuff and say hello to an unhappy tummy.
So in a nutshell, eat more bitter foods, like watercress, rocket, endive and artichoke. I’m talking most days.

As you may have guessed, this recipe contains bile supporting bitter foods. Just in case you aren’t fussed about that part, it also tastes pretty good for a bunch of greens.
It works as a main meal if you top it with a protein or it’s a really tasty starter or side dish.

Video instructions are available here: Watercress salad.

Ingredients ( feeds 2 as a main or 4 as a starter)
250g asparagus
150g watercress
100g sun-dried tomato
1 avocado, peeled & sliced
a handful of rocket
rapeseed oil for cooking
sea salt & black pepper to season

For the dressing
3 tbsp olive oil
1-2 tsp agave or honey
juice of a lemon, zest of a 1/4 lemon
pinch of sea salt

Method:
Trim the asparagus. Wash the greens.
Put a splash of rapeseed oil in a frying pan and pop it on a high heat. Throw in the asparagus, and let it cook for a minute until the stems start to colour.
Add a splash of water, turn the heat down to medium and cook until the water has evaporated. At this stage, the asparagus should be tender but not limp.
Season with sea salt and black pepper and set it aside to cool.
Put the watercress, rocket, avocado and sundried tomato in a large bowl. Season with sea salt and black pepper.
To make the dressing, whisk all of the dressing ingredients together.
Pour over the salad, add the asparagus, stir and serve immediately.