The color of winter

Some vegetables are born to be stars; others are best suited to ensemble roles. There is no better example of this than winter’s hardy cooking greens, a mainstay of farmers markets at this time of year.

While you can cook mustards, chards, collards, kale and even the leafy parts of turnips and beets individually, they are best prepared en masse, or as your momma might have said, “in a mess.”

Taken one at a time, each of these greens has something to recommend it. But cook them together and the result is extraordinary. The flavor of mixed greens is full and deep rather than sharp and pointed. Cook one type of green and you’ve got an oboe solo. Cook a mess and you’ve got an orchestra.

In the South, it’s traditional to simmer greens for a couple of hours with a good-sized chunk of fatty pork. This is the kind of perfectly realized rustic dish that -- if it had originated in, say, Liguria or Provence -- would now be offered in every upscale trattoria and bistro between Berkeley and Santa Monica.

But that’s hardly the only thing greens are good for. They make a great bed for cooking Italian sausage. Or you can add greens to your favorite soup or stew a few minutes before serving for a vibrant bit of color and texture. They are even surprisingly at home in elegant surroundings. Fold them into a souffle, for example, or bake them in a tart.

Moreover, I feel confident in reporting that greens are not only delicious; they have the power to heal. When I’m feeling beat-down, peckish, fluish or even just a little mulish, there is nothing that restores my equilibrium like a bowl of greens.

Greens go gourmet

“What is patriotism but the love of the good things we ate in our childhood?” Chinese author Lin Yutang famously observed, and the same could be said for tonics. I was raised in the South, and when I’m in need of sustenance, you can keep your chicken soup.

The appreciation of cooking greens seems to be spreading. It used to be that they could only be found in farmers markets, or the groceries in predominantly Southern neighborhoods. That’s no longer true. Last week I found mustard greens at my local upscale supermarket. What’s next? Gourmet bacon grease mixed in with all those extra-virgin olive oils?

And with the current trend toward pre-cut, “pre-prepared” produce, you can even find cellophane bags of cooking greens, packaged both separately and in mixed bunches, that have already been washed and chopped. These are not quite ready to cook -- a machine can never do as good a job at sorting and trimming out stems as a human can -- but they are still a convenience.

Though greens may be best in a collection, each variety is slightly different. And Southern cooks are pretty picky about the perfect ratio of one type to another. There is nothing haphazard about a well-prepared mess.

In fact, it sometimes pays to be still more careful. Even the most persnickety Southern cooks usually boil all of the greens in a mixture together, but for some dishes it’s a good idea to start them one at a time by blanching, particularly if you’re going to saute them afterward.

Blanch greens in a big pot of rapidly boiling salted water just until they wilt and become tender. Mustards will be done almost instantly. Kale will take three or four minutes. Chard leaves will take four or five (the stems will take five to seven). Collards can take nearly 10. Once they’ve been blanched, combine them to finish the cooking.

Blanching is only necessary when you want all of the greens to have the same texture. Sometimes that’s not desirable. In the ricotta tart, for example, the variety of textures is part of the attraction. Some of the greens are chewy; others are almost melting. In the soup, blanching isn’t necessary because the greens are shredded so fine in the food processor, that the differences in texture aren’t really noticeable.

In the recipe for greens with lemon oil, the leaves should be blanched before being sauteed. Not only is the dish best when everything is equally tender, but it also benefits because the initial cooking breaks down the cell structure of the leaf and allows it to absorb the aromatic oil.

Bright prospects

There is one more advantage to blanching. Greens are notorious for changing color, and not in a positive way. In the South, a good bowl would more accurately be called “olive drabs.” This happens because chlorophyll, the pigment that gives raw greens their vibrant color, is broken down by extended heating.

Blanching reduces the chances of this happening by softening the greens very quickly. This makes it easy to control the subsequent cooking so that it can be stopped as soon as you see this color shift begin to happen.

Perhaps paradoxically, before the color fades it first becomes much more intense. Time it just right, and you can end the blanching just at that moment, preferably by “shocking” the greens in an ice-water bath to stop the cooking cold. This brightening happens because the cooking drives off the air that is trapped in the leaf along with the chlorophyll. With the air gone, the color shines much more vividly.

On the other hand, some of the most memorable greens I’ve eaten were drab almost to the point of being beige. Remember, in an ensemble setting it’s more important to be interesting than pretty.

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Southern comfort soup

Time: 40 minutes

Servings: 6

Note: The mixed leafy greens can include mustard, kale, collard, beet and turnip greens as well as chard. One-half pound yields 8 cups coarsely chopped.

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2pound (about 8 cups) mixed leafy greens, stemmed and coarsely chopped

3 cups vegetable or chicken stock diluted with 3 cups

water

2 teaspoons salt

3/4 cup jasmine rice

1 1/4 cups water

1 1/2 teaspoons Sherry vinegar

Black pepper

3 tablespoons grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1. Cook the garlic in the olive oil in a 4-quart soup pot over medium heat until the garlic has softened, about 3 minutes. Add the coarsely chopped greens to the pot. They will come close to the top of the pan, but quickly wilt down when cooked. Cook, stirring, until wilted, about 4 minutes.

2. Add the diluted stock and the salt and slowly bring to a simmer, then cook 5 minutes (less, if the colors begin to darken and fade).

3. While the greens are cooking, heat the rice and water in a 1-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. When the water comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low and cover tightly. Cook until there is no water left in the bottom of the pan and the rice is tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool, covered, until ready to use.

4. Transfer half the greens and liquid to a food processor and carefully puree until the greens are finely minced. Reserve in a mixing bowl and repeat with the remaining greens and liquid.

5. Wipe out the soup pot and return the greens and liquid to it. Bring the soup to a simmer, and stir in the rice and the vinegar. Season with a generous grinding of pepper. Taste, and if the soup needs more salt or vinegar, add it.

6. To serve, ladle the soup into heated shallow bowls and garnish with a generous grating of Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Each serving: 163 calories; 4 grams protein; 24 grams carbohydrates; 1 grams fiber; 6 grams fat; 1 grams saturated fat; 2 mg. cholesterol; 976 mg. sodium.

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Tart of garlicky greens and black olives

Total time: 2 hours

Servings: 6 to 8

Note: The mixed leafy greens can include mustard, kale, collard, beet and turnip greens as well as chard. One-half pound yields about 5 cups finely chopped.

Tart pastry

2 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, chilled

6 tablespoons ice water

1. Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. Add the butter and cut it in using a pastry cutter or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the ice water 1 tablespoon at a time and stir it in with a fork.

2. Gather the dough into a ball. Flatten and wrap in plastic wrap; refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3. Roll the dough out onto a lightly floured surface to one-eighth-inch thick. Place in a 10- or 11-inch tart pan, letting the excess fall over the side. Gently press the dough into the bottom and sides of the pan. Trim to an inch larger than the pan, then fold the extra inch of dough back into the tart and press into the sides. Save any leftover dough for another use.

4. Refrigerate the tart shell for 15 minutes. Prick the bottom of the dough with a fork. Line with parchment paper and weigh down with pie weights or beans. Bake in a 400-degree oven for 10 minutes, then remove the parchment paper and bake for an additional 20 minutes.

Filling

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2pound (about 5 cups) mixed leafy greens, stemmed and finely chopped

1 (15-ounce) container ricotta (1 3/4 cups)

1/4cup chopped, pitted brined black olives (such as

Kalamata)

3/4teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 tart shell, partially baked

2 ounces ricotta salata

1. Cook the garlic in the olive oil over medium heat until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the greens and cook, stirring, until they soften, about 5 more minutes.

2. In a medium bowl, beat together the ricotta, cooked greens, olives and salt. Taste the mixture; it should be highly seasoned. Add a little more salt if necessary. Beat in the eggs.

3. Pour the filling into the baked tart shell and shave the ricotta salata over the top using a vegetable peeler. Bake in a 400-degree oven until the center no longer is moist, 30 to 40 minutes. If you use red chard leaves, don’t be fooled by what may look at first glance like quick browning; it is the color of the chard leaking through.

4. Cool slightly to set up before serving.

Each serving: 527 calories; 14 grams protein; 35 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams fiber; 37 grams fat; 21 grams saturated fat; 149 mg. cholesterol; 556 mg. sodium.

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Greens with spicy lemon-cumin oil

Total time: 1 hour, 35 minutes

Servings: 4

Note: Mixed leafy greens can include mustard, kale, collard, beet and turnip as well as chard.

Spicy lemon-cumin oil

1/2cup olive oil

Zest of 1 lemon

3/4teaspoon cumin seeds

1/2teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1. Warm the olive oil, lemon zest, cumin seeds and crushed red pepper flakes in a small saucepan over low heat until the lemon zest curls and sizzles, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let steep at least 1 hour.

2. Strain the oil. Use one-fourth cup in this recipe, saving the remaining oil for another use. It will keep, refrigerated in a tightly covered jar, for 2 to 3 days.

Greens

1 pound mixed leafy greens

Salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 whole clove garlic, peeled

1/4cup spicy lemon-cumin oil

1 tablespoon toasted pine nuts

1. Blanch the greens, one variety at a time, in rapidly boiling generously salted water until they are tender and bright green, 2 to 7 minutes, depending on the variety. When all of the greens have been blanched, combine them into one mass. Allow to cool enough to handle, then pick up a large clump and squeeze it in your hand to wring out as much liquid as you can. Chop the greens finely.

2. Warm the olive oil and the garlic clove in a large skillet over medium-low heat until the garlic becomes fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the greens and cook, stirring, until no more liquid remains in the skillet, 3 to 5 minutes.

3. Add the lemon-cumin oil 1 tablespoon at a time and cook, stirring, until each tablespoon is completely absorbed. Continue cooking until the greens are very soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the toasted pine nuts and continue cooking 5 more minutes. Season to taste with salt, discard the garlic clove and serve immediately.

Each serving: 200 calories; 4 grams protein; 8 grams carbohydrates;

4 grams fiber; 18 grams fat;

3 grams saturated fat;

0 cholesterol; 83 mg. sodium.

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A greens glossary

Mustards: Mustard greens are the most fragile. Though their flavor is strong and peppery, their texture is almost frilly and their color is pale. In greens-loving neighborhoods, you’ll sometimes see a distinction made between mustards and “Texas mustards,” which are even more delicate. These can even be used raw in salads, albeit sparingly, as you would a strong-flavored herb.

Collards: Collards are the sturdiest greens, with a leathery texture that takes some cooking to break down. Their flavor is complex and minerally.

Kale: Kale is also tough -- it’s the green that’s used for garnish in cheap salad bars because it can be left for days without wilting. It is usually the darkest green in the bunch, almost to the point of being dark blue or purple. Both its flavor and cooked texture can best be described as meaty.

Especially good is the so-called dinosaur kale. This is old-fashioned Tuscan cavolo nero or lacinato, renamed for a modern mass audience. Its color is so dark it’s nearly black; when cooked, it brightens to a brilliant forest green. Cook it low and slow and the flavor becomes downright sweet.

Beets and turnips: The flavors of beet and turnip greens are true to their more familiar roots -- both are vaguely sweet in a vegetal kind of way, the beets more minerally, the turnips more peppery. They are among the most tender in texture.

Chard: Though chards are not traditional to the South, they belong in the same green family. Think of them as long-lost cousins.

Most commonly you’ll find red- and white-stemmed chards, but there is also a new variety with stems of varied colors. This is called rainbow chard, though it is sometimes packaged under the nom de commerce Bright Lights. The flavor of chard is minerally with a beet-like sweetness that varies depending on the specific type of chard you’re cooking. Perhaps predictably, the redder the stem of the chard, the stronger this flavor will be. (The red hue comes from betalain, the same pigment that colors beets.)

-- Russ Parsons