Cook Your Lettuce

The delight of cooked lettuces is unknown to most Americans, and that’s a shame. They make a wonderful cooked vegetable, more flavorful than you might imagine. The more powerful flavors of bitter endive, escarole, chicory, radicchio and dandelion are tempered by heat, and the remaining flavors are remarkably deep and rich. The milder lettuces, such as butter, Boston and limestone, soak up the flavor of the oil and liquid used in the cooking.

Lettuces can be quickly wilted in a little olive oil or butter and served like any other leafy green vegetable. This is an especially good way of preparing dandelion greens. Heat a little olive oil, throw in some minced garlic and immediately add dandelion leaves, quickly turning them in the hot skillet until wilted.

Grilling is a simple, delicious method of cooking lettuces--the smokiness of the grill improves the flavor of both mild and bitter varieties of lettuce. So file this bit of information for your spring and summer cooking.

First wilt lettuce in salted, boiling water. Drain well on paper towels and rub with olive oil before grilling. This can be done hours in advance.

Wilt whole heads of Boston lettuce 2 minutes, then cut in half, root to tip, and drain on paper towels. Grill 5 minutes. Belgian endive and radicchio should be cut in half from root to tip before blanching 1 minute. Grill endive 8 minutes, radicchio about 5 minutes. A small head of romaine requires 5 minutes’ blanching and never really wilts. Cut in half from root to tip and grill 7 to 9 minutes.

Braising lettuces is simple. Begin by browning the lettuce in butter or oil, then add liquid and cook until tender. Remove the lettuce from the skillet and boil down the braising liquid until only a few tablespoons of concentrated dark liquid remain. Drizzle this over the lettuce and serve.

With all cooked lettuces, the choice of cooking fat is extremely important. For mild lettuces, fat should add flavor. Use a combination of bacon and butter or bacon and flavorless oil, or use a strongly flavored olive oil.

For certain accompaniments, you can brown lettuce in butter and drizzle the finished dish with a teaspoon or so of walnut oil. Be thoughtful, though, when using this combination--walnut oil adds a very characteristic flavor, and the dish may not blend well with your main course. I find that walnut oil tastes best with plainly roasted veal or chicken dishes, or those cooked with either Marsala, Sherry or Madeira.

When browning any lettuce, a little oil added to butter will prevent the butter from burning. When braising lettuce, I prefer to moisten it with chicken broth, which not only adds flavor but, when boiled down to a few tablespoons, gives a nice texture to the sauce.

BRAISED BELGIAN ENDIVE 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 tablespoon flavorless cooking oil 4 medium heads Belgian endive, cut in half lengthwise 1/2 cup all-purpose broth, canned low-sodium chicken broth or water 1/2 teaspoon salt

Heat butter and oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Add endive in 1 layer and cook until outer leaves are nicely browned, about 7 minutes. Turn and brown other side.

Add broth, sprinkle with salt and cook until liquid is reduced, about 10 minutes. Transfer endive and juices to serving platter and serve immediately. Makes 4 servings.

Variation:

To prepare braised lettuce, substitute whole heads of bibb or Boston lettuce for endive.

BRAISED BELGIAN ENDIVE AND MUSHROOM GRATIN 1/4 pound mushrooms 2 large shallots, peeled 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 4 heads Belgian endive 1 tablespoon olive oil 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg Salt Freshly ground pepper 1/2 cup whipping cream 1/4 pound grated Gruyere cheese

Place mushrooms and shallots in food processor and puree until smooth. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in skillet, add mushroom puree and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture dries out. Set aside.

Brush 9-inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon soft butter.

Trim any discolored outer leaves from endive heads. Cut heads in half from root to tip. Combine oil and remaining 1 tablespoon butter in large skillet over medium heat. Add endive and cook, turning once, until golden, about 10 minutes.

Arrange endive in row in baking dish. Evenly spread mushrooms over and around endive. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add whipping cream. Bake at 375 degrees, uncovered, 20 minutes. (Assembled gratin may be prepared up to 2 hours in advance to this point. Store at room temperature. Do not refrigerate.)

Remove gratin from oven and sprinkle with cheese. Place under broiler until cheese starts to bubble and turns golden brown. Serve immediately. Makes 4 servings.

NOODLES WITH BRAISED LETTUCES 1 head escarole 2 heads Belgian endive 1 head Boston lettuce 1/2 pound egg noodles Salt Water 2 tablespoons chopped parsley 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil Freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons minced garlic 1 teaspoon ground coriander 1/2 teaspoon crushed dried thyme 1/2 teaspoon crushed dried rosemary 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar 3/4 cup whipping cream 1/2 cup grated Gouda cheese

Remove and discard outer 8 or so leaves from escarole, leaving lighter-green center. Cut into quarters from root to tip. Remove and discard any discolored outer leaves of endive and halve lengthwise. Remove and discard damaged outer leaves from Boston lettuce and quarter from root to top.

Cook noodles until al dente in boiling salted water. Drain, place in bowl, toss with parsley and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Keep warm.

Heat remaining 1/4 cup olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add lettuces and cook, 1 batch at time, until golden on 1 side. Return all to skillet and add 1 cup water. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook escarole and Boston lettuces over medium heat about 4 minutes, endive 8 minutes. Remove from skillet and squeeze to extract as much moisture as possible. Add liquid to skillet and set lettuces aside.

Add garlic, coriander, thyme, rosemary, vinegar and cream to braising liquid in skillet. Cook over medium heat until reduced to sauce-like consistency, 7 to 10 minutes.

Arrange lettuces in baking dish, leaving well in center for noodles. Toss noodles with sauce and mound in center of dish. Sprinkle with cheese and bake at 350 degrees until bubbling hot, about 10 minutes. Serve immediately. Makes 4 servings.

CREAM OF LETTUCE SOUP 1 tablespoon butter 1/4 pound bacon, chopped into very small pieces 3/4 cup finely chopped onion 1 pound leaf lettuce, such as butter, chicory, escarole or any combination, finely chopped 2 tablespoons flour 2 cups milk 1 cup whipping cream 1/2 teaspoon salt Freshly ground black pepper Dash freshly grated nutmeg Croutons Grated Parmesan cheese

Melt butter over medium heat in pot, add bacon and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is tender, about 5 minutes. (Bacon will not crisp.)

Add lettuce and cook, stirring, until lettuce is completely tender, about 6 minutes. Sprinkle with flour and cook 1 more minute, stirring once or twice.

Add milk and cream and season to taste with salt and pepper. Add nutmeg. Increase heat, bring soup to boil, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Garnish with croutons and grated Parmesan cheese and serve immediately. Makes 4 servings.