11.04.2012

Wild Greens Quesadilla Omelette

"Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all." -  Harriet Van Horne

This exotic, complex, taste bud-delighting meal won’t be found on a menu anywhere, 
but it may become at regular at your house after you taste it...
 


Start by harvesting some wild greens - about two loose handfuls.  Today I harvested leaves of Red Clover, Plantain, Dandelion, Lady’s Thumb, Ground Ivy, Garlic Mustard, and Wild Onions.  Make sure you know your plants before harvesting so you don’t pick anything poisonous.  

Here are two great books for learning the edibles:

 


This recipe makes enough for two people. 


Chop the greens.  You can use a knife, or I like to use scissors.  It’s important to cut the pieces small because some of the greens are spicy or bitter and you only want a little in each bite.  Test taste them until you know the material.



Crumble 4 oz. of organic feta and dice about 3 medium tomatoes.  We used the last of this year’s tomato harvest - a gift from a friend.

Mix all the ingredients and top a tortilla with them (use half the ingredients for each of two tortillas).  I like to use the sprouted grain, brown rice tortillas from ‘Food for Life,’ since sprouted grains are easier to digest and better for you.



Put this on the top over rack and broil until you notice the edge of the torilla browning; it doesn’t take long!  Then put another tortilla on top, press down, and broil until browned. 



Gently slide one of the Quesadillas onto a plate, being careful because you haven’t used enough cheese to make it one cohesive unit (cheese is best as a occasional condiment, not the bulk of a meal).  Scramble two organic eggs and put them into a lightly greased, heated skillet (medium low?)  big enough for your Quesadilla to fit into, then put your Quesadilla on top and press gently into the egg.  Use a lid so the egg cooks through, about 10-15 minutes. 




Once the egg is solid, gently use a spatula to loosen it up and slide it out onto a plate.  Or I like to put a plate on top of the skillet upside down and then turn the skillet upside down effectively putting the food onto the plate without a disaster.  Slice into quarters.  You can stack these quarters on top of each other if you want, lasagne style.  Yum!

Delicious and healthy - and less than $4 per person!



If you’ve harvested the right greens, no spices are needed - you will have a garlicy, oniony, spicy flavor from the greens.  Play around with different greens for different tastes and strengths.  Some greens are mild enough that you can saute them and eat a big bowl of them solo.  No salt is needed as the feta is salty, though you may want to add black pepper after cooking to help with digestion.

Autumn-Olive Berry Honeycakes



Autumn-Olive berries need be ripe to taste agreeable.  If you get them before they are ripe they are incredibly astringent and chalky.  You can taste one each day until they sweeten up, so you know when to harvest.  There will still be a slight astringency and chalkiness to them even when ripe, but don’t let that scare you.

Autumn-Olive is an aggressive, non-native species which means that they spread readily and overtake native species.  Not a good thing.  We can take advantage of this because it means they are commonly found in many locations.  And by taking their fruit (and their seed), we keep them from propagating.  Two good things.  Their pomegranate, plum-like taste is yet another.



I’m really into texture when it comes to food; it’s as important as flavor to me.  The seed inside the berry gives these fluffy pancakes a nice crunch.


 Mix everything together:
1 ½ c. whole grain pancake mix
2 organic eggs
½ c. hemp milk
1-2 c. Autumn Olive berries
2 Tbspn. honey

Makes 12+ smallish honeycakes, enough for two.




I don’t worry about taking the stems off the berries; all it does is add a little fiber and since you are eating the seed with the berry, you already have a fibrous texture happening.


I don’t add oil to my mix because I prefer to use more in the skillet when cooking to get the grilled exterior.  I love coconut oil for this, being quite liberal with it in the skillet.  These honeycakes are great as they are, or you can add whatever toppings you might like.  I like to top my pancakes with ground flaxseeds to get some Omega 3s.

With the added honey, these cakes are quick to burn, so keep an eye on them.



                                  Enjoy!





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