i grew up in a house where brussels sprouts were not served. this is simply because the mushy-ness of my grandmother’s brussels sprouts [and all her vegetables, really] was legendary, and so scarred my mother that, for years, she believed them to be a nasty vegetable that could not be served any other way. so naturally, my general assumption was that they weren’t so great, which was pretty easy to do during my supermarket shopping years, since they’re not exactly popular there either.

but then one day, i think i convinced myself that if it was a naturally grown vegetable, it couldn’t be inherently bad. i asked around to my midwest friends who ate them a lot more often and heard of these great quick-sauté preparations, leaving them crunchy and flavorful and i got hopeful. better yet, i bought some and tried it out. i’ve grown to love the larger family of brassica vegetables and look forward to trying out new flavors with them.

this garlicky sauté isn’t exactly unique, but it’s very simple and tasty, and allows for a side dish for most any main dish flavor profile.

garlicky balsamic brussels sprouts
about 24 brussels sprouts
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tb olive oil
2 tb balsamic vinegar
2 tb water
salt, pepper & additional balsamic vinegar to taste
optional: juice and zest of one lemon

wash brussels sprouts and drain on a dish towel. add oil, vinegar and water to a frying pan over medium heat, heat through and add brussels sprouts to the pan. cover and let the water lightly steam through the brussels sprouts 3 minutes. uncover, turn up the heat to medium-high and sauté brussels sprouts until they are lightly browned in spots. season to taste with salt, pepper and more balsamic if you like. or zest it up if you have lemon around!

as i was saying last week, we never got much of even a southern california winter this year, so springtime greens are in the markets early. i’ve read about stinging nettles over the years, but never foraged for them or bought any. turns out, it’s not something you do on a whim, since stinging nettles have earned their name from tiny barbs that break easily and dispense histamines and irritants to the skin, it’s best to have gloves, shears and a bowl or bag to collect them with.

so why bother, if they’re so potentially annoying? the irritants are disarmed after a quick blanching, leaving behind a spinach-like green full of vitamin a, c, iron, potassium and calcium, without the oxalic acid in spinach that prevents absorption of many of the nutrients. after you trim the leaves from thicker stems [again, with gloves on] get a pot of salted water to a rolling boil, throw in your cut leaves for a minute or 2, and then dunk in a bowl of cold water. let them drain completely in a colander and you’re ready to either pack them up to freeze or use as a cooked green.

i saw some suggestions to purée and make pasta or gnocchi, so i thought i’d try something similar. i also used the opportunity to try out half-white / half-rye egg pasta, and i like how it came out. one thing you might notice, there is a faint fish-like smell to cooked nettles, but they don’t taste fishy. however, if you’re on the fence about this, make something that compliments it, adding smoked oysters or anchovies.

nettle rye pasta
1 cup all-purpose white flour
1 cup rye flour
2 eggs
2 tb olive oil
1 bunch nettles, leaves blanched, puréed & drained

set up your pasta ingredients in a mixing bowl, spreading the flour to line the bottom of the bowl, cracking the eggs & pouring the oil in the middle with the nettles. use a fork as you would to scramble eggs, and scramble lightly, scooping up a bit of flour on each turn, mixing through, and continuing to incorporate flour until you have a loose crumbly dough. once the fork is no longer truly effective, use your hands to incorporate the dough fully and knead until smooth. let the dough rest an hour in the fridge and then roll it out and/or shape it as you like.

when cooking, note that fresh pasta only take about 2 minutes to cook in boiling salted water.

nettle pasta with lemon pepper feta
1 nettle pasta recipe, above
3 oz feta cheese
zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 tb olive oil
1 tsp pepper, or to taste

bring a pot of salted water to a rolling boil and add the nettle pasta. it will soften up rapidly, stir gently to cook through. after 1-2 minutes, strain out the pasta in a colander, and then place in a mixing bowl.

shake up the lemon juice and olive oil in a dressing bottle or jar and pour over the pasta and toss to coat. incorporate the lemon zest and pepper with the feta cheese until mixed well. place servings of pasta in serving dishes and top with the lemon pepper feta.

so, we never really had much of a winter here in LA, which is why spring greens are appearing mid-winter. a selection of wild greens has shown up at the highland park farmer’s market, including lambsquarters, which you can forage all over los angeles. since i haven’t had any first-hand experience with this edible weed, i thought i’d start by buying it, so i’d have a better sense of what to look for when foraging.

lambsquarters is similar to spinach, and distantly related. it’s got a soft, toothy texture, which would make it a nice addition to salads. the leaves are fuzzy on the under-side, so you’ll probably want to wash them, to minimize this.

lambsquarter breakfast ramekin, serves 2
1/2 bunch lambsquarters
1 medium onion
2 eggs
1 tb butter
1 tb white wine vinegar
1/4 cup water
2 tbs grated parmesan cheese
salt & pepper to taste

preheat oven to 350º if using a large oven, hold off if using the toaster oven.

pull the leaves from the stems of all lambsquarters and wash in a colander. chop the onion and sauté in butter over medium heat until translucent, 5 minutes. add vinegar, water and the lambsquarters leaves, cover and turn heat down to low, wilt the leaves 5 minutes. uncover and sauté until lambsquarters are sufficiently wilted and liquid is cooked down.

place a scoop of the sauté mix into 2 ramekin dishes, crack an egg over each, sprinkle parmesan over the top and bake 20 minutes at 350º, or shorter if you prefer soft-cooked eggs.