Greening the table

Cool weather greens and orange squashes now dominate farmers' markets. I'll save the orange ideas for  October and say goodbye to September with the another easy way to fortify your body in all this changing weather with greens that survive it: chard, spinach, kale--and the ever stalwart dill. We can never have enough recipes for these incredibly nutritious, medicinal plants that many people still don't know. Kale, in most of its varied forms, is thought to be, bite for bite, the densest nutritional care package grown and known, yet a friend of mine who constantly eats in the fanciest restaurants never heard of it until last week when her 4-year-old granddaughter confided she liked kale. (The child likes it because it's been mixed in a baggie with olive oil and salt, then baked in the oven at 400º until it's essentially dried into crunchy "chips.")

Greens Ensemble for 6-8 (think of 4 people with leftovers)

Olive oil (enough to cover the bottom of your sauté pan)
1 bunch Swiss chard, thick stems removed
1 bunch spinach, washed, leaves only
1 bunch Tuscan/lacinto/blue kale, thick stems removed
1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
1 large onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 tsp freshly ground or cracked black pepper
a pinch of red pepper flakes
1 tsp Balsamic vinegar
salt to your taste (the cheese will be salty)
4 extra large eggs
1 heaping cup shredded or grated Parmesan, Pecorino or Asiago cheese
1/4 cup breadcrumbs

Heat the oven to 350º. Lightly oil a medium earthenware casserole or glass pie dish.
Chop the greens coarsely.  Cover the bottom of a large sauté pan with olive oil. Heat it over medium flame and add the greens--best a batch at a time until the preceding batch shrinks. Cook about 5 minutes until the greens are wilted, kale will be toughest. Blend in the dill and put the pot contents into the oiled casserole.

Pour a bit more oil in the saute pan and add the onion, garlic, black and red pepper. Cook over medium heat until the onion is soft. Add the pot contents to the greens. Add the vinegar and salt, and blend everything well.

Beat the eggs in a medium bowl. Blend the eggs into the greens.
Top the greens with the cheese, distributing it evenly.
Top the cheese with breadcrumbs.

Bake at 350º about 30-35 minutes or until the eggs are set and the cheese browned.
This should slice into wedges like a pie.

Serve warm, or even at room temperature tomorrow. Serve with pork chops or fried chicken--anything cooked on the grill or stovetop. If you are vegetarian, serve with a bean or chickpea salad. And if there are still fresh tomatoes to be had, everybody serve these greens with a tomato salad for a real blaze of color on your table.