Green'n'Leafies

Green, leafy vegetables, the darker the better, may just be the healthiest things we can eat. I am not a rabbit so I strive to hide, disguise, and otherwise alter green leaves in a lot of my cooking.

Heidi's Hints for Tastier Green Leaves:

• Most salad greens can be eaten cooked.

Sauté mushrooms and add julienned Romaine or other leafy green for a minute or two. Baby Arugula (Roquette) is a great veggie to throw into soup or pasta.

• Hide spinach in strange places.

When making meatloaf or meatballs, whir spinach with the egg and other flavorings in the food processor. The meatloaf will be moister and you'll never taste the spinach.

• Parsley is a vegetable not a decoration.

Use whole bunches of fresh parsley (flat-leaf or curly) to add flavor and color to a pasta dish.

• Cabbage and its relatives only stink if you abuse them.

Do not boil cabbage. You heard me. Do not boil cabbage or Brussels Sprouts or Savoy or any other member of the cabbage family. Sauté, stir fry, steam, roast, or eat them raw. They taste much better and do not smell.

Save boiling cabbage for times when you want to get rid of houseguests.