How To Make Vegetarian Greens Morelle
Greens Morelle is a classic, Italian-American dish that consists of cooked kale or escarole, hot peppers, pancetta, and a creamy sauce made from Romano cheese. Topped with breadcrumbs, it is served either as a side dish or as an appetizer. It's an incredible dish to include on your restaurant or cafe menu. However, since it does contain a small portion of meat, it is not suitable for vegetarians. That's something that can be changed, though. Here's how to make a vegetarian version of Greens Morelle that your guests will still order and enjoy, again and again.
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 pickled cherry peppers, chopped roughly
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 ounces Romano cheese, grated
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1/2 a medium onion, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- a pinch of black pepper
- 1/4 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
- 4 cups shredded escarole or kale
Directions:
Place the olive oil in a skillet. Use a skillet that can go in the oven or under the broiler. Cast iron works well, as can a stainless steel pan without a plastic handle.
Add the cherry peppers and onions, and saute until tender and slightly browned. Add the garlic, and saute gently for one or two more minutes — just long enough for the garlic to cook through.
Next, add the greens, black pepper, kosher salt, and dried oregano to the pan. Stir every 30 seconds or so. The greens should cook down and decrease substantially in volume. Make sure your heat is turned up high enough to keep the liquid from the greens evaporating as it seeps out of them.
When the greens are fully wilted, turn the heat down to low, and add the cheese and Romano cheese to the pan. Keep stirring until the cheese melts and a creamy sauce develops around the greens.
Turn off the heat, and sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the greens. Place the pan under a broiler, and broil for a couple of minutes, just until the breadcrumbs crisp up.
Remove the greens from the broiler, and let the dish rest for about 5 minutes before serving. This will allow the sauce to thicken and better adhere to the greens.
All there is left to do is serve the greens or enjoy them yourself. You won't even notice that the meat is missing from the dish. You still get lots of flavor from the cheese, peppers, and garlic.