Creasy Greens, Wild and Welcome Spring Harbinger

Recent warm days and bright sunshine encourage a vegetable visitor's return to our North Carolina fields and backyards.  Creasy greens, vibrant green leaves that pack nutritional punch along with peppery flavor, are in season.  Beating asparagus by a few weeks, these spring harbingers are delicious wild edibles credited with saving early Appalachian pioneers from scurvy, a disease caused by lack of Vitamin C.

Wild Creasy Greens & Chickweed Make Delicious Omelet

 

 

A walk through my backyard inspired me to gather creasy greens, wild onions and chickweed, a garden nemesis that happens to be delicious.  If you would like to take advantage of "free food" currently available, gather a handful of creasy green leaves, a few wild onions and several sprigs of tender chickweed and try this omelet recipe.  Beginning foragers should always harvest wild edibles with a mentor, but these ingredients are easy to identify and, sadly for those who try to eradicate them from pristine lawns, abundantly available.  

To clean, gently pull outer skin from wild onions and snip roots from bulbs

For other recipe ideas or to learn more about Spring's wild bounty, visit earlier blog posts:
Battle Wild Onions 

Walk and Eat on the Wild Side

For a delicious, wild start to your day, try this omelet recipe for breakfast.
 

Just a few ingredients combine for great flavor

Wild Greens Omelet
For each omelet:
1/2 cup young creasy green leaves and chickweed sprigs
1 tablespoon young wild onion, minced, about 4 onion bulbs and green tops 
1/4 cup grated Gruyere cheese
2 large eggs, beaten 
1 scant tablespoon good quality olive oil
 

Very young leaves require no chopping

In a medium skillet, heat oil over medium low heat.  Add minced onion, toss and cook for no more than one minute.
Pour beaten eggs over onion and scatter greens over egg.
Sprinkle cheese across greens and use spatula to fold omelet in half.
When omelet is set, slide onto serving plate.
*Note:   Taste omelet before adding additional seasoning; I find the salty cheese and peppery greens to be perfect.