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Collard Green Preservation

Ingredients:

If you can not make it through a hearty bunch of collard greens before they are past their prime, you can preserve their goodness for use later by blanching and freezing them. Take it a step further and save those stems for making a nutritious easy homemade stock base.

Directions:

Freeze

1. Remove the stems with kitchen shears, a sharp knife, or your fingers. Rinse the leaves then stack in a pile, fold up like a cigar and cut into thin ribbons.
2. Dunk the ribbons in boiling water for 1 minute. With a slotted spoon, transfer to a bowl of ice water.
3. Drain, then lay on a towel to blot dry and place in a zipper-style plastic bag.
4. Label and date the bag and store in the freezer for up to 1 year for best taste.

Make Stock
Cook fibrous stems in water with a whole quartered onion, couple carrots and celery stalks, a few whole cloves of garlic and some black peppercorns for 45 minutes. Use stock for soups, stews and braising recipes.