Peanut Butter & Greens Sandwich
There are peanut butter sandwiches that’ve earned their icon status through years of persistence in brown-bag lunches—I’m thinking of the PB&J, or the PB & banana, or the PB & honey, which is what I ate at school from my packed lunch every single day until I graduated high school—and it’s time for the PB & greens to join their ranks. It requires leaving the comfort zone of sweet, jumping over to savory, but if you’ve ever made a peanut stew or, say, peanut noodles, you know that the savory side of peanut butter is much more vast and interesting than its sweet side.
This recipe is from my new book Start Simple, and features one of the building block recipes from the book, marinated greens. As I explain in the video, the whole idea with marinated greens is front-loading all the labor of cleaning, cooking, and seasoning greens, so that once that’s done, you’re just a couple minutes away from a delicious and nutritious sandwich such as this one.
This video was made by Blake Martin. I’m including the recipe below, too.
Start Simple will be published in less than two weeks, on February 18th—
please preorder it to be the first to receive your copy!
Photo by Cara Howe
Peanut Butter & Greens Sandwich
Makes 1 sandwich
2 slices sandwich bread
3 tablespoons natural peanut butter
Salt, if needed
1/4 - 1/3 cup Marinated Greens (see below)
1 scallion, white green and white parts, thinly sliced
Sriracha
Olive oil or butter
Flaky salt
Spread both sides of the bread with peanut butter and, depending on the saltiness of the peanut butter, sprinkle with salt to taste. Spread the marinated greens over one slice and top with the scallion, and sriracha to taste. Close the sandwich.
Place a skillet over medium heat. When hot, pour in a thin film of olive oil or melt a pat of butter in it. Place the sandwich top-side down and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes, pressing down gently if needed so that it begins to brown. Add a bit more olive oil or butter if the pan looks dry, then flip and repeat. Sprinkle the sandwich with a pinch of flaky salt, slice in half, and serve immediately.
Marinated Greens
Makes about 2 cups
2 bunches (about 1 1/2 pounds) leafy greens: Swiss chard, kale, mature spinach, beet greens, or a combination of any of the above, washed
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 clove garlic, minced
Pinch red pepper flakes, or to taste
Salt
Fresh lemon juice
Trim off and discard the tough stems from the greens. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a wide skillet or saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and stir for about 1 minute, until fragrant. Pile in the greens, in batches if necessary, and add a splash of water (you can also cover with a lid to compress them). Add a big pinch of salt and gently cook, stirring with tongs, until wilted and tender. Cooking times will vary depending on type of green, so watch and taste as you go. If cooking a combination of different greens, cook each type separately. Add a splash of water to the pan if it dries out.
Transfer to a colander to drain and cool until safe to handle. Gently squeeze out excess liquid using your hands or a spatula or wooden spoon, pressing against the side of the colander. Coarsely chop the greens, then transfer them to a medium bowl and toss with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and a few drops of lemon juice. Taste and add more lemon, red pepper flakes, or salt as needed.