We had a delightful time visiting Cathy and Charlie Thiaville outside Syracuse, NY. Upstate NY is very beautiful. After a tour of Cathy’s business in Utica, we ate lunch at Aqua Vino a local favorite located between the Mohawk River and the Erie Canal. Outside seating overlooks the Erie Canal.
As we looked over the menu Cathy told us we had to have their Famous Greens. This can be ordered as an entree with chicken, but is also offered as a “side” which is how we became initiated into the famous greens experience. This side could have served 6 people! It was delicious and Cathy shared her recipe for Famous Greens.
FAMOUS GREENS… UTICA’S (NY) FAVORITE DISH…
Serving Size: 4-6
Ingredients:
- 2 large heads escarole
- Chicken broth or water, enough to cover the greens when cooking
- ¼ cup of chicken broth for seasoning
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves of garlic, diced
- 2 to 4 hot cherry peppers (to taste), seeded and chopped
- 1 large red pepper, chopped
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1/3 pound prosciutto, sliced ¼ in thick from the deli, chopped into small chunks
- ½ cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs, plus more for topping
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese plus more for topping
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
- Cut off and discard the hard bottom stem from each head of escarole
- Wash escarole thoroughly, remove any damaged leaves, and rough chop
- Place escarole in 5 quart stock pot and fill with enough water or chicken broth to cover greens
- Bring to a boil and cook until tender, about 10 minutes (do not overcook)
- Drain escarole well and set aside
- In a large sauté pan, heat butter and olive oil over medium heat
- Add onions, red peppers, cherry peppers and prosciutto until the peppers and onions are softened, add garlic and cook another 1 to 2 minutes
- In a large pan combine cooked escarole, ingredients from the sauté pan, bread crumbs, grated cheese and chicken broth. Mix all ingredients well. Salt and pepper to taste
- Top with some additional bread crumbs and grated cheese and place under broiler until brown.
Kathy's Notes
Kathy with a K notes...Cathy's with a C recipe is based on Utica's favorite dish... Famous greens. I substituted seeded jalapeno for the hot cherry peppers as they were not available in my grocery store at the time.Cathy Thiaville Via KathyMillerTime
Recipe Printed from www.kathymillertime.com
I am not always a big greens fans as in mustard greens or collard greens. The escarole is just perfect. Escarole is a leafy green from the chicory family with a slightly bitter taste. The greens with the onion, peppers, proscuitto and parmesan makes for a very savory dish.
Thank you Cathy and Charlie for a wonderful visit to your part of the country! We had such fabulous meals and the chartered boat ride on The St. Lawrence River, touring the 1000 Islands was a treat!
And as for the Famous Greens, I think this will become a permanent addition to our meals…especially at the holidays!
Come celebrate with me. I’ll save you a seat at the table.