Everyone we know succeeds with broccoli in Las Vegas. Except us. With over a dozen plants, we had one small head of broccoli filled with aphids. Not exactly appetizing. But all was not lost: Over the weekend, we pulled the plants and harvested the leaves.
We took any leaves without excess leaf damage. A little damage doesn't bother me (I even think it might mean it's a yummy leaf!) but too much creeps me out. I washed them well, cut off the stems which are
not tasty and shredded the rest for blanching.
I steamed them for 3 minutes until they were limp but still bright green, cooled them in ice water to stop the cooking process, squeezed as much water out as possible and bagged up several servings for the freezer. Broccoli leaves are a bitter green, best eaten steamed or in stir-fry. We like to add ours to pasta with tomatoes and spices or with ravioli. They are not for everyone, but when you grew this many without a single head of broccoli to enjoy, you take what you can get.
We plan to start our broccoli again this fall and overwinter it, in hopes of more broccoli and less insects. Do you think the caterpillars will still love me?
You can read more of Tara's blogging on gardening, food, and family life on her blog,
The Organic Sister.
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