Bitter greens

"La cicoria rinnova la memoria," intones a voice behind me. I turn around. It's one of the local old women, grey-haired and slightly stooped. Her sturdy brown sensible shoes are worn out from her continual pounding up and down the pavements of the area. As she goes by, she utters  old sayings or quotes from the bible, and sometimes admonishments to passers-by. She punctuates her words with hand gestures. She doesn't expect an answer. She's a familiar figure on the streets.

cicoria di catalogna

Chicory is just one of the bitter leaves Italians are fond of. In Rome a particular dish called puntarelle alla Romana celebrates the bitter shoots snuggled among the leaves of cicoria di catalogna. Preparing the puntarelle takes time and patience, and knife skills to cut the tiny shoots into slivers that will curl in their ice cold water bath, but the final result served in an emulsion of anchovies and vinegar is worth it. 

The cicoria di catalogna is a mighty vegetable. A bunch will yield riches because once the puntarelle are disposed of there are the leaves and stalks to cook. They are often steamed or sautéed with some garlic or a hint of pepperoncino and then served with a dribble of fine olive oil.

But it is also the season of broccoletti (tender stem broccoli) found in large tufts on market stalls and slightly less fresh in the supermarkets where the yellow flowers can often to be seen flowering from the broccoli heads, a clear sign that the plant is past its best. 

Bieta - chard

Or there are the cime di rapa (turnip tops) which are the centre piece of the pugliese dish of orecchiette con cime di rapa. All these greens have distinct bitterish flavours and are all labour intensive in their preparation phases.

Another generous vegetable is the bietola (chard). Its large leaves and fibrous stalks have different cooking times and they must be cooked separately for optimum results. The stalks can be stewed Sicilian style in tomatoes and anchovies while the leaves may be steamed. Maybe because of the time it takes to prepare these vegetables most Italian supermarkets will sell large bags of ready-prepared and ready-cleaned spinach, bietola or cicoria and there is also the mixed bag option.

Then there are the elderly who are trying to eke out their meagre pensions by picking up leaves  in the fields: dandelions, nettles and wild rocket as well as any herbs they can find.

As for our street crier she is constantly encouraging people to eat their greens, "la bieta per la dieta," and with their high water content and low calories they would be perfect for a diet.

Tomato stewed bieta stalks