With very little effort, search this dish reminds me of a Syrian dish my grandmother used to make with lamb, Swiss chard and chick peas. Collards are an amazing leafy green that are  relatively easy to find in the frozen section of grocery stores all year round in my region. This hearty side is packed with nutrients and deep flavors and can help stretch any meal as a side dish. It keeps well and is great for adding to packed lunches or bentos.

Recipe: Collard greens with chick peas

Makes 10 servings.

• 10 oz fresh or frozen collard greens, chopped
• 1 cup red onion, roughly diced
• 1 15.5 oz (or similar) can of chick peas
• 1 tbsp bouillon
• 1 tbsp olive oil

1. Bring a sauce pan with olive oil up to a low-medium heat and saute the onion.
2. Drain and rinse the chick peas. When the onions are a bit translucent, add the chick peas to the pot.
3. Add the greens to the pot. If you are using frozen greens, you can add them to the pot without defrosting. Add bouillon and stir to mix (break off frozen chunks if you can). Cover the pot and allow to simmer (and defrost) for 10 minutes.
4. Break up any chunks of greens and mix well with the other ingredients. Everything should have let off a bit of water into the pot while covered. Stir to move the liquid around and ensure everything is cooking evenly.
5. When the greens a bit soft but not too limp, and nothing is still frozen, remove from heat.

Serve on the side of any dishes you like. It goes well with curried lentils, eggplant, quinoa, couscous, rice, most any roasted meat, and it would even go well on a sandwich of a good crusty bread with roasted vegetables or deli meats.

See approximate nutrition data for this recipe.