My blog wouldn’t be complete without escarole with olives and capers, not only because it’s a light side dish but also because it’s typical of Neapolitan cuisine, though here with much less oil. This recipe dates back quite some time ago when I was given a lot of escarole for a collaboration with Love my Salad and I had to use it up. In fact, instead of using smooth escarole I used a special variety of curly escarole called Avral: delicious!
Escarole, olives, and capers is a delicious vegan side dish that’s very simple to prepare. You can enjoy it freshly made, warm, or even after it has cooled. It’s another example of how easy it is to bring vegetables to the table in a tasty way!
Other recipes with escarole:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 2
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Healthy
- Seasonality: Fall, Winter
Ingredients
- 1.3 lbs smooth escarole (or curly)
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil (2 measuring teaspoons)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1.4 oz Gaeta olives (pitted)
- to taste salted capers (a handful)
- 1 oz pine nuts
- to taste salt
- Total points = 8 WW points
- Points per serving = 4 WW points
Tools
- Knife
- Pot
- Pan
Steps
First, remove the tough part of the escarole, separate the leaves, and wash them thoroughly by immersing them in cold water 3-4 times, changing the water each time. Boil the escarole in a large pot without adding more water, just a pinch of salt: the escarole should just wilt, not cook completely. Once done, drain the escarole well and let it cool. Save some of the cooking water.
Prepare the other ingredients: slice the garlic, halve the olives, rinse and squeeze the capers well, and toast the pine nuts for a minute in a pan. The escarole leaves can be left whole or, once they’re cool enough, you can cut them into pieces. This is especially useful when the escarole is used to stuff savory pies.
In a non-stick pan, sauté the garlic in one teaspoon of oil, and without browning it too much, add the escarole a little at a time. Let it flavor for a few minutes, adding some cooking water if it gets too dry.
When the escarole becomes tender, add the olives, capers, and the second teaspoon of oil. Salt lightly (the capers are already quite salty) and let it flavor for another 5 minutes or so. At the end of cooking, the escarole should be soft but not mushy: it should remain a bit crunchy.
At this point, just add the pine nuts and our escarole with olives and capers is ready to be served. In Naples, raisins are often added too, especially to make fillings, but in that case, you would have to count the extra Weight Watchers points.
Here at home, we really like this side dish, and I make it often. Have you ever made it? I recommend trying it and then let me know if you liked it!
Enjoy your meal!
by Giovanna Buono
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
How long does it keep?
Keep it in a container in the fridge for 3 or 4 days. If you like, you can also just boil the escarole and freeze it in a bag, well-drained. Once thawed, you can sauté it in a pan with olives and capers!
